During one of the Ultimate Bet $500 Buy-in Tournaments, I had the misfortune to deal to John Bonetti. Over the years, I’d heard many dealers, players, and supervisors talk about his bad attitude towards dealers and how mean he could be. I figured it would go one way or another, he’d either be calm and collected because he was playing with a field of Brick and Mortar Green Horns, or he’d believe he was the only one entitled to win and show it. It was the latter…damn it! I hate it when it goes that way.

He was in the 2s and snipping cards at my fingers with the first hand dealt. He had a direct shot because the 1s was empty. I deftly dodged each ‘snip’ for the first five/six hands. He was in continual snarl and grumble mode, making statements like, “these dealers…” waving his hand in the air to show his disdain for us and the rest of the world. And then, even though I keep my hands clearly back of the box and the ‘war zone’, he hit me in the side of the hand with both cards…believe me, he was trying to hit me.

Calm as the eye of the hurricane, I said, “Just set your cards down.”

“W-H-A-T?” jerked out of his lips. He acted surprised that I would say anything.

I repeated, “Just set your cards down.”

“W-H-A-T?” Either there was no comprehension that I was serious or he’d gone into ‘broken record’ mode.

“You heard me. Just set your cards down.”

“What are you implying.”

“You hit me in the hand with your cards. Just set them down.”

By now his eyes were popping like Old Faithful and it looked like they were getting ready to blow. “I was just trying to get them in to you.”

I called for a decision. All of his statements were harsh and angry, he was definitely trying to get them into me…as in meld them into my body.

Jon came and I explained to him what had happened. Amazingly, the 5s, someone I’ve never seen before and hope I never see again, jumped into the conversation and told Jon that John was not out of line…he had seen John out of line and this time he definitely wasn’t. Thank you, Butthead! You’re not the one that was taking the cards in the hand.

Jon told John that he would have to set his cards down. As soon as Jon left, John did a, “I come all the way from Texas to put up with this?” still waving his hand and gesticulating at me like I was dried snail slime.

I called Jon back. “He’s still making comments to me.”

The 1s filled up with a little Asian cutie from a broken game and she said, “Oh my God! I knew I didn’t want to come to this table,” as she eyed John.

The 5s piped in again with, “You must not pay your dealers enough.”

Let’s clarify that one. There is no amount of money in the world that would make me be a willing backdrop for someone’s cards. I will take a card from someone when they’ve had an unexpected beat and it’s an explosion over the hand…never twice. I will not take a card from someone that’s malicious and aiming to get me because I’m a dealer. Don’t even bother dragging out your checkbooks, boys, cause you ain’t got enough money.

And on to the pay part. Ultimate Bet paid our plane fare and our hotel room (which I’m very grateful for and really think they did a helluva job for us) but as far as pay goes…we were paid from tournaments tips and a % withheld from the tournament buy-ins. It was enough to make me very happy…but we were not paid. It all depended on the total tournament take, not an hourly wage.

The 5s needs a clarification on what should happen at the poker table and player behavior…not on what HAS happened at the poker table.

Jon again told John that he would have to set his cards down and play poker. Don’t worry, as soon as Jon walked away, John started in again, “I’ve put up with dealers all my life…”

Oh my God! Poor man, forced to play poker and put up with us little dried slime trails. What a horrible life.

I called Jon again. I told Jon that John would not just leave it alone and that I wasn’t going to deal to him if he continued to behave in that manner.

Jon again went to John. John demanded to see Suzie. Jon told John that Suzie wasn’t running this tournament, that he, Jon, was the Director and John would have to speak to him. They stepped away from the table for a moment. I dealt John in while they spoke.

Jon came back to me and asked me if I wanted to be let out of the box and have another dealer come in. I told Jon that I was fine. I just wanted the 2s to stop it.

Stop it did! I ended up pushing the 2s several pots before I finished the down. I never slam chips at a player or act disgruntled towards them…so I gently slid the chips his way, in my normal ‘professional’ dealer mode…and John set his cards down like a good boy and stopped waving and foaming at the mouth.

As soon as I got to the next table, the one behind me was broken and the players moved to other games…yup…John moved right into the 5s in the my next game. Don’t you just know it! It’s Murphy’s Law of Poker Dealing. John behaved all during this down. No twitching, no waving, no stupid stares or idiotic statements. Just the way the game of poker was meant to be played.

*****
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