Poker Etiquette at Home

Winning at Internet Poker For Dummies

When you're playing poker in your home or someone else's, the rules of etiquette are mostly commonsense conventions and normal poker protocols. Following are a list of things to do and things to avoid doing during a friendly game at home:

Do . . .

Be honest: Don't try to short-change the pot or otherwise cheat.
Play quickly: No one likes a slow player.
Be courteous and friendly: No one likes a whiner or a gloater.
Be a good winner: Gloating and making fun of other players is a definite no-no.
Be a good loser: We all lose. It happens. But show some class and don't show your temper, swear, or throw cards. Definitely don't insult the other players.
Let the other players know if you plan to leave early: It's courteous to let the other players know in advance if you plan to quit early.
Bet in sequence: Bet, call, or fold when it's your turn. Acting out of turn can adversely affect another player's hand.

Don't . . .

Give a player advice in the middle of a hand even if asked: This is a no-win proposition. Either the player who asked will be upset at you if the advice is wrong or the person who loses against the player will be mad at you.
Look at another player's hand, unless you have permission: Some players strongly object to your looking at their hand.
Play poker with a guy named "Doyle," "Amarillo Slim," or "Harpo": These guys are too good for your normal home game.

About This Article

About the book author:

Richard D. Harroch is an attorney with over 20 years of experience in representing start-up and emerging companies, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists. He is listed in Who’s Who in American Law and is a corporate partner in a major law firm in San Francisco. He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of U.C. Berkeley and graduated from UCLA Law School, where he was managing editor of the Law Review. He has edited or co-authored a number of legal/business books, including Start-Up and Emerging Companies: Planning, Financing and Operating the Successful Business and Partnership and Joint Venture Agreements.
Richard was the chairman and co-founder of AllBusiness.com, one of the premier Web sites for small businesses. He was also the founder, CEO, and chairman of LawCommerce, Inc., an Internet company dedicated to providing products and sources to the legal profession.
He has lectured extensively before various legal and business organizations, including the American Electronics Association, the Venture Capital Institute, the California Continuing Education of the Bar, Law Journal Seminars-Press, the California State Bar Business Section, the Corporate Counsel Institute, the San Francisco Bar, and the Practicing Law Institute (PLI).
Richard has served as the chairman of the California State Bar Committee on Partnerships, the co-chairman of the Corporations Committee of the San Francisco Bar (Barristers), a member of the Executive Committee of the Business Law Section of the California State Bar, and co-chair of the Law Journal seminar in New York on “Joint Ventures and Strategic Alliances.”
Richard has experience in the following areas: start-up and emerging companies, corporate financings, joint ventures, strategic alliances, venture capital financings, employment agreements, IPOs, leases, loans, online and Internet matters, license agreements, partnerships, preferred stock, confidentiality agreements, stock options, sales contracts, securities laws, and mergers and acquisitions.