[GurneyHalleck]

Wow, I finally went to the trouble to sign up... This topic is always interesting.

For the record I am not a dealer (the uniforms usually look goofy and I have a low tolerance for dumbass poker players so this would not be the career for me!) I am however known as a "good tipper."

This isn't as tough (or as expensive) as you might think. When I used to play 1-2 I generally used the following guidelines:

1) The dealer always gets a dollar. Even if you raise and take down the massive 3-dollar blinds, give the dealer a chip. They only deal so many hands per hour and need a small amount per hand. This is your most important tipping issue because dealers will remember a dollar tip from you regularly more than the occassional large tip. (It has to do with positive reinforcement, I suppose).

2) As the pots get larger, tip on up to $20 (Usually only on 1000+ pots. This would not be uncommon in the 1-2 games in Tunica as cash plays and the games are usually uncapped.) The upside rule is that I almost never tip over 25 no matter how large the pot. The funny thing is, most dealers don't worry about it. If you just took down a 3k pot and they only get 20 bucks, they still feel like you took care of them.

3) It seems that there is some unwritten "10%" rule. I have never understood whether that means that you should tip 10% of the pot or 10% of the profits. I know of no sane poker player who has ever done either, but I suspect that rule is spread by the dealers anyway!!!

4) As a side note: If you get the chance, make sure you tip the brush 5 bucks or so. Once they remember you, it is amazing how seats will magically appear!!

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I don't do this because I'm a nice guy. Dealers who respect you will make you a lot of money. They will steer you to good games, soft play you when they are propping, tell you about good and bad players in the room, and let you know which cocktail staff are available (just kidding!)

People who don't understand dealer psych 101 are often confused. Three months ago I was in a 2-5 game at the Shoe in Tunica and a really quiet college kid took down a 1200 dollar 3-way pot. He waited two hands later to tip the dealer a red chip and obviously thought that he was "the man!" (This dealer was stunning, just to make the poor kid even more confused!) Just after that I won a whopping $16 pot and tipped $2. The dealer made it very clear that she appreciated my tip a great deal and you could just read the look confusion on the kid's face. ("Wait, I tipped more and you didn't smile that way at me!!!")


The short version of the post is to always make sure that you tip something.

It pays, trust me!