Hello Andy,
Though you will be playing poker, it'll seem that you're playing some other game.
First of all, don't do it if you don't have A LOT of patience. The pace is so much slower than what you are used to (online). In order not to get bored, use the time to observe each and every player very carefully, follow their plays all the way to showdown to get a feel of their tendencies. Don't look at your cards till it's your turn, don't look at the flop when the dealer is putting it out there, instead, look at the players who have to act first and how they react to it (The flop won't go anywhere anyway).
Body language plays a more important role in live games, but it would take a whole "article" to go even through the most common "
poker tells" here. Thankfully, there are a lot of available videos about that on YouTube.
One rule of thumb : In general, people would act strong when weak and vice versa (Reverse psychology applies, beware of the pros).
A few very important tips :
-- Be in a good physical and mental state.
-- No headphones. Pay attention and listen to all the conversations at the table (Valuable info).
-- As a live game newbie, do not socialize, keep the talking to a strict minimum.
-- Try to keep the same posture at all times (You can get up and stretch from time to time).
-- When in a hand and make a bet, do not answer any questions from your opponents, pick a spot on the table and look at it till after they act.
-- Memorize your hole cards, don't go back to look at them again.
-- No matter what your 2 cards are, take the same amount of time before acting whether you're folding or playing them.
There are other technics proper to live games, but it's no need to make this post any longer or boring. I think the above is plenty to start with and experience will do the rest. I hope this will be somewhat helpful. Best of luck...
PS : Beautiful room there. Is that a private club ?
