Poker Tells or Pool Tells
- Thread starter Pangit
- Start date
Never play strangers with Budweiser cues.
I worked with a man who was quite a good golfer. He told me that he could tell roughly how well a person played golf by watching him take his driver out of the bag. A few strokes on the pool table can give a lot away. I just talked with someone at the DCC who told a story about overmatching himself. I believe his exact words were, "Well, a couple of shots and I can see the pedigree."
I can give you a negative tell which will indicate that a stranger is either a non-player or a jerk you don't want to bother with. If he gets the box of balls and dumps them hard on the table, I become a non-player. Just there to have a drink. I think I hear my mother calling. Places to go, people to see.
Usually in the poker world the word "tell" means something that gives away the person's psychological condition and how he thinks he stands in the game. The commentators on Accu-Stats often refer to the gait with which the player goes around the table as a major indicator. Closer to poker tells, we all know that Efren scratches the crown of his head when he is in difficulties. Irving Crane scratched his forehead when the balls betrayed him. I play with an opponent regularly who hums when he is at the table. If he stops humming, a temper tantrum is on the horizon.
I can give you a negative tell which will indicate that a stranger is either a non-player or a jerk you don't want to bother with. If he gets the box of balls and dumps them hard on the table, I become a non-player. Just there to have a drink. I think I hear my mother calling. Places to go, people to see.
Usually in the poker world the word "tell" means something that gives away the person's psychological condition and how he thinks he stands in the game. The commentators on Accu-Stats often refer to the gait with which the player goes around the table as a major indicator. Closer to poker tells, we all know that Efren scratches the crown of his head when he is in difficulties. Irving Crane scratched his forehead when the balls betrayed him. I play with an opponent regularly who hums when he is at the table. If he stops humming, a temper tantrum is on the horizon.
Dear Pangit and Texas Poolnut--
I forgot to include this in my earlier e-mail. I once asked a major cue maker, now deceased, if he would make me a cue with a Budweiser butt. (I wasn't trying to hustle. I was trying to keep it from being stolen.) He refused.
Here's a tell: if your opponent plays the "slide shot"--the one in which the cue ball slides two thirds of the way to the object ball and then loses its speed and rolls softly the last foot or so into the object ball stopping quickly despite the fact that it was hit fairly hard originally to overcome possible table roll or indentations in the cloth--well, you know where the cue rack on the wall is.
I forgot to include this in my earlier e-mail. I once asked a major cue maker, now deceased, if he would make me a cue with a Budweiser butt. (I wasn't trying to hustle. I was trying to keep it from being stolen.) He refused.
Here's a tell: if your opponent plays the "slide shot"--the one in which the cue ball slides two thirds of the way to the object ball and then loses its speed and rolls softly the last foot or so into the object ball stopping quickly despite the fact that it was hit fairly hard originally to overcome possible table roll or indentations in the cloth--well, you know where the cue rack on the wall is.
Sweet sound of ball click
You are far from crazy...100 % on the money.
I have my students turn their back and we listen. You can hear the sweet sound of ball click. As we listen I point out what the clicks are and then ask them to identify 1-2-3- and 4 click.....It does not take long for them to identify the players from the bangers through sound.
I can teach almost anyone to hit the ball sweet and to stay in a 1 - 2 click consistently....some take longer than others but they all hit it sweet through stroke technique and ball click.
There is a big difference in sending the cueball 3 rails a distance 9-10-11-12 ft after contact with a 2 click rather than a 3 or 4.
P.S...If you are asking if you can tell a hustler by the sound the answer is no.
I can hit the balls at 4 click every time. it's not pretty.
You are far from crazy...100 % on the money.
I have my students turn their back and we listen. You can hear the sweet sound of ball click. As we listen I point out what the clicks are and then ask them to identify 1-2-3- and 4 click.....It does not take long for them to identify the players from the bangers through sound.
I can teach almost anyone to hit the ball sweet and to stay in a 1 - 2 click consistently....some take longer than others but they all hit it sweet through stroke technique and ball click.
