“[Verbal Poker Tells is] a veritable encyclopedia of ways in which poker players reveal information when they open their mouths.”
– Andrew Brokos, pro poker player, co-host of the Thinking Poker Podcast
“This book needed to be written, and it will never need to be written again. On behalf of all poker players, I thank you, Zach, for compiling this treasure of profitable content.”
– Tommy Angelo, pro poker player, author of Elements of Poker
Purchase Verbal Poker Tells
You can’t get the paperback on my site but you can get it on Barnes and Noble or Amazon.
Buy Verbal Poker Tells ebook, $26
This package includes Verbal Poker Tells in all major ebook formats:
• PDF
• EPUB
• Kindle
The book is yours, forever, with no digital rights restrictions. EPUB is the recommended format. If you have a Kindle, you can easily forward to your Kindle email address to get in your Kindle library. I don’t sell the paperback on my site, but you can get it on Amazon.
About the author
My name is Zachary Elwood. I’ve played poker seriously since 2003 and played as my main source of income for three of those years. I’m the author of three books on poker tells: Reading Poker Tells, Verbal Poker Tells, and Exploiting Poker Tells.
I’ve worked as a poker tells consultant for two World Series of Poker “November Niners” (i.e., WSOP Main Event final table players). I’ve written poker strategy articles for such publications as Bluff Magazine, PokerNews, and All-In Magazine. I’ve conducted live poker tells seminars in Las Vegas during the WSOP.
In 2015, I released a poker tells video training series called Reading Poker Tells Video.
More reviews
“An invaluable resource for live play.”
– Casey Diener, professional poker player
“If you work through the comprehensive examples you will get ten years worth of poker experience in a few days… an invaluable empirical treatment of an important source of live poker edge.”
– Aaron C. Brown, author of The Poker Face of Wall Street
“Useful for both amateurs and seasoned pros… Elwood’s follow-up book breaks down verbal behaviors into simple-to-grasp concepts that can easily be applied.”
– Paul Gordon, semi-professional poker player
“Elwood delves deeply into both the content of players’ speech (what they say) and the manner in which they deliver their statements (how they say it), ultimately providing much insight for those looking for help deciphering the meaning of all of those declarations, questions, and other chatter coming from their opponents during hands.”
– Martin Harris, poker player and writer for PokerNews
“Just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate the [verbal poker tells information]! I play 2-5 NLHE a few times a week and the last time I played, I absolutely saw and used some of the tells that you described. It’s so fun studying and then putting it to use live. Thank you.”
– David McPherson, poker player
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What makes this book worthwhile?
You might be saying: “I’ve read a few books on poker tells—why would I need a whole book just on verbal behavior?”
This book is completely unique—there has never been another book focused solely on verbal behavior. While other poker tells books (including my first one, Reading Poker Tells) mention a few verbal patterns, there has never been a book to really delve deeply into this subject matter.
Verbal Poker Tells took me nine months to research and write. I had no intention of it taking me that long. When I first started on the book, I thought I knew what I was going to write about and thought it would be fairly short. But as I continued to research and take notes, more and more interesting patterns stood out to me, and the work grew.
This is why this book is almost four times as long as my first book Reading Poker Tells, and why it costs more. It includes 40+ specific verbal patterns, chapters on manipulation and information-gathering tactics, and many, many real hand histories to demonstrate its points.
About the book
Verbal Poker Tells is 440 pages long in paperback format and comes in a bundle of all the popular ebook formats: PDF, EPUB, and Kindle.
Here are just a few of the subjects included in Verbal Poker Tells:
♠ A general theory on during-hand talking
♠ Factors influencing a player to tell the truth and lie about their hand strength
♠ The meaning of defensive statements from players who want to slow down action
♠ Differentiating loose, relaxed talk from more-restrained, shorter talk
♠ “I’ll show you” and what it can mean
♠ Calling for cards and what it can mean
♠ Information-gathering techniques, such as asking questions
♠ Expressing irritation or anger and what it means in different situations
♠ Recognizing deception
♠ Understanding statements like “I’ve got a good hand”
♠ Understanding verbalizations of “check,” “call,” and “bet”
♠ Recognizing genuine enjoyment in an opponent’s smile or laughter
Table of Contents
Below is the complete table of contents from Verbal Poker Tells.
- Introduction
- A Theory on During-Hand Talking
- Deception and Truth-Telling
People dislike lying • Indicators of truth-telling • Levels of deception • Weak-hand statements • Strong-hand statements • Truthful strong-hand statements from bettors • Bluffers who use strong-hand statements • False tells and reverse psychology • “Outside of game” deception • Summary - Misdirections
- Defensive Statements
- Significant-Bet Verbal Patterns
Talkativeness and silence • Loose and emphatic speech • Strange statements • Laughing and smiling • Levity • Irritation with an opponent • Irritation with a hand or situation • Uncertainty, concern, and confusion • Goading • Breathing, coughs, and audible utterances • Immediacy of response • Statements relating to betting • Counting out chips when betting • Statements about hand strength • “I’ve got a good hand” on non-final rounds • Discussing own range of hands • Showing a card • Last-second statements to discourage a call • Last-second statements to encourage a call • Expressing strength with slight weakness • Statements related to an opponent’s hand strength • “I’ll show you” • Relief when bets aren’t called immediately • Referring directly to opponents • Speech errors - General Verbal Patterns
Statements related to checking • Statements related to calling • Statements about an opponent’s call • Comments about board cards • Genuine irritation • Impatient statements • Sudden silence when new cards arrive • Clarification of the situation • Immediately asking “How much is it?” • Hints and clues • Expressing concern about stronger hands • Probes with action left • Calling for cards - Information-Gathering and Manipulation
“Will you show if I fold?” • Direct questions about hand strength • “Show me a card” • “What do you think I have?” • Humorous and social questions • Asking about bets or chip stacks • Deal-making • Gathering information after the hand • Image-building methods • Berating opponent play • Subconscious commands - Review
Final thoughts - Appendices
Appendix A: Criticism of using televised poker footage • Appendix B: Difficulties in interpreting verbal behavior • Appendix C: Round of betting as factor in verbal behavior • Appendix D: Outside-of-game deception • Appendix E: Recommended books • Connect with the author