Lying at the Table

Back from Ireland, and back at the tables. Finally! Ireland was wonderful, by the way. Between the Guinness, Galway, the Aran Islands, Guinness, seals, music, Guinness, bike rides, climbing over ruins, Guinness, and of course JAHmahsahn's Irish Whiskey(with its honey/vanilla taste and smooth, peat-free, finish), I could not imagine having more fun in a week. But poker calls, and yesterday I was met with an interesting question: what place does lying have at a poker table?

Obviously, deception plays a rather large role in the game of poker. Bluffing with bad hands, checking with big hands, and most other poker plays rely heavily on telling a story that is at odds with the true strength of your hand. However, what about after the hand is over, and what about talking while playing a hand? It's accepted practice that lying is perfectly ok at a poker table, but is there any inherent value to it?

Example: I raised preflop with AQ and got 4 callers. Hooray. Flop came A43. None of the players seemed to be the types to play pocket treys, pocket fours, or any ace, which are the only hands that can beat me, so I was fairly comfortable. It was checked around to me and I bet out about 60% of the pot, a standard continuation bet that I hoped a more perceptive opponent would notice I'd make with just about any hand. The first player thought for a long time, and seemed to be contemplating a raise(in my head: please raise! please raise! I'd already discounted all the hands that could beat me, so unless he had something like deuce five of diamonds, I was ahead). Eventually a disgusted look came across his face and he mucked his hand, as did the rest of the table. As I raked in the pot, he said to me, "Could you beat A9?"
Now....

The Truth Yes, of course I could beat A9. I had AQ, after all. I gain little by telling him the truth, though - I make him feel like he made the right play when he actually DID make the right play, and I'm very much opposed to encouraging opponents to play well.

The Lie What happens if I tell him that, no, I had QJ suited or some other such hand? Obviously if he believes me he will feel he played poorly when he actually didn't, so I gain something. But bragging about a "bluff" often has the rather unfortunate effect of pissing people off, and my style of game is centered largely around people enjoying losing to me. Angry opponents may make more mistakes, but the raise in aggression can cause some short-term variance in the game that I'd personally rather avoid.

Little of Column A, Little of Column B There is, of course, door number 3, which I chose in this case. Responding to his query, I said "Eh, A9 was probably not the best hand. Gotta call to find out though." This answer, in my mind, is playful enough not to anger someone, and reinforces what I'd prefer all along: don't raise me, just call me. Subtly, you can turn a good player into a calling station, a loose/passive weak player who is easily defeated.

In this case, the opponent was not thrilled with my response, so I quickly changed the topic to the universal Talking To Guys language: sports! A little 'Nova/WVU hoops discussion and everything was good once again. Hey, he'd lost the pot, but it was to a friend!