There is a big difference in sending the cueball 3 rails a distance 9-10-11-12 ft after contact with a 2 click rather than a 3 or 4.
P.S...If you are asking if you can tell a hustler by the sound the answer is no.
I can hit the balls at 4 click every time. it's not pretty.
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The break is a giveaway. You can spot a break that's been "Worked on". Very few people bother to practice it, and most amateurs breaks are quite different from pro breaks.
If they glance at their foot position and back hand position, and their eyes are locked on the cue ball, and the sound from the break says "20+ mph" but the cue ball hops then stops like it was 5 mph, that's a guy who can play.
I like the reverse tell. If they have multiple cues and it's a mix of meucci, players, and lucasi... we have a fish sighting.
If they glance at their foot position and back hand position, and their eyes are locked on the cue ball, and the sound from the break says "20+ mph" but the cue ball hops then stops like it was 5 mph, that's a guy who can play.
I like the reverse tell. If they have multiple cues and it's a mix of meucci, players, and lucasi... we have a fish sighting.
^^ I agree with the post above about the break.
Another key tell is consistent pre-strokes. You can tell if someone is calm under pressure based off of consistent pre-shot routine and pre-strokes. I know when I get nervous I get a little less loose; it's something I should work on.
Another key tell is consistent pre-strokes. You can tell if someone is calm under pressure based off of consistent pre-shot routine and pre-strokes. I know when I get nervous I get a little less loose; it's something I should work on.
Good question. Yes, as other have pointed out there is a difference. Creedo is right about the break to. Most amateurs have a ton of glitches in their break and they stand apart from someone who knows what they are doing.
What I find more useful is a chokers tells. Being able to pick up on a persons tendency to dog a pressure shot is a useful tool.
Here is one that I have found to be quite consistent. A person who feels the need to continually explain why he missed is a prime candidate, they choke under pressure more often than not. It's almost as if they were looking for a excuse to loose.
Do you know the type of player I'm talking about? The kind that explains every shot after they miss it. They use excuses like "Man, if the cloth was a little faster that ball would have been in" or " I barely missed it but my leave was perfect." things like that, except they do it constantly.
Bet 'em up! You'll be happy you did.
What I find more useful is a chokers tells. Being able to pick up on a persons tendency to dog a pressure shot is a useful tool.
Here is one that I have found to be quite consistent. A person who feels the need to continually explain why he missed is a prime candidate, they choke under pressure more often than not. It's almost as if they were looking for a excuse to loose.
Do you know the type of player I'm talking about? The kind that explains every shot after they miss it. They use excuses like "Man, if the cloth was a little faster that ball would have been in" or " I barely missed it but my leave was perfect." things like that, except they do it constantly.
Bet 'em up! You'll be happy you did.
After working in a few pool rooms, I could spot a player 2 steps into the front door! 
>They try to clock everyones speed without turning their head, or looking up on the walk from the door to the counter.
>Players generally ask for the tightest/cleanest/furthest from the counter table in the house.
>Players generally concede the counter guy knows "players" on sight in general and will ask you who gambles, or "does anyone here like to play cheap"?.....yea, cheap like $1000/4 ahead?
>In general, the more BS hanging from the cue case, the less the person can play.....ie: towels, keychains, little trolls with fuzz heads, fobs that say "APA 5" first runout!
>For the most part, the most dangerous unknown players who walk into the room......say very little, let you know they will play for more then table time, tip well, and are very courteous to everyone else in the room.
Cool thread BTW.
G.
>They try to clock everyones speed without turning their head, or looking up on the walk from the door to the counter.
>Players generally ask for the tightest/cleanest/furthest from the counter table in the house.
>Players generally concede the counter guy knows "players" on sight in general and will ask you who gambles, or "does anyone here like to play cheap"?.....yea, cheap like $1000/4 ahead?
>In general, the more BS hanging from the cue case, the less the person can play.....ie: towels, keychains, little trolls with fuzz heads, fobs that say "APA 5" first runout!
