Table Talk
At a live poker online table, there is always lots of chatter and banter going on. Players kid each other about their online pokerhands, and comment on each other’s play. However, there are protocol rules pertaining to talk at the table which must be followed regarding a player’s hand. When there are more than two players contesting the pot, it is considered a violation to speculate out loud about what a player’s hand, including one’s own, might be. For instance, a player in a three-way contest may react to a raise with “Did you hit your straight?” This comment is suggestive and might actually enlighten another player who did not observe the possibility of the straight. It offers information that each player should deduce on their own. A player who makes this type of comment in a multi-way pot will be reprimanded by the dealer, and usually by other players at the table. (Poker may be a game of deceit and thievery, but poker onlineplayers tend to be sticklers about protocol.) The rule is different in heads-up play, when it is fine for the players to ask questions or make comments about each other’s hands. Since there are no other players to influence, heads-up players are free to say whatever they want about the hand in play as they contest the pot. Most online poker rooms prevent out-of-line comments about hands and the board simply by disabling the chat function when a hand is in play.
