5 Ways to Avoid Poker Scams

Nobody likes to be in the receiving end of cheating and scamming, especially if it involves high
stakes and lots of money such as poker. Here is a compilation of tips to help avoid scams
introduced by various devious players worldwide
1. Examine Your Cards
Marked cards may or may not happen accidentally. It can happen inadvertently when the
machine marks certain cards upon shuffling. Some players would want to take advantage of this
by not telling the dealer and just merely remember the card that was marked. There are also some
players who purposely mark their card, so they could avoid losing.
Either way, if you notice a marked card, ask for a new deck right away.
2. Save Your Money
Letting other players borrow money almost always never turns out alright. You have already
won. There is no point in letting people borrow money from you as you can no longer collect
more from them. Chances are, it would take a while for you to collect the loan.
You would also run the risk of losing this money you’ve earned for the previous games.
3. Have a Cautious Eye for Chips
Some poker players would hide their chips in order to deceive their opponents. Their opponents
may become overconfident and would go all-in. In hopes of emptying their pockets, their
opponents fail, and they end up losing more than what they originally intended.
Poker rules say that higher-denominated chips should be seen upfront, but some players do not
really follow the rules and would come up with a poor excuse.
Some opponents would even make use of the technicalities and say they were not necessarily all-
in as the chips never touched the felt, to which they are correct. Examine the chips and see where
they are.
4. Calculate Every Move
More often than not, snap decisions are not exactly wise decisions. Some players are feeling the
adrenaline and would make rash decisions, which end up badly. Calculate every move and check
every card and chip. Be on the lookout for potential bluffs. The devious poker players would take
advantage of your hype and use it to their advantage.
5. Observe Players and Dealers
Some of the greatest scams in the world involve a collusion between a player and a dealer. Some
players and dealers often have an agreement that the latter gets a hefty percentage of the
winnings in exchange for letting the former win. Once you observe that there may be fishy
interactions, it is time to leave and look for another game.
Poker is a really cool game, and it involves winning a lot of money. Because of the amount of
money people can potentially win in this game, it is not really that shocking to find out that
people employ a lot of awful tricks just to win.