Thank You
You know, they're probably two of the most important words in the world: "Thank You". They say so much, and it's so easy to say them.
They're also one of my pet peeves. I absolutely hate it when a poker dealer doesn't thank me for a tip. Hate it!
Now, I'm a poker dealer myself. I know this issue from both sides; player and dealer. What I don't get is how it can be too much trouble to thank someone who has just GIVEN you money. That's right, given; it's a gift. There is absolutely no compunction for poker players to tip dealers. They do so out of generosity and courtesy.
One phenomonon dealers see soon after beginning to deal is that the more experienced, higher-stakes players tend to tip less than the less experienced, lower stakes players; many, a lot less. Part of me doesn't blame them. When you calculate the effect of rake and tips on your earnings (something a more experienced player is likely to do), it's easy to become resentful of them. There's nothing you can do about the rake, so the only place you can really take that resentment out is in the tipping.
On the other hand, you know what the rake is and that there is a custom of tipping when you sit down at the table. It's an understood expense; a cost of doing business, so to speak. When you choose to play in the house, you choose to accept all the conditions of play. That's not to say, however, that I believe tipping is, or should be, automatic.
My family was in the restaurant business for a big part of my childhood. I was washing dishes back in the kitchen at 11, and bussing tables by 12. Watching waitresses (many of whom were HOT) gave me a lot of early lessons on tipping, not to mention some of my favorite adolescent fantasies. One custom that was common then, but is almost unknown now, is the "penny tip".
When a waitress gave "above and beyond" service, customers would often leave them a generous tip, plus a penny. The purpose of the penny was to let the waitress know that they weren't stupidly overtipping, they were showing appreciation for that server's efforts. Concurrently, customers feeling they'd gotten poor service would frequently leave a sub-standard tip (or no tip at all), plus a penny. This let the waitress know they were disappointed, not cheap.
All my life, I've tipped in the same manner. It's never been automatic with me. Average service gets an average tip, good service gets a good tip, and bad service gets a bad tip. Rather than leave a penny on top of a big tip for excellent service, which isn't widely understood anymore, I make it a point to bring that excellent service to the manager's attention on my way out. When the service sucks, I leave a penny, and screw 'em if they can't figure it out. I'm also likely to bring that crummy service to the manager's attention, too.
Now, I don't sit at the poker table with a stack of pennys, but I absolutely adjust my tips to the job the dealer is doing. Since I deal professionally, I'm a pretty good judge of that. While I tip better than average, as a dealer, I feel I have to set a good example for the other players, good dealers get better tips; bad dealers get worse ones, my tips aren't dependent upon the cards the dealer throws me, they have no control over that. My tips also aren't dependent upon whether the dealer makes an honest mistake or two; shit happens. There is one thing, though, that my tips are TOTALLY dependent upon; the dealer's thanking me.
When a dealer recieves a tip, they're supposed to lightly rap it against their bank, alerting everyone in the game that they're about to take money off the table. Then, they're supposed to make eye contact with the tipper and thank them while, at the same time, holding their hand out, palm up, with the tip in it, so that all players (and security) can see they're taking nothing more than the tip off the table. They then put the tip in their shirt pocket, bank, tip cup or fanny pack (depending on the policy of their casino), and get the game moving again.
As a player, I believe the most important part of that process is the "thank you". Maybe it's because I'm a dealer, and regularly have to hear the whining and complaining of so many of my contemporaries, bitching about whether this player or that "stiffed" them, etc., but that "thank you" just gripes my ass when they don't give it.
Most players would be appalled to hear how dealers think. I'm here to tell you that poker dealers, while not making as much as many players think they do, don't do bad at all. Especially when you take into account the amount of training and education they have to put in before getting the job; not much. For most of the dealers in my casino, this is the best-paying job (by far) that they've ever had.
You'd think that would cause some appreciation, but, that's often not the case. For example, not long ago, I was back in the EDR (Employee Dining Room), sitting at a table with three other dealers as I ate my dinner. Their conversation quickly turned to "stiff stories" (tales of how customers had stiffed them). I didn't say anything, stiff stories tend to annoy me. I could keep my mouth shut no longer, however, when one of them griped about how she'd pushed a pot of over 600.00 to a player and "only" gotten a tip of 5.00.
