One reason smarter, talkative players will talk/interact with opponents is not necessarily to get opponents talking, it's to gauge any sort of reaction.
One of the major ways Kassouf's behavior (and similar behaviors) can induce behavioral tells is this:
Players are less likely to show annoyance or express frustration when they're holding weak hands; this is especially true for bluffers.
This doesn't mean much in one hand, in a vacuum, but if you're playing with the same players over the course of a day or two, it can create some easy-to-spot patterns. An example of how this could play out to Kassouf's advantage:
Kassouf's opponent bets the river. Kassouf rambles verbally for a while. If his opponent expresses agitation/anger (examples: staring at Kassouf, verbally interacting with him in an angry way, getting an angry facial expression), it's become more likely that player is betting with a strong hand.
If his opponent instead acts conciliatory/neutral, and if this is an opponent Kassouf knows doesn't like his act, it has become more likely that player is weak.
Obviously this is very general but it can definitely play a role when you're able to play quite a few hands and get a sense of how agitated/frustrated an opponent lets himself be with you during a hand. This is the main way an act like Kassouf can reap rewards, and it's not an obvious way. I've seen many people focus on the fact that nobody was responding verbally to Kassouf's rambling, but it seems many people miss the point that there are reactions and behavior other than verbal stuff that talking a lot (and generally being annoying) can induce.
I haven't seen the Griffin Benger hand where Kassouf busts out but I've heard it involves Benger berating Kassouf as it's Kassouf's turn to act, and Benger has AA and Kassouf has KK. Obviously it's almost impossible to fold in Kassouf's spot, but if I were Kassouf I'd think that Griffin choosing that spot, of all spots, to express his frustration/anger would make it much more likely Benger was strong and relaxed. If Benger had a hand like AK or a pair QQ or lower, or a bluff, I'd predict he would have kept quiet here. Here's the hand history:
http://www.pocketfives.com/articles/...history-592625 Just one example.
And I think this is a factor of Hellmuth's play that is not often talked about. Hellmuth, I have no doubt, is good at sussing out when someone is more willing than usual to express frustration/agitation when Hellmuth rants at them a bit. (I know Hellmuth doesn't always do this, but I do think this is one reason why he was motivated to act that way in the first place, alongside the other obvious factors of Hellmuth wanting media attention and him being emotionally volatile.)
Last edited by apokerplayer; 10-24-2016 at 11:13 PM.