This is a dark time for everyone right now, but that doesn’t mean we should forget the proper etiquette when it comes to tipping. All-access digital subscription Connect to local news for just. Tipping is always a controversial topic. If you want to start an argument on a poker-related online forum, just ask how much you should tip poker dealers. Or, better yet, express a definite opinion.
“Right now, when it comes to tipping, it is a gray area with a capital G,” said World Series of Poker Media Director Nolan Dalla.
The Top 10 of PROPER Poker Etiquette Always pay attention to what’s going on. If it’s your turn to play, and you’re busy chatting up some waitress or watching something on your iPhone, the rest of the table is kept waiting. Not good, and if it happens a lot, you’ll almost certainly get pulled up for it. If you decide to play blackjack, poker, roulette, craps or any other casino game that has a live dealer, you will be expected to tip the dealer at your table. Of course, the total amount you will.
By definition, a tip is an optional payment given in addition to a required payment, usually to express appreciation for excellent service. It is also called gratuity, or, in poker terms, it is referred to as a toke. With the rise in popularity of big buy-in multitable tournaments, the landscape of the game has changed. Instead of a rotation of five or six dealers, events can require hundreds of them who rely on tips for most of their income.
In the past decade or so, it has become common practice that a certain percentage of the prize pool be withheld for dealers on top of the house cut. This has become a controversial topic among players and dealers alike. Tips have traditionally been considered an “optional payment,” so now that they are being automatically taken out of the prize pool, it has led to some confusion, disgruntled players, and stiffed dealers.
“In the old days, they didn’t take anything out for the dealers, but all of the players would usually tip 1 percent to 2 percent. I really don’t think they should take anything out,” said 1996 WSOP champion Huck Seed. “The house should get paid, and then people should tip what they want to tip. It shouldn’t be a mandatory tip.”
Seed says that he is an average tipper who always does so when he cashes in a tournament. The amount he gives depends on his experience and the amount of money he wins.
“We have had final tables where no one tipped,” said Dalla. “This is somewhat demoralizing. You have got to have some guarantees. You can’t have dealers essentially gambling on whether they will be compensated.”
Standard Practice?
Most players say that they tip anywhere from 1 percent to 4 percent of what they win, and usually more toward the bottom of this range if money has already been allocated for dealer tips. Information on what percentage of the prize pool is withheld for dealer tips can usually be found at the bottom of any tournament structure sheet in small print. Nearly all big buy-in events, including the recent Wynn Classic and most WSOPCircuit events, take out 3 percent for tournament staff.
At the WSOP, the percentage taken out varies with the buy-in amount of the event. Lower buy-ins, including the $500 buy-in events, have the most taken out at 3 percent. The $1,000-$2,000 buy-in events have 2.7 percent taken out, while the $2,500-$5,000 buy-in events have 2.4 percent taken out. All $10,000 buy-in events, including the main event, withhold 1.8 percent for tournament staff, and the $50,000 buy-in H.O.R.S.E. tournament withholds 1.2 percent.
Among the many players who agree with withholding money for dealers is 2006 WSOP champion Jamie Gold.
“I think that it is a good thing that they take out a certain percentage, because they (the dealers) deserve to be taken care of. I definitely think they should (take out the money), because there are some people who don’t tip,” said Gold.
Gold is known as one of the most generous tippers in cash games, but he was railed for his main-event tip snub. He said that what people might not know is that he personally tipped the final table dealers. Gold gave a dealer money to evenly distribute between the five to 10 dealers who sat in the box while he won the biggest first-place prize in live tournament history.
“Back in the old days, it was always expected to toke,” said Dalla. “Now we are in a new age where some people say, ‘Well, they are already withholding this amount of money for the dealers, why should I be expected to tip more?’ Those are both legitimate, valid points of view. Ultimately, the industry standard should be a compromise between the two.”
A compromise is exactly what dealers are looking for. Winner of the WSOP dealer’s event Erick Narciso agrees that dealers are just looking for a gratuity that is fair. When he won nearly $105,000 for the event, Narciso tipped four percent on top of the 3 percent that was already taken out.
“There is no reason to tip anything extravagant, but a tip is necessary, for sure,” said Narciso. “There are some people who don’t tip, and the dealers have to get paid, so I don’t mind up to three percent. I don’t think it should go any higher, though.”
Director of Poker Operations for Harrah’s Entertainment Jack Effel compares dealers to other workers who rely on tips to make a living.
“It’s like any other service industry. Yes, you can tip your waiter the regular 15 percent or pay the automatically added 18 percent gratuity for big parties, but if you get excellent service, you may want to leave something extra,” Effel said. “I think our dealers are worth every penny.”
Taking a percentage out of the tournament prize pool has become standard in the
Cantu responded to the issue in depth and said that he assumed the dealers and staff were already taken care of from a part of the prize pool.
Read Part II of this article and more from Cantu.
[Correction: The story has been updated to remove the inaccurate statement that San Jose, California, prohibits tournaments to withhold a percentage of the prize pool for dealer tips. The city does allow that practice, but it must be approved ahead of time. Coordinators for Bay 101 simply did not submit an application in time to withhold tips for the Shooting Star event.]
