Lessons Learned the Hard Way: Buy In Cap & Cut Off Time (2 Viewers)

[Taxi500]

I've posted before about lessons learned as far as playing Bank. Here's another one: hoping this may help others... was the first poker game that ended with a toxic vibe.

This group has played together for over a year now without issue. This last game a guy brought liquor to the game (we mostly drink beer) and him and another regular drank the entire fifth of it together.. yikes!

This guy, we'll call him Bob, then proceeds to buy in for over $1,000 and loses it all. Not only that, but his punting-style play sort of ruined the last 30 minutes of the game. He would raise it to $20 preflop in a 25c/50c game and get all but the best hand to fold then usually lose. His last $500 buy in I was getting looks from the players like "cut this guy off" because he was clearly off his gourd drunk.

This put me in a horrible spot. On one hand, I love Bob. On the other hand, he gambles like a mad man all the time and makes great money and can afford to throw cash around. He's in his early 30's and my thought was that he is a big boy and it's not my job to babysit players.

Anyway, the night ends with another dude driving him home and I wake up to his texts about "how could I let him buy in for that much"... we talked it out and it's all good.

TLDR: There's now a buy in cap for everyone and I cut the game at Midnight... nothing good seems to happen past that time.

 

[NotRealNameNoSir]

Sorry dude. Hes projecting his problems on you. That being said, yes, metering that is usually a good idea. Sounds like everyone's safe and he isnt missing mortgage payments due to it, no worries.

 

[upNdown]

If you’re capping the amount of each rebuy, that’s all good. If you’re capping the total amount anybody can rebuy for the entire night, I wouldn’t like that. It just seems to me like that’s not how a cash game works.

 

[dpeks13]

Can I invite bob to my next game?

 

[ArielVer18]

He's in his early 30's and my thought was that he is a big boy and it's not my job to babysit players.

You're right. Tell your drunk friend to act his age and take responsibility for his own financial decisions. He wants a stop loss? Tell him to bring less cash.

 

[Taxi500]

No I totally agree - He was only salty via text when we talked he said of course that it's not on me at all.

I think $500 cap on a 25c/50c game is fine. If you're punting 1000 bb in a night maybe it's time to go home. Plus I hate feeling even a TINGE of guilt. These are all friends so taking someone to the cleaner even if they can afford it doesn't make me feel good.

 

[KHarp1]

There's a lot of nuance here, on one hand it's a friendly home game ("regulars were giving looks like cut this guy off") and you don't want to alienate the regs, on the other hand why should the game be capped? Everyone should be responsible gamers and capping the game could possibly stifle a potentially great game. Great meaning lots of good play, good hands dueling it out with big pots, potential to swing either way at any time. But, and here's a piece of nuance, if servers can be held legally liable for over serving, could one be held liable for letting someone over the limit over gamble? ("Regulars were giving looks like cut this guy off")

Then you have the whole "toxic vibe" that's been introduced at what appears to be an otherwise great game. Where, as a host, is the point of entry to say "hey, let's call it a night, its getting a little crazy?" Hindsight is always 20/20, so reading about this is good info for others that host to get in their minds the proper way of addressing situations like this.

Maybe a casino is the better choice for this guy, let them deal with this type of personality, particularly when he's drinking.

 

[Jimulacrum]

Some players just like to do this. He wasn't drunk when he decided to make $1,000+ available to buy into a $0.25/0.50 game, was he? He has the money and can afford to lose it. It sounds like he enjoys gambling like this. I don't see a reason to cut the guy off, personally.

Moreover, people seem to forget that players like this are capable of winning. His insane strategy will often result in him throwing a party for everyone else, but sometimes he'll stack all your players and clean out the bank—which I suspect is his goal.

In other words, it's all gambling, and if he's sore about it the next day, that's his problem. Bring less money and control your alcohol consumption next time.

There's now a buy in cap for everyone and I cut the game at Midnight... nothing good seems to happen past that time.

If you don't want to run into this problem again, the buy-in cap makes sense. It's a matter of what's best for your game and will keep it together. Preventing one player from playing way over everyone else's heads is generally a good thing.

I wonder what you mean by "nothing good seems to happen" after midnight, though. Is this the type of crowd that gets ornery when people, y'know, gamble?

