I don't think I get called down any more or less because of how friendly I am. My friendliness hopefully gives me more information and better reads on my opponents both about their overall style of play as well as during a hand so that I can make better decisions.

One reason that I do better at live poker than online poker is that I can read hands based on tells and information I know about the individual.

For instance one regular in the game told me: "I'd never have called your all-in there because I'm up $200 and I wouldn't want to risk my winnings plus my stack with just one pair". Whereas he called my all-in with JJ (I had QQ) on an AKX flop when he was losing. He is there 90% of the time I play in the game, so obviously this information helps me know when / how much to value-bet or bluff him. Because we're friendly I don't even necessarily have to remember how much he's up or down, I can just casually ask him and he'll tell me. He's rich and he plays poker just like you'd play golf. He wants to play well, but if he spends $50/hr on average, it's worth it for the enjoyment.

Bull****!

+1

+1

+1

+1 I do this sort of stuff, if you don't have the ability to hone in at the right times and focus when you need to, it's a skill set you lack. In all high level sport (I played a professional level of cricket here in Australia), we are taught to switch off when don't need to be switched on. Allows you to be able extend your sessions as you are much less tired as being focused all the time on high alert is tiring.

Sure, after a while they will realise they shouldn't be playing, but while they are, they will want to play with you. You have to understand that recreational players are there for recreation. If they sit at a table and it's serious, 5 guys with sunglasses and hoodies, that is not recreation for them. They are there after a stressful week at work, to get away from wife, have a few drinks, eat, watch some sport and have some fun. Not to feel like they are swimming around with poker sharks.

+1 Mill

Nope. I can't even quantify how wrong it is.

So ludicrously untrue that I wonder if you're trolling.

I'm a former top martial artist (4th in the world at my best, still in top 200) and never hated the opponents whom I was literally beating up. Most of my opponents were/are guys I respect, and a great many of them friends with whom I would hang out and drink beer after tournaments.

Even during the tournaments, I was friendly except during the actual combat. Then I got really focused.

I approach poker the same way. I don't chat while I'm in a hand, but otherwise I'm friendly. I guarantee that the ROI for the effort that takes is way more worth it than the tiny bit of extra attention I might be able to pay if I weren't doing it. Just like any poker skill, it takes practice, but you are a crap poker player if you just say "it's hard, so I'm not going to do it."

+1 I'm focused in the hand, I don't talk I take much time and think but when just folding I'm super social.

Agree with this post Garick, massively!

Cheers Mac

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This. It's also gotten me invited to home games with a bunch of 40-60 year old business men blowing money when I was a young 20 something. They'd call me Johnny Stacks cause I always had a huge stack of chips which was their money, they loved it and joked all the time. Plus significantly less rake, free beer and food.

To clarify: I treat everyone with respect, on & off the table. I'll never be unfriendly to anyone. I just enjoy keeping to myself & staying focused when I play. I feel at peace when I get in that zone, it's fun for me.

This disagreement is a result of different priorities. There's only 2 things I care about when I play: Getting better & making the best decisions possible. That's bc I don't have as much experience as most of you. On a scale of 1-100 (100= Phil Ivey), my game is still a 5 at best.

I don't care about making $$ bc as I improve the money will come. If others play their best game vs me bc I'm serious, that'll just bring my game along even faster. Keeping the fish happy doesn't motivate me, there will always be fish @ the lower stakes.

One day I'll be on this forum echoing everything you guys have said, but I'm not able to do that yet

What makes you say that?

Just be yourself (unless you are naturally unpleasant)

I am outgoing and live poker is so boring when you are not in hands etc. that I would just wilt away and die if I was sitting there all serious. It also helps me pass time when I am card dead for long stretches. I will talk to anyone and everyone. I am a recreational player but also consider myself very competent for my stakes. Not every recreational player is a complete fish. Some of us just love and enjoy playing the sport. I have a friend who is even more outgoing. He will tear apart an entire table but still keep everyone entertained. If that's not your personality then don't try to fake it. Just be polite and smile and you will be fine.

That surprised me about the UFC. I was thinking those guys all hated each other wanted to kill one another. Then I came to find out that there's a ton of respect between the fighters. They all seem to like each other when they're not fighting.

As a fan, I like the Ronda Rousey/Meischa Tate dynamic where they play up the dislike for the cameras; but I understand the friendliness between fighters.

