Question of the Day - 13 August 2019

My general tipping is based upon above average service everywhere but a casino. In casinos I agree with Colin with two exceptions.  One is I always tip the poker room waitress as she always performs above average over all casino employees.  Two, I rarely play table games unless I have a long wait for a poker game so if the dealer is friendly and entertaining I'll tip from a larger than average win just as I would to a poker dealer.  Other than those exceptions I don't tip as the rest of the casino employees are rude at best and prejudge everyone as a stiff until they are Georged.

Play craps, try to play $5 on the field for table employees every 8 to 10 roll. We are well above average tipers in our  hometown & super above average in Vegas. Love Vegas & also the workers.

I normally place a few bets for the dealer as my tip.  On that hand if I split or double down, I match for the dealer bet.  If I get a winning hand, all good.  If not, there's always another hand.  I will note a small, local casinos the dealers really seem to appreciate the tips.

My wife and I are frequent visitors. For the past several years we have stayed, played and dined at the Fremont downtown. When we win we tip generously. When losing we still tip but not as much and the dealers understand. I'm a talker so a dealer willing to chat a little will do better. I do not, however, make bets for the dealer but push the checks to them instead. This avoids the "doubling down for the dealer" situation. All dealers recommend taking even money when holding a blackjack against a dealers ace. I see giving the tip directly to them the same as even money. (That I never take) 

I am mostly in agreement with what you are saying in the article. That being said, I tip when I am winning, not so much when I am losing.. and that seems to irritate many dealers. What I would really like to know about is how people tip when they win a handpay at a slot machine? No matter how much I win I usually tip them $20-30. But what annoys me is when extra slot people come over and just hang out apparently looking for tips as well. Do slot attendants pool their tips or do they keep their own? 

Of any sort ... pay people a living wage. Start solving for employees and customers first, rather than shareholders.

Having said that, if I am on a run at the craps or blackjack table I will place a bet for the dealer/crew.

i have a simple formula when i play. i buy in for $120, start my betting at $10. if i win i up my bet to $15. if i win that i up my bet to $22 with a $2 for the dealer. if i win that i up my bet to $30. i win that i up my bet to $40 with $2 for the dealer. if i win that i up my bet to $50 until i lose with $2 for the dealer every time. Sounds difficult for the dealer to make any money but you would be surprised. i get on runs quite often, cashing out $400 to $500 up and the dealer has raked in $50 to $75 in an hour.
i believe in Kharma at the table but not luck, so tipping the dealer makes sense to me.

We play table games primarily to have fun. Of course we want to win and we study how to properly play our game which is Mississippi Stud. However the dealer makes all the difference in the world in regard to having fun. It is always fun when you are winning but it can be fun even if you are losing depending on the dealer. I always tip when winning and almost never when losing but the size and frequency of the tip depends solely on the conduct of the dealer even if I know the dealers are pooling their tips.

Tipping, what a load. Dealers accept low pay and the casinos love it. Dealers fleece the players ( the math proves it). Then the donators ( the players) are expected to pay the dealers for the privilege of having been dealt to. Anyone else see the stupidity of this?

I fail to see the logic that says because the casino is unwilling to pay the dealer a decent wage, it is therefore my job to make sure he can make his car payment.

Another consideration is that if I have any advantage, it's going to be razor-thin and even ONE say, $5 toke can change me from a winner to a loser mathematically. I know that there's a guilt-trip culture out there and I'm "supposed" to toke the dealer, but that's gone too far when the goober flipping the cards at me makes 150% of what my college physics professor makes.

So it's a stupid system but a stable one--everybody seems happy with it: the casinos get to employ people for the minimum amount allowed by law, the dealers work for tokes and make a nice living, and the customer foots the bill and gets shafted. The ingenuity of this is that the customer gets SHAMED into it! Imagine if somebody said, "It's WRONG not to pay a resort fee!" or "Free parking is immoral!"

Yes, please run the poll.  Potential breakdowns could be:
- only when I'm drinking heavily
- only after cash out ahead 
- always if the dealer is particularly helpful

Jeff

1) Most people who rail about tips are cheap but hiding behind fake morality. 
2) It's true that people with ALL jobs that depend on tips should be paid more, but that's not the American way. In our society even the government allows less than minimum wage for jobs that assume tips...and minimum wage is not a living wage either.
3) And this is for you Blackjack players, the casino would probably be willing to pay the dealers more if they could still get you to play by changing the rules to even more in their favor. Anyone for not 6/5 but even money blackjack?
4) My suggestion for those who are against tipping is to never go to any place that has tip reliant employees. You'll end up staying home all the time or moving to a place like Japan.

 Shaming gamblers is the casino way of having said gamblers pay the wages of dealers. My suggestion to you is "tip away", I am sure the casinos are glad they have you and your ilk paying their employee.

good point by kevin re: razor-thin margins when bottom lining it.
grinding out any profits at the bj table is work indeed. still, IF winning, AND the dealer has been pleasant, i'll place a small bet for the dealer beside my bet. certainly not $5 but usually a buck or two. same at the craps table in that IF winning, AND the dealers are friendly, i'll bet a two-way hard number, for the dealer(s) and me. also agree that it's a bit of a karma thing too. seems like generosity is in fact rewarded in mysterious ways sometimes. go figure. LVA rules!! 

I give no thought to a dealer's (or housekeeper's or server's) base income, whether at a high end or do-dinky joint.  I tip.  

Dealers, 99.9% of the time, are welcoming and add enjoyment to the hours I spend at their tables.  I tip in appreciation for the kindness, camaraderie, fun.

 - Starting out I play a white chip for the dealer, 3-4 hands; 
 - If that isn't working (hands losing), I switch to pushing a red chip every so often; if hands are winning, I keep the whites going;
 - Always a red chip or two when I get a nice win, splits or double hands that stretch out.  More if dealer advised me;
 - They get the 'leftovers' when I color up (whites, reds, maybe a green in the mix);

Obviously I play low limit, hardly a whale of a tipper, but dealers seem to remember me, glad when I sit down at their table.

I tip and I'm probably more of a George than a stiff, but bad dealers will get nothing from me other than a quick exit. I'm there for fun and hopefully take a few dollars of the casino's money home with me, but if a dealer has a bad attitude or makes it less fun, then I have no problem stiffing them and leaving their table. I find most dealers appreciate tips and it makes for a more pleasant experience for everyone.

Once the sourest dealer I had ever seen rotated to my table.  No smile, no chit chat despite my efforts to generate some.  I was doing OK and there were no other tables with that game so I stayed.     

On one hand I got a side bet winner.  I couldn't get my cards tucked under the chip one handed, but put them next to it.  Before I knew it she had discarded the chip and my winning cards!  I'm kind of stunned.  I pointed out nicely (really) that I had winning cards in that spot.  She wasn't buying it.  She glared at me as she called the boss over.  He told her to check the discards.  My cards were at the very end of the discards.  Fuming, she put the chip back down and paid me.  

I decided to try killing her with kindness.  I pushed over a green chip and said "this is for all the trouble I caused you."  She was shocked, then smiled, and after that was friendly toward me.  I should have asked her to slide my cards under the chip.  

Maybe I misread her in the beginning.

With that green chip, you purchased $25 worth of sarcasm. Given the dealer's behavior up to that point, doing that was definitely +EV.

> Shaming gamblers is the casino way of having said gamblers pay the wages of dealers.
Uh, one way or the other gamblers are going to pay the wages of the casino’s staff.  That is their business model.
If you don’t want to pay for the staff by either tipping or poor rules - as was already mentioned - don’t play. If a dealer is making my time enjoyable or entertaining I am happy to tip.