"How much should you have gotten?", I asked.
"Well", she said, "It's standard for a waitress to get 15%, he could have tipped me at least 5%".
"So, he should have tipped you 30.00 on that pot?" I asked.
"At least", was the response.
I sat there in stunned silence as the other two dealers agreed with her, chiming in with their own stories of big pots and tips of "only" 5 or 10 dollars. Not a month ago, the woman telling me how she'd just been "stiffed" told me she used to work an office job where she made about half of what she was making now! Now, none of these dealers are players. They got their jobs because they heard they paid well, not because of any love of the game. I took that into account, and decided to try and explain things to them.
I pointed out that we weren't in business with those players. When they lost big, they couldn't come back to us and have us give them 15% of their losses, so why should we be in for 15% of their winnings? I pointed out that a waitress usually had to work 30 minutes or more to get their 15% tip, and that tip was usually in the neighborhood of 2 to 5 dollars. We run a hand in under 3 minutes (usually in SIGNIFICANTLY under 3 minutes), it's unrealistic to expect 15% of the pot. I also pointed out that, at the end of the night, we do as well as good waitstaff, and don't have to work nearly as hard.
Well, they didn't like that. I got a litany of complaints, many with resentment attached. Basically, it boiled down to their feeling "certain dealers" (like me) made significantly more in tips than they did because they were also players, and players "take care of their own", etc.
I told them it was simple math. A competent dealer will average 1.00 per hand. That being the case, it then makes sense for a dealer to work at improving their skills so they can get out more hands per down. If two dealers both work 10 downs in a night, with one dealer averaging 13 hands per down, and the other averaging 16, the faster dealer will average 3.00 more per down. Not much, huh? But, over the 10 downs they both dealt that night, that's a difference of 30.00. spread that difference out over a 5-day workweek and the difference is now 150.00. 52 weeks in a year makes the difference 7800.00, and that's a lot of money! All from just 3 more hands per down.
I asked them how much work they'd done outside of the workplace, honing their technique to improve their speed, and told them of some of the things I'd done, and still do. I also pointed out that was why I was always "in a hurry" at the table. I NEVER rush players, but I've worked hard to make all my mechanics as quick and efficient as possible. Speed = $.
But wait, there's more. Many players see me making an effort to get out more hands for them; they frequently comment on it. They also tip it. It's not a huge amount, but occasionally turning a 1.00 tip into a 2.00 tip, or a 2.00 tip into a 3.00 tip because a few players appreciate the efforts I'm making on their behalf adds up at the end on the night/week/year. I told them they would definitely see a difference in their earnings if they increased their efficiency, and focused on making a conscious effort to get out more hands. As a player, I like to see "quick hands" in a dealer. It makes me think they're working to get more hands out for me, and I tip it.
But wait, there's more. I asked them how much time and effort they'd put in outside the workplace learning the rules of the game, how to read boards, etc. Players expect a dealer to be an AUTHORITY. When you don't know the rules of the game; when you can't read the board and instantly declare the winner of the hand, it lessens the respect they have for you. On the other hand, being known for having an encyclopedic knowledge of the rules, having players see you be able to instantly read the board and declare the winner causes their respect for you to go up, and they tip that. Again, it's not a huge amount, but it adds up over time. It isn't easy, I STILL work on my hand reading every day, but it's well worth the extra effort.
It was clear they didn't agree with what I'd said. As a matter of fact, it made their resentment grow even greater. later that night, I heard how I'd been "lording it over them" back in the EDR and how I was such an obnoxious know-it-all. When will I ever learn to just keep my mouth shut?
Anyway, back to the point of this rant. I believe it's attitudes like these that cause many dealers to develop a sense of entitlement; they're SUPPOSED to get tips; and good ones at that! When you look at it like that, it's pretty easy to let something like "thank you" slip pretty far down on your list of priorities. I'm frequently appalled at how many dealers in my casino don't thank customers for their tips, UNLESS they're big ones (something you're specifically NOT supposed to do. A professional dealer treats all players the same, regardless of how they tip). When they don't thank me, it's on!
