Dealing Casino Holdem®

Shuffle

After the cards have been laid out on the table and carefully checked. It is normal for the first shuffle of the day to be a Chummy Shuffle (Wash).

The cards will be turned over with the cutting card.The wash now commencing and this will be done in a manner to ensure a thorough mix of the cards.This should take no less than 15 seconds and care should be taken to ensure the movement of the cards remains under control.

The cards are then brought together and squared with the cards facing the dealer.

Manual shuffling will follow that laid down in the procedure manual for single deck poker games on the premises.
If a Shuffling machine is in use then procedures followed will vary for the type of machine in use.

At all time game protection should be foremost when formalizing procedure.

Cutting The Cards

Upon completion of the shuffle the cards must be cut before the deal may commence.
The player to cut is usually
 

·        The first player to the table, if the game is just starting or re-starting.

·        The player to the left of the last person to cut.

If a player does not wish to cut the cards, the cutting card shall be offered to the player to his or her left.
If no one wishes to cut the cards the dealer will perform the cut.

Cutting Procedure  

The shuffled deck will be placed on the table at the side of the cutting card.
The player will then lift part of the deck and place it on top of the cutting card.
The dealer will then place the remaining cards on top of the cut portion and pick up the deck with the cutting card concealing the value of the bottom card.

The deck will be placed in the dealers left hand. The table is now ready for change or play.

Before Dealing

The dealer will usually announce „Place your bets“ or „Antes please“ After the shuffle has been completed.

This call may be made to the table or an individual player but may be omitted if the players are fully aware of how to play and are attentive to the game.

Before commencing the deal the dealer will survey the table to make sure all Antes
 

·        Are placed in the their box.

·        That all comply with the minimums & maximums posted at the table.

·        That all Antes are stacked up neatly, using clean hands procedure before touching a players bet.

·        That all bets are placed with the highest value chip at the bottom & the lowest value on top.

·        That players hands are a comfortable distance away from their Ante.

Seated players will be the only one allowed to touch the cards.
Players standing will be invited to take a seat.
 

Sufficient time should all ways be given to players to place their bets and the game kept at a comfortable and enjoyable pace.

Dealing The Cards

The method & technique of dealing cards is the same for dealing single deck poker games and will be described fully in the companies procedure manual..

When all is in order at the table the dealer will call „No more bets thank you“ & deal the first card face down in front of the first player who has an Ante. As from this moment no more Antes may be placed on the table, altered, or removed. The next card is to the player to his or her left.

This will continue until all boxes with Ante bets have a card.

The dealer will then deal him/herself a card face down.
A second card is then dealt to the players and the dealer.
As the players second card is dealt it will be slid under the first and the two will then be lifted over the Ante and dropped down by the Call box.
 

The dealers hands & deck during the dealing procedure should be kept as low to the table as possible so that no cards are ever exposed.

The Flop

Immediately after the initial deal has been completed the dealer will then turn over the first 3 communal cards ‘Flop’ in the middle of the table. The cards will also be announced.
E.g.  Ten, Queen, Six

At this time the dealer will then put down the deck on the table to the left front of the float tray and announce to the players to look at their cards “ Check your cards please“

The Flop may then be quickly arranged for clarity. Pairs taking preference, being arranged to the left. If there are no pairs then the arrangement will be high to low again starting from the left.

Fold or Call  - The Player Options

Once the player has viewed his/her 2 cards and also seen the first 3 communal cards ‘Flop’.
The decision now has to be made as to whether or not to Call and stay in the game or Fold.

Call
Upon checking If the player likes his/her cards and wishes to stay in the game then a Call bet must be made.
This is always twice the Ante and will be placed in the Call box.

Once the Call bet has been made the player will then place his or her cards face down, to the right hand side of their bets.
This is the signal to the dealer that this particular player has now decided to Call and is finished betting.
The dealer will check that each player who decides to call has made a bet that is exactly double the Ante and that the chips are correctly placed.
Change will be given if required and all Call bets must be displayed with the high value chips to the bottom and lower values uppermost.

Fold
In this instance the player does not like his/her cards and believes that the dealer is likely to have a stronger hand.
Upon making the decision not to play the player will announce „Fold“ and the dealer will remove the Ante first and place the 2 cards in the discard. For this particular player the hand is now over.

With the exception of the first and last boxes 2 hands will be used for this procedure.
House procedure will be followed but it is recommended that;
    
·   On the first box the dealer will first take the ante with the left hand and place the chips in the float tray, and then pick up the cards with the same hand before transferring to the right. The cards are then placed into the discard.

·   On the last box the Ante will first be taken with the right hand and placed in the float.
The same hand will be used to pick up the cards before placing in the discard.

An open stance must at all times be maintained towards the players.

Until all decisions have been made and cards placed on the table players may not communicate information to one another regarding the contents of their hand.

The River

At this time all players remaining in the game will have a Call bet that is exactly double the original Ante and will have placed their cards back down on the table to the right of their 2 bets.

