Poker News

Jonathan Raab

In September this year a Gaming Commission is replacing the Gaming Board of Great Britain, which governed casino poker for many years. While the Gaming Board set hard and fast rules about how games should be run, the Commission will merely issue a set of guidelines about how they should be conducted.

This allows greater freedom for operators, and for the first time, it will be legal for players to tip dealers and other casino staff. Is this a good thing? While the US is a tipping culture, where everyone from the guy who opens your taxi door to the lady who pays you out at the cashier desk expects to be tipped, in the UK it is very different. Sure, waiters and sometimes taxi drivers are tipped but there is far less of a cultural expectation to do so. In some European countries, tipping is altogether frowned upon.

In general tipping promotes a higher standard of service and encourages workers to be friendly and efficient. Hopefully the introduction of tipping will lead to an increased standard of service in British casinos and dealers who are more willing to smile and be friendly. However, there are some negative aspects of the tipping culture, which threaten the integrity of the game. A British poker playing acquaintance told me about how a very well known and respected professional, one who is sponsored by a major online poker site, used the power of the tip in the $5,000 pot-limit hold’em event in the WSOP. Early in the game, a floor person tapped on my friend’s shoulder and asked if he would mind swapping seats with a well-known player on the adjacent table. The floor person claimed that the player wished to move tables as hehad found himself on the same table as some of his family members and did not wish to play against them.

My friend glanced at the table and saw that it included several other well-known and feared players. He rightly refused the swap, casting doubt on the claim that this player was actually playing against members of his family. He thought that if this top player did not wish to face these tough opponents, why should he? Even if he was playing against relatives, he still had no right to request to be moved. A short while later, a seat opened on his table and the player who had requested the move was moved into it.

My British friend showed visible dismay at this and was asked by the moved player if he had a problem with it. He explained that he did have a problem with it. If he himself had not fancied his starting table he would not have been afforded the same option to switch. The name player in question retorted, “I spend a lot of money in here, get used to it!”

This sort of thing has no place in poker. Players should not bring the integrity of the game into question by making requests like this, nor should any casino staff member accommodate them, regardless of how well any particular player tips. If poker wants to be taken seriously asa sport, this sort of thing needs to be stamped out. I Imagine Roger Federer asking for his Wimbledon draw to be changed because he didn’t fancy playing against a potential second-round opponent? Tipping should reward good service. It should not be used to unduly influence random factors of the game, such as seating draw. When tipping is introduced into British casinos, I hope that this sort of ugly bi-product does not come with it.

Filed under: Poker News