CHEATING IN POKER

Many of us have played the game of poker, and perhaps in the comfort of our own homes where no money is at risk have had a sneak peek at an opponent’s cards, but what about cheating at poker in casinos or professional games? Can it be done, has it been done, and how would potential cheaters go about earning themselves some dirty money?

There are several different ways to cheat at poker, and the people that put them into practice are grouped by those in know as follows;

• Mechanic – An individual who is extremely good at ‘sleight of hand’ cheating, similar to some tricks performed by magicians.
• Base Dealer – These people rely on manipulating the dealing of the cards themselves.
• Paper man – A card cheat that uses marked playing cards to gain an advantage.
• Hand Mucker – Someone who is skilled at switching cards.

Some of the most commons ways to cheat in poker do not require any skill whatsoever, and merely rely on the guile and willing of the player in question. Some of these methods include;

• Short Changing the Pot – By subtly not putting the required amount of money in the pot for instance that may be compulsory, players are gaining chips each round.
• Peeking – The most simple and possibly widely executed method of cheating is simply to look at opponents cards in order to better decide how and when to bet, if at all.
• Helping hand – Some players may volunteer themselves as banker after being bankrupted out of the game, only to steal stray chips.
• Going South – This method of cheating involves and individual hiding some of their own chips in order to cash them later after losing the games, or simply to avoid losing too much in big rounds.

One other very common way of cheating is known as collusion, which is basically working in secret with another player on the table, perhaps in order to ensure one player gains most chips and presumably splitting the winnings afterwards.