blonde poker forum

this is from the ept site:

"* 3% of tournament prize-pool will be withheld to cover the costs of floor staff and dealers.
** 4% of tournament prize-pool withheld for government taxation."

i'm not sure whether this 3+4% has always been there or not but on top of that there's a reg fee which is usually around about 5% of the entry fee, £200-£500.
i've always been happy to tip after a win but have never really read the small print or given too much thought to where those tips end up.
the 3% withheld for floor staff & dealers coupled with the lack of transparency about where the tips actually end up means that in future i think i'd just be putting a lump behind the bar for all involved.

& finally, does anyone know what the 4% government taxation is all about?

I would have thought that the reg fee is suppose to cover the costs of the staff - kind of makes you wonder what that 5% is actually for.

The first tournament I ever won in Vegas they were pushing me for a 10-15% tip!

Didn't they recognise my Scottish accent?

Sick brag julian, mbn!

If they are taking a % out for staff already you shouldn't feel obliged to tip.  Similar to the smaller comps in Vegas where you pay a "dealer bonus" at the start for extra chips.  That is the tip from everyone up front.

Although i don't really agree with tipping in general - cue youtube link to Reservoir Dogs.

lol

lol
I remember a few heavy hints about tipping in vegas, this being after they've already taken 30% from the prize pool

I left them a bit but they seemed insulted.
Can't remember what the rake was on that occasion but it was heavy.

grrrr tips a tilty subject

yeah, you got me... ::)
there's always been pressure to tip outside of the uk but it would seem that the ept is now following the way of the states & docking a percentage off the entry fee - would be interesting (& rather nice to find out) if that pressure is still applied...i'd be surprised if it wasn't!

Ask for it back.

I would but it was over 3 years ago. ;)

...I would have thought that's what PokerStars are there for?

It never ceases to amaze me how the fee for these events fluctuates so dramatically in cash terms, depending on the level of buy in.  I'm pretty damn sure they don't pay the dealers fifty times more because there is an extra zero or two printed on the banners.

i dont think i agree with tipping in general, the dealers are meerly doing their job which they get paid for anyway and with reg fees increasing alll the time, tipping i becoming increasingly -ev. I hope for the EPT that it isnt 3+4% as well as the 5% reg fees because this will almost def put some ppl off.

i think Will Fry was pretty astounded as to what they were asking for when he won the EPT, sounded ridiculous.

tipping is against my religion . though shall not spew money of to people with full time employment

go on?

I obv forgot how much it was exactly but on top of the fees etc paid, they kind of expected a big tip at the end as well. Sort of taking advantage of the euphoria of winning I guess.

I've been generous in the past with tipping on most stuff, but I've recently decided I'm not tipping in tournaments ever.

If you are asked to tip, then tell them to GTFO imo.

Tipping is VOLUNTARY, not COMPULSORY !!

I wasn't aware most places did ask for you to do so. I know that Grosvenor take very serious issue with anyone that is felt to have put pressure on a customer to tip.

at the end of the gukpt's i always used to ask the final 2 to bung the tea girls a bit as generaly most players dont tip and leave to the winner but as for leaving a tip for dealers that should be at the players wim.

Jerome Bradpiece tried giving me £2.5k when he won in Walsall for the dealers infront of the gm at the cash desk when we still couldnt except tips then he gave the tea girls £1k.

another winner in Brighton who i wont mention names won and tipped £40 for 8 girls for 3 days work. 

the gukpt now has t girls?

I always new that Julian Thew had a bad bone.

in the first year of gukpt, he wears a hat

GUKPT Brighton winner, you didn't work last series, it's not Julain Thew, wears a hat - lucky you didn't mention his name.  :D

yeah i know Dave would of killed me

Leaving what people mock him for as a player aside I've always found Dave Smith an absolute gent and there's few people I'd rather share a table with.

In fact when I was about 18 and dealing/playing in Gala Notts a bunch of players hadn't paid me and Dave insisted upon giving me the money from his own pocket when he really didn't have to at all.

