3 Card Poker Argument w/ Dealer

Was playing 3 card poker on a cruise ship. Random comes up and asks if he can watch to learn the game.

I was doing ante/play only. I played my hand, and when the dealer revealed I knew I lost, and reacted by sighing and making a very subtle swiping hand motion.

The dealer took my chips without checking my hand, and the bystander was confused by why I “automatically” lost.

I said I didn’t automatically lose, the dealer was SUPPOSED to check my hand.

The dealer was in a mood to begin with, and snapped back and said I folded by making a hand motion.

I argued that hand motions mean nothing in 3 card poker. If I put chips on my cards that means I’m playing the hand, and only the hand matters, nothing else.

He said I was incorrect, and I folded by hand motion. So I just called it quits and colored out. The pit boss seemed to be watching the interaction and removed him from the table pretty quickly, but I was done anyway.

Who was right here?

I think you were right
Hand motions only matter in blackjack and blackjack varieties, right?

^ I'm not sure. When various poker varieties were around (e.g. 5-card poker) some people did play blind (in which case they didn't know what they had); this was not totally unreasonable against Q-2 up-cards. In my local I think if you played two 3-card hands, one of them had to be played blind. However it was also quite common for people to raise with a bad hand hoping the Dealer would not qualify, so in this case they might wave their hand [in disgust!] when the Dealer qualified (in hindsight, some might have actually pushed the cards and bets towards the dealer).

You put chips on your hand. The assumption should be you played it. If the dealer felt that it was unclear what you wanted, he should have asked. Just another example of a dealer who is "never wrong."

Hand motions mean nothing. The dealer should check, primarily because a player might miss-read their hand.

Also, shouldn’t the pit boss be an advocate for a good customer experience? Or did you get the type who prefers to squeeze players short-term at the expense of long-term loyalty?

Quote: gamerfreak

The dealer was in a mood to begin with, and snapped back and said I folded by making a hand motion.
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You could not have folded; folding is not an available player action after the play wager has been placed.

The dealer should have spread your cards for comparison like any other hand.

As a dealer, I will take your bet if you wave your hand. The reason is 99% of players don't want me to look at their hand when they lose, often going as far as to push their bet forward. If a player waves their hand, and I look at their hand anyway, I'm almost always getting screamed at by that player.

If I start to take your bet and you say "No, look at it", I won't argue with you. I'll put your bet back and look at your hand.

Quote: gamerfreak

Who was right here?
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You were. There are no hand motions in Three Card Poker. The player hand should have been revealed to ensure it didn't win or qualify for an Ante Bonus.

If it were a home game, I'd argue you threw in your hand, which meant you knew you had lost.
Is the dealer supposed to accept that you threw away a losing hand or correct your mistakes?

Quote: billryan

If it were a home game, I'd argue you threw in your hand, which meant you knew you had lost.
Is the dealer supposed to accept that you threw away a losing hand or correct your mistakes?
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I'm going to assume that in a regulated environment, the dealer is supposed to follow the approved procedure.

https://wsgc.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2025-04/Three%20Card%20Poker.pdf

Quote: Dieter

Quote: billryan

If it were a home game, I'd argue you threw in your hand, which meant you knew you had lost.
Is the dealer supposed to accept that you threw away a losing hand or correct your mistakes?
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I'm going to assume that in a regulated environment, the dealer is supposed to follow the approved procedure.

https://wsgc.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2025-04/Three%20Card%20Poker.pdf
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I agree, but I don't know what the approved practice is.

BTW- Had the dealer been engaging and Gamer been having a pleasant experience, this would have been a hiccup, no? That's why dealers need to build a reservoir of goodwill.

Quote: Deucekies

As a dealer, I will take your bet if you wave your hand. The reason is 99% of players don't want me to look at their hand when they lose, often going as far as to push their bet forward. If a player waves their hand, and I look at their hand anyway, I'm almost always getting screamed at by that player.

If I start to take your bet and you say "No, look at it", I won't argue with you. I'll put your bet back and look at your hand.
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Hmmm…

There’s a lot of stuff to consider there.

So much so that I’m revising my earlier response to say that it’s a fold, but maybe the dealer should ask anyway. Or at least the first time for that player.