As I said earlier, I consider myself a generous tipper. As a dealer, I'm grateful for ANY tip. If a player is kind enough to throw me a buck, I am glad to have it and express my thanks verbally. As a player, I ALWAYS tip. If all I take down is the blinds, the dealer gets a buck. On any pot over ten bucks, they get two; 20-50.00. three; 50-100.00, four, and so on. I know this negatively affects my earnings, but I'm playing in the casino where I deal, and I think it's important to set a good example. Also, many of the dealers in the box have been players while I've been dealing. A lot of them have been extremely generous in their tips to me. I try to remember that and return their generosity in kind.
The point is, no matter how entitled a dealer may feel, I tip significantly above the average. If they're not thanking me, they're not thanking most players. When this happens, I don't say anything, I just cut my next tip in half. If they fail to thank me that time, I stop tipping them altogether. If they approach me about it off the table, I'll tell them why. If they don't ask, I don't tell. The next time they deal to me, it starts over. One FTT (Failure To Thank) and I cut the tip in half. Two and I'm done.
The most interesting occurence of this was when I went on a pretty serious heater, winning 5 or 6 hands in pretty short order. By the third win, I was done tipping the dealer, who didn't thank me either of the two times previosuly in that down when I'd tipped him. After two hands of not being tipped, the dealer had the gall to stop the game and ask if he'd done something to offend me! I told him, right in front of the other players, exactly why I'd quit tipping him. To his credit, he took it well, and has been a lot better about thanking customers ever since.
Here's the biggest thing about this. Thanking people isn't just courteous, it's smart. Many times, poker players won't tip, not because they don't want to, but because they're so excited and relieved to have won the hand that they simply forget to do it. Every time a player throws you a tip, if you make sure you thank them in a noticable way, you're also essentially saying:
"Attention, all poker players who may have won a hand and forgotten to tip, here is a friendly reminder that this dealer really appreciates your tokes!". I wish I could count the times a player has heard me thank someone for a tip and said:
"Oh, I forgot you on that last hand I won", and tossed me a toke.
Dealers who don't thank players for their tips aren't merely ingrates, they're pretty dumb, as well.
Ok, end of rant.
(for now)
They're also one of my pet peeves. I absolutely hate it when a poker dealer doesn't thank me for a tip. Hate it!
Now, I'm a poker dealer myself. I know this issue from both sides; player and dealer. What I don't get is how it can be too much trouble to thank someone who has just GIVEN you money. That's right, given; it's a gift. There is absolutely no compunction for poker players to tip dealers. They do so out of generosity and courtesy.
One phenomonon dealers see soon after beginning to deal is that the more experienced, higher-stakes players tend to tip less than the less experienced, lower stakes players; many, a lot less. Part of me doesn't blame them. When you calculate the effect of rake and tips on your earnings (something a more experienced player is likely to do), it's easy to become resentful of them. There's nothing you can do about the rake, so the only place you can really take that resentment out is in the tipping.
On the other hand, you know what the rake is and that there is a custom of tipping when you sit down at the table. It's an understood expense; a cost of doing business, so to speak. When you choose to play in the house, you choose to accept all the conditions of play. That's not to say, however, that I believe tipping is, or should be, automatic.
My family was in the restaurant business for a big part of my childhood. I was washing dishes back in the kitchen at 11, and bussing tables by 12. Watching waitresses (many of whom were HOT) gave me a lot of early lessons on tipping, not to mention some of my favorite adolescent fantasies. One custom that was common then, but is almost unknown now, is the "penny tip".
When a waitress gave "above and beyond" service, customers would often leave them a generous tip, plus a penny. The purpose of the penny was to let the waitress know that they weren't stupidly overtipping, they were showing appreciation for that server's efforts. Concurrently, customers feeling they'd gotten poor service would frequently leave a sub-standard tip (or no tip at all), plus a penny. This let the waitress know they were disappointed, not cheap.
All my life, I've tipped in the same manner. It's never been automatic with me. Average service gets an average tip, good service gets a good tip, and bad service gets a bad tip. Rather than leave a penny on top of a big tip for excellent service, which isn't widely understood anymore, I make it a point to bring that excellent service to the manager's attention on my way out. When the service sucks, I leave a penny, and screw 'em if they can't figure it out. I'm also likely to bring that crummy service to the manager's attention, too.
