I’m always amazed at the number of players who discount poker tells.  There are those who claim they don’t work while others declare that they only need to look at their hold cards.  Many poker tell skeptics view tells as some sort of pseudo mysticism, a supernatural claim, equivalent to psychic readings and ghost hunters.

The skeptics of tells are usually the ones who tense up the most or overreact to players trying to use tells to read them.  About a year ago a player at my table got so upset with me for watching him during a tournament that he covered his cards and threw all his chips in the middle, glaring back at me and challenging me to “read that”.  Unfortunately for him, the player two seats after him looked at his hold cards and found a pair of smiling aces.  That player replied, “I don’t have to, I call.”  The angry skeptic was gone 5 cards later.

I think poker tell skeptics are blinded by their own ignorance of the term and its use.  Because they don’t understand the term or use, it is relegated to the realm of magic and luck.  I've even seen players that deny poker tells as a tool use a “tell” during a game to gain an advantage.  They didn't realize it because they were simply paying attention to the other players. Many poker tells are simply that, paying attention and utilizing what you learn at opportune times. 

The other type of “poker tell” skeptic is the former user of tells who has been burned by bad reads and now has sworn them off.  These players are usually rocks, set in their style, believing that there is only one way to play.  They get mad if someone calls them with a “weak” hand and moan in pain at every bad beat.  These players have given up on tells because they aren't 100% reliable.  They are looking for one answer that always works!  When that player discovers that there isn't one answer, they throw away any tools that fail them along the way instead of learning to use those tools with better skill. 

I've seen similar behavior from people who don’t know how to utilize modern technology.  First is the argument, they didn't need it before why should they use it now.  When they tentatively try out the new smart phone or computer, their ignorance fuels frustration and every failure is the proof they need to support the argument that they don’t need that or technology is stupid.  I certainly am guilty of this type of behavior when I bring home a product with the dreaded, “Some assembly required.” on the package!