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Top 5 Tips for Being a Respectable Opponent

Created By: Ronnie Schwartz Posted in: The Poker Reporter Blog, PokerListed
2008 Dec 23

The most famous poker pros are as revered for their skill as they are scrutinized for their behavior. This comes with the territory of being in the limelight and increasing celebrity status.

Some fans love the brashness and braggadocio of a Phil Hellmuth or a Tony G, while others laud the graciousness and class of a John Juanda or Barry Greenstein.

Depending on the type of personality you have and the type of persona you wish to exhibit to opponents,you should always treat the game and the people involved in it with respect and maturity. Today's list sheds light on 5 ways in which players can be more respectful to the game.

5) Turn down the music. If music helps you get into your zone and play better cards, then listen to it, but not at the expense of the continuity of the game. If you cannot hear what is happening and subsequently cause repeated delays in the game, you need to either take the headphones off, remove one earphone or at the very least reduce the volume so that you can hear pertinent information at the felt. Besides, many useful bits of information are available from sound alone, so why eliminate this edge?

Strassa2
Here's an idea, why don't you turn down your music?

4) Contain your tilted online chat. Anonymity online has catered to a world of derisive and slanderous verbal attacks on players. There is no need for this in poker. In an ideal world we might expect to find every table embracing cordial banter and friendly dialogue, but reality clearly proves otherwise.

It is very easy to let off steam in a chat box after a bad beat and it can often in fact be cathartic, but turning the other cheek and maintaining your composure will help to encourage a friendlier online atmosphere. If you find that other players are goading you, a simple solution is to turn off the chat completely.

Remember, the other players at the table come from all walks of life and are most likely good people, so give them the benefit of the doubt.

3) Respect people's decisions. We've all suffered rough beats founded on an opponent's decisions so preposterous it made you wonder how this person's genetic lineage could have made it to present times. But it happens.

That is the nature of poker. On any given day, at any given time,people can play their cards very poorlyand still be victorious. Variance is inevitable and the best players have learned to deal with it. Move on to the next hand and chalk up the loss to unfortunate variance, a.k.a. bad luck.

Poker is an autonomous game and if a player chooses to make an irrational play, then so be it. It's their prerogative, just as the reputable Ms. Britney Spears once imparted upon us.

Phil Hellmuth, Phil Ivey
Mind your business Phil.

2) Mind your own business. Live games possess one imperfection that the online game will never have, and that is the element of human error from dealers. If you've ever played live poker, you've no doubt been a victim of, or been witness to, a dealer-induced error at the table. These often start out innocuously and culminate in a raucous commotion and pit-boss intervention.

A word to the wise: if this situation does not involve you or your hand, do not get involved. Only answer If you are asked to give your objective response to what occurred. Arguments over money are some of the most ferocious in the animal kingdom - trust me, I've seen a Discovery Channel documentary that can verify this.

1) Don't gloat - The only thing worse than a sore loser is an irreverent winner.  Unbeknownst to most, Sir Isaac Newton derived his famous Third Law of Motion just moments following his first triumph (after numerous attempts) of a $3 +40¢ 45-man turbo sit-and-go on Stars.

Delusional from the thrill of victory, he smashed his Granny Smith apple to free his hands for complete thought-to-finger dexterity. The words spewed out like water over a cliff: "Yeah, sucka!... I check, you bet, I raise all-in, you call. I got da nuts! You see, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Ship It, fool!!" Sadly, this was the last MTT success Mr. Newton would enjoy, as he was bust by the following Saturday.

No matter how it happens, losing is a terrible feeling, so be sure to remember that the next time you are victorious, because for every winner there is an equal and opposite loser. Or something like that.

More poker Top 5 lists:

Comments

5

  1. Sean Lind

    2009-04-30

    In a situation like this the player with the AJ is obviously not folding, it's similar to when a player bets, their opponent moves all in, and the player turns over quads before saying "call" or moving their chips in.

    It's sort of an implied call, and since all betting is closed at that point, it doesn't change the game either way.

    The hand, in this case AJ, will always be ruled live.

    Everyone always thinks they know best, but people need to understand the "one dealer per table" concept. Only open your mouth if the dealer makes a mistake, otherwise let them run the game.

  2. FlashJ

    2009-04-29

    I was at the table a few days ago and had a situation where middle player pushed all in and the player with position threw his cards face up on the river exclaiming "counterfiet". He held AJ and had a straight and a J came on the river. The middle player argued that he did not push his chips in nor claim "I call" so his hand should be folded. The player disagreed and the table erupted into a loud banter before the dealer called the pit boss. I felt the same as Ronnie claims here. I sat quietly at the end of the table (I was in the hand but my 2 pair was beat by the straight) while most people argued with the players, the dealer the pitt boss over who was right. I felt in this situation everyone but the players involved, the dealer and the pitt boss should keep quiet. I honestly don't know what the proper ruling should be here and I am sure most others at the table didn't either. I assume his cards are live but its not my decision so i kept quiet.

  3. Sean Lind

    2008-12-30

    What you said is absolutely correct Matt, but in Ronnie's defence, I think he was talking about a situation where a player has brought up an issue with the dealer, say you stopping the dealer in the $5k Bellagio event, and another player jumping in to tell the table and the dealer how they would have done it.

    I'm assuming Ronnie was talking about these "helpful" third man ins.

    My general rule is this:
    If a player makes a mistake on their own accord which will cost them part, or all of the pot, that is their mistake to make, but no player should lose, or make, money at a table as a result of dealer error.

  4. Johnathan

    2008-12-28

    I agree with what Matt said...rules are rules and should be treated as such. if someone does something stupid that results in them losing a hand they should win, thats their fault, but examples such as his require everyone at the table to be honest and fair

  5. Matt Stout

    2008-12-25

    Hey Ronnie,

    I liked the article, but I must argue on point #3. Every player at the table has a responsibility to point out dealer mistakes in some cases.

    When a player next to you looks back at his hand (to himself, not face-up on the table) and gets ready to muck it even though you see it is the winning hand, you should stay quiet and mind your own business like you said.

    However, when errors are made such as unequal bets being pulled into the pot, ANY PLAYER at the table (in the hand or not) should say something. It's one thing when a player is going to lose a pot due to his own negligence/inability to read hands correctly, but in situations like this EVERY PLAYER has a responsibility to make sure the game is being run fairly.

    I was in an awkward situation like this at the Bellagio during a $5k prelim event recently. The dealer had incorrectly pulled in bets after an all-in, thereby telling the player to act that the other player was all-in for significantly more than he really was (since more of his chips were supposed to be pulled in already to match the other bet).

    Now, this put me in an awkward position because the all-in player was a pretty good friend of mine, Marco Johnson. Bringing up the error would work against a friend of mine.

    However, I stuck with my guns and pointed it out to a friend's detriment. I'd expect someone to do the same if I were his opponent's situation, so I did what I thought was right. Marco later told me that he wasn't mad and that it was the right thing to do.

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