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Retired FBI Special Agent Specializes in Reading Poker Faces28 March 2007
Meet Joe Navarro. For 25 years he was a Special Agent with the FBI. His expertise, and one for which he continues to be called upon to teach members of the intelligence community, is studying and interpreting the behavior of spies and terrorists during interrogations. As an adjunct faculty member at the FBI's Counterintelligence Division, he is regarded as one of the leading experts in the world on the non-verbal communications that human beings exhibit when they are not telling the truth. While filming a Discovery Channel special titled "More Than Human" with poker professional Annie Duke, Navarro discovered that his knowledge and skill could also be applied to "reading" the physical communicative behavior exhibited by card players and how that knowledge could work to their opponents' advantage. A second career was born, and one that has blossomed to the tune of Navarro's own poker Website (www.navarropoker.com) and a book done in conjunction with 10-time World Series of Poker champion Phil Helmuth titled Read 'Em and Reap, with the subtitle "A Career FBI Agent's Guide to Decoding Poker Tells". Navarro is also an instructor with the new World Series of Poker Academy, which makes its next stop at Caesar's Indiana in downstate Elizabeth April 7 and 8. He'll be joined by 2004 World Series of Poker Main Event champion Greg Raymer, two-time WSOP event winner Scott Fischman and the renowned professional poker player and instructor Alex Outhred. The two-day academy is specifically designed for poker players who want to take their game to the next level. Aside from the expert instruction participants will receive from the professional players, they'll get rare insight into the emotional and psychological dynamics of the game. That's where Special Agent Navarro comes in. "Non-verbal behaviors don't change," he maintains. "It doesn't matter if you're playing poker or you're interviewing a terrorist. At this academy we combine the theoretical with the practical, and give insight into the science of how the brain works and how that translates into non-verbal behavior." Navarro, who acknowledges that everyone exhibits readable behaviors, cautions that in the world of poker, "pros have mastered the ability to mask some of those behaviors". As an example, he described a technique that Phil Helmuth is using and many more pros are emulating: "You sit at the table in a sort of 'perched' position from which you bring your hands together in front of your mouth and your thumbs hold up your chin. Your elbows are on the table and you're looking down. It is from that position you make all your decisions and is the position you use to view others. It makes for a very tough read because you're blocking most of your face, you're blocking your neck, and you're controlling your hands." The upcoming WSOP Academy at Caesars Indiana is the only Midwest stop scheduled this year. Another one is set for July in Las Vegas at Caesars Palace. Attendees will have an opportunity to test their skills against some of the world's top players under tournament conditions and have a chance to win an entry into the World Series of Poker Main Event in Las Vegas, including all expenses, hotel and airfare. For pricing and other information call 1-800-989-WSOP or visit www.wsopacademy.com. This article is provided by the Frank Scoblete Network. Melissa A. Kaplan is the network's managing editor. If you would like to use this article on your website, please contact Casino City Press, the exclusive web syndication outlet for the Frank Scoblete Network. To contact Frank, please e-mail him at fscobe@optonline.net. Recent Articles
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