not burning cards in home tourney
 

i have played a few times at a friends house, when they get together and play some NL holdem tourneys. the problem is this, when they play they don't burn cards. the first five cards of the top of the deck are the flop, the turn, and the river. i pointed this out and the man hosting it says that it doesn't matter how u play it. am i right to think that without burning cards it changes the whole game.

Re: not burning cards in home tourney
 

If the deck is well shuffled (i.e., random), whether you burn cards or not should make no difference.

Re: not burning cards in home tourney
 

cheating can be (or will become) a problem when you don't have a standard.

1.] It's much harder (even for a professional cheat) to stack the deck when the dealer ALWAYS has the person to the right cut (while the deck is on the table) and always burns & turns.

2.] Burning prevents a marked card from being in plain view.

If you take poker (and money) seriously then you follow these very SIMPLE rules and the game is much likely crooked.

Re: not burning cards in home tourney
 

I don't disagree with what you're saying, Richter. And as the stakes go up, the need to follow the rules more strictly, have custom chips, etc becomes very important. However, in most low-level, dice-chip home games, burning the card won't make a difference in the outcome. It is MUCH classier to do it right though.

(Then again, I think I'm the last person in the universe who likes to start a game with two new decks of cards, instead of using Kems or Copags forever)

I have always wondered, however, whether a cheat would get more information from knowing what his/her opps hole cards are (if the deck is marked) or from knowing what the next card to be played.

Re: not burning cards in home tourney
 

"1.] It's much harder (even for a professional cheat) to stack the deck when the dealer ALWAYS has the person to the right cut (while the deck is on the table)"

What does burning cards have to do with someone else cutting the deck? And if not on the table, where would the cards be cut- under the table?

"If you take poker (and money) seriously then you follow these very SIMPLE rules and the game is much likely crooked. "
Who are you, Russ GCA? :P

Re: not burning cards in home tourney
 

The only thing I say is be consistant. Most of the guys I play with burn cards, but some don't like to. I don't mind either way but just be consistant!

stevea
My Home Poker Club

Re: not burning cards in home tourney
 

The only purpose of burning a card is to prevent people who have noticed a mark from discovering what the next card played will be. It doesn't change the game to NOT burn cards. It wouldn't change the game to shuffle after dealing the hole cards, shuffle after the flop and then have a player cut it after the turn. Wouldn't change a thing, odds is odds.

Re: not burning cards in home tourney
 

[ QUOTE ]
The only purpose of burning a card is to prevent people who have noticed a mark from discovering what the next card played will be. It doesn't change the game to NOT burn cards. It wouldn't change the game to shuffle after dealing the hole cards, shuffle after the flop and then have a player cut it after the turn. Wouldn't change a thing, odds is odds.

[/ QUOTE ]

agree completely; however, some odds are odder than others

Re: not burning cards in home tourney
 

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am i right to think that without burning cards it changes the whole game.

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how do you believe it changes the game?