Thinking of hiring a dedicated dealer for your home game?
https://www.npr.org/2021/03/01/9725...es-his-journey-from-card-cheat-to-illusionist
https://www.npr.org/2021/03/01/9725...es-his-journey-from-card-cheat-to-illusionist
Dedicated dealer: good or bad? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter pltrgyst
- Start date
tabletalker7
Full House
Depends on your game. If you are serious and want more hands per hour nd that whole thing, then yes. If your games are like mine (more about hanging out with friends and having fun) then maybe not. A dedicated dealer will speed up your game noticeably. Is that something you want?
Papasatyr
Two Pair
Sounds great! Until you have to pay said dealer, that is.
ChipTalker
Flush
Interesting article.
Fyi for those who do not know, also makes some legal games now illegal with a paid dealer that does not play. Varies by state law I believe.
Fyi for those who do not know, also makes some legal games now illegal with a paid dealer that does not play. Varies by state law I believe.
AR_poker
High Hand
(slightly off-topic, but Derek DelGaudio's "In & Of Itself" on Hulu is incredible)
i just checked out the trailer, looks awesome. definitely going to check this out tonight, thanks!
MrWitti
Straight
OP
OP
Well sure -- we all agree with that.
The interesting thought to me is the possibility that you might unknowingly hire a dealer who would work with other players to manipulate the game.
I think rule no 1 is that a dedicated dealer should be paid exclusively by the hour.
If he/she is not a tested, trustworthy person, he/she might just produce huge pots to rake, not caring who wins them.
Other possible solution (which I intend to try as soon as the lockdown is over) is the host as playing full time dealer, with the help of a machine (even a cheapo one) and two decks.
tabletalker7
Full House
No all of us want that. My games are more about friends getting together and having fun. Speeding up the game is not necessarily a good thing for my people
100% get a dedicated dealer
having a dealer is much more enjoyable to players - passing the deck is miserable. Don’t look at hands per hour as much as a better expierence for your players. I’ve found games go longer also - dealers can work off tips and not need wage. Always a buddy or someone around who would be willing to make some money and help out game.
having a dealer is much more enjoyable to players - passing the deck is miserable. Don’t look at hands per hour as much as a better expierence for your players. I’ve found games go longer also - dealers can work off tips and not need wage. Always a buddy or someone around who would be willing to make some money and help out game.
Rhodeman77
Straight Flush
If the game can afford a dealer I am all for having one. When I use one he/she usually makes $200+/- for the night based on tips only.
switching to a flat hourly would definitely save the game some money, but telling everyone they need to cough up $20 before sit down is hard to do. Especially for the losing players that will go broke anyways.
I definitely like a dealer as host. I don’t have to worry about trying to shuffle or deal while someone is waiting for a rebuy. Or having to plan when to get a drink or food since I see the deal will be mine in a couple hands.
switching to a flat hourly would definitely save the game some money, but telling everyone they need to cough up $20 before sit down is hard to do. Especially for the losing players that will go broke anyways.
I definitely like a dealer as host. I don’t have to worry about trying to shuffle or deal while someone is waiting for a rebuy. Or having to plan when to get a drink or food since I see the deal will be mine in a couple hands.
tootsmagoots
Pair
i played a game almost 20 years ago where a player was only allowed to touch the deck with 1 hand. I thought it was a joke until he showed up some of his tricks. The craziest one, where he shuffled the deck repeatedly and then after a few fancy moves, would pull out an ace.. after 3 aces were pulled, he did another crazy shuffle and layed one card face down. took the rest of the deck and held it about 2 feet above the the table and dropped the cards like a waterfall. then flicked the face down card with his other and it flew through the water fall. flipped over and was the case ace..
quite impressive.
quite impressive.
JustinInMN
4 of a Kind
We kind of stumbled on a hybrid model last year that I think works pretty well. I will be the all time dealer in the center spot (and play) and we just pass the shuffle. So the button always shuffles one deck while I am dealing from the other. After pushing the pot, I will then push the deck I just dealt to the next button to be shuffled and take the "ready" deck from the previous shuffler and I will just cut and deal.
If I am due for the button we just push the deck for shuffling to whoever most recently won a pot to spread that duty around somewhat randomly.
Basically a rotation of the other players replaces the "shuffling machine" and one person does all the dealing.
Seems to work pretty good, and players tip me for the service, which I like.
I would like to just outright pay a dealer or be paid to do it, but then it gets into a question of the house profiting from the game which I know is a fuzzy line that can change legality in your jurisdiction.
If I am due for the button we just push the deck for shuffling to whoever most recently won a pot to spread that duty around somewhat randomly.
Basically a rotation of the other players replaces the "shuffling machine" and one person does all the dealing.
Seems to work pretty good, and players tip me for the service, which I like.
I would like to just outright pay a dealer or be paid to do it, but then it gets into a question of the house profiting from the game which I know is a fuzzy line that can change legality in your jurisdiction.
This sounds f**king awful - very person specific - who likes dealing and playing for 6-10 hours?
and players are still responsible for duty - let the players relax, have some drinks and enjoy their poker night - get a dedicated dealer who works on tips - players out nothing - house not profiting. Don’t complicate things.
Pinesol13
Flush
JustinInMN
4 of a Kind
I guess me.
But the way I see it, if you don't outsource the shuffling you lose a lot of the gains you stand to make speed wise if the dealer has to hand shuffle every hand. If you have a machine, then by all means use that.
