A funny thing, rules … they are supposed to make our lives easier and safer, and what goes for life goes for poker, more or less. So, I was a little bemused by a "rule" that
strictly forbade the dealer from counting the pot in a no-limit hold'em tournament.
I was making my usual guest appearance in the
GUKPT, quietly minding my own business and wondering whether I would last till the dinner break, when another player disturbed my reverie by politely asking the dealer how much was in the pot. The dealer refused to tell him. Consternation. Call the manager. There was no joy there, either, as the rules did not allow a dealer to count the pot in a no-limit hold'em situation, even when requested to do so.
"Why?" I asked, dumbfounded.
"Because it's written in our rules."
"I understand that, but why is it written in your rules that a dealer, when asked, cannot count the pot?"
At this point, the cardroom manager was beginning to feel a little under pressure, but gamely countered, "That's what they do in Vegas, and we're all trying to standardize the poker rules."
"But what's the reasoning behind this rule?" I persisted.
"Sorry, Lucy, I don't make the rules, I just follow them," and that was the end of that … well, almost.
I did last until the dinner break; in fact, I survived until the following day, when I had a very nice lunch with a couple of other players and The Man from Blue Square, and, inevitably, the conversation drifted to this rule.
Surprisingly, a very spirited discussion ensued. You wouldn't think that an innocuous little rule could generate so much heat, especially during a lovely, leisurely lunch. Battle lines were drawn, but I'm pleased to report that despite a lot of energy being expended, we did not have to resort to physical violence, just some name-calling and questioning of each other's mental acuity. It was nothing that seasoned poker players haven't come across before.
My two opponents believed that counting potentially huge pots would slow the game down, and anyway, if you're a proper poker player, you should be acutely aware of everything going on at your table, including who's put what in the pot. Obviously, the dealers have to count individual players' bets if asked, so if occasionally someone wants to work out the pot odds and needs to know how much is in the middle, what's the big deal? It happens in pot-limit all the time, and no one whinges about time-wasting there, so why complain in no-limit? And as for players supposedly being finely attuned to everything that's happening at their table, well, yes, they should be, but if I were running a poker website that was supporting a brick-and-mortar tournament, I would want all of my online qualifiers to feel right at home and enjoy the experience. After all, in cyberspace they are supplied with all of the info they want or need, so why encourage them to come to real live tournaments and then give them a hard time and make them look silly or inept? Some have never even held a pack of cards in their hands, and all of a sudden you expect them to know all about poker etiquette? Get real.
Personally, I don't care whether a dealer can or cannot count the pot in no-limit hold'em. What I do care about is that if there's a rule, it should make sense: There should be a good reason (or reasons) for the rule, and the staff invoking any particular rule should fully understand its application. As yet, nobody has convinced me of a good reason for this rule. If it's to make the dealers' lives easier, well, that's not good enough. It's the player who's paying a registration fee or rake who should have his (or her) life made easier. We are the paying customers. The standardizing of poker rules doesn't wash, either. Who cares whether it goes in Vegas? A silly rule is a silly rule, no matter where.
Lucy has been playing poker for 20 years and has won more than $1 million in tournament prize money all over the world. She prefers playing pot-limit Omaha and pot-limit seven-card stud eight-or-better.
