A rake is a rake, but in a home game?

I’ve seen some cruel, crazy rules in what you would think would be standard games in a home setting. If you’ve ever played idiot’s blackjack (also known as the less politically correct Polish blackjack), you know what I mean. I’ve also been witness to – but have refused to play for statistical reasons – a Caribbean Stud game where the dealer did not pay 2:1 for a hand of two-pair. It only paid 1:1, which I thought absolutely crippled the player’s already poor position against the dealer. The reasoning was that the players could play multiple hands, and thus see more than 5 cards to use toward their decision making, but I don’t buy that, and it certainly doesn’t affect it enough to implement a rule like that.

Anyway, I came across a discussion lately where the players were in a typical home game, and the dealer actually took a $1 rake from every hand. I had to go back and read it again I was so shocked. A rake? In a home game?? Who would even stick around for that sort of thing?

The discussion was actually about whether $1 was too much for a Hold ‘Em game with 50-cent/$1 blinds, never mind the fact that there was any rake to begin with. I refrained from joining the discussion, and really just sat on the outside as an observer, since the majority of the comments were taking the same stance.

But I’ll definitely give you my two-cents here (just don’t rake me a penny for it). Even if I were resigned to playing in a home game with a rake, setting it for $1 blanket doesn’t make sense. For a cash game where each hand is independent of the next, you need the pot to get to a certain level, say $10, for that type of a rake to be justified. If the players all fold to the big blind, for example, the house rakes 66% of the entire bet? Man, those Vegas casinos would be lining up to get a piece of that game.

But I still struggle with the concept of a rake. What’s the point? You need help covering rent and utilities for those three hours? I’d rather be asked not to flush the toilet and play in the dark than have to give up a portion of my winnings each hand to the guy hosting the game. Is it to cover food and drink? Just ask everyone to throw in a few bucks like a normal person.

A rake in a home game is absurd. This isn’t Full Tilt Poker or some of the other best online poker sites. If I walked into one, even as a first-time player, and was told about the rule, I’d play a half dozen hands and then fake a text-message emergency on my cell phone and politely bail out, never to return. We get nickel and dimed enough in a real casino, I don’t need the same thing in some dude’s basement.

Editors note: Written by Mark, an online associate .

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