I'll let them repeat themselves before replying, "I'm not listening to you--see how YOU like it!"

The only problem I ever had with it was a player once wanted to know why I told him to put away his earbuds or leave and there was someone else at the table with earbuds.

A guy I used to work with was one of the very few dealers I've ever seen be able to be brutally honest in a snarky way without anyone ever getting bent out of shape about it. Anytime someone with headphones would ask him to repeat what he said, he would just mouth it without making any sound. I enjoyed it when I saw it, but it's kind of a dick move.

We have a jackpot in our poker room of $10,000 which to qualify you have to have Aces full of 10's or better beaten by quads, fairly standard jackpot.

One of our regulars who is your typical OMC raises which means he either has KK or maybe QQ. The big blind who is another regular who is about 110 calls and we see the flop. Flop came A-A-3 and they checked around. Turn came a 5 and once again checked around. River comes A for a possible jackpot so floor is called over. Once again check check and the raiser shows KK which I and most others at the players at the table knew he had. Now here comes the fun part, the big blind rolls over AQ which sends half of the table into a joyous celebration while me, the floorman and the other half of the table stares blankly at the scene. Yes a jackpot was dealt but only one problem....both players "forgot" to make anymore bets so the pot wasnt near big enough to reach the rake therefore we could not pay the jackpot......

Everyone is mad at the two, the 110yo like with most things is not aware of what is going on and OMC launches into a tirade that would make Earl Weaver proud. He is screaming at everyone, me, the floorman, the food server even a random lady walking by the table. We make a copy of the page in the rulebook and show him which he promptly tears it up into confetti and throws it at the floorman and now wants numbers to the casino manager, TGO and I think even the governor and the pope. The funniest part of the whole scene was it took five security guards to drag the elderly man out of the poker room.

While nobody made any money I guess it is special to deal a hand that people still talk about two years later......I guess.....

Must have been 2/4 limit? How much needs to be in the pot? Cool story though. I would love to have been there for that one.

Heard a heartwarming story.

Broke guy gets a buy-in from a friend with the agreement to split the $100,000+ jackpot.

As he gets short stacked he ratholes some chips for smokes. Hits the jackpot, not enough in the pot.

It was a 4/8 limit game. The lowest limit we spread is 3/6 and even that is rare.

In our house the final raked dollar is taken at $30 so to qualify for any promotion $30 needs to be in the pot. Generally our games are passive nit fests except on weekends so it's tough to get $30 in anything lower than 3/6.

our room has no minimum pot size to pay out bbj or promos, first room I ever saw like that.

our big boss recently picked a few dealers for a round-table to hear suggestions on what needs improving around here.

THE FIRST THING BROUGHT UP was how none of us wants to deal Aces Cracked night. We pleaded with him to replace it with ANY other promo, or at least make 'em get $15 in the pot before paying out.

Of all the things brought up in that 2+ hour meeting, that's the one thing I hope he addresses.

(Interestingly, they run the promo on day shift on a different day, and apparently the games are nothing like the nit-fest we see on swing shift.)

I played in a room like that .... but they also automatically took $1 for the jackpot regardless of pot size.

I remember a room that based the Aces Cracked prize on the pot size. So rather than pay $100 for Aces Cracked ... It was match the pot up to $100. This forced some betting.


Then maybe you don't need to change the promo. Just change the players. Or just change your shift.

Hey everyone,

I'm currently in dealer school and my graduation audition is in a couple days. I'm honestly having such a hard time with nerves when it comes to dealing. I cant calm the hell down. I know everything i need to but i put so much effort into simple tasks which makes me screw up. The problem is mainly keeping count of the pot and side
pots.
Can anybody here give me any advice?

I suspect, without any knowledge, that the nits that show up on swing might be the regulars during the day.

Every audition I've ever had has been with a manager, supervisors, and/or current dealers at the table. My point is, they've all been in your shoes before. Smile at them, and tell them you're nervous. They'll understand.

And once you start dealing, just keep it slow. A typical hand of poker when you're dealing to regular players takes about a minute. A typical hand of poker in an audition will often take 5-10 minutes.

Good luck.

Can't really recommend anything for the nerves, everybody has them when they're new.
As bolt said, go slow is the best advice you will get. They'd much rather have a slower dealer that makes few mistakes than a fast dealer than makes many. Just concentrate on making as few mistakes as possible and you'll be fine.

Also dress nicely; white button up, black slacks, shoes and socks.

Remembering the $$ amount of the pot is one of the most important things in an audition. They want to know that you are raking the pot correctly on each street (if applicable)

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It's also important to know in the event you have to re-create the action for the floor in a dispute.

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This + BREATHE.

And this.

This hasn't been the case from the auditions I've been in. Only one ever asked me what the pot was (they did it twice) and it was not at a difficult time. Once was preflop after one limp and then other was after the flop in a limped pot. Not to mention if a place doesn't run any PL games, they often won't care about your pot counting skills.

Um....yeah, they care if you're taking the correct rake.

I'd stay in school until I got comfortable dealing. I don't care if the school says I passed, I'd keep going for the practice until I felt ready.

Ive done this a few times, but not too often for obvs reasons

Player with headphones - looks at me, pulls one phone off ear and asks "whats the action?"
Me - "he said he called your all in"


yea my school would allow us to always come back and practice during lab, and it helps others by keeping the lab busy

I should have said they don't care to an extent. In fact none of the auditions I've done have asked me anything about the rake. Obviously they want to know you can take a correct take, but depending on the room that only requires you to track the pot up to ~$50, but most places aren't going to ask you for the pot after that.

I've actually never followed this dress code in any audition I've attended. I think the whole "black/white" thing is pretty old-school and doesn't really matter. The last audition I had I wore tan slacks and a blue button-up plus shoes and socks. I got the job.

The key is dress slacks and a button up. Color isn't important, just nothing flashy over the top.

I'm going to disagree with this advice. It's perfectly normal for him to be nervous .... they will expect him to be nervous there is no reason for him to tell them this.

It sets a bad tone. It's a reminder to himself that he is nervous. He shouldnt start off by undermining himself. Think positive thoughts. Think about how you can do this and focus on the task at hand. Take a breath smile and tell them you are ready.....

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Well he is in dealer school. There is a good chance they told him to wear black and whites. And if they did that is what he should wear.

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Room has a 5PM promo drawing so 3-4 additional tables start up around 430. Drawing comes and goes. Players start to go home to eat so they can come back for the 8PM promo drawing and/or get ready for 6PM tournament.

My table breaks around 540 and I go to another. Around 620 someone at the table kids the Dealer about being a 'private dealer for the night'. I figure out that the Dealer was never pushed.

Turns out the Dealer had been at that table since 430 and the table was never put into the rotation.

1) How do you handle this spot as a tip-making Dealer?

2) How do your fellow Dealers treat you for taking advantage?

3) Does management treat you for not speaking up?

Yes, you need to read the whole thing ... GL