Poker Trash Talk Lines

Talking trash while playing poker is certainly not newsworthy in and of itself. It happens all the time and is often included in the repertoire of a number of players. One such player is Finnish pro Ilari 'Ilari FIN' Sahamies, who has a reputation for trash talking - and has stated previously that he's aware that he sometimes goes overboard. Blocking the banter out can be difficult, if not impossible. Poker, at its core, is a complicated game of bullshit. Players lie and lie again, and the more upset you are by trash-talking, the less.

The “good ol’ days” when poker games were mostly quiet and played by people with the proverbial “poker faces”seems to be gone, with the influx of “trash talking” both in online and in live poker games.

The question being asked by many players is whether trash talking works or not.

The Emergence of Trash Talking

Trash talking is a natural part of poker, mainly because it is a game which involves equal parts psychology and bluff: rattling your opponents is always a good thing, especially if it pushes them into making mistakes. The activity is kept under control during live games, however, because it is not unheard of for fights to break out between players or, as in many Westerns or gangster movies, for people to start shooting over a bad hand or an uncalled for remark.

Trash talking appears to be a commonplace event in today’s casinos and poker rooms. Some observers attribute it to the popularity of online poker – of which many players “graduate” to live games, carrying their internet playing habits with them. Online poker players are used to playing alone or with themselves so they usually pace around and talk to themselves. Moreover, people who are quite verbose in online games (players online converse through chat boards in the online casino) have a hard time getting out of the habit of using “talk” to distract their opponents.

Whereas online, other opponents can merely tune out such talk (by closing the chat window), it’s harder to tune out talk during live games.

The other culprit they point to is television coverage of poker games, such as the World Series of Poker with some players actually playing to the camera. They note that the objective remains the same – to rattle the other players into making mistakes – but the camera picks this up and makes it seem that it is all right to do so, which gets the practice perpetuated.

But Does It Work as Part of Your Poker Strategy?

Experts are divided on the matter, usually saying that it depends on the players at the game – and whether you’re playing online or live.

In general, experts believe that trash talking online doesn’t really work – mainly because it is an anonymous game played over the internet, and ‘trash talk’ is limited to online text messages that are easy to ignore. More importantly, the action goes swiftly at online poker games – cards are dealt swiftly, people raise or fold just as fast, and hands are over and done with in minutes – leaving little time or opportunity for all-out trash talking.

Focus is important in online games. This is the main reason why most attempts at trash talk or rattling your opponents with words seldom works.

Poker Trash Talk Lines Online

Live games, on the other hand, are another matter. Some people are definitely affected by trash talkers to the point of losing their focus on the game. Nevertheless, experts note that the more experienced or top caliber players are not easily sidetracked.

Veteran poker players cannot easily get rattled because they’ve “been there, done that” and they’ve learned their lessons early on. If and when they lose in a game with a trash talker, bad cards, rather that the trash talk is generally the reason.

In the end, most experts advise caution when trash talking at a live poker game as a poker strategy. At best, you’ll weed out the ‘weak’ players but you’ll end up playing with those who are not affected by your antics who may just be tempted to make you lose your stack and to make you eat your cards to shut you up.

Whether you play your poker online or at a live table, you’ve no doubt met a few trash-talkers. The philosophy behind talking trash is simple – if you talk enough, you get under a player’s skin and put them on tilt. The poor decisions some players make when they’re the target of malicious insults or other attacks are at the heart of trash-talking strategy.

But is talking trash a legitimate strategy, or is it just poor poker etiquette?

An early example of the power of trash talk comes to us from the Biblical story of David and Goliath. Before defeating the giant Goliath, the otherwise-meek David issued the following challenge: “I will strike you down and cut off your head.” We know how that one ended.

Famous Poker Trash Talk

The two best-known trash talkers in poker are Tony G and Mike Matusow. Both of these guys have used their loud mouths and gift of gab to get inside the heads of opponents. Here’s an example of Tony G roughing up Ralph Perry both before and after he knocks him out of play. As for Matusow – his best work happens away from the table.
What do we learn from these guys and other poker players who use smack talk as a psychological tool?

Trash-Talking Can Be Effective

It doesn’t matter if you prefer online poker or live games – you can chat and talk smack in the online game as much as you can at a live table. The next time you’re in a microstakes poker game online, watch how people talk to each other in chat. The goal here is simple – to intimidate fish into giving up all their money. It works, too – it’s why most players choose to just turn the chat function off.

We know smack-talking works. Look at this five point plan for dealing with trash talk put out by a sports psychologist working for Arizona State University. The university spent a little scratch researching, printing, and distributing this program – they wouldn’t have done that unless trash talk really does work.

Poker Trash Talk Lines Free

But It Doesn’t Always Work

Poker Trash Talk Lines Dirty

Dr. Jonathan Katz, the same clinical sports psychologist who put together that report for ASU, suggests that talking trash could impair a person’s overall performance. In an article in Psychology Today, he said that trash-talking athletes are “… are putting time and energy into something that distracts them from playing their best.” He went on to say that his research found that the most intimidating factor on the playing field is simply “playing well.”

For every instance where Tony G talked an opponent into making a dumb play, there’s an example of him losing his concentration and going on tilt all on his own, and making an even dumber move than his opponents would.

And it’s Mostly Just a Distraction

Effective trash talk can win you some specific advantages in poker. The best a trash-talker can hope for is to force a better player at his table to make a move that’s bad enough that the player is removed from the competition. But how productive will this player be while he’s trying to set the admittedly-superior player on tilt?

Anything in your game that takes the focus away from the game, or saps your energy, or removes your ability to concentrate is a –EV proposition. Talking smack may sound cool, and it may give you a rush of adrenaline, and (every now and then) you may take out some of your competition with it, but it’s still a poor thing to concentrate on, especially in the complex world of poker.

So what can we do this information about trash talk? I say talking trash is a totally valid play in some cases – if you want to talk trash. It’s not mandatory. In fact, the more you can avoid it, the more effective you’ll be as both a player and a trash-talker.

When to Talk Trash at the Poker Table

Poker Trash Talk Lines Line

From what I’ve read while researching this post, it’s acceptable to talk trash as long as it is authentic, not a personal attack, and not something that distracts you from your game. If all those things are true, you have my permission to talk a little bit of trash in any of the following situations:

After a bad beat
If you let loose a spontaneous string of not-so-nice words aimed at no one after a bad beat, absolutely no one at the table is going to blame you. If you want, go ahead and aim some of that vitriol at the other guys around the table. Again – they’ll understand, and if it makes you feel better, it’s worth it.

After sucking out on a good player
Most of us can’t help but put down the player that you sucked out against – especially if they’re ahead of you in the chip count or are obviously a better player. Remember, part of the goal here is to try to push that player into making future mistakes or acting on tilt, so do your best, just don’t get too personal.

To put an obviously-shaky opponent on tilt
One example of this is to talk a little smack to a player who just lost out on another hand. The goal is simple – to force them to make more bad plays by getting under their skin. Tread lightly in this area, as you’re likely to make some enemies, especially if your tactic is successful.

Against a bully.
No one will care if you beat up on a big stack holding bully. The goal of this kind of trash talk is to get the bully to call when you have a good hand – your trash talk will basically bully the bad guy into chasing you when you hold a good hand to prove you wrong.