Poker Articles

Steer Games
By Michael Wiesenberg

If home games in which you know most of the players are bad, private games in which you don't are worse. Such games are called after-hours games (in reference to cardrooms that close at a certain hour, as many do, or riverboat games where the players sometimes have to leave at certain hours) or steer games. Steer games because players are steered from cardrooms to these games.

Almost all steer games are crooked. Usually a few thieves want to relieve a particularly well-heeled live one of all his money, if he has any left after leaving the cardroom. He may have lost hundreds in a club, but they think they can get him for thousands. They may invite him to join them for a game at someone's motel. You might be included because they want a full game, or because they want to take you too. Whatever the reason, don't go. You'll be sorry if you do. You may think that the players inviting you are all good guys, and must be on the square, because they were in the same game with you, and the house wouldn't let them play if they were thieves, right? The house may not know a particular player as a thief because he may never have made a move in that establishment, not wanting to get barred, or because the club has house dealers. Some thieves never cheat in cardrooms; they reserve their chicanery for private games.

Don't go with them; you may never know what hit you. And even if you think you're smart enough to detect the cheating, you still don't want to go to a steer game. What do you suppose will happen if you suspect them of cheating, or catch them, and accuse them? Do you think they'll say, "Oh, we're sorry. Here's your money back. We'll never do it again." People who are unscrupulous enough to cheat also might not hesitate to knife you or beat you up if you accuse them. In a cardroom, there are security cops and other players to stop a fight; who will protect you in someone's hotel room?

Some night when you're cashing in at a public cardroom that closes at 2 a.m., or getting off a riverboat at the end of a sailing, someone from your game may approach you quietly. "Hey, we're gonna build a game around that live one that lost all the money in the game tonight. He's good for at least another $10,000. I see you lost a little tonight. You wanna come along and win some of it back? Just don't say anything to anyone else. The management doesn't approve of any games they're not taking time collections out of."

I'm not saying you ought to warn that live one, or that you should say anything to the management; how you handle the situation is your own business. (However, I will be personally pleased if you do something to stop this odious practice. No matter how badly they play, all players are entitled to the same honest shake for their money. They should not be in games where they have as much chance as the proverbial fish in the rain barrel.) I am telling you not to get into that game. Return to the cardroom tomorrow and win your money back when you're fresh. If you follow the advice on these pages, you'll beat most of the honest games you get into.