I cannot tell you that quieter is universally more profitable than louder. I cannot tell you that stillness always beats motion. I cannot tell you that less is always more. But I can tell you a story.
I used to shuffle chips until my hands got sore. My legs pulsed so much that my shoes had predictable wear patterns like a poorly aligned car. I have embedded myself at one casino for months or years at a time and talked so much at the table that I was a welcoming committee, table captain, and waitress translator all in one. And with all that movement, and all that talking, I was still able to support my food and rent habit from my poker winnings because I was still way, way ahead of my opponents in the information war, because of what I didn't do, and didn't say, and when.
I didn't show hands. I didn't talk about hands. I concealed elation and disappointment. When it came to information, I was wide open about everything, except the poker game. I learned to play that way because whenever I went to Vegas in the early years, I ran into two kinds of players: the ones I was afraid of and the ones I wasn't. Naturally I paid most attention to the players I feared most. The conspicuous thing they all had in common was this uncanny way of looking like they didn't give a shit. And it scared the shit out of me. So I copied them and I learned their skills. And the more I did what they did, the more I realized that what I had learned from my teachers was how to play what I call sixth street.
Sixth Street
Sixth street starts when the betting stops. Sixth street is when players relax, which is why it pays not to. Reciprocality.
Sixth street is when statues become fountains. While playing the turn and river, the players are stoic, doing their best to give up as little information as possible. And then, as soon as the betting stops, their parts start moving, broadcasting information about their thoughts, their feelings, and their cards. Sixth street is when players let their guard down, as if all of a sudden it's safe to reveal classified secrets to the enemy. It's like they don't even know the war is still going on.
In the stream of information, sixth street is a reliable place to pan for gold."
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Reciprocality: The Cause of Profit at Poker
And I quote :
"My Teachers
I cannot tell you that quieter is universally more profitable than louder. I cannot tell you that stillness always beats motion. I cannot tell you that less is always more. But I can tell you a story.
I used to shuffle chips until my hands got sore. My legs pulsed so much that my shoes had predictable wear patterns like a poorly aligned car. I have embedded myself at one casino for months or years at a time and talked so much at the table that I was a welcoming committee, table captain, and waitress translator all in one. And with all that movement, and all that talking, I was still able to support my food and rent habit from my poker winnings because I was still way, way ahead of my opponents in the information war, because of what I didn't do, and didn't say, and when.
I didn't show hands. I didn't talk about hands. I concealed elation and disappointment. When it came to information, I was wide open about everything, except the poker game. I learned to play that way because whenever I went to Vegas in the early years, I ran into two kinds of players: the ones I was afraid of and the ones I wasn't. Naturally I paid most attention to the players I feared most. The conspicuous thing they all had in common was this uncanny way of looking like they didn't give a shit. And it scared the shit out of me. So I copied them and I learned their skills. And the more I did what they did, the more I realized that what I had learned from my teachers was how to play what I call sixth street.
Sixth Street
Sixth street starts when the betting stops. Sixth street is when players relax, which is why it pays not to. Reciprocality.
Sixth street is when statues become fountains. While playing the turn and river, the players are stoic, doing their best to give up as little information as possible. And then, as soon as the betting stops, their parts start moving, broadcasting information about their thoughts, their feelings, and their cards. Sixth street is when players let their guard down, as if all of a sudden it's safe to reveal classified secrets to the enemy. It's like they don't even know the war is still going on.
In the stream of information, sixth street is a reliable place to pan for gold."