Now, I don't sit at the poker table with a stack of pennys, but I absolutely adjust my tips to the job the dealer is doing. Since I deal professionally, I'm a pretty good judge of that. While I tip better than average, as a dealer, I feel I have to set a good example for the other players, good dealers get better tips; bad dealers get worse ones, my tips aren't dependent upon the cards the dealer throws me, they have no control over that. My tips also aren't dependent upon whether the dealer makes an honest mistake or two; shit happens. There is one thing, though, that my tips are TOTALLY dependent upon; the dealer's thanking me.
When a dealer recieves a tip, they're supposed to lightly rap it against their bank, alerting everyone in the game that they're about to take money off the table. Then, they're supposed to make eye contact with the tipper and thank them while, at the same time, holding their hand out, palm up, with the tip in it, so that all players (and security) can see they're taking nothing more than the tip off the table. They then put the tip in their shirt pocket, bank, tip cup or fanny pack (depending on the policy of their casino), and get the game moving again.
As a player, I believe the most important part of that process is the "thank you". Maybe it's because I'm a dealer, and regularly have to hear the whining and complaining of so many of my contemporaries, bitching about whether this player or that "stiffed" them, etc., but that "thank you" just gripes my ass when they don't give it.
Most players would be appalled to hear how dealers think. I'm here to tell you that poker dealers, while not making as much as many players think they do, don't do bad at all. Especially when you take into account the amount of training and education they have to put in before getting the job; not much. For most of the dealers in my casino, this is the best-paying job (by far) that they've ever had.
You'd think that would cause some appreciation, but, that's often not the case. For example, not long ago, I was back in the EDR (Employee Dining Room), sitting at a table with three other dealers as I ate my dinner. Their conversation quickly turned to "stiff stories" (tales of how customers had stiffed them). I didn't say anything, stiff stories tend to annoy me. I could keep my mouth shut no longer, however, when one of them griped about how she'd pushed a pot of over 600.00 to a player and "only" gotten a tip of 5.00.
"How much should you have gotten?", I asked.
"Well", she said, "It's standard for a waitress to get 15%, he could have tipped me at least 5%".
"So, he should have tipped you 30.00 on that pot?" I asked.
"At least", was the response.
I sat there in stunned silence as the other two dealers agreed with her, chiming in with their own stories of big pots and tips of "only" 5 or 10 dollars. Not a month ago, the woman telling me how she'd just been "stiffed" told me she used to work an office job where she made about half of what she was making now! Now, none of these dealers are players. They got their jobs because they heard they paid well, not because of any love of the game. I took that into account, and decided to try and explain things to them.
I pointed out that we weren't in business with those players. When they lost big, they couldn't come back to us and have us give them 15% of their losses, so why should we be in for 15% of their winnings? I pointed out that a waitress usually had to work 30 minutes or more to get their 15% tip, and that tip was usually in the neighborhood of 2 to 5 dollars. We run a hand in under 3 minutes (usually in SIGNIFICANTLY under 3 minutes), it's unrealistic to expect 15% of the pot. I also pointed out that, at the end of the night, we do as well as good waitstaff, and don't have to work nearly as hard.
Well, they didn't like that. I got a litany of complaints, many with resentment attached. Basically, it boiled down to their feeling "certain dealers" (like me) made significantly more in tips than they did because they were also players, and players "take care of their own", etc.
I told them it was simple math. A competent dealer will average 1.00 per hand. That being the case, it then makes sense for a dealer to work at improving their skills so they can get out more hands per down. If two dealers both work 10 downs in a night, with one dealer averaging 13 hands per down, and the other averaging 16, the faster dealer will average 3.00 more per down. Not much, huh? But, over the 10 downs they both dealt that night, that's a difference of 30.00. spread that difference out over a 5-day workweek and the difference is now 150.00. 52 weeks in a year makes the difference 7800.00, and that's a lot of money! All from just 3 more hands per down.
I asked them how much work they'd done outside of the workplace, honing their technique to improve their speed, and told them of some of the things I'd done, and still do. I also pointed out that was why I was always "in a hurry" at the table. I NEVER rush players, but I've worked hard to make all my mechanics as quick and efficient as possible. Speed = $.