Maybe he wasn't happy with the service he was getting or there was another issue there. Not sure it's entirely fair to bring it up when Dave won't see this or give his reasons.

What wrong with the service at Brighton Grosvenor?

It's in Brighton

he's a nice bloke i get on with him, but he said that his wife would kill him if he tipped anymore. i was just highligting two nice people at different ends of the spectrum

played for the first time at The International club last night.

the tournament is advertised as a £75 + £5 buyin 6k startin stack. i get down there, then 5mins before comp start they announce "dont forget you are able to buy 2,000 bonus chips for £5 at your table". im like wtf, seems bit mental.

 so i sit down and ask if this £5 went into the prizepool. im told 'no, it goes towards the dealers'. i thought this was a bit cheeky. then when i make the final table (obv brag), just before the first hand is dealt the tournament director goes "i would just like to say that obviously all our dealers have worked very hard tonight and anything u leave behind would be greatly appreciated". so they already made a load from these "bonus chips" and now pushing you to leave them more

not sure if this is that fair

nah you have already tipped them at the start of the comp only ever give if they were execptional and went over and above what you would expect from a dealer.

So whats the difference between casinos asking for tips, and you slating a player for leaving one! IMO the pressure to tip is all the same. Players don't get a refund to make up for the exes when they don't cash.

i wqas talking about the tea girls where it has been widely accepted for years that the winner bungs the tea girls a tip,not the dealers

That was only the case when the winners couldn't tip anyone else but the tea girls.  Now you can tip everyone you want to.  Leaving something for the tea girls is something of a regional practice - some places people tip the tea girls each time they get served, other places leave it to the winner.  I prefer to tip as I go.  When I have played in casinos with a custom to tip the tea girls, I have noticed a bit of a trend where you can't get a drink all night and then all of a sudden at the final table 5 waitresses are all loitering trying to serve you inbetween every hand.

Us Brits always feel bad about tips, its not the norm over this side of the pond in day to day life as it is elsewhere...ive what you want and what you think is fair, don't leave an insult tip but if you are just honest and fair you will be fine and people with appreciate that!

Surely the casino pays the girls?

If someone gave me an "unexpected" fiver it'd be a welcome additon to the beer fund  :)

they get just above minimum wage which is bolstered by tips, if they work in the cardroom they stay yjere full time on the big comps so lose the ability of getting tips from the joe public on the wheels / fruits, so they lost 4 days worth of tips then had to spread the tip given amongst all the girls who worked.

But they get tips when they bring the drinks to the poker players, don't they?

fk the tea girls, they get paid

tip good service, leave nothing for shit service. This isn't America, tips are a bonus.
Half the country works hard for minimum wage.

If Dave wotsit want's to leave them £40 then that's fine by me.

If I played more live poker and binked something I'd tip according to the service I got throughout the comp and not just on the final table.

tipping is about the individual, it's about how you want to be seen and how you conduct yourself, no one really thinks about how the tip will affect the recipient, you just do it, not for them but for you, why? cos thats the kind of guy you are and you'd rather have a bit of class than have a bunch of internet people banging on about how you dont tip.

If you tip, do it for yourself.

If service is shit i always tip, not for them, nothing to do with them, i do it for me cos it's how i was brought up and i know it's right, it would reflect badly on me and my family if i started to be a muppet and moan about these sort of things.

I love you bolty. Shoot the tightarse non-tippers please. For me, you understand.

Agreed.



You're opinion on the wire is wrong but you're right about this.

Where do you draw the line?

Are you going to tip a bus driver?  the ticket clerk in the cinema?  the person who then shows you to your seat with their funky little torch?  the guy in the kebab shop?  your mechanic (who probably ripped you off already)?  The shop assistant who brought a 40" waist to the cubicle instead of your hopeful 38"?  the newsagent?

The list goes on and on for people who "tippers" decide not to tip.

