“Just move quietly into the office and no one will get hurt,” from one of the four security guards that surrounded me as I entered the poker room. I found out later they had my picture on file and watched me enter the casino from the employee’s entrance, tracked my progress through the crowds milling around “O”, and the sea of slot machines that surround the poker room. I was numb. What had I done?
Everyone in the poker room was trying to see what had happened or was about to happen,a fewof the players were standing up leering at me, and by now I knew something was really, terribly wrong. I wondered if handcuffs were waiting for me too. Not one supervisor was in the office, only the four security guards and me. The same one that had spoken to me earlier pulled out a sheet of paper and started reading.
“You are banned from ever setting foot in this casino again, for the rest of your life. And your children and their children are banned from ever entering this casino for life. Future generations may be allowed in this casino upon the discretion of the president at that time, and depending on if those generations have enough money to make it worthwhile forthis casinoto grant them access.”
I gasped out, “But please, what did I do?”
“You are guilty of writing about poker, in its entirety, telling the world about what happens in poker games, in all limits.”
“But…but…but how can that be a crime? Everyone wants to know about it. And everyone else is talking and writing about it.”
Security guard, “You have mentioned tipping.”
“But that’s part of the industry and goes along with the whole picture. Why shouldn’t it be discussed since players like to throw it ina dealer’sface and tell you they aren’t going to tip just because they lost a hand?”
“SILENCE! For your crimes you will be stripped of your apron, your uniform shirt, and your name badge, and be forced to walk through the room, between all of the tables so everyone can see what happens to someone like you, someone that lives outside the rules.”
“But…but…but there are no rules anywhere about this. How can this be happening?”
“We make the rules, you live by them,” as the security guard ripped the apron from my waist and yanked at my named badge.
“But…but…but I’m not wearing anything but a camisole underneath my shirt. Please don’t tear it off. Please…”
“You are a disgrace to a dealer’s uniform….but I do see your point. I’ll leave the shirt. Now prepare to be humiliated,” as the security guards ushered me back into the poker room.
Everyone was looking at me as I walked through the room. A few of the really mean people were laughing and jeering as I walked by, grabbing their cards (even if they had Aces)and throwing them at me even though I hadn’t dealt a hand, but most of them justlooked away, their faces filled with misery and a few were wiping away tearsbecause they knew this was a very sad day in poker history. A lot of them reached out and touched my arm in consolation and wished me the best, telling me they would really miss me,as I completed my final stroll through one of the world’s greatest poker rooms.
WAKE UP! It wasn’t my dream, it’s a dream that belongs to a few of you that thought I WOULD be and SHOULD be fired for writing about poker – in detail from my side of life.
Absolutely nothing happened when I walked into Bellagio’s Poker Room on Monday, other than poker, poker, poker. The only person that even talked to me aboutwriting here,in depth, was Matt, one of our newer, younger floor men. He wanted to give me his POV on Sammy and Brian, explaining that he thought they were really nice and he liked them. Kee-rist!
Have I said anything in these pages that would imply that I felt Sammy or Brian are not nice? Or that I didn’t like them? Hell no! If you think so, you need to go back and read the whole project, starting with “Behind the Noise” and progressing to “Dodging a Bullet” and “More of this and that”.
Of the few other people that did mention any of this to me, theywere very supportive and thanked me for telling the truth.
And one thing that should be clarified now isTHERE ARE NO PRIVATE GAMES in Bellagio’s poker room. It is against gaming regulation. It has been tried and it’s not allowed. How was it tried? The players were very selective about who they wantedin their gameswith them, so theytried lockingup seats for nonexistent players. If the players saw someone they wanted in the game, the seat/s were magically available. If the players saw someone (that was an undesirable for the table) scoping out the action and wanting a seat, the undesirableshad to go on the list because nothing was open. Doesn’t work…hence no private games.
I dealt almost all of my shift in lower limits. The Bellagio Cup III started and the room was a steady run of games with about five tables empty and not the usual milling and crowding of bodies and noise. Something started late in Bobby’s Room but it was short handed and I didn’t even stop to look.
So to all of you that thought/think I should/would be fired, have a grate (sp. intentional) life, and be careful, you might be fired too you know. Wishing something on someone is a great way of having it come back and bite you in the butt.
Wow, very well done, and very amusing!
This just in: people can be stupid.
Was pissed off as I read this then I laughed.
Sorry I delivered a bad beat when you had 66 in BB. I got too shortstacked to care what the cards were and was fortunate that my overcard hit.
Ha ha – nice one sweetie – here’s a couple of chips. Why don’t you go buy yourself something pretty 😉
I have just recently started following your blog and enjoy it very much. I believe it was link on 2+2 regarding the Farha vs. Townsend match that I followed to lead me here. I realize that your blog is not about tipping but it is interesting to know how the high stakes players behave…and tip!
I have gotten the impression that the high stakes players don’t tip as well as the low stakes players. Why would that be?
Also how is tipping done for tournament payouts? Have any of these high stakes cash game players not tipped on a tournament win?
Thanks,
MM
Continue to kick the card fairy’s ass Linda 🙂
BRAVO!!! Great post!
You had me there for a paragraph or to. Thanks for the laugh.
Don’t let the bastards get you down.
Paboo
Linda-
I’ve been reading your blog for about a year now and think it is very entertaining. From following this most recent saga, I stumbled across Brian Townsend’s blog and the comments that proceeded. You have a lot of support even from people reading his blog. He got roasted pretty good about the comment that you would be fired. I don’t know him at all but he comes across as a little dirtball for being so petty…
Keep up the good work, very entertaining stuff lately. DONT CHANGE!