The dealer will now pick up the deck and deal 2 additional communal cards in the middle of the table.
The cards are announced as they are dealt.

The deck is now no longer needed for this hand and is placed in the discard holder.

Arranging The Flop
The dealer will now quickly arrange the communal cards in the middle so that they are easy to read for the player, dealer, inspector and surveillance.

Pairs or three of a kind etc. get priority to the left. Then cards ranking from high to low, again placed in order left to right.

As dealers get proficient on the game emphasis will be placed on making this process smooth and orderly.

The Dealers Hand
Once the Flop has been arranged the dealer will turn over his/her 2 cards and announce the best 5 card poker hand, by using a combination of his/her 2 cards and the 5 communal cards 'Flop'.     

Dealer and players can use either 3, 4 or 5 of the communal (Flop) cards to complete his/her hand.

Dealers & Players Hands

Dealer and players can use either 3, 4 or 5 of the communal cards (Flop) to complete his/her hand.


Arranging The Dealers Hand

Once the dealer has announced his/her hand. He/she now have to displayed the hand in a manner that is easiest to read.
Pairs taking preference, being arranged to the left. If there are no pairs then the arrangement will be high to low again starting from the left.
Please see accompanying illustrations on recommended practice.

Dealer uses 3 cards from the Flop:
The 3 cards are pulled slightly down.

Dealer uses 4 cards from the Flop:
The 4 cards are pulled slightly down and the 1 card that the dealer don't use out of his 2 cards, are put to the right side of the table (face up).

Dealer uses the entire Flop:
The Flop are pulled slightly down, the dealer 2 cards are put to the right side of the table (face up).

Dealer not Qualify:
Pay Antes only.

The Flop must be kept in an orderly manner as the dealer must also read the players hands and compare them to the casinos hand.
The dealers 2 cards must there for be kept well separate to avoid possible confusion.
 

Qualification

The dealer hand must consist of a pair of 4‘s or higher to qualify.

 
It goes without saying that with seven cards to make the pair of 4‘s or higher required that the dealer will qualify the majority of hands played.
If a pair of 4‘s or higher is dealt on the Flop then the dealer has already qualified as the hand showing will be the least the dealer will eventually hold.

Dealer Does Not Qualify
After arranging the Flop and turning over the dealer's 2 cards the dealer cannot make at least a pair of 4‘s.
Dealer will announced: Dealer does not qualify“ „paid Antes only“.
All players who stayed in the game and made a call bet will have their Antes paid. The dealer will pay from right to left.

AnteWin® Payout
If the Ante does win it is entitled to a AnteWin® Payout should one of the required hands have been made by the player.
After the dealer has announced „paid Antes only“ he/she will also enquire if there are any AnteWin® Payout winners.
It is up to the player then to announce that they may have a winner.
The dealer will then turn over that players 2 cards. If a AnteWin® Payout is now due it will be paid to the Ante.
The AnteWin® Payout structure will be displayed at the side of the table.
Once all Antes and AnteWin® Payouts have been made the dealer will then pick up the cards starting from the right and take the cards from the discard and place them on top of the deck.
The cutting card will be removed and placed in front of the next person to cut.
The deck will then be shuffled as per the house procedure or placed into the shuffling machine if one is in use.

Dealer Qualifies
If the dealer qualifies:-
Dealer will compare his best hand against each player’s best hand.
(a) Dealer and player have exactly the same hand the bet is a «push», it doesn't win or lose.
(b) Dealer beats the player then the player will lose both the Ante and Call.
(c) Player beats the dealer then the Ante is paid according to the AnteWin® pay table and the Call is pay 1-1 (even money).
How to arrange the final hand has been explained in Arranging The Dealers Hand.
Most important is that the hand must be clearly announced to the table. This will be in the order of:

„Dealer has a Pair of Queens“
„Dealer has a King high straight“
„Dealer has two pairs Sevens and Fives“ etc.

Once announced and displayed the dealer now has to check the players hands to determine the winners and losers.

All 5 cards will be used to determine who is the winner.
If both the dealer and player share a pair then the third, fourth and fifth card will be taken into consideration.
These rules are as for standard Texas Hold‘em Poker.

Payouts

Payouts will commence on the dealers right. The player will have his/her cards turned over and placed at the side of the Ante.
The best players combination is compared against the dealers hand.

In order to clarify things for the player as well as the inspector & surveillance the hand will be announced if it wins or loses as well as the value.
 

This will be in the order of :

„Pair of sixes, looses to the dealers tens“
„Jack high straight beats the pair of Aces“

If the players hand wins it will be paid both the Ante and Call.

Players hands that lose will have the Call and Ante removed.

AnteWin® Payout

All Antes that win are eligible for the AnteWin® Payout if one of the required hands has been made.
The AnteWin® Payout will be made at the same time as the normal payout and will be placed at the side of the Ante. 

The winning hand and the AnteWin® Payout being announced by the dealer as payment is made.
A total may be paid for the Ante and Call with Inspector or floor person approval.