Poker Dealing Procedures

• Poker Dealing School
• Poker Dealing Rules
• Poker Dealing Courses

• General principles
  • Betting limits
• Principal forms
  • Stud poker
  • Community-card poker
  • House-banked games

If there was no betting on the last street, the procedure is blessedly simple. The showdown goes in the same order as all other actions, starting left of the button and proceeding clockwise to the. Dealing cards is obviously a crucial part of being a poker dealer, but there are many more procedures you will need to understand in order to deal a professional tournament or cash game. Some of the common situations a dealer needs to be able to address are attending to the 'Chip Race' in a tournament, dealing a high card to break a table. When you enter a game, you must make a full buy-in for that particular game.

Procedure Players in a poker game act in turn, in clockwise rotation (acting out of turn can negatively affect other players).

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Poker, card game, played in various forms throughout the world, in which a player must call (i.e., match) the bet, raise (i.e., increase) the bet, or concede (i.e., fold). Its popularity is greatest in North America, where it originated. It is played in private homes, in poker clubs, in casinos, and over the Internet. Poker has been called the national card game of the United States, and its play and jargon permeate American culture.

Poker Dealing School

Although countless variants of poker are described in the literature of the game, they all share certain essential features. A poker hand comprises five cards. The value of the hand is in inverse proportion to its mathematical frequency; that is, the more unusual the combination of cards, the higher the hand ranks. Players may bet that they have the best hand, and other players must either call (i.e., match) the bet or concede. Players may bluff by betting that they have the best hand when in fact they do not, and they may win by bluffing if players holding superior hands do not call the bet.

General principles

There are forms of poker suitable to any number of players from 2 to 14, but in most forms the ideal number is 6, 7, or 8 players. The object is to win the “pot,” which is the aggregate of all bets made by all players in any one deal. The pot may be won either by having the highest-ranking poker hand or by making a bet that no other player calls. The following principles apply to nearly all forms of poker.

Cards

Poker is almost always played with the standard 52-card deck, the playing cards in each of the four suits (spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs) ranking A (high), K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A (low only in the straight [a series of five cards numbered consecutively] or straight flush [a series of five cards numbered consecutively within the same suit] 5-4-3-2-A and in certain variants described below).

In social play, especially in “dealer’s choice” (i.e., a card-playing session in which each player takes a turn at dealing the cards and selecting the game), certain cards may be designated wild cards. A wild card stands for any other card its holder wishes to name. There are many methods of introducing wild cards into the game. The most popular are:

1. Joker. A 53-card pack is used, including the joker as a wild card.
2. Bug. The same 53-card pack including the joker is used, but the joker—here called the bug—counts only as a fifth ace or to fill a flush [a series of five cards of the same suit], a straight, or certain special hands.
3. Deuces wild. All four deuces (2s) are wild cards.
4. One-eyes. In the standard pack the king of diamonds, jack of spades, and jack of hearts are the only cards shown in profile. They are often designated as wild cards.

Rank of poker hands

The rank of standard poker hands is determined by their odds (probability). Two or more identical hands tie and divide any winning equally. The suits have no relative rank in poker. When there is any wild card in the game, the highest possible hand is five of a kind, which beats any straight flush. When there are several wild cards, there may be identical fours of a kind or threes of a kind, in which case ties are broken by the highest unmatched cards or secondary pairs (in a full house [a five-card hand made up of three of a kind and a pair]).

Deal

At the start of the game, any player takes a pack of cards and deals them in rotation to the left, one at a time faceup, until a jack appears. The player receiving that card becomes the first dealer. The turn to deal and the turn to bet always pass to the left from player to player. For each deal, any player may shuffle the cards, the dealer having the last right to shuffle. The dealer must offer the shuffled pack to the opponent to the right for a cut. If that player declines to cut, any other player may cut.

A professional dealer is used in poker clubs, casinos, and tournament play, where a round disc (known as a dealer button) is passed clockwise each hand to indicate the nominal dealer for betting purposes. Also, such environments almost invariably charge the players either by setting an hourly rental fee for their seats or by “raking” a small percentage (say, 5 percent) from each pot.

Betting procedure

In each deal there are one or more betting intervals according to the specific poker variant. In each betting interval, one player, as designated by the rules of the variant being played, has the privilege or obligation of making the first bet. This player and each player in turn after him must place in the pot the number of chips (representing money, for which poker is almost invariably played) to make his total contribution to the pot at least equal to the total contribution of the player before him. When a player does this, he is said to be in the pot, or an active player. If a player declines to do this, he discards his hand and is said to drop or fold, and he may no longer compete for the pot.

Before the deal, each player may be required to make a contribution to the pot, called an ante. In each betting interval, the first player to make a bet is said to bet, a player who exactly meets the previous bet is said to call, and a player who bets more than the previous bettor is said to raise. In some variants, a player is permitted to check, which is to stay in without betting, provided no other player has made a bet in that betting interval. Since a player cannot raise his own bet, each betting interval ends when the betting turn has returned to the person who made the last raise or when all players have checked.