Josh
Wow, first I thought it’s partly my fault for blowing it up so big,(was not intentional) but then I saw it was a "creative thing." Wheew (sweat comes off brow, heart slows from a pounding metradome) I did not do it to try and embarass anyone, but to culture them. I like Brain too,his videos on card runners, railing him on Full Tilt and PokerStars. His game is advanced beyond my thinking and I learn alot from him. He doesnt know me though, nor will I ever sit across from him in a cash game in my wildest stretch of imagining, but a tournament maybe a reality stretch that is possible.
GL to you Linda
Here is my follow up to P5ers after the incident:
I read a lot of people’s replies think tipping is about "added" money, or optional but in reality the way the service industry is set up, it’s not. Why?
Employers make it this way. Workman’s comp., taxes, and company benefits make it so it’s to the employer’s advantage to not pay a higher flat hourly rate, and have the employee deal with tips, that way they are responsible for less across the board.
In truth, when they do a 100% good job, and then you give a tip, what you are doing for them is:
They are being acknowledged and awarded a just and standard fee for a skilled service to another human being. In other words, when the client (player) pays a gratuity, they are doing the right thing for two reasons, One- your letting the dealer (chauffeur, waitress, bartender, on down to pizza delivery guy, shoeshine man) know you appreciate their excellent service, and two- because without this gratuity the job pays nothing that anyone living in America can survive on for one day. Please understand that! I’m sure there are unique company situations where this service person gets paid a prevailing wage and gratuity is included, but it’s an extreme exception. The best thing to do is ask a manager or floor person what the status is, if you think your “adding†something they normally don’t get or aren’t already taxed on. It will probably be 100-1 that this person is not being taxed by the government whether you tip them or not, so if you don’t tip at least the minimum, (ask what that is if you don’t know) that person just lost money working for you.
So IMHO, apparently a lot of poker players did not know this stuff, because if you did and still don’t think a dealer has a tip coming, especially winning players that make a living or extra income from poker, you are letting them know you think they are some robotic piece of shit, and that you don’t care that people know you have less than zero class, and are way too tight to give anything out of your precious bankroll, because if you ever go busted, you cant ever think back that you tipped some money you could of bet off instead, making you content fucking the very people that help orchestrate this unreal way that you make money.
If you don’t tip then playing online exclusively is perfect for all stiff artists.
In contrast, the cultured real people, down for helping a service person, they can see it’s +EV with implied odds, it goes much farther than the dollar, it goes to the heart, for having some heart.
Like the story is that far fetched with the way things have been happening lately, lol?
The place is a mess.
Glad youre still employed :).
Great post!
Ok Linda. You might have been misunderstood. I might have jumped to conclusions. I may have taken offence to your posts on tipping or lack of, without actually really knowing what you are about. Your blogs seem to be quite entertaining while somewhat informative at the same time. I admit that as a dealer by trade, I was a little heated when I posted my first reply about your "Behind The Noise" post. Not so much your fault as I am somewhat of a green horn when it comes to life in Vegas. As a visitor to Nevada, I was appauled when I saw quarters being placed on poker tables for no apparent reason. And even more disgusted when I saw a winner of a $120 pot toss the dealer .25c. I orriginally fealt pitty for the dealers here in town, and vowed to never pitch a card in Nevada. Recently I visited as a guest at Paris Hotel, and visited a few poker rooms in town. The quarters were gone. The dealers were smiling. The games were moving along quicker. And NLH was everywhere. I have a new hope for my future in Vegas.
On a different note.
I visited the Bellagio poker room last year on the week after the 2006 WSOP main event. The early afternoon session was starting to pick up. As a first timer to that card room, I was a little wide eyed, so I walked right past the two flatscreens which displayed the list for games. I approached who seemed to be the floor person and asked "What games were running?" He replied that he has a 4-8 kill seat open. I asked again, "What games are running?" He replied again, "I have a 4-8 kill seat right now." So there I was playing 4-8 kill lol. I had gone through 2 dealers without losing. I was about 350 up when the third dealer sits. I’m directly on his left so its seat nine or ten. After about three hands into his down, he asks me,
"Do I know you?"
"I doubt it" was an honest reply.
He says "Are you Kurt?"
I was shocked when he knew my name, but answered "Yeah!"
He said "I went to the Dealer and Bartender school in Rancho, the instructor there told us to go to The Lucky Derby Casino and watch you deal."
As flattered as I was, I couldn’t resist asking him for the $800 tuition as a joke. He claimed that he tried to get a job dealing where I worked, but wasn’t able to get a call back after his audition. So there he was 2 weeks out of dealer school, dealing at one of the most prestigious card rooms in America. I admit that I was a little jealous, but had no intentions what so ever on leaving Cali at that time. At the same time that we were talking, my luck started to go south. It seems that when the table realizes that a dealer is playing, they no longer should respect his action. Why is that? Are we less likely to play good cards? Are we more likely to chase a gutshot? Do we care less about our stacks? Whatever, but I left with about 150 ahead, and had a really great time at The Bellagio. The floorperson could have been a little nicer tho, but I am still a little jealous of the job you have LInda. This card room you work in is one of the best I’ve ever played in. Sorry for jumping to conclusions earlier, for that was the first ever post I’d ever read of your blog, and wasn’t able to appreciate the artistic and entertainment value of your site at that moment. Searching through your archives and giggling a bit has opened my eyes a bit, and I’ve come to the conclusion that I was wrong about you. Best wishes Linda and I’m looking forward to your next post.