Cribbage Tells: Five Ways Your Opponents Reveal Their Hand

As someone who's played poker on a somewhat serious level, I'm always interested in seeing the parallels between poker and cribbage appear. One of my favorite connections is what poker players call "tells". While these don't work for the internet game for the most part, in live cribbage, recognizing these tells can give you an extra edge over most of your opponents.

Sorting Cards

This is one that most novice and intermediate players are guilty of, but even some expert players make this mistake. Watch to see if your opponent organizes their cards once they're dealt. If so, you have a candidate for a card sorter. Then, in the first hand, watch to see the order of the cards they pull from their hand. Chances are, they've sorted them by numerical value. This can come in quite useful when trying to determine if your opponent is holding a 5 or an 8 with their board showing 2 6 7, and you're trying to avoid giving them a pair. This is quite a reliable tell, most players have to sort the cards to see their best possible hands.

Leading from a Pair

The quicker the lead, the more likely they're leading from a pair. This is especially true with the more straight-forward players. If you do end up giving a pair royale to your opponent, try and recall the speed they used to lead that pair. Alternatively, some players will deliberately slow down on their pairs in order to entice the pair. I can vouch for this play; I have used it successfully on multiple occasions against shrewd players.

Making a Pair

Following on this rule, the quicker the player makes a pair, the more likely they are to be holding the case card. Do not get carried away with this play, as the probability of the case card being out is quite low. However, it's important to be aware of this tendency, specifically with the straight-forward players. Also, consider your opponent's board position; if they need to be playing aggressively, they're more likely to take the pair without having the case card. Alternatively, if they're playing defensively and don't need the points, and still take the pair, be wary.

Thinking During Pegging

Whenever your opponent goes into the tank while pegging, that means they have a decision between 2 (or even 3) cards. If that's the case, figure out what two (or three) cards they could be deciding between. If they play one of them, plan for them to have the other one during the hand, and peg accordingly. This is a fairly reliable tell, especially if you're playing against a traditionally fast player, and not one who just likes to dream when the count's 17.

After a Go with Cards to Play

If your opponent has to think at all if you say go on a count of 27, then it's obvious they have two cards of 4 or less. This not only helps you know one of their cards, it's very helpful in identifying the rest of their hand. Of course, once you identify the rest of their hand, you can plan your pegging accordingly.

Know Thyself (and Your Opponent)

It goes without saying, all of the advice above is depending on your opponent. In addition, you should always be on the lookout for things that your opponent might be doing to give away their hand. I know a player in my club that always taps his cards when he discards strong cards into his crib. Likewise, scrutinize your own mannerisms, and make sure you're not giving away a reaction when the cut cards is made, or when you're discarding to the crib. Cribbage is a game of minor edges, and the more minor edges you can gain, the more playoff rounds you'll attain.