I generally only give a little extra when there is a reason for it.  i.e bunging a waitress or barman/maid a few quid to get served quicker next time around!


Perhaps that would be considered tight by some, but then i'd rather spend my (limited!) cash on friends/family than on someone i have never met who is already getting paid by their employer.

i agree i tip all the time, £2 for a cuppa keep the change when they get me smokes etc etc
but when they already charge a fee as a tip for dealers i will refuse to give them another tip on top

ffs you have already tipped them

Do you pay a tip in a restaurant where service is already included? Seems stupid.

Lets say you cash in a poker tourney and the TD when paying you out 10k then says a 5% dealer tip is customary. Do you give him that or a figure you think is more realistic ? (may be higher obv)

If service is already included I never tip as the compulsory tip annoys the hell out of me. They don't do themselves favours either because often I would have tipped more than what I've already been charged.

I have always been a great tipper and always will be. For me, we all make lots of mistakes, and we make them day in, day out. The bad calls, the bad moves, tilting...the list is no end. So after spunking, for me, hundreds even thousands of pounds, the extra tipping is a reminder to me that this goes out of the total income and therefore if I play better and make better decisions then the tips will become insignificant. Yes it all adds up in the end, but thats nothing compared to the amount spent tilting, pay-offs and bad moves!

Here's another consideration. People are always moaning about dealers! Fact! That they are too slow, not good enough, doesn't protect the players....
But do you realise that most dealers are on close to minimum wage? Work for a longer period than normal with little break, and needs to have great attention span (to make sure there is no mistakes that will cost YOU thousands) to work sometimes for 6 hours on one table. All the while having to deal with out of turn bets, because people are not paying attention, telling people over and over the action is on them, making sure at all times no one is angle shooting and trying to gain an advantage, and trying their best to protect you as players but lets face it, we as poker players are not the easiest group to satisfy are we?

For the above reasons, I tip, and I tip well. I want a good customer service, so that the fishs feel comfortable on my table. I want fast dealing, so I can maximize my winnings. I want full protection, so I don't get another angle-shooting b******* trying to con me.....again! I want the dealer to be happy and want to work hard and pay attention, so he doesn't make a mistake that'll cost me alot more than if I would have tipped him.

Most people would tip less though.

Poker is the same - the dealer fee is like our service charge so why should we have to tip again for this

It isn't compulsory, and i ask for it to be taken off - as should everybody.

Those who particularly want to leave a tip should then pay it in cash so that you make sure it has a better chance of actually going to the waitress who served you.  I've heard a few stories about employers snaffling the extras that go through as part of the bill.

This is true, an employer can use these tips to make up the employees wage. Totally unfair

This sounds to me like you tip because you want good customer service - shouldn't you tip because you've received it?

Or is that not what you meant?

If someone is paid to do a job, they should do it. They've accepted that pay for that job, it's up to them to have the right work ethic and professionalism to deliver what they're meant to.

If they have the right work ethic and professionalism to do more than they have to - then I'll tip. It doesn't happen very often.

I probably laugh at him and walk off.

I dont mind tipping. At DTD i normally leave the 'change' if i finish in the top 4.

But if anyone implies I should be leaving something they wont get a penny, its not right.

I only tip there, I know the staff they all make me feel welcome, have a chat and know me by name.

At Gala I have no interest in tipping because the staff arent as good.

As for everywhere else I live my life by a simple rule.

Fit young girl = tip
Fat or male = no tip

If their fit who gives a shit about the service?

Every bloke is reading that in agreement

Fit barmaid at the local I go to always gets a tip, she deserves it she always wears a low cut top. I generally drink hand pulled when she serves too just to make sure I get value for money. The old lady barmaid can gfo!

Now the thread is getting more sensible.

and about time too...

so all we neeed to do now is get more fit birds into poker and we wil quite happily open our pockets it seams.   guess this is a life bad beat if u aint a fit young bird.
 maybe simon trumper shud hide at the business end of tourneys to make us dive deeper for a tip. :)

I've just found this thread and I really can't believe all of the faffing around that has been effluing up until now.