A lot of top mma guys get humbled in the gym daily. There is always someone better than you in one form of mma. You can be the best Jitsu guy in the world, but your muy Thai is meh.. So you get humbled there, over and over and over.. Your ego goes away.

So they have less ego and respect the grind their opponents are going through, as they are in the same boat.

Yeah, the idea that all great champions hate their opponents is just flat out wrong. Even if you can't relate being competitive in sports/games with friends/people you respect to your personal life, think about famous rivalries in sports. Did Magic Johnson and Larry Bird hate each other? Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio? Federer and Nadal?

Richard Pryor and Chevy Chase hated each other.

Fair enough, OP.
Lots of excellent advice in this thread, but you don't have to use it.

So that just leaves you with being AWARE of the implications of your serious, young kid image. There is no point in complaining about your image if you aren't prepared to do anything about it.

If people are going to play back at you, or call you down lighter because they suspect you may be making moves and FOS, then obviously you need to account for that.

Making bluffy looking overbets in suspicious spots when you are nutted might get you payed off more often by the table sheriff, etc.

And try to have fun, anyway, even if it doesn't look like you are to the rest of the table.

Richard Prior and fire hated each other.

Being a poker pro you must provide entertainment for the crowd (if you are a true success). Being a quiet studious type doesnt go over well. Try not to be that guy.

If your demeanor provides nothing but sullen - quiet yet very good poker playing, then you are boring to be around. The fish who want fun loving crowds will avoid you. This is obviously not a good thing.

They probably would if one of them is in the way of paying rent.

We are using these "champions" as examples, but in reality, we are mostly playing with chumps in poker.

Champions understand the game, and they don't go berserk over losses.

Chumps do not win often, and they use every excuses in the book to blame someone or something else, hence they remain chumps.

So ya...it is more complicated than that.

Please adjust to your surroundings ...

If you are new to the game then stick to yourself until the opportunities open up to start a dialog. Set up your image for the day based on what you 'feel' is going on, both with yourself and the other players.

If you are going to be a reg in a reg game (little turnover like casino) then you will need to become 'part of the family' one way or another. I tend to be much more social in a reg game than casino since people in general want to interact with someone they see on a 'regular' basis, otherwise they do become more 'the enemy', regardless of style. With unknowns I tend to not offer information or even shuffle chips so they don't know I'm experienced as much as I am. That only 'holds water' for so long and since even in a casino there are regs who will remember you so information starts to leak out.

I have 4 or 5 opponents who I just will 'never' give chips to because of the way they handle themselves at the table. One of them recently went 88 minutes with a VPIP=0 in a 1-2 game!! Most regs are there to play the game and want to enjoy the action whether a winning or losing session.

I find that opponents will 'have it out for you' much more if you show up floating 4-7 than if you are quiet or social. GL

alright guys I'm convinced. Going to try to be my normal self off the table today. I'm usually outgoing and fun to be around off the table but on the table I've warped into a different kind of person, maybe it's because I've still played many more hands of online poker compared to live, who knows.

Anyway I'm gunna try to be friendly AND play well in my session today. Will report back to this thread with results

If any of you guys play at MD Live and you see one of the regulars in the 2/5 games (mid 20s, white kid, wearing a grey hoodie today, who is usually quiet and the whole table hates him, also I get more massages than most of the regs) being friendly at the tables today. That's gunna be me.

Jus sayin

not sure if this relates to too many others here

i think my leak is, while i'm fine with smiling and occasional chatter, i prefer not to go out of my way to make many friends/acquaintances in a casino because i tend to not play my A game vs them afterwards. it's much easier for me to zone in vs people i have no personal affiliation with, or randoms....

edit - lol i just grunched and then reread the thread, saw that another poster felt same way

thats what I've been trying to SAYYYYYYYYY this whole time! lol where were you when i was getting my soul berated on the last page?

seems to me if we have this leak then we should accept it and find a middle ground somewhere... still trying to improve in this area (never was a social bird to begin with)

you know what I like about random trolls who derail otherwise constructive discussions with uncalled for negativity?

absolutely nothing

GTFO imo

dude it's sooo hard to be nice to people while 3betting or barreling at the same time...either it's just a select few people who suffer from this, or the rest of the posters ITT are a bunch of bitter passive nits who we exploit while playing well, lol