Pokerwiner.com → Within poker principles
The result is a list of suggestions for players and cardrooms interested in preserving their games:
1.Follow Mason Malmuth’s suggestions.
In his Poker Essays and Poker Essays, Volume II, Malmuth provides numerous ideas which speak to the topics of game preservation. To review, he explains the importance of playing quickly and refraining from such time consuming practices as asking for deck changes and new setups when there is nothing wrong with the cards. (Players may get bored or frustrated and leave a slow game). He points out the negative effects of criticizing weak players, discussing strategy at the table, asking to see another player’s hand, pulling angle plays, and making plays which may humiliate a weak player. Additionally, he warns against insisting on technicalities and complete buy-ins for weaker players who are not trying to take advantage of the rules. For more on these and other ideas relevant to game preservation I refer the reader directly to Malmuth’s writings.
2.Nurture a friendly atmosphere at the table.
This is an elaboration of the idea that it is destructive to a game to criticize, or be hostile toward weaker players. Some professional players make an effort to avoid such behavior, but a few erroneously believe it to be to their benefit to act in an opposite manner toward better players. They apparently believe that if they are cold or rude toward better players, they will benefit by driving them off, and so keeping the “live ones” all to themselves. This notion contains two serious flaws. First, professional and other winning players account for a significant, and stable part of the player base that keeps a game going from week to week. To drive these players off (Which should not be easy to do, as most pros have learned to tolerate a variety of unpleasant behaviors on the part of some of their opponents) would take the backbone out of a game and threaten its demise.
If you are a professional poker player, you need to accept that playing with some other pros at the table is a small sacrifice you must make in exchange for having a regular game to play in. Second, being rude or unfriendly toward any player, be they weak or skilled, creates an atmosphere of hostility which is witnessed by all the players at the table. When a recreational player encounters this, do you think he is likely to want to stay in the game or come back frequently in the future? I think not. On a related note, people tend to feel most at ease in a social environment that they perceive as amiable and welcoming. A game that is dead silent, with nothing but a feeling of cutthroat competition hanging in the air is not going to feel this way to a new or inexperienced player.
Thus, my advice is to do your part to create a friendly to your opponents. Try to initiate a little interesting or humorous conversation. (But do not bother players when they are in a hand or push it to the point of annoying anyone who would rather play quietly). If you are stuck, and feeling sullen or frustrated, it is better to say nothing than to speak angrily or sarcastically to another player. If you are not an outgoing person you can still be polite and can make an effort to be at least a little more social than you might typically be. Look at it as a part of your work. Note this is an ideal to strive for. Though I try to follow my own advice, I like to think and observe a good deal at the table.
Consequently I spend a good deal of my time playing quietly. Still, whenever game preservation is a concern I try to do my part to maintain an atmosphere to which people would not be loathe to return. I have focused here only on promoting friendly social interaction. You may further improve the health of your poker game by thinking of other ways to make it an enjoyable environment for the players.
"The Best Player I' ve Ever Seen " / The Hit and Run Follies / An Illusory Winner /
On Randomness, Rushes, Hot Seats, and Bad Luck Dealers / Bad Beat? Think Again
Why Learn to Beat Tougher Games? / Practicing Game Preservation
Short-Handed Play: Don’t Miss out / How I Learned Poker: Part I
How I Learned Poker : Part II