Showing your cards

[fstpmper]

Never, never, ever show cards. Nothing could be possibly gained from it that would outweigh the negative.

Showing cards are for fish and drunk middle aged men who have delusions of poker grandeur while drinking alone in their apartments.

 

[rcbstuff]

I don't like to show my cards unless I am forced to by the software. For example another and myself go all in or other reasons. I think when you show your cards you are showing the other player how you play. That's my opinion.

 

[Krk]

Reading this I would think that its rather a not so good idea strategically to show the cards but may be fun.
My very fishy question is how do you show them anyway on FTP, i couldn't find it anywhere.

 

[intiekkeko]

Everybody has there own beliefs on this subject and it is generally a personal thing

me I show playing live sometimes but not very often online I dont think most of the players i'm playing against at the micro limits take notes or pay attention to that stuff

inti

 

[cam84]

i like showin my cards when i bluff because then when i get a good hand they think i'm bluffin gets them everytime....

 

[swingro]

I never show cards. At microstakes ppl do not care what i have and what i am playing. Sometime i show them in tourneys but only when blinds are high. And i only show winning cards like big pairs or flopped flush. Reason why i do not show bluffs is that you have to be a verry skilled player to take advantage of those.

 

[swingro]

Reading this I would think that its rather a not so good idea strategically to show the cards but may be fun.
My very fishy question is how do you show them anyway on FTP, i couldn't find it anywhere.

Automuck is default on FT. Go at Options and uncheck the Automuck option.

 

[Sixes Full]

I show sometimes playing live limit cash games, but never online. Automuck is a must! Saves time and keeps the target off your back.

 

[RamdeeBen]

It really depends on how the table is. It can work positive or negative in both ways. For example I was at a tight table and was showing my raised hands if i didn't get a call, which gave me the opportunity to then bluff some garbage and steal the blinds later on as they respected me as a tight player. Obviously I wouldn't show my cards so they could either believe i forgot or thought i was raising with garbage so couldn't bluff to much. I'd only try the bluff if no callers and had position.

 

[Biggee247]

I dont necessarily show a whole lot. It really depends on the situation. There has been many of times where i will raise the big blind and everyone folds. Then the next hand do the same thing. Then the next hand actually have an hand, in which i raise, and everyone folds. So i will show the big hand, just to make it seem like im not doing it just to mess around, or try and steal the blinds. It really depends on the situation. If you think showing a bluff will make someone call later on with you actually having the winning hand, then go for it.

 

[-----bryce]

when ever u can get your opponent off his game is when u show. mainly in cash games. thats why on tv you seen people trying to bluff hellmuth beacsue when they get the chance to show of a huge bluff against him they know his game gets thrown off and he starts to stem and thats how he usually ends up stuck in huge cash games

 

[WhiteYoke]

Message to all the tricky players who like to show their hands:

I would love to play with all of you at the same table

 

[Kenzie 96]

The main reason to show hands is to express your contempt for the other players at the table.

 

[nabmom]

Never

I don't show my cards when I'm playing online. Ever. I acknowledge that I'm a beginner enough player that being "clever" or trying to put someone on tilt will most likely backfire on me. Mainly I don't want to give away any information that can be used against me. I like the poster who said that they only show when they're paid to show.

I will admit that when I'm playing live, with friends, things are much more casual. But we probably all know each other's ranges already.

 

[Hungerstealth]

I quite often show just one card. For example if I flop semi-strong trips and everyone folds. Just keep it a bit interesting. Guess to a decent player it can be quite easy to work out what I have though.....

 

[konawajim]

lol....My connection is sooooooooo BAD that I can't show unless it's a showdown on Full Tilt. I can on pokerstars but rarely do

 

[Myclymn]

Playing live, I always show when asked.

Then they know . . . and I know they know.

And next we get to see who gets more use out of that.

 

[SavagePenguin]

I'll show in a friendly game, on occasion. Like, if I'm up against CardsChat players and feel sociable I'll show my fun/funny/unusual/monster hands.

In a ring game I pretty much never show. Ring games are always deep stacked (so the environment doesn't change as much) and you bump into the same players, so I just don't want to allow insight into my game.

In tournaments I'll show on occasion, usually really deep or even heads up. It's unlikely that I'll be in the same situation with the same people.
I show for specific reasons.

For example, if I'm heads up and against a really tight player who I can read pretty well, and I see he is weak, I'll shove and then show my K\T or whatever when he folds. Then I'll do it again later with Q\J or whatever.
So either he thinks I'm overvaluing hands and is looking to call me with any Ace, or he at least knows that I'm willing to stick it all in with beatable hands.
I'm basically trying to convince the guy to call me later with his good hand when I have a great hand. I'm trying to convince him to open up his game.

 

[TheUndesirable]

Sometimes show if you're trying to create an image and are then going to play contrary to that image, but if you never show then they can't pick up anything from you, so I never show.

 

[manofthehour]

Showing your cards when you pull off a big bluff might a good thing sometimes because the person might think you dont have anything in aanother hand when you do have something good and they will try and bet a lot. Dont do this often only when you have a big chip stack and its late in the tournament.

 

[sheesho]

Never let them look. The less they know about you the better. also they'll pick up how you bet with certain types of cards


leave them guessing

 

[Krk]

Really depends on how often do you play with your opponents and what do you expect to achieve. It is fun to show and as mentioned here before can put someone on tilt.
I personally dont feel so comfortable with a fancy play like this as a beginner though. It is also maybe more difficult to judge whether to show or not while playing online .

 

[watchtowel]

There's a lot of psychology in poker so sometimes it is a good idea to show. If you want to get action when you have a hand or start someone steaming, showing a big bluff is a good idea. They won't want to be bluffed twice.

Showing your cards doesn't make you predictable. If you know how it will affect the table you can adjust your play to exploit it.