Unlike playing at home, there is specific etiquette to
playing poker live in a casino – like how to bet and how to play your cards.
Here are a few helpful tips to help build your confidence and help you
avoid looking like a newbie at the tables.
First tip: Do not, under any circumstance,
reveal your cards to anyone on or off the table. Keep them face down on the
table in front of you and only bend them up just enough to be able to see your hand.
Another tip is to watch your ‘tells’.
‘Tells’ are a change in your behavior or demeanor that could indicate what
your hand is. A change in eye contact, getting excited, acting distracted, trembling hands,
or even facial expressions - may reveal more about your hand than you intend. Paying attention
to tells isn’t a requirement for playing, but it can help inform your play strategy.
Now, onto your chips. How you treat your chips is very important.
Keep your chips stacked and out in front of you so that every player can see what you
have. Don’t take them off the table, not only is it not allowed it’s also strategic for all
players to compare what they have vs others. Now another question that comes up a lot is,
“Is there a proper way to bet?” It’s not about how much to bet but
rather ‘how to’. In other words, how to bet so that there is no confusion around your actions.
When making a bet, you could either say it verbally, or you can put down your bet without
saying anything. Verbal bets make things clearer and are binding, even over actions on the table.
For example, if you were to say “I raise you 20 dollars”, but mistakenly only put $10 in, it’s
the words that will be what the dealer goes by. There are other aspects of betting that aren’t
allowed as a rule. For example, if you’re raising, you have to put in the full amount
all at once - you can’t put some chips down, and then reach back into your stack to bet
more. When a player does this is, it’s a version of what’s called a “string bet”.
Now you might be able to get away with a string bet at a home game,
but not at a casino –the first amount you put in the pot counts as your bet,
period. Unless of course, you verbally communicated differently.
Another tip and this is very common: you can’t say, “I call your bet….and raise you X”,
like they do in the movies. They are two distinct plays. You can either call or raise, not both.
Now that you know some important poker etiquette, you’re one step closer to playing smart!