But wait, there's more. Many players see me making an effort to get out more hands for them; they frequently comment on it. They also tip it. It's not a huge amount, but occasionally turning a 1.00 tip into a 2.00 tip, or a 2.00 tip into a 3.00 tip because a few players appreciate the efforts I'm making on their behalf adds up at the end on the night/week/year. I told them they would definitely see a difference in their earnings if they increased their efficiency, and focused on making a conscious effort to get out more hands. As a player, I like to see "quick hands" in a dealer. It makes me think they're working to get more hands out for me, and I tip it.
But wait, there's more. I asked them how much time and effort they'd put in outside the workplace learning the rules of the game, how to read boards, etc. Players expect a dealer to be an AUTHORITY. When you don't know the rules of the game; when you can't read the board and instantly declare the winner of the hand, it lessens the respect they have for you. On the other hand, being known for having an encyclopedic knowledge of the rules, having players see you be able to instantly read the board and declare the winner causes their respect for you to go up, and they tip that. Again, it's not a huge amount, but it adds up over time. It isn't easy, I STILL work on my hand reading every day, but it's well worth the extra effort.
It was clear they didn't agree with what I'd said. As a matter of fact, it made their resentment grow even greater. later that night, I heard how I'd been "lording it over them" back in the EDR and how I was such an obnoxious know-it-all. When will I ever learn to just keep my mouth shut?
Anyway, back to the point of this rant. I believe it's attitudes like these that cause many dealers to develop a sense of entitlement; they're SUPPOSED to get tips; and good ones at that! When you look at it like that, it's pretty easy to let something like "thank you" slip pretty far down on your list of priorities. I'm frequently appalled at how many dealers in my casino don't thank customers for their tips, UNLESS they're big ones (something you're specifically NOT supposed to do. A professional dealer treats all players the same, regardless of how they tip). When they don't thank me, it's on!
As I said earlier, I consider myself a generous tipper. As a dealer, I'm grateful for ANY tip. If a player is kind enough to throw me a buck, I am glad to have it and express my thanks verbally. As a player, I ALWAYS tip. If all I take down is the blinds, the dealer gets a buck. On any pot over ten bucks, they get two; 20-50.00. three; 50-100.00, four, and so on. I know this negatively affects my earnings, but I'm playing in the casino where I deal, and I think it's important to set a good example. Also, many of the dealers in the box have been players while I've been dealing. A lot of them have been extremely generous in their tips to me. I try to remember that and return their generosity in kind.
The point is, no matter how entitled a dealer may feel, I tip significantly above the average. If they're not thanking me, they're not thanking most players. When this happens, I don't say anything, I just cut my next tip in half. If they fail to thank me that time, I stop tipping them altogether. If they approach me about it off the table, I'll tell them why. If they don't ask, I don't tell. The next time they deal to me, it starts over. One FTT (Failure To Thank) and I cut the tip in half. Two and I'm done.
The most interesting occurence of this was when I went on a pretty serious heater, winning 5 or 6 hands in pretty short order. By the third win, I was done tipping the dealer, who didn't thank me either of the two times previosuly in that down when I'd tipped him. After two hands of not being tipped, the dealer had the gall to stop the game and ask if he'd done something to offend me! I told him, right in front of the other players, exactly why I'd quit tipping him. To his credit, he took it well, and has been a lot better about thanking customers ever since.
Here's the biggest thing about this. Thanking people isn't just courteous, it's smart. Many times, poker players won't tip, not because they don't want to, but because they're so excited and relieved to have won the hand that they simply forget to do it. Every time a player throws you a tip, if you make sure you thank them in a noticable way, you're also essentially saying:
"Attention, all poker players who may have won a hand and forgotten to tip, here is a friendly reminder that this dealer really appreciates your tokes!". I wish I could count the times a player has heard me thank someone for a tip and said:
"Oh, I forgot you on that last hand I won", and tossed me a toke.
Dealers who don't thank players for their tips aren't merely ingrates, they're pretty dumb, as well.
Ok, end of rant.
(for now)
posted by Sean at 8:35 AM
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