There are different poker personality types based on the play strategy they use to win, including the Fish, Shark, and Maniac
Poker players have different personalities based on their style of play and strategy. The main types that you are likely to find at the poker table are Sharks, the Rock, the Fish, and Bingo Players. They can also be categorized as tight-aggressive, tight-passive, loose-aggressive, and loose-passive.
Personality Types by Strategy
Bingo Players
In fact, they have no strategy whatsoever which is why they are called chancers, newbies, and noobs. It is a derogatory term that pros use for players who rely on good fortune and pure luck. They are inexperienced and hard to call or read because they play by impulse.
The Rock
This is one of the most annoying types of poker personality to play against. They only focus on premium hands as to increase their chance of winning and only play queens, kings, and aces. The good news is that they are easy to spot as they just sit through hands. As they are mainly interested in limiting losses, what other players can do when they raise is to fold.
The Maniac
This is a player with aggressive tactic who will raise and play almost any hand. They often bluff and may put the table on tilt. They are the exact opposite to Mr. ABC Poker who follows the rules and plays on the safe side.
Shark
Also called the Pro and Sneak, their strategy is difficult to identify because they have tons of experience, whether playing Texas Hold’em, 2-7 Triple Draw, Omaha Hold’em or situs poker online. Sharks can be canny and for a good reason. Telling everyone how good you are would scare everyone off and for this, sharks often pretend they are rock, fish, or bingo players.
The Fish
They are known for rarely raising and constantly calling bets. With a Calling Station or Fish, you can’t guess the strength of their hand as what they do is call the whole time. This is a strategy to trick novice players who often overestimate their experience and skill level.
Other poker personalities that you can come across in a poker room are the Perfect Player, Slow-Player, and River Hat.
When it comes to playing style, Rocks are passive-aggressive while Fishes are loose-passive. There are also loose-aggressive and tight-aggressive players. Each strategy has pros and cons. If you are tight-passive, for example, and play against aggressive players, they will do all the bluffing and betting. This results in reduced losses. The same goes for loose-passive play against aggressive players.
As a rule, those who are loose-passive play many hands with many calls and few bets while those who are loose-aggressive play many hands but with few calls and many bets. Tight-passive play involves many calls, few bets, and few hands and tight-aggressive – few calls, many bets, and few hands.