>For the most part, the most dangerous unknown players who walk into the room......say very little, let you know they will play for more then table time, tip well, and are very courteous to everyone else in the room.
Cool thread BTW.
G.
This is really interesting. I've never heard of this "2 click" or "4 click" way of hitting a pool ball. Although while interesting, I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. Could you explain a little more?
I can usually see someone hit one ball and know if they can play or not. There are exceptions to the rule though. Think Alan Hopkins.
LOL... If I threw my stick helicopter style across the pool room, I'd probably decapitate at least 15 dudes like that.
Is there anyone who didn't go through a phase like that? I know for sure I used to.
They want to you know they really can play, they're just having an off day.
Except in reality it's not an off day, it's a normal day.
Some of the excuses are really baffling too. My favorite: "I hit it too hard" (after they missed the pocket by a foot).
I can't resist saying "No, you missed the shot. Hitting hard doesn't cause the ball to smash into the rail instead of the pocket."
This is gonna be me if I start hustling:
Every undercut ball: "That ball skidded on me, they need to clean these."
Every overcut ball: "I'm not really used to this stick's deflection yet."
Every short bank: "haha these rails are completely dead."
Every long bank: "what's up with these gaffy boingy rails?"
Every cue ball position that runs too long: "They need to replace this cloth, it's worn so thin the cue ball never stops."
Every time I underrun position: "wow, nice mud cloth. They should clean it once a year."
Every time I hook myself "watch out, this table rolls off way to the right on this side."
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This is really interesting. I've never heard of this "2 click" or "4 click" way of hitting a pool ball. Although while interesting, I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. Could you explain a little more?
Probably talking about the click sounds you hear in a typical pool shot, except it's usually three.
- Tip hits cue ball
- Cue ball hits object ball
- Object ball hits back of the pocket
Sounds like tick, tick, clop sort of. Or if they fire 'em in, TICKTICK WHAPPPP.
Yes you can hear when a player is in stroke,.............
Ermond Bullard use to say that all the time when someone was getting into stroke you could just hear it!
David Harcrow
After working in a few pool rooms, I could spot a player 2 steps into the front door!
>In general, the more BS hanging from the cue case, the less the person can play.....ie: towels, keychains, little trolls with fuzz heads, fobs that say "APA 5" first runout!
I used to be a fly fishing guide, and I could tell if a guy fished a lot as soon as he got out of his car. So many tells I won't bother listing them here on a pool forum. Funniest one was this husband and wife team on the West Branch of the Delaware in NY.
They both get out, already impeccably decked out in brand-new (and still dry, must have got dressed at home before leaving) matching Orvis gear, with every gizmo and doohickey ever invented hanging off their fishing vests like abstract Christmas trees. The guy grabs his rod, marches straight to the river bank, and slides on his ass about a hundred feet into the water. He then stands up, soaking wet, and pulls his stream thermometer out to measure the water temp.
Now, they do teach you that at the Orvis school (where he obviously bought the his-and-hers matching gear), but they never told him that West Branch lies below a bottom-release dam, and the water is always about 50°F at that point in the river.
At least they had one of the most popular spots on the WB practically to themselves. The hatch ended about an hour before they arrived, and most of the real fishermen were having dinner at the local tavern.
Anyway, carry on, I just saw your post about the stuff dangling from the cue case and it reminded of this experience.
This is really interesting. I've never heard of this "2 click" or "4 click" way of hitting a pool ball. Although while interesting, I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. Could you explain a little more?
Send me a private message. It's simple stuff..probably easier over the phone.
I think you can tell by the way they walk in or around the room, confident, or by the way they carry their case. kind of like a old west gun fighter. real players have a tendency of recognizing other real players by just making eye contact, before most people even realize there's someone new has came into the room.
Agreed. If someone new walks into your room and they don't look a little apprehensive or cautious, watch out. Especially if they look hungry.
I've always been able to read people real well, since I was a little kid. Must be why there aren't a whole lot of people I call a friend. The friends I do have, have stuck around for a while though.