Pinesol13
Flush
I've always been dedicated dealer in my games. Personally, I've never had a problem dealing and playing. The few times I've played in a game with a dealer it has been a nice change of pace. But overall I enjoy dealing.
I've never outsourced the shuffling. For me it takes about 30 seconds to push the pot, move the button, collect the cards, shuffle, and deal. Which sure, over a whole night of hands does add up to a significant chunk of time. I may give that a try on a night when I have a full table going.
philhut
Flush
A dedicated dealer would be great but i'd rather not deal all night. I have for the most part rotated dealing around the table.
I like the model Christopher M's shuffling behind..... as described on youtube, but I have a head ache thinking about putting the concept into action. I have always played with 2 decks were the dealer shuffled and dealt their own cards with the offer of the player to the right to cut the cards with the future deck moved to the small blind for the next hand. This works fine unless there is someone capable of stacking or dealing from the bottom of the deck. We had an issue in one game group I used to play in where one fellow (also a multi-millionaire who believe me didn't need the money) who had some magician training as a kid and could manipulate the deck.....when he dealt and you picked up Queens it was almost a sure sign to fold right away..... So I would like a scenario where the dealer had no contact with shuffling the cards.
(timestamp 17mins, unless you want to learn to shuffle
If I were to have a dedicated dealer I would like some great eye candy or someone who can deal like this guy
I like the model Christopher M's shuffling behind..... as described on youtube, but I have a head ache thinking about putting the concept into action. I have always played with 2 decks were the dealer shuffled and dealt their own cards with the offer of the player to the right to cut the cards with the future deck moved to the small blind for the next hand. This works fine unless there is someone capable of stacking or dealing from the bottom of the deck. We had an issue in one game group I used to play in where one fellow (also a multi-millionaire who believe me didn't need the money) who had some magician training as a kid and could manipulate the deck.....when he dealt and you picked up Queens it was almost a sure sign to fold right away..... So I would like a scenario where the dealer had no contact with shuffling the cards.
(timestamp 17mins, unless you want to learn to shuffle
If I were to have a dedicated dealer I would like some great eye candy or someone who can deal like this guy
JustinInMN
4 of a Kind
If I am not the center dealer, this is the method we use and it works great. I used to be a shuffle ahead person until the first time I tried this, now it's shuffle behind all the way.
OP
OP
I think that's how many games have always done it. I know my home game did for 20+ years, and that's how it's been done at meetups when someone volunteers to deal.
It's probably just me, but for a cash game among friends, I could not care less if we maximized the amount of hands in a night by using two decks or a dedicated dealer (whom you have to pay hourly or tip or both). I've always looked at cash games as one long never ending game, so why would it matter if we could squeeze in ten more hands in one night? It really makes no difference in the long run at all. There's always another cash game coming up around the corner anyway (well, not as much now due to covid, but you get the idea).
That being said, I used to have a friend who was a former dealer and would play with us and want to deal all night mostly because she would tilt too much watching everyone else wasting time and fucking up the deal, and I was fine with that even though she'd get tips.
Tournaments are completely different due to escalating blinds. I want to see as many hands as I can before the blinds go up again, so I prefer to play with two decks (shuffling behind). Dedicated dealer at every tournament table (preferably one that is not playing) would be best, but I still am fine with self dealt tournaments since it saves on paying a dealer. Keeping as much money on the table as possible is best imho.
That being said, I used to have a friend who was a former dealer and would play with us and want to deal all night mostly because she would tilt too much watching everyone else wasting time and fucking up the deal, and I was fine with that even though she'd get tips.
Tournaments are completely different due to escalating blinds. I want to see as many hands as I can before the blinds go up again, so I prefer to play with two decks (shuffling behind). Dedicated dealer at every tournament table (preferably one that is not playing) would be best, but I still am fine with self dealt tournaments since it saves on paying a dealer. Keeping as much money on the table as possible is best imho.
Pinesol13
Flush
Yes! That was a big part of me becoming the permanent dealer with my friends, which started about 20 years ago when we were all dumb teenagers.
One friend who always claimed he "didn't know how to shuffle and deal", another who, after dealing the hole cards, would immediately burn and deal the flop face down, burn and deal the turn face down, burn and deal the river face down. Can't tell you how many arguments this started.
who keeps saying it’s about hands per hour and cramming more in?
a dedicated dealer is better for your players to relax and enjoy themselves - the benifits far out weight the negative having done both for years. It’s not close - if you like dealing and playing - great - I said it’s person dependent - I think it’s awful and takes away from the enjoyment and relaxation of the game.
even at 25/50 cent a dealer can make very good money per hour just on tips. If you like dealing and playing - do that - this thread asked an opinion and I gave mine - if you disagree don’t do it.
I don't see how dealing a hand once an orbit is that stressful or makes the game unenjoyable either, sorry.
Edit: And I was just giving my opinion as well and made no reference to your post or your comments, so not sure why you're implying that I was saying something more than just my own opinion on the thread.
Last edited:
Klobberer
Full House
The dealers at @MegaTon44 's game are great and work for tips alone.
JustinInMN
4 of a Kind
In my head, I read this in an Canadian accent.
JustinInMN
4 of a Kind
I am actually agreeing with this so long as you can find someone to do this. I am just pointing out in jurisdictions with rather puritan gambling regulations, someone profiting from operating a game crosses the line of social gambling to operating without a license. (At the risk of crossing a line into politics, it shouldn't be that way.)
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