Dealers??? What do you prefer?

sweetjimmi

I run tourneys on a regular basis and seem to run into mixed emotions on whether or not is worth while ot pay dealers.

What do you guys think? Does it matter the size of the venue? Say for tourneys of around 100 players what do you like better?

Personally, I would be happy to have someone deal (I would chip into pay them) every time I play.

Flint Bones

I think as STP Boy said, dealers are just a luxury in these tournaments. He compared it heated seating in cars. You like it but can always do without it.

Personally I like to have dealers but the cost to have them can be pretty high if it is done right. It does speed up the play and can create a fairness level to everything but I have never really had a problem with players dealing and would rather keep the money for other things.

What do you think the average cost is for having dealers for a 100 person tournament?

sweetjimmi

My total costs right now including dealers is around $13/player...A nice chunk of which is the dealer cost (about $500ish in total).

Flint Bones

To me that's a lot of money to pay that could be used as a payout. How much is the buy-in? As a winner I'd much rather the additional $500 bucks than a luxury like a dealer.

ScottyZ

I personally strongly prefer having the service of (non-player) dealers, and would certainly be willing to pay an additional portion of the tournament fee towards skilled dealers (and/or tip the dealers what I thought was appropriate depending on how much of the house fee went to them).

IMO, for any tournament with even a somewhat serious buy-in, dealers are the gearbox, not the butt heaters.

Having a good dealer at your table over players dealing is analogous to the difference between Stars MTT's and Party Turbo SNG's. If you want your tournament to get past 1st gear in dealing speed, there is no substitute for non-playing dealers.

ScottyZ

sweetjimmi

Scotty I must agree but have been questioning myself after reading how many players on here prefer to self deal.

bossman

depends where you play if you play in a restaurant or a bar the owner could get a waitress to do it... if you play in a house you could a friend to do it for a lets 40$ a night ...

I have a few person that wouldn't mind dealing in tournament if you guy need some

and if you guys need a place to play let me know i have couple of tables and chips and i have a restaurant email me if you want at buymore2003@rogers.com

sweetjimmi

Bossman, be carefull about offering up your restaurant for play...there are some threads on this subject and the law.

Where abouts are you though?

Unknown

I would say it is well worth the money if you get quality for your dollars. A small tourney in a house can be self dealt without a problem up to 30 ppl or so. But if you want a tournament 100 or more to be something to remember, dealers is the way to go. I realize I may/may not be one of the dealers at this tourney in question but the things to remember is

1) Dealers - Not only flipping cards. They can/do control the flow of the game.
2) They have no financial interest in who wins or loses. Eliminates "cheating theory"
3) $5 a person for dealers in a lengthy tourney is peanuts. Relative to Buy-In


Would you play at a casino in ring games without dealers? I wouldn't.

I am looking to have a tourney here in Guelph and there is no question that dealers will be used for the piece of mind of my players and myself as the director.

hank

Jimmi,
I like the idea of dealers but can you get 10 or 11 good dealers? As has been stated, these guys are key to the tourney. Can you get good dealers or just card throwers? If they are going to keep things moving well and be able to settle things great. Otherwise we might as well deal ourselves if we are going to be telling them how to settle hands.

folded

Dealing

I would help dealing one night at a local tourney. I understand and play the game fairly regularly and to be honest, one night out watching poker and not losing any money would be a change.

let me know if you need dealers. Just PM me or send me an email to cmcrae12@yahoo.ca

stpboy

Flint Bones wrote:

I think as STP Boy said, dealers are just a luxury in these tournaments. He compared it heated seating in cars. You like it but can always do without it.

Not to get picky or anything but the old wise one Lamb_of_John said this, not stpboy. BTW, my real name (Shannon) means little old wise one...just thought I would let everyone know that.

Dealers, I love having dealers! I also love heated seats and waitresses serving me. Is the $10-$20 in the pot going to change my life? No. Deal em up.

stp

Yorkpoker

Somehow I have managed to work a largish tourney without dedicated non-player dealers. Perhaps the student market has less expectation when it comes to butt-heating gearboxes (to meld the two) but I have had nothing but positive feedback.

I perosnally prefer to do as little work and allow all the blood to flow to my brain during a game, but I have dealt enough home games to look past the inconvenience. The key is to find 12 or 14 dealers who you know are decent and will be available and reliable.

In my game this weekend I have planned for 15 tables (120 players). I don't rake my games, so paying for things is impossible (unless we collect donations at the door). 15 tables would require at least 18 dealers at the height of the game and I have no idea where to find 18 people I can rely on.

Again, I cater to a student body, with a few 'grown ups' (who manage to finish in the money regularily) so maybe I am held to a different standard. But our buy in IS $100, so it's not quite peanuts either. They like the larger pot, even though someone pointed out that it is a marginal increase at best and they would rather have a warm butt.

my .02

Flint Bones

Not to get picky or anything but the old wise one Lamb_of_John said this, not stpboy. BTW, my real name (Shannon) means little old wise one...just thought I would let everyone know that.

Sorry, I stand corrected. That's not the first time I have confused the two of you.

sweetjimmi

Well, I'm still not sure where the majority is. I thought I would get a more clear answer on this. I already found 9 dealers (which is a little short) the buy-in is $120 which I will pull all expenses from and then dispurse the remainder of the purse.

Thanks for the input...it will help me in my decision.