Let's face it where tipping is concerned it's simple(s)

[ ] Big Bazza is your man

agree with Robin here,

But then again I dont think I know any chinese person who doesn't tip well.

It really is a personal preference, and I don't think there's a right or wrong to the situation.

If I want a waitress to go the extra mile and ensure she keeps coming back to serve me over the rest? I tip her. Does it work? Sure does.

When it comes to tipping the dealer, well, that's a different story. I confess to a slightly detached interest when it comes to Roulette, Blackjack and other games. I couldn't really care if I take their money or give all the houses money away. Despite what people might think, or what they might tell you, we don't have any control over the ball on roulette nor any dodgy shuffling procedures to screw people over. It's quite literally a gamble, and as such, out of my control. Little sense from my perspective in getting worked up over that aspect. I can control whether people enjoy the experience.  When you've done it monotonously for a considerable time, you stop caring about the money. The focus is on making it enjoyable, win or lose, for those playing. There are some people whose ice only melts the second you start throwing money at them, and others who will treat you well irrespective. True in all walks of life, I think, not just the service industry.

With Poker? Well. You're playing with your money against someone else and their money. A lot more interaction and a more confrontational environment, too. I haven't ever really been overly concerned by it. I can safely say that there is no person that I treat better than any others because they tipped me. You could be the nicest person on earth, win a £10,000,000 pot with me dealing, tip nothing, and I wouldn't honestly care. More importantly, as a tipper, you shouldn't be doing it to keep you in dealers "good books". Courtesy does that. I started dealing before we could take tips and so they're nothing more than a bonus. I don't expect them. If you think to yourself, "Well. I made my money and he dealt me good cards" or "he dealt the game of his life" or "I hate money. Give it to the dealer" and then tip, well, much appreciated! But it doesn't and shouldn't effect any kind of service in that regard. Personally, at least.

I always tip the dealers when I play because I work the same job and realize it's a grind, so there's some level of understanding there. I don't think people should feel that they're obligated to make up for the shortcomings of peoples employers, though. If they're paid that bad, find something better. You don't have to foot the burden of others. If you're a genuine hard worker, you will always be able to find a better job. I have always managed to at least.

Those that put in the greatest effort, work the hardest and speak with a good mixture of humour and politeness are the ones that you're going to -want- to tip, anyway, and generally are the ones to receive them. Which to me is speaking of exceptional service and those that go above and beyond get rewarded for it in some manner. Or they're a fit bird. Even better if both. But that's just the way of the poker world.

Excellent postage sir

My income (Such as it is) comes from poker, ergo, at the end of the week, my wage will be light by the amount I tip.

If I were to tip the dealers, say, £1-2 per pot, maybe 10 pots per night, x 5 nights per week, that's approx £75pw.

Add to this the £25 or so that I give to the vallets, (I can't bring myself not to tip the vallets) and that brings it up to £100pw. (Or 5k a year)

I could have a new car every three years for that price.

I have a daughter who works 40+ hours pw for minimum wage, and another who can't find a job at the moment. It's hard for me to give money to outsiders instead of them.

I do tip dealers occasionally, but certainly not every pot. I simply can't afford to.

Are we talking about cash tables tipping here?

I never play cash, but plan to one day, so do you tip when you leave the table and tip the dealer directly or as in the case of Luton put it in the tip box on the TD table?


Tournament play - If I cash I tip. I usually put it into that box as I've had many dealers over the night.  I assume this gets divied out equally.

You've tipped me Red. Actually said I was the best dealer you've ever seen, in Manchester, which was nice! If not entirely accurate. 

And aye, tips are all pooled in Grosvenor.

hold or fold, where did you find your profile pic?

cash game tipping is done direct to the dealer and usually on a pot by pot basis when winning a decent pot. a few people do their tipping when leaving the table but that's not as common