Dealer attitude after his break...

I was playing at Aria in LV and I have a technique that when I win enough quarters, I color up to black, but still keep around four or so quarters for additional play at blackjack. I use this as a way to know that those are chips I won't be playing with and will be going home with. Well, the dealer didn't seem to like it that I would do this, as I would be coloring each 5 to 10 or so hands. I realize that it slows the game down a little, but for me at least, I'd rather play fewer hands per hour to expose my money to and make sure that I have some coin to go home with than just blow all my cash because of what some dealer wants me to do.

What really irked me was when he went on his break, he went to the other side of the pit and I could hear him talking about me to the pit boss, as though my technique is he most irritating thing he's ever encountered.

Is my play unusual, and is it really worth criticizing me behind my back when I can clearly hear him?

At a break in joint, I could understand something like this happening.
At Arial, it should not be taking place at all.

I tend to pay commissions several times during my play. It never seems to annoy the Casino for me to be giving them money.

If it slows down the game a smidgen, the dealers don't seem to ever display the slightest concern about it.

If you color up 4greens for a Black, and then "bank" the blacks in your pocket, the dealer should dummy up and deal. Period.

The people next to you are not grumbling, no one is calling the Floor over. It doesn't take all that much time. Try waiting until you have 8 greens for 2 Blacks, see if it gets better.

To a dealer, it's a little irritating at most, but neither should the dealer really care.

It is generally expected to keep most of your playing chips in the units that you're playing hands with, and then color up at the end.

If you're making a little extra work for the dealer, to toss in the occasional nickel tip. I think he may have been peeved that you (might not) have been tipping, but again, it all should be just workaday work to the dealer, nothing personal or anything to take to heart.

Yeah, I don't understand why he was talking about me. It's not a big deal, and no one else was complaining at the table. I was tipping plenty during play, and as expected, was doubling his tips when I would double as well. The normal dealer he replaced didn't have any problem with it. She actually smiled, and thought my play was smart.

Fleastiff, I'll try the 8 quarters next time I'm at a casino. Sounds like a good technique.

Paigowdan, that's what I thought too. He shouldn't care regardless. It's not his money; it's mine. :)

Thanks for your posts, you two. :)

Not defending this dealer, he was wrong. As you say they're your chips and you can color them up as you please. Having said that. I have been in a couple of joints where they actually said to me " I can't color you up unless you are done". One time specifically I remember, I think I was coloring 500 in green into purple. For the same reason you stated above, so I could put them in my pocket and take them home. I was sort of incredulous that the dealer would say this. It was a "new" casino and the dealer was also new. I asked the floor person when they came over, she said something like "well, that's our policy so as not to slow down the game". But then she told the dealer to go ahead and color my chips. So maybe it was a case of a newbie dealer being overzealous about the rules.

IMO you did nothing wrong. If I could see this from a dealer's perspective, much like in all walks of life the professional does it every day and the average player or customer does not. So things the profession see as obvious, are not so obvious to the customer. In my line of work, I get customers that want a car payment on a brand new car under $200 a month. Do the math on that for a $30,000 car and see how far you get and just because your last new car was $15,000 and you could do that with a 3-4K down payment doesn't mean you can do that now.

I am not privy to how dealers are rated, but I am sure it has something to do with hands dealt per hour and not making any errors in payments to players or creating anything that stops the game. Coloring up and coloring down does slow the game down. Should this cause him to become visibly irritated or should he be complaining about you on the floor within your earshot? Of course not.

Quote: vendman1

Not defending this dealer, he was wrong. As you say they're your chips and you can color them up as you please. Having said that. I have been in a couple of joints where they actually said to me " I can't color you up unless you are done". One time specifically I remember, I think I was coloring 500 in green into purple. For the same reason you stated above, so I could put them in my pocket and take them home. I was sort of incredulous that the dealer would say this. It was a "new" casino and the dealer was also new. I asked the floor person when they came over, she said something like "well, that's our policy so as not to slow down the game". But then she told the dealer to go ahead and color my chips. So maybe it was a case of a newbie dealer being overzealous about the rules.

