Tipping or

Toking the Dealer Strategy

The general public doesn't realize how poorly dealers are paid by casinos. The usual pay scale for casino dealers at blackjack runs from a minimum of $25 to a maximum of $35 a day, which is peasant wages these days. The bulk of the dealers' earnings comes from tips, or tokes, as they're known among casino personnel.

I'm always in favor of tipping dealers, except when they're hostile or incompetent and their demeanor or play actively hurts the player. I feel that a competent and friendly dealer should be toked whether a player is winning or losing.

Of course, if a bettor is winning, the tokes should be greater and more numerous; if he's losing, perhaps an occasional tip is in order to show the dealer that he's being thought of.

In blackjack, tipping a dealer so that he's friendly and on your side works wonders. Although the dealer has no options in playing out his hand, there are many other decisions, such as when to shuffle up the cards, that are his alone unless he's dealing in a rigidly controlled atmosphere where all deviations from the house rules are subject to reprimand or punishment.

This isn't usually the case when a player is alone at a table with a dealer, or there are just one or two players at that table.

The general public

a deck and reshuffle

a wining player stiffs