It kinda seems that way. I've attended more than a few games with players who get actually upset by loose play and threaten to storm off because "This isn't poker," i.e., it makes their nitty strategy less fun. I can't advocate for catering to players like that.

 

[Taxi500]

Buy in cap got scrapped. I thought to myself "I've nearly bought in for $500" and I consider myself a conservative player. Him and I are fine and I know the money isn't material to him at all.

The midnight cut off does stand though as a new rule. We play Thursdays, guys get more 'cranky' and impatient than angry. The vibe dies down AND (most importantly) my wife doesn't want people over that long bc she can't sleep. Fair enough!

 

[Jimulacrum]

Buy in cap got scrapped. I thought to myself "I've nearly bought in for $500" and I consider myself a conservative player. Him and I are fine and I know the money isn't material to him at all.

The midnight cut off does stand though as a new rule. We play Thursdays, guys get more 'cranky' and impatient than angry. The vibe dies down AND (most importantly) my wife doesn't want people over that long bc she can't sleep. Fair enough!

Spousal equity always matters the most.

 

[bergs]

If I can still talk and walk, let me buy in.

Drink good, run good.

(Narrator on grave voice: “as he would soon discover, like the Death Star, the Battle at Little Bighorn, and Ross Perot’s numerous presidential campaigns, his strategy had one simple, yet fatal, flaw…)

 

[dpeks13]

If I can still talk and walk, let me buy in.

Drink good, run good.

(Narrator on grave voice: “as he would soon discover, like the Death Star, the Battle at Little Bighorn, and Ross Perot’s numerous presidential campaigns, his strategy had one simple, yet fatal, flaw…)

 

[Taxi500]

If I can still talk and walk, let me buy in.

Drink good, run good.

(Narrator on grave voice: “as he would soon discover, like the Death Star, the Battle at Little Bighorn, and Ross Perot’s numerous presidential campaigns, his strategy had one simple, yet fatal, flaw…)

I'd be doing much better this year if this was true. Then again... sample size is small... guess I'll keep drinking and gambling for science!

 

[dpeks13]

I'd be doing much better this year if this was true. Then again... sample size is small... guess I'll keep drinking and gambling for science!

"Where you off to tonight?"
Work night. Collecting data.

 

[Taxi500]

It's a new drug being tested named, "Calling Station"

 

[Eriks]

If I can still talk and walk, let me buy in.

Drink good, run good.

(Narrator on grave voice: “as he would soon discover, like the Death Star, the Battle at Little Bighorn, and Ross Perot’s numerous presidential campaigns, his strategy had one simple, yet fatal, flaw…)

Great, let’s have Frank Gallagher at the table

 

[chipchipchip]

Here’s my rule of thumb…

Would you cut him off from playing if he was up $1k here? ‍

Edit: just saw the iPhone “shrug” emoji turns into the male symbol… meh I’m leaving it

 

[MatB]

Capping buy in at 1/2 the big stack is probably all you can do.



As for the rest of it. Good luck.


I. Am. Bob.

We are Bob.

Bob is life.

 

[ngmcs8203]

$0.25/$0.50 - $500-1.5k swings. Why not just play $1/2 at that point?

 

[allforcharity]

$0.25/$0.50 - $500-1.5k swings. Why not just play $1/2 at that point?

Or $1/$3. Or even small $2/$5.

 

[chippitydoodah]

"him and another regular drank the entire fifth of it together.. yikes!"

So how did the other guy do?

 

[Taxi500]

"him and another regular drank the entire fifth of it together.. yikes!"

So how did the other guy do?

Controlled plane crash vs dive bomb. The "other reg" loses $200, takes a break, loses another $50 and calls an uber at 11. Well played.

 

[Bacon Dad]

Controlled plane crash vs dive bomb. The "other reg" loses $200, takes a break, loses another $50 and calls an uber at 11. Well played.

Yikes! Did his Uber ride crash on his way home too?

 

[Gunnar]

This is one of the reason I like that you have to pay in cash - Don´t bring more than you want to lose. With online transfers or pay after the game, people often stretch their limits much easier.

 

[Anthrax]

This is one of the reason I like that you have to pay in cash - Don´t bring more than you want to lose. With online transfers or pay after the game, people often stretch their limits much easier.

that´s a good point.