What’s the Deal? Dealers Discuss the Road to Pitching Cards at WSOP
Hundreds of thousands of dollars are on the line. He counts out that big bet to make sure it’s just right as TV cameras record the action. One mistake could be glaring and he makes sure he does everything right following the strategies he’s gone over again and again. The action moves to the other side of the table and he glances at the player across from him to see what she has planned.
While this may seem like a scenario of poker players on a daily basis, this is the action of those on the other side of the table – WSOP dealers. Those card pitchers are a crucial part of any major tournament and must take into account every bet, call, and raise – keeping the game moving and following the tournament rules.
While a dealer may have to consider every poker scenario and every variant of poker, they must also occasionally deal with belligerent players, bad attitudes, cursing, and any number of scenarios that play out at the tables.
Many big-name poker players got their start as dealers including Mike Matusow, Scotty Nguyen, and Layne Flack. Sometimes it’s a thankless job, but events like the WSOP couldn’t be carried out without them – and keeping those cards in the air is not quite as easy as it seems.
Audition Time
Getting to Vegas as a dealer requires some experience and a successful audition. Dealer training academies are offered by WSOP staffers throughout the year, except during the series. Dealing schools also offer training to learn the games and intricacies involved with the job.
After training, WSOP officials say the best way to learn the ropes is dealing at other properties or poker rooms before auditioning.
“I've always liked to play poker, but I'm on a fixed income as a retiree and I know I can't afford to play often. And so dealing was the next best thing.”
When you’re ready to deal in front of those judges, don’t expect just Texas Hold’em at an audition. For this year’s audition, No-Limit Hold’em was only one of four games players were expected to perform well on out of a 19-game mix (all games featured in the Dealers Choice tournaments).
Candidates were also required to answer a minimum of one question about an item in the current edition of the Dealer Reference Guide.
Lend McGhee is in his second year dealing at the WSOP. After 34 years as a truck driver, the 71-year-old decided to leave his home in Little Rock, Ark., and get into dealing. A longtime poker player and fan, he just enjoys being part of the WSOP action.
“I retired and decided to live in a city that doesn’t have icy roads and no mosquitoes, so I left Little Rock and moved here three years ago,” he says.
McGhee’s also dealt for the World Poker Tour, and finds dealing and driving for Uber keeps him active and helps add to his retirement income. And he really just enjoys being around poker and the players.
“I love it,” he says of part-time job pitching cards. “I've always liked to play poker, but I'm on a fixed income as a retiree and I know I can't afford to play often. And so dealing was the next best thing.”
To learn the ins and outs of commanding the table, McGhee attended West Coast Dealing School here in Las Vegas. He found the training motivating and was off and dealing after finishing.
How did his WSOP audition go? McGhee said it went well – pitching cards and keeping up with bets to show he knew the games. The questions weren’t too difficult after completing his training. After a successful audition, dealers who do well are asked back and don’t have to go through the audition the next year.
“They know we've been getting experience, and the next year you are invited back as long as she was in good standing,” McGhee says.
As the day’s tag team approached in the morning, the septuagenarian was ready to take his seat and shuffle up and deal.
On the Big Stage
For the last eight years, the Rio has been home each summer for 41-year-old Jeremy (he asked that his last name not be used). He was a regular home game player growing up in Michigan where players dealt the games themselves. He had some skills pitching and shuffling, and some events at the table led him to rethink his position in the game a bit.
“I had a run of bad cards and needed money, so I just started dealing at one of the local rooms back in Michigan,” he says.
Like players, dealers come from all over the country to deal at the Rio each summer. Jeremy believes those dealers who begin as players make the transition to dealer a little easier than those who just learn to deal.
“I play poker so I already knew most of the games from playing so that helped me in my audition because I wasn't wasn't a newbie.”
“I play poker so I already knew most of the games from playing so that helped me in my audition because I wasn't wasn't a newbie,” he says. “Some of the dealers that come out fresh from school, who've never played before only know what they were taught in school. It makes a little more difficult for them as opposed to somebody who's played poker.”
After gaining some experience, Jeremy has now dealt several final tables. And while those can be rewarding, seeing a player win a bracelet and a big payday, Jeremy mostly enjoys dealing the events featuring more recreational Average Joe players. Overall, he finds the job rewarding and most players are cordial and respectful to those pitching to them.
“There's always that one bad seed every once in a while, but for the most part the players are great,” he says. “Probably the best tournaments that I enjoy are the Daily DeepStacks, believe it or not. Those people just have a blast. The Seniors Championship is my No. 1 event. I would love to deal that every single year because those players are just fantastic. All they want to do is just come out and play in a World Series event, and just come here for fun.”
McGhee echoes those words and says that he’s had mostly positive experiences with players, and loves seeing them each day.
“I love the camaraderie of the guys out here playing poker,” he says. “And so if I can't be on that side of the table, I decided to get on the winning side of the table. It's all about your attitude about anything in life, and so about 99.9 percent nine of the players are very considerate to us.”
While McGhee hasn’t yet dealt a final table yet, like players on the other side of the table that is one of his goals.
“You’ve got to have three or four years under your belt before they even consider you for a final day,” he says. “But that would be nice.”
Want to deal at the WSOP? Click here to learn more about auditioning.
Check out WSOP Dealers' Diaries, published in 2015. Part 2 can be found here.
Sean Chaffin is a freelance writer in Crandall, Texas. His work appears in numerous websites and publications. Follow him on Twitter @PokerTraditions. He is also the host of the True Gambling Stories podcast, available on iTunes, Google Play, TuneIn Radio, Spotify, Stitcher, PokerNews.com, HoldemRadio.com, and TrueGamblingStories.com.
