Poker pro and Kill Phil author Blair Rodman writes:
I was first exposed to props in the World Poker Tour Celebrity event in LA in 2005. I was sitting next to Lyle Berman, who was playing props with Phil Ivey, seated across from us. Lyle explained to me that he, Chip Reese, and Doyle Brunson had come up with poker prop bets some 20 years ago and it's evolved over the years, with many new wrinkles added along the way. The present version is complex, but what follows is a basic explanation.
At the outset of the game, each player picks three specific card numbers (for the basic bet, suits are irrelevant) and if the three flop cards match your prop, e.g., 2-4-6, the other players must each pay you. Lots of permutations apply. For example, if they're all the same suit, you get paid triple. And a myriad other side bets are also involved, so a player might be looking out for 20 or more props -- hence the need for pen and paper. If you "sleep" a prop, i.e., one of your bets comes up and you don't call it, you don't get paid, which is where some players feel they can get an edge over their opponents by just being that bit sharper. It also leads to a lot of arguments.
For a much more in-depth explanation of some of the bets involved, check out the following link to Daniel Negreanu's online poker blog at www.fullcontactpoker.com/poker-journal.php and read the journal entries for October 20, October 27, and November 17, 2005, which will give you a taste of how complicated the whole thing is.
With all the different bets and multiple payouts, the money involved can quickly mushroom into sums far larger than the game's pot. For example, in the 2005 WSOP, I was deep into the $5,000-rebuy pot-limit Omaha event and was at a table with Doyle and Phil Ivey. They were playing props and Phil was stuck about $250K. Phil and Doyle were so busy logging their props and arguing over them that I finally said to Phil, "How can I get a read on whether the flop hit your hand if all you care about is if you hit your prop?"
I guess Phil can do both at once, as he went on to win the title.
I've asked players what the deal is with the props and it seems the older guys play because they always have and the younger guys say they play because they think the older guys will overlook a lot of props, thus giving them an edge. To be honest, I think they all just like the action.
As Daniel put it in the November 17 blog entry cited above, "I used to watch these guys play props and think to myself, 'These guys are nuts. How can they concentrate on the poker?’ Well, now I know. When you’re playing props it forces you to pay attention to the action so that you don't miss anything. That helps you subconsciously, as your brain collects more data than it would if you were not paying full attention. Plus, it's sooo much fun. For a group of guys that love to gamble, but don't want to pay the house edge, props gives them the chance to gamble while not giving up an edge -- unless, of course, they sleep their props."
