paying time vs. rake

[benhoug 0]

Yesterday I played a session at the Trump (outside Chicago) and it was the first time I'd been at a table where you had to pay a fee every 30 minutes instead of a rake. Frankly I didn't really like it. It cost me 6 bucks every 30 minutes to play, which FEELS LIKE a lot more than a rake. I guess if you are involved in a lot of pots it works out better for the player to pay time versus rake, but if you're waiting for a hand it's kind of garbage. I played for about 2 hours, and due to exceptionally crappy cards I only took down two pots of substance. It cost me $24 to play for that time, but if I were playing at a raked table only 8 - 10 dollars would've been raked from those two pots. I ended up about a $120 winner for the session, but could't help but feel like I was robbed a little. What does anyone else think about paying for time versus a rake?

[tekku7181 0]

most any poker club charges time like that,,,if they take a rake its considered running a casino and is illegal...this way they are just "renting" you a chairhowever, 6 bux is kinda high but i dont know the limits..usually its like 4-5 dollars per half hour for a 1-2 2-5 or 5-5 nl ring game

[benhoug 0]

This was at a casino - the Trump. The game was 2/5 blind NL Hold 'Em. I agree that it's a little pricey.

[Nikki_N 17]

This must be new. I was at the Trump last summer and there was the standard rake, not time payments. It's a pretty big room compared to some. I preferred the Harrah's though. More fish.Nikki

[PestoSauce 0]

I've always wondered about this and have asked several dealers what they thought of time vs. rake. I've heard that they're both basically the same in the long run. So let's run some numbersMy experience is in a Detroit Casino, so the rake might be exceptionally high.Let's say that you can get 40 hands in one hour just to keep it simple.Here we have a 1-2 blinds 50 min, 100 max buy in NLHE game. The time rake is $6 per half hour. (in the bigger NLHE game, I believe it's $8 per half hour. But let's stick to the smaller one).that is $12/hour for 40 hands. The total for 10 players is $120 per hour.in 3-6, 5-10, or 10-20 the rake is 10% up to $5 PLUS $1 for bad beat jackpot. So let's say the average rake (since not all pots are a full rake) is $3.5 plus one for the bad beat or $4.5. 40 hands x 4.5 = $180 per hour. These examples are not including tips. The NLHE game is lower over one hour, but sitting at that table without getting any hands could cost you. In the limit game, the rake is taken out of the pot, so if you win the pot, you are sorta charged, but you don't notice it as much. My conclusion is that the casino makes a buttload of money off of us. No wonder why at a low limit game like 3-6, only a few players are up (and not even that much) and most of the players are down, even though they may have won a few nice pots. And it is no wonder why so many people play online.

[aventajado 0]

Hey Guys,Here's how I see it. Rakes are better because it taken from the pot, so usually the person taking down the pot is the one where the rake is taken from. So its not really much, 10% of the pot with a max rake of say 4 bucks, doesnt mean much to someone taking down a $120 pot. Essentially.Time on the other hand is charged to all players, so regardless if you're winning or losing, you'll get charged time.In lower limit games, rakes are better for all concerned, its just when you get to the higher limit games, the house can't just take in the 10% or cap it at 4 bucks, so they charge time.Rakes the way to go, time shucksMarco

[LooseCannon 0]

Time charges hurt tight players who pay the house even when they are not catching cards and are not in any hands.Rakes hurt more active players who take down a lot of small pots.But it does all even out in the end. If rakes or time charges brought in more money, then casinos would be using exclusively one or the other.$6/ half-hour seems to be a common figure across the country.

[BuzzWorthy 0]

Seems to me that if you are a winning player, it would be better to take the time charge. Your costs are fixed - whereas if you are winning big pots (or lots of small pots) with a rake, you would pay more.