The Local Cardroom (unprofessional dealers, big rake and the like)

[matt hooley]

Hello everyone,
Last night I was "in between" internet accounts so I figured I would go out to the local card room and play (it is the only card room in town). It was my first time there and they offered 1/2 and 2/4 hold'em and action ranging from weak-tight to loose-passive.

A few things throughout the night struck me and I thought I would submit them to the consensus.

First off, the structure of the 1/2 games they were playing had only a single big blind. The reason for this is most likely because the smallest chips the place had were $1 so they couldn't easily do a 50c small blind (2/4 had small and big blinds). My question is, does having a single blind significantly affect optimal strategy? Is it correct to play tighter since the ante is smaller, or is this nullified by the fact that the table is still pretty loose and there are a few "play every hand" people?

Another issue I had was regarding some unprofessional dealership that was going on. To give you a few examples, a man at my table told of how at a different table he had a flush on the river and his opponent with a full house was about to muck his hand into a big pot until the dealer told him not to. At my table one dealer was carousing with a few of the players and not keeping track of the action very good, people acting out of turn, etc. Another dealer allowed one player to give chips to another when the latter player had gone all-out and admitted that this was not allowed after questioning.
Another instance that really got to me was once I looked down at my hole cards to find wired Aces and then the next thing I knew the dealer was snatching them away because of some kind of misdeal they had made to some opponents. Is there anything that can be done about this particular incidence? Is there a term for this?

The final thing I would like to bring up for discussion is the rake. The rake policy seems to have been to take a $1 chip out of every round of betting, almost regardless of the pot size. It seemed pretty ridiculous to see the dealer collect 6 chips from the turn betting and drop one of the chips onto the collector on top of the one from the flop betting. Doesn’t this seem like too much? Also, what is the proper thing to do if you feel like the dealer is not properly following the rake-policy of the card room?


Thanks for any comments/advice you’re able to offer.
-Matt

[Andy B]

There are probably adjustments to be made in a single-blind game, but your opponents are probably more than loose enough that they won't come into play.

Did the guy with the full house table his hand? If he didn't, then it was totally inappropriate for the dealer to say anything to him.

Do you know what "carousing" means? [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] Of course dealers should pay attention to what's going on.

Those Aces were never yours. The term is "misdeal." Misdeals happen, and it isn't always the dealer's fault when they do. He may have missed someone, so your "real" hand might have been A6o, or even 83o. Forget about it and move on to the next hand.

When I see a dealer over-rake a pot, and I do notice it a fair amount, I say something. At Canterbury, they'll make sure that the player gets the extra dollar back. The rake should be posted on the placard next to the dealer that gives the limit, etc. If not, ask the dealer. If the rake is 10%, it could be that there was, say, $16 in the pot, and that $6 brought it to $22, triggering the next dollar--something like that.

[matt hooley]

The guy with the full house may have flashed his hand or announced he had trips (as he probably believed) but the fact is he was going to the muck with his cards and not presenting them to the dealer, after he saw the flush. For the dealer to stop a player mid-muck is quite inappropriate I think, as it is advising a player how to play their hand.

I was using "carousing" in a less literal sense.