Exactly! Why should they care in the first place? I don't care who they are or how long they've been dealing the game. They're performing me a service, and without me playing at that table, they're just sitting there with nothing to do.

Quote: jjdemick

I was playing at Aria in LV and I have a technique that when I win enough quarters, I color up to black, but still keep around four or so quarters for additional play at blackjack. I use this as a way to know that those are chips I won't be playing with and will be going home with. Well, the dealer didn't seem to like it that I would do this, as I would be coloring each 5 to 10 or so hands. I realize that it slows the game down a little, but for me at least, I'd rather play fewer hands per hour to expose my money to and make sure that I have some coin to go home with than just blow all my cash because of what some dealer wants me to do.

What really irked me was when he went on his break, he went to the other side of the pit and I could hear him talking about me to the pit boss, as though my technique is he most irritating thing he's ever encountered.

Is my play unusual, and is it really worth criticizing me behind my back when I can clearly hear him?

I certainly hope you curtailed your tipping after hearing that dealer talk about you. You also could have told the relief dealer why you no longer chose to tip since they all share. You should have been cheerfully and respectfully colored up every single time.

Having said that, not all players want the game to slow down and not all dealers like their rhythm to be broken. While I won't call what you did unusual, I will say that most players color up when they finish their session. I understand that you want to put some chips in the "bank" as many do. You could just as easily put green in your pocket which may make the pit's job easier when reconciling the blacks.

Whatever you choose to do, and it's your choice, let me suggest that you color up at the shuffle for a smoother flow of the game and do a final color up when you leave the table.

Quote: 1BB

I certainly hope you curtailed your tipping after hearing that dealer talk about you. You also could have told the relief dealer why you no longer chose to tip since they all share. You should have been cheerfully and respectfully colored up every single time.

Having said that, not all players want the game to slow down and not all dealers like their rhythm to be broken. While I won't call what you did unusual, I will say that most players color up when they finish their session. I understand that you want to put some chips in the "bank" as many do. You could just as easily put green in your pocket which may make the pit's job easier when reconciling the blacks.

Whatever you choose to do, and it's your choice, may I suggest that you color up at the shuffle for a smoother flow of the game?

I was only at the table for a few more hands after he left, but yes, I did not tip after I heard him. I tend to keep playing when I see the quarter chips in front of me, regardless of the amount. I know if I see a different color, especially black, they go right into my pocket or I make a mental note not to play with them.

I appreciate the suggestion, and will do just that with waiting until the shuffle, or just doing it with larger stacks with less frequency.

That's one of the most annoying things a player can do (color up every couple hands). Oh, and pocketing blacks, since the dealer most likely has to keep track of how many black chips you have. Seriously, what's the point of coloring up to black and putting it in your pocket? Instead of coloring up 4 green every other hand and taking a mental note of not playing the black....just have 2 stacks of green, a playing stack and a I'm-not-going-to-play-with-this-stack stack.

Quote: RS

That's one of the most annoying things a player can do (color up every couple hands). Oh, and pocketing blacks, since the dealer most likely has to keep track of how many black chips you have. Seriously, what's the point of coloring up to black and putting it in your pocket? Instead of coloring up 4 green every other hand and taking a mental note of not playing the black....just have 2 stacks of green, a playing stack and a I'm-not-going-to-play-with-this-stack stack.

It's something quite a few players do. For instance, if you buy in for $300 and get up a bit, a lot of people will color up enough reds and greens to make their $300 buy in, pocket them and then play with what they have won, ensuring themselves that they won't have a losing session. If you leave it in front of you, it is easier to spend.

My most annoying color-up story was over at the Silverton. I had over 1k in red and they were going me guff about coloring up a chunk of it. So... I tossed then in my bag, whereupon they freaked out on me trying to steal chips (?!). They decided to make a 'special exception' and let me color up after that.

