That wasn't in the basement of a Holiday Inn, was it?

That room was on Broadway, and it was run by Great Canadian Casinos. In fact that place was exactly what Vancouver needs now: a standalone legal cardroom, not a room tucked away in some corner of a Casino as an afterthought.

No this one was on Hastings a few blocks east of Main; they always had a few tables of Rummy (or a variant called "Goofy Rummy" around here,) and usually a couple of poker tables.

Thanks for recommending it. Quite different from any magic show I've ever seen. Heavy on the emotional drama, (but) well worth watching.

Thanks for the link. Nice video!

Hey Ray. What do you suggest people like myself, who have no clue, do to protect ourselves when we're at a casino?

read my article this month.

Is the sound off on that video?

I saw his show on Hulu and read the book this week. I think this is the most likely scenario. He certainly gives out enough specific information (claiming Leo won a WSOP bracelet in the 1990s) about the private game for TPT to ferret out exactly who he's referring to. He also specifically mentions pros the general public would recognize from ESPN as being unwitting participants in the scam.

My biggest WTF-moment was his description of dealers being hired at the Stardust back in the day to cold-deck customers who might have gotten a bit too lucky in the pits.

Overall, I'm going to say the fiction outnumbers the facts in this aspect of his memoir.

If you ever want to know how scary good these mechanics can get I present this

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1sjKmW5Cis

The whole video is worth watching but for a hold 'em example, go to 6:35 or so.

simple, he used strippers and brought the hand to the bottom of the pack. didnt matter about the shuffles before. then he dealt off the bottom to put the kings where he wanted them in tellers and and on the board.
they said he fooled them because he was blind and didnt want to ruin his act. classy guys for sure.
maybe he did a few other things as well. as possible hopped the cut in the backround but didnt need to.
that why you learn whats going on.

i caught what he did almost instantly. he never would have made it in a card room doing that.

read my article in the magazine.

ray, i'm sure they know what most of those magicians are doing and the "fool us" is more about whether or not they want to have the guy in their act or not

but... pausing and using the , . to skip one frame at a time i can see the bottom deal happen but only when going frame by frame

but more importantly, watching the shuffle frame by frame, knowing he's setting up some kings on the bottom, i still am unable to catch when and how he does that, do you have the exact moments he locates and moves the kings there?

no but i see him pulling strippers so he gets them together and slugs them to the bottom.

he could just as easily put them anyplace and hopped the cut to bring them to the bottom.
i didnt watch any slow motion just saw the moves.

I don't know about you, Ray, but I've seen a lot of strippers in my day and that magician is not as bad as you say.



By the way, back in my day we called them mechanics, lingo that is lost on today's millennials.

Ray, you may be able to spot them easy but a single article won't make it so simple for other people - you're a sharp guy with years of experience

I didn't want to be cheated in home games and researched sleight of hand years ago - I'm full blown into magic now and it's incredible what some people can do with cards. Not like magicians are that famous anyway but if some inconspicuous mechanic wanted to cheat - 99% of people wouldn't notice or be able to catch it. I mostly play online or live in casinos where the deck is very scrutinized, home games you must definitely trust the dealer.

the article gets a person aware of some of the things that can bite them. after that its up to them to learn to protect themselves.
many of the top players that are now broke and in the past, are partly or totally so from being cheated out of their money in one form or another.

Yeah, when he was talking about slugging strippers in the bottom I got kinda nostalgic, til I realized he was talking about cards.

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Ray and others, what do you do, or have you done, in the past when you encounter a player that might be cheating in a game you're playing in?

There are likely many variables that would influence your decision, but I'm just curious how you've reacted in situations where cheating has occurred.

Thanks.

most times i tell him not when i am in a pot if i am a stranger to the place as i dont know the situation. or i quit.

if its a regular place i quietly tell him to leave. they usually do.

if the game is crooked i quit and leave.

Link to your article?

in our magazine on the site.

May I ask a question but -- what is a stripper?

cards that are cut so that you can pull them out of the deck.

A Stripper is a solvent or chemical agent used to remove old paint or varnish from a surface.

A Stripper is a tool, machine or appliance which is designed to perform the same function by means of applied heat, steam or friction.

A Stripper is any one of a number of machines designed to remove husks from seeds, bark from logs, etc.

A Stripper is a person who removes articles of his or her clothing while dancing or moving in a seductive or provocative manner, usually accompanied by a popular 80's power ballad such as "Never Say Goodbye" by Bon Jovi or "Heaven" by Warrant.

A Stripper is a device, tool or other process used to create a "trick" deck or stackable deck by trimming or shaving minute, almost undetectable marks into the edges of cards. It may also refer to a person who performs such actions. In this context it may also refer to other means of stacking or manipulating the deck.

The biggest giveaway for me was during the shuffle itself: you can plainly see 10 or so cards at the bottom that never get mixed up. No slow-mo or frame-by-frame viewing required for that. But that's because I'm looking for it while watching this video. If I sit in a card game, I can't say I'm watching the dealer's hands that closely*. Of course, I only play in casinos, where I probably don't need to worry about this stuff**.

*And just to preempt it: you'll say I should, which is certainly fair. I'm just admitting here that I don't. Ninety percent of the time, I'm probably watching the TV or something while the dealer is shuffling.

**Which is funny, as my local casino is Stones Gambling Hall.