Live Poker Etiquette

[GypsyTea]

A serious problem at a live table.

Over the weekend I had to ask the card room manager to remove a player from my cash table, and the casino. Not pleasant but had to be done.
The guy sits down and with in the space of the first hand he played he had made a racist comment about another players colour, insisted on splashing the pot so, it held up the game while the dealer sorted out his bet ( had to ask him to bet the minimum after getting it wrong twice) and was the most obnoxious person I have come across in Live poker.

So I thought I script a little reminder about live play poker etiquette.

1. Be Respectful of the other players.

2. Be Respectful of the card room management, the dealer, and the valets, they are all there to help YOU!

3. Do NOT make excessive noise at your table, other people are playing cards as well.

4. Do NOT splash the POT ! it will hold the game up( cost more subs for every one) and you are NOT going to get away with trying to pull a fast one with a cheep bet/call!
Ever ONE WILL be counting.

5. Do NOT try and get away without paying your table subs, its far cheaper than paying a house rake!

6. If you don’t understand something or want to know something ASK! The dealer HAS to tell YOU!

7. Don’t be a OBNOXIOUS MORON people will not play cards with you, even if you are DEAD MONEY!

I am sure there are a few more so if any one wish to add anything feel free

Regards
The Gypsy

PS: To the person who got banned I have already seen to it that the ban is for LIFE and is Published on the Web and in a Gaming magazine.

[scrawnybob]

hi GT

thats a bad experience and as much a grit your teeth attitude can keep the table from complaining about a player - there comes a point when the line gets crossed

Personally I think its one thing to trash talk in terms of convincing them to call or fold as a tactic - that is part of the game

anything that is specific to the player as a person rather than the way the player plays is well over the bounds of acceptability

racist or otherwise derogatory comments should warrant a ban from the casino - they dont want one player upsetting 10+ other players

at the end of the day your completely right - the dealer / pit boss / room manager and ultimately the cardroom manager are there to help everyone and to give rulings

they are absolute and binding - which is how it should be - removing any player influence beyond a complaint or a call for a ruling

while inexperience of a player is very excusable - and should IMHO always be tollerated on a table (we all had to learn) - if a player is making up for his inexperience by being confrontational - that is totally inexcusable

if they are experienced and its just attitude then this is even less excusable

while Tony G might get away with some of his trash talk (alot of which I think does cross the line) this is at a televised final with players who are expecting it

it simply should not happen at a regular game in a casino - drunks get ejected - bad attitude and offence should and does too.

on the upside if he did this at a chain on casinos - He'll find he is barred from all of them and by the sound of it - if he doesnt get some manners quick he'll run out of decent places to play.

cheers scrawnybob

ps. as for tips for playing live games - I would say to all players and particularly new live players ...

never ever be afraid to ask the dealer for clarification - they are there to help the game run smoothly and to make rulings or call for a ruling if needed - so if your out of your depth dont sit there confused ... ask

also always be careful to announce your bets / decisions, keep you cards live by keeping them level with your chips (within your zone) and if necessary use a card guard (do this either 100% or 0%) but dont fold out of turn or pre-empt any others play ie. wait your turn.

[ythelongface]

i would like to add one or 2 things here. when it comes to showdown, and you and one or more players are told to show your hands, if player A says i got a flush or player B says i got trips, dont let this stop you from only turning over your hand......do not ever throw your hand in unless the dealer has ruled on the hand. some players either intentionally or not try to be pushy or confdent if you prefer and announce their hand before the dealer has had a chance to rule. i have seen this happen not real often but it does happen. so dont let another player decide who won the hand. that is soley the dealer job, or the poker room supervisor.

[willie beaman]

Hate when bad people ruin a game for everyone else involved. It's sad that plkayers cannot act as adults and respect the players at the table. Hope that guy and others like him are permantly banned from your cardroom.

[Tigre Azul]

In my earlier playing days I was rediculed by the table I was playing for asking the dealer some question. Poker has always fascinated me and I did not let that discourage me from continuing to play. By all means of the difinition, I have always been a polite person, but playing frequently at the local casino made me change that. I understood that people are there to cut each other's throat out take each other's money. But on more than one ocassion I did see that people talked to me in a rude manner that had no reason to be. I would quickly retort in a manner that made them understand that I wasn't going to be talked to that way, I didn't care who you were. The point I am trying to make is this, there is simply no reason to be rude, or to redicule someone for simply not knowing (like what happened to me), or any of that other stuff that goes on. Yes, you sit down and go to war, but even though I have never seen a true gentlemen while playing poker, none of us true gentlemen should ever lose our bearing, after all, it's just a game. Godspeed to you all and see you on the felt.

Tigre Azul