Source:www.jimippolito.com

In competitive endeavors, such as Poker, it usually doesn't pay to tip your hand, to give the other players a hint that you have something good, or, more commonly, nothing.

If the competition thinks you have a killer hand, and you do, they may fold quickly and the pot doesn't get sweetened. When you have very little, or nothing, but you've already contributed to the pot, then you want to make it seem as if you have more than they do, because you want them to fold, so you act confidently.

Sure, someone may have a great hand, and you end up losing a bit more by staying in, but then that's why it's called gambling.

The trick is to throw the other players off the track and this practice is known as bluffing. Today is April 1st, April Fool's Day, and seemed like a good day to touch on this topic.

Many years ago I participated in friendly Friday night poker games with some of my cousins and friends.

The stakes were low, but enough to give the game a bit of an edge, and as I said, it was friendly; fist fights weren't all that common.

I was never that lucky at cards, or, maybe I wasn't that great a player, but I almost always ended the night with more than I started with, because I was a good bluffer.

Here's advice about developing a "poker face" from 22-year-old Poker whiz, James Honeybone.

This page has an article about a former FBI agent who now specializes in "reading" Poker player's faces in order to try to figure out what they're up to. Check that out to see how not to give yourself away.

Have fun and good luck!