Chance's
Winning Texas Holdem Poker III
Rake
& Tokes
Peanuts
Per Hand
Let's use a simple thought experiment
and some bar napkin arithmetic to understand
something that most poker players overlook.
Imagine a full time Texas holdem Poker
player in a $10-$20 game. He is dealt
a thousand holdem hands every week. He
actually plays only 400 of those hands,
wins 50 pots and he wins an average of
$1,000 a week. Our imaginary player does
well. Divide the number of hands he plays
into the average weekly win and you'll
get an expectation of just $2.50 per hand
played - - peanuts per hand!
Our
player is imaginary and there's plenty
of bar napkins so you can juggle the figures
any way you want, but you'll still come
up with peanuts. With this in mind, the
rest of this page becomes a little more
meaningful.
Casino
Rake
Casinos
and poker rooms either rake each pot or
charge the players on a time basis. It's
part of the poker player's overhead. I
prefer a rake. Tight players win fewer
pots and pay less rake. Charging the players
time costs everybody the same.
The
casinos and poker rooms provide us a place
to play, security, dealers, a fair game,
impartial settling of disputes, and promotions
to attract players. Any reasonable rake
or time charge is worth it.
Dealer
Tokes
I
once played in a poker room that did not
allow the players to toke the dealers.
TIPPING THE DEALERS WAS NOT ALLOWED! There
must be very few poker rooms in the world
with that kind of policy. It was wonderful!
Tokes are an important part of the dealers'
income and part of the poker player's
overhead. I want the dealers to make their
money, but you are playing for yourself.
Keep your toking affordable.
Estimating
Rake and Toke costs
If
you play Texas holdem poker full time
(about 40 hours a week), you will be dealt
about a thousand holdem hands every week.
If you play every hand at a full ten player
game, you probably win about a hundred
pots a week. If you play tight, you might
win about fifty pots a week, maybe less.
Multiply your normal toke times the estimated
number of pots you win to get an idea
of how much money you are toking the dealers
each week. Multiply the maximum rake times
the approximate number of pots you win
to estimate how much you are paying the
casino each week. Don't overlook additional
rakes for bad beat jackpots. If you play
in a casino that charges time, you should
already know how much you are paying the
casino. This is just an estimate, of course,
but it does give you an approximation
of your rake and toke overhead.
Your
cost to play becomes important when compared
to your average win on a weekly or annual
basis. Casino rake is less significant
in higher limit holdem games, but it still
represents a substantial percentage of
your poker income and you should be aware
of it. You'll have to win as much as it
costs you to play just to break even.
You'll have to win much more to get a
decent edge.
If
all else is equal, play in the poker rooms
that cost you the least or give you the
most. Paying a little more rake is probably
worth it in a casino that attracts more
players and offers more games you like.
Your play records should tell you which
is best.
Part
IV will discuss Play Records.
Read
Part
I, Part
II, Part
III, Part
IV, Part
V,
Part
IV
Chance's Winning Texas Holdem Poker Site
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