Call them rules, conventions, or Poker etiquette, some guidelines are common to all forms of Poker, especially Poker in card clubs or casinos. Although you may find some minor variations from one casino to another, many card casinos are working diligently toward a uniform set of guidelines.
Going all-in
If you don’t have enough to cover the bets and raises, you are said to go all-in and are simply contesting that portion of the pot your money covers. Others who are active in the hand can still make wagers, but those bets constitute a side pot. At the hand’s conclusion, the side pot is decided first, then the main pot. You aren’t eligible to win the side pot because you invested no money in it, but you can win the main pot. You can buy more chips or put more money on the table between hands.
You can’t drive someone out of a pot just by betting more money than he has in front of him. The player with the limited chip supply goes all-in — by calling with the remainder of his chips. If the all-in player loses, he either buys more chips or leaves the game.
Knowing how to raise
If you want to raise, just say “Raise.” Then you can go back to your stack and count out the proper amount of chips. If you want to let your action announce your intention, you usually must put the correct amount of chips into the pot, and do it all in one motion.
No splashing
Avoid splashing the pot: Don’t toss chips into the center of the table where they mingle with the others. Instead, stack your chips neatly on the table about 18 inches in front of you. The dealer will pull them into the pot when the action has been completed on that round of betting.
If it’s your first time in a public cardroom, tell the dealer so he can help you through the mechanics of the game. After a few sessions, you’ll be familiar and comfortable with the majority of playing procedures. Soon you, too, will feel like a regular.
Protecting your hand; cards speak
In a casino, unlike in many home games, you are always responsible for your hand. Toss it in the muck (the pile of discarded cards), and your hand is fouled and cannot win. The rule in all cardrooms is that cards speak — your hand is worth whatever value the cards have. Dealers, however, can make mistakes. If you think yours is the best hand, turn your cards face up and announce it. Place it halfway between your chips and the pot, and hold on to it while the dealer determines the outcome.
If you’re not sure whether you have the best hand, turn all of your cards face up at the end of the hand and allow the dealer to read your hand. If you are in a Poker club or casino and there is a doubt or debate, even if the hand is over, casino security cameras can review the hands that were shown down to determine the winner.
Proper Tipping Etiquette Poker Etiquette
Sticking to table stakes
Most games, including most casino games, are table stakes. You can’t add chips or money to the amount in front of you during the play of the hand. If you run out of money during a hand, you can contest only that portion of the pot that your bets cover. You can’t go light — that is, pull more money out of your wallet — as you might do in a home game. You can, of course, always add more money to your playing stake between hands.
Taking time out
Anytime you are unsure of anything, the best procedure to follow is to call “Time!” This freezes the action. Then get your questions resolved prior to acting. Poker etiquette suggests that you not abuse this privilege, particularly if you are in a game where you are charged a fee for sitting at the table. Players usually want a fast, efficiently run game with as few interruptions as possible.
Dealing and decks
Dealers — and decks — generally rotate every half-hour. In addition, players unhappy with their run of cards are prone to holler “Deck change!” Most cardrooms permit a change once a deck has been in play for an entire round.
Grasping the finer points: Etiquette
Poker rules and etiquette helps speed the game along and keep it orderly. These conventions are as much a part of the game as the cards themselves. In fact, when you play casino Poker for the first time, Poker etiquette may take more getting used to than the game itself.
Proper Tipping Etiquette Poker Rules
Keep in mind the following points of Poker protocol:
Proper Tipping Etiquette Poker Tips
- Act in turn. Each player is expected to act in turn as play proceeds clockwise around the table. If someone bets and you plan to discard your hand, wait until it’s your turn to act before doing so. Not only is acting out of turn impolite, it can give a big advantage to one of your opponents. If he knows you’ll fold your hand, it makes it easier for him to bluff and is unfair to the rest of the players. In Poker, as in most things, it’s considered polite to wait your turn.
- Keep your cards in plain sight. In order to maintain the integrity of the game, players must keep their cards on the table during the play of the hand. The best way to protect your hand is to keep it on the table and look at the cards by shielding them with your hands while lifting a corner of each card to peek at it. In a game like Texas Hold’em, where players have only two cards in front of them, it’s customary to leave them on the table after looking and to place a chip on top of them. This alerts the dealer that your hand is still in play.
- Avoid discussing hands in play. Discussing your hand with others, even if you have released it and are no longer contesting that pot, may provide information that would give another player an unfair advantage. If you want to discuss a hand with a neighbor, wait until the hand concludes.
- Practice toking.Toking (Poker parlance for tipping) the dealer is customary when you win a pot. In Poker casinos, tokes constitute a significant part of each dealer’s income. The size of the pot and the game’s betting limits generally determine the amount of the toke. If you’re new to casino Poker, take your toking cue from the other players at the table. In games with betting limits of $10–$20 or higher, a dollar is a typical toke for all but the smallest pots. In smaller games, tokes of fifty cents are the rule.