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#1
12-12-2006, 05:00 PM
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Re: The Mysterious Card Room Where No One Complains
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[ QUOTE ] How many of these players are shills for the house? Keeping 2 short games running is more rpofitable for the house than 1 full game, even with the dropped rake. [/ QUOTE ] situation Rick described does indeed sound like the games were 90% shills. [/ QUOTE ] Yeah. That was one of the 1st thoughts I had. Where you'll see this in much smaller rooms. b 
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#3
12-12-2006, 06:59 PM
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Re: The Mysterious Card Room Where No One Complains
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is this at CP? [/ QUOTE ] No, although a game at Crystal Park with too many salaried props let to this story. ~ Rick
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#4
12-12-2006, 01:05 PM
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Re: The Mysterious Card Room Where No One Complains
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How many of these players are shills for the house? [/ QUOTE ] A "shill" is close enough to what I call a "quasi-prop" for me to call this a good guess. Most of my opponents during these two sessions are what this particular card room calls "VIP Players". Unlike old Las Vegas style shills they play on their own money. My understanding is the "VIP Players" get paid 35 cents per hand with a four hour per day minimum and more or less flexible hours. They can be moved from table to table under the supervision of the floor. Apparently a condition of remaining a VIP Player is that you also don't complain. Most of the VIP Players appear to know who some of the other VIP Players are, but not always,. During one of the two days I played as the observer in the above story I ran into one of many old acquaintances in these games who was obviously one of the VIP players. He was shocked I wasn't in on the "deal" since he has been around long enough that no one will continually play this short at this level. I told him I wanted to come and go as I please and would take the ten cents per hand everyone gets automatically. Plus VIP Players can't write posts like the OP. [img]/images/graemlins/smirk.gif[/img] [ QUOTE ] Keeping 2 short games running is more profitable for the house than 1 full game, even with the dropped rake. [/ QUOTE ] True only in the short run, ie. only if the cardrooms management can't distinguish between a forest and a tree. The problem of course is that any normal (non VIP) player enters into an experience where the games are kept short in a misguided effort to spread more games. Of course spreading more games is great on the surface but card clubs need an increasing real player base to support it. On a few other days when I stopped by but didn't play I would often see two or three 5 to 7 handed games of 1/2 NL. In a normal cardroom these short to semi-short games would either fill or combine into solid games (otherwise customers usually leave at this level). But if more players came into these games they would attempt to start a third or perhaps a fourth game. There always appeared to be empty seats with multiple games. Of course few complained since most were "VIP Players" who couldn't complain. More later of course. ~ Rick
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#6
12-12-2006, 06:28 PM
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Re: The Mysterious Card Room Where No One Complains
I have only played short-handed for an extended period once, with nobody complaining. it was at the Aviation Club in France.
The closest to a complaint we had was a player who noted that he was going to get up at the next time collection, if we were still 3-handed. He said that as he was paying his time. I don't know if my experience was typical or not, but I really felt like I was in an alternate universe every time I have played there. (fwiw, i always sat the pot-limit dealer's choice game. Not sure if their other games would be different.)
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#7
12-12-2006, 11:31 PM
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Mystery Uncovered
All this really happened in the ePoker Room at Hollywood Park Casino.
I like ePoker and have had fun and profit playing when the game is good. Just pushing those on-screen buttons makes over betting a snap for everybody [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]. And often the game can be good, even when you're playing against a table full of "VIP Players" aka "quasi-props". But it's little fun playing in real short or even partially short games when it's easy to see that the tables can be combined into full games (especially when it appears the casino in general is slowing down for the day). The VIP players apparently can't complain, that' part of their deal. But regular players don't like it and vote with their feet. This means the eRoom is not getting the repeat business it needs. I think ePoker can succeed somewhere. But it will take a very good understanding of what makes conventional card rooms tick under varying conditions, and working that understanding into the eTable environment. Hollywood Park's eRoom can still turn it around, but it will take attention to the art and details of running a card room to have a chance. ~ Rick
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#8
12-13-2006, 12:00 AM
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Re: Mystery Uncovered
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#9
12-13-2006, 02:54 AM
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Re: Mystery Uncovered
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All this really happened in the ePoker Room at Hollywood Park Casino. [/ QUOTE ] Figured it had to be that when you started talking about getting paid per hand. It's the beginning of the B&M rakeback era. Or something.
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#10
12-13-2006, 07:38 AM
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Re: Mystery Uncovered
In my local room we usually only get 2 tables going and we will always play until closing with very few complaints from the players about playing short unless it gets down to 3 players... The house will usually consolidate the table to save on cost of paying the dealer.
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