I am hoping Maureen or Sam Stone do vanity searches and someone can help me out with a poker dilemma.
I have played poker since I was little and my dad beat me down and took all of my pennies. After I moved back to the Washington DC area I lost my regular game and have not been able to play since. Frankly I am desperate. None of my friends here play and I miss it. I play to win, but the social aspect is more important so online really isn’t an option.
I met with about twenty other players through meetup.com. I have emailed to set up games that never quite happened. A lot of people seem to show up with the intention of setting up a game, but never get around to actually playing one.
So I got an email from a casual acquaintance inviting me to a regular game on Friday nights. Great. They play two casino sized tables with a 3/6 game of hold em’ on one and a 2/4 (or 1/2) dealer’s choice on the other. There are typically close to ten players at each table. The house provides drinks, snacks, a dealer and takes a 10% rake from each pot, with a maximum rake of $3.
This is beginning to sound less like a friendly neighborhood game and more like a for profit enterprise. Now in theory I have no problem with a rake. I have trouble though gauging the cost to me of losing 10% each hand.
Is this even worth playing? Is 10% fairly standard, or am I right in thinking that is a bit of a high price to pay? I am trying to weigh my desire to get off my butt and actually start playing again with my desire to have a chance of coming out with more money than I started.
10% seems high. I play at casinos and that’s higher than what they usually rake (in my experience). Most casinos that I’ve been to (at 3-6 tables) drop between $2 and $4 per hand which amounts to less than 10%. So for a purported home game I’d say that’s a little suspect.
I think that rake is on par with the 2-4 at Foxwoods. And it is nice to have a designated dealer. I’d just watch carefully and make sure the rake is being done correctly.
On the other hand, I prefer a nice, casual home game with friends I can trust. A format I enjoy is no-limit hold-'em with a fixed buy-in (each player puts in $5 and gets an equal stack of chips; you play no-limit until one person has them all). The $20 I’ll drop in an evening is well worth the entertainment value.
If you’re having trouble getting your friends to play, just hold a screening of Rounders and let nature take its course…
Sly Smiley
Can I check and raise at this table? Oh good, I check.
Was my first thought. But, if you really want to play, and $3 out of a winning pot doesn’t bother you, then play. My once a month, “friendly” game has a buy in also; a rake is usually to cover costs you just don’t see at a friendly table. Up to you, but if there’s a card room around anywhere, you might want to consider that as an alternative. If you’re going to pay the 10% anyway, and these people are more acquaintances than friends, which is what it sounds like. It’s really a question of where you’re more comfortable.
Hey, Sly! Welcome to the boards. Foxwoods has a 2/4 table? Truly? Cool…that may come in useful.
Thank you everyone for the advice. I am going to go and be a bit wary. Given how badly I want to start playing again I kind of knew I would go no matter what.
If I had a casino or card room near here I would go there, so at least this isn’t any worse.
I played in the Mirage in Vegas a couple of weeks ago, and I believe the rakes were 10% up to a max of (if I remember correctly) $4. However, the Mirage is known as one of the more expensive places to play low-limit hold 'em in Vegas.
Here is a link on whether the rake can be beat in low limit games. They use the example of 10% up to $4 for casino games, and 5% in online games. Their conclusion is that the more appropriate question is whether you can beat the rake at this particular table, but they raise some interesting points to think about.
For my money, Maureen’s advice is right on. You’ve got to be comfortable with the game or it’s not worth it . . . unless you win a lot of money. If you decide to play, good luck. I hope you come back rich.