I'm not sure how strictly the line is being enforced, but I can tell you there have been no problems or confusion with it during the sessions I've played at Rivers this month. I know there are arguments out there that betting lines enforced too rigidly can lead to angle-shooting, but I've always felt a table with a line is better than one without, so long as as the rules for what constitutes a bet and what constitutes a muck are enforced clearly and consistently by dealers.
The new betting lines also mean that the casino's bizarre, much-derided "cut rule" is officially a thing of the past. I emailed room manager Mike Chapman today for confirmation that the rule was abandoned, and this is the reply he sent:
"We allow for cutting of the chips in one unbroken motion. If you hesitate, it will constitute a stoppage of the bet. As always, we encourage you to verbalize your bet to eliminate any confusion."
That's pretty much a perfect answer, as any long pause while cutting chips essentially turns it into a string bet. But at least players can now cut out a proper bet without the dealer declaring that their first cut was the bet just because it was made a fraction of an inch past their hole cards. The cut rule was always silly and created more problems that it solved. I don't expect anyone will much miss it.
2 comments:
Something I've noticed lately in the Vegas casinos that I'm not really happy about.
Player says "raise" without saying an amount. He first puts the right number of chips to call the bet, then goes back to the stack and figures out the amount of his raise, then puts it in.
Based on the new rule you describe, would that be allowed where you play? To me that's too much like a string bet, the guy can see how his oppenent reacts to hearing the word "raise" and then decide how much to put out.
Hmm, I've seen players do that, too. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've done it on more than one occasion. Or, at least, I know I've announced "raise" and then taken a moment to figure out just how much I want to bump it to.
I suppose you're right and it could be used to get a read on an opponent, but I don't find it to be particularly egregious. Seems like just part of the game to me.
I guess that, technically, under Rivers' new rules, if a player announced raise, and then put the calling amount out, and then went back to his stack to cut out a raising amount, a dealer could rule it a string bet and force the player to raise only the minimum. But I've never seen it ruled that way -- at Rivers or any other casino -- and it would strike me as an awfully strict interpretation of the rule.
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