Quote: Gabes22

It's something quite a few players do. For instance, if you buy in for $300 and get up a bit, a lot of people will color up enough reds and greens to make their $300 buy in, pocket them and then play with what they have won, ensuring themselves that they won't have a losing session. If you leave it in front of you, it is easier to spend.

That is normal, yes.

Coloring up every 5 hands is not normal.

Quote: RS

That is normal, yes.

Coloring up every 5 hands is not normal.

I would color up when I had won enough to do so. If it's that annoying to dealers, then I'll cut it out. I'm just saying, they're doing me a service. I should be able to do whatever I want with my money.

Quote: jjdemick

I would color up when I had won enough to do so. If it's that annoying to dealers, then I'll cut it out. I'm just saying, they're doing me a service. I should be able to do whatever I want with my money.

Do you make a total mess with your food at restaurants, too?

No, I don't.

I'm just saying, if I don't color, I tend to end up leaving with much less than I want to. It's my way of trying to prevent myself from losing what I won, because I tend to go chasing losses.

I appreciate your opinion, RS. Thanks for your two cents.

How often were you coloring up? If the answer is every 5-6 hands then yes you are crazy and need to slow it down.

It varied. It was as I won enough to color. Sometimes 8 hands, sometimes 10 or more. It depended. It was never just 5 hands. I did it maybe 3 or 4 times total.

A lot of times they audit the dealers on hands per hour. If he's getting audited at that moment you are crushing him. He probably should tell the pit boss so that he can request that they notate the situation - you really don't want to be the slowest dealer at any particular casino.

If I were at the table I might be irritated. I want the game to move. And move quickly. However, I doubt that I'd be irritated enough to say anything.

Bottom line, it's your money. Do what makes YOU happy. I shouldn't matter to you, nor should anybody else.

Faux pas on your end, asshole move on his. As mentioned elsewhere, some places will outright refuse.

A lot of place I play at in NJ/PA don't like to color up green for black unless you're leaving. I like to color up as much as possible especially since I am a red/green player but typically wind up just putting a blacks worth of green in my pocket at a time to keep it off the table and out of my mind. When it comes to leaving I'll either walk away or color up with black then unless my pocket gets too full then I'll color up some in advance. For some reason too, these places also refuse to color up with purple and will pay me in 10 blacks rather than 2 purples. My question is always why have it if you won't use it?

All right. I'll limit when I do it then. :)

I just don't believe he would act like that. Such a tool.

Dealer was out of line talking about you like that on the gaming floor. No matter what a customer is doing (unless he is breaking the rules or upsetting other customers), you don't gossip on the gaming floor.

Your chips are yours, and you can color them up whenever you want. It would be nice if you would be judicious about coloring up so that you don't slow the game down for the other players or an audited dealer. I'll echo whoever said to do your color-ups between shoes. Another way to keep things moving is if you're betting $50, $75, or $100+ on a hand, you can ask the dealer to pay you with a black chip when you win ($50 bet: Place the black chip and take your $50). Some places will do this and some won't, but it is faster than a color-up.

The one thing that I would highly discourage you from doing, and based on your OP I don't think you're doing it anyway, is to color up and then color BACK DOWN once your greens run out. This will absolutely irritate other players and dealers alike, especially since you're only leaving yourself with four greens to play with. I have seen (usually young) players on a $5 table color up to a green chip as soon as they had $30 in front of them, lose their next $5 bet, then break their green chip back down. When they ask to color up to green again, I nicely but pointedly ask them "If I give you a green, are you going to ask me for reds again in 30 seconds?" They usually get the hint at this point.

Deucekies, I've never done that with coloring up then coloring down. I can see your point with how that would be irritating to get the green then break it down again.

I appreciate everyone's comments so far with regards to this topic. It helps to see how others play with regards to this situation and that the dealer was out of line with his talking about me. Thanks everyone!