I'm not saying you're going to intentionally short anyone, not even close to that. What I'm saying is that if an unscrupulous player gets his hands into wherever you keep the cash or chips and skims a couple hundred out, when it's time to cash out you're short. I'm sure you would find a way to pay your players, but would every house game be willing or able to do that?

Again, I'm not saying you're likely to do this, I'm speaking more toward why I wouldn't play in any underground game: there are several threads in B&M every week talking about how supposedly professional floorpeople in a cardroom made a terrible ruling. It can happen anywhere.

As far as the dealer knowing the rules, the dealer should not be involved in any decisions made. What happens when it's a dealer error that you need to decide on? The dealer should explain what happened and the floor should make a ruling.

BY FAR THE BEST COMMENT I HAVE SEEN IN THIS NEVERENDING THREAD!!! and not just because he agrees with me, but because he put it so simple and so truthful in a real life situation, not some theory.

I had a discussion about this yesterday at my game with a player that did this for a living on the internet for 5 years. He completely understands how the rake affects his game. He actually helped me understand how the pot is its own entity and how when the rake gets taken out before it gets awarded to the winning player and therefore every one pays for the rake.

But he told me the people that usually make the rake a big deal, are the people that lose money on poker and use the rake as an excuse to justify their loses. He told me that if he didnt pay rake he would have made tons more, but that had nothing to do that he now lost his bankroll and building it up again.

By the way, I am by no means a winning player (yet), I keep track of every single session I play on poker journal on my itouch (which i highly recommend, its an excellent app way better that any other I have seen with so many details but easy to use) since october last year, and I am down at the time, and trust me, I do not blame it on the rake. I know that its my lack of skill that makes me lose and that I must improve, and not a rake.

If you consider rake - and by extension your buy-ins - to be the cost of entertainment, getting raked is fine for you.

If you consider the effect of rake as a direct component of your win-percentage, then it's an evil to be avoided when you can, and something to be factored into the opportunity cost of playing.

"Home" poker games don't rake. They might recoup the cost of pizza and the PPV, but businesses rake poker games for profit.

I dont meant to sound rude, but your comment seems pretty irrelevant to the main point of the subject. The last comment about it being a "Home" game, well no one is talking about a home game, its a professionally ran poker game at a home. Weather you consider that a "home" game or a underground casino or poker club, the puspose of this is to make money, therefore it IS a business.

Perhaps you've overlooked what forum you're in, and what it is we talk about here.

Professionally run businesses should either seek the B&M forum or the advice of a lawyer.

Was going to post the exact same thing, that he's in the Home Game forum.

With this comment and the replies to it, I consider the thread closed.