Here's a Tip

Tipping. Every time I go into a tournament, I always think if I win it, how much of it should I tip. A first prize of $10k would be $1k and a small prize of $3k would be $300.

Did you know when Jerry Yang won the 07 WSOP, he didn't leave a tip. I thought that was wrong of him, until I started reading more into it and found that the WSOP had already taken a big rake with the entries.

Now, cash game is a different story where you tip every hand. I started thinking how much does it make sense to tip pot after pot? When I lose a hand, who tips me right? Not to mention, they already have a rake + jackpot collection. Say, the pot is three way action with all limpers. Pot is $12 and rake is $4. Now, the pot is only $8. Is this pot even worth playing? Say, you win the $8 with a min bet of $4. You tip $1. You won $7 dollars, but invested $4 dollars. So net gain would be $3. Not worth it!

I read on TV's high stakes poker, they only tip $1 every hand. 1 dollar!!! Here they are playing for thousands, not to mention getting paid per hour sitting there. Here I am tipping $2 - $5 on pots that are $40 bucks. Am I crazy?

I plan on rebuilding my poker bankroll and now realized how much was lost by simply tipping too much on pots that wasn't worth it. I know dealers need the tips to make better wages, but I'm the one sitting at the tables with my own money to risk.

So now, I'm going to be a more cautious tipper. Thoughts?