At the end of each betting interval except the last, dealing is resumed. At the end of the last betting interval, there is the “showdown,” in which each active player shows his full hand, and the highest-ranking hand wins the pot.

Poker Dealing Rules

Betting limits

There are “no-limit” or “sky’s-the-limit” games, but in practice most poker games place some limit on what one may bet in any game. There are three popular methods.

Fixed limit

In fixed-limit games, no one may bet or raise by more than the established limit. In draw poker the limit is usually twice as much after the draw as before—for example, two chips before the draw, four chips after. In stud poker the limit is usually twice as much in the final betting interval as in previous betting intervals. (The higher limit applies also when any player’s exposed cards include a pair.) These respective forms of the game are described below. In a fixed-limit game a limit is usually placed on the number of raises that may be made in any betting interval.

Pot limit

In pot-limit contests, a player may bet or raise by no more than the amount in the pot at the time the bet or raise is made. When raising, the player may first put in the pot the number of chips required to call the previous bet and then raise by the number of chips in the pot. When pot limit is played, it is customary also to place a maximum limit on any bet or raise, regardless of the size of the pot.

Table stakes

This method most closely approximates the no-limit game. Each player’s limit is the number of chips he has on the table at the beginning of the deal. He may not bet more, but for this amount he may call any higher bet (go “all in”) and compete for the pot in the showdown. Other players having more chips may continue to bet, but their further bets go into one or more side pots in the manner decided among the players who contributed fully to the side pot. When a player drops out of any side pot, he drops out of the original pot as well, in effect surrendering his rights in the original pot to the player whose later bet he did not call. Thus, there may be different winners of the main pot and various side pots.

Authors Dan Paymar, Donna Harris, and Mason Malmuth

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Synopsis of The Professional Poker Dealer's Handbook

The poker industry has grown at a phenomenal rate during the past few years. It wasn't that long ago that only a few Nevada casinos had small poker rooms as an accommodation for its casino customers. But times have changed. Today there are many locations throughout the country that offer poker including several 'giant' poker facilities. However, with this explosive growth, there are a few 'growing pains,' and a lack of quality dealers is immediately apparent to anyone who either plays poker or works in the industry. Dealing poker is one of those occupations that look easy when performed by a top quality dealer.

You too can achieve this status with practice and effort. In fact, the best dealers not only perform their job in a seemingly effortless manner, they enjoy what they are doing. It is our hope that this text will establish a standard in the industry. It will assure that poker continues to grow and prosper in the future. It is the ultimate book for anyone interested in a career as a professional poker dealer.

Excerpt from The Professional Poker Dealer's Handbook : Characteristics of a Professional Dealer

Let's look more closely at the attributes that go together to make a true 'professional' dealer:

Characteristic No 1: Accuracy. Getting the right cards to the right players at the right time smoothly and without exposing cards, turning board cards at the right time, keeping the bets and side pots straight, making change correctly, getting the correct rake unobtrusively, reading hands correctly, pushing the pot to the player with the best hand, splitting pots correctly when necessary, and so forth.

Characteristic No. 2: Mechanical skills. Technique! The ability to shuffle and deal without exposing cards, handle chips, and the like.

Characteristic No. 3: Knowledge of the games. Knowing and understanding the rules of each game, how the game is dealt, and the house policies and procedures.

Characteristic No. 4: Ability to control the game. Being able to maintain the game pace. That is, the ability to keep the game moving, prevent out-of-turn actions, avoid unnecessary delays, without rushing either yourself or the players. Remember, always use an open hand--never point--at a player when it is their turn to act. (You may point with your eyes, but never stare at a player who may be taking a little extra time.)

Poker Dealing Courses

Characteristic No. 5: Positive attitude. A manner of conveying professionalism that makes the experience of playing poker enjoyable and rewarding.

Characteristic No. 6: Professional demeanor. Proper posture and attitude communicate professionalism as does courtesy and kindness.

Characteristic No. 7: Ability to deal with customers. Besides attitude and personality, this includes diplomacy, etiquette, and knowing when to call for the floorperson.

Characteristic No. 8: Appearance. One's dress, grooming, and personal hygiene are essential to a professional demeanor.

Characteristic No. 9: Reliability. The ability to do your job properly and to be available and prepared when needed.

Characteristic No. 10: Restraint. The ability to be quiet, keep your full attention focused on the game, and to decline to partake in any extraneous conversations not directly related to the hand in progress.

These attributes of a professional dealer are distinctly different, yet they overlap and complement each other. The thrust of the material contained herein is directed toward those attributes that an instructor can develop and enhance--primarily knowledge of the games, mechanical skills, accuracy, and restraint.

More Books Written by Mason Malmuth