I have NOT found tipping to affect my experience in live poker rooms.
NOTE that I am talking about being a big tipper vs a "standard" or perhaps even slightly sub-standard tipper -- I do think that a NON-tipper (1) can get adverse treatment from casino personnel, and (2) bring attention to themselves (in the case of blackjack or VP, this means increased scrutiny and greater likelihood of being barred from play). I would think that a professional gambler would want to avoid being identified as such on games where one can easily lose one's livelihood, or at least access to good games, by being so identified, and would therefore try to at least LOOK like the average non-professional player, who likely tips at some level.
Of course, I understand that some of those posting are already past that point, are already well-known as professional players, and therefore can gain no "protection" from identification by being a bad or non-tipper - although it sounds like they are willing to tolerate a lot of bad service and rudeness in exchange for the marginal increase in income that comes from not tipping a small amount on an event such as a royal hand-pay that doesn't come up so frequently as to be a big factor in overall income if reduced by a small gratuity.
I play a lot of poker, usually in the same card room for 2-3 days, 10 hours a day. I play as much as I can when there is a casino in the vicinity of a business trip, and I make trips to a local casino about once a month for a weekend. I tip the dealers the minimum ($1 at most games), but do so for every hand I win, no matter how small the pot -- and on rare occasion, for a really big pot, will tip up to $5. I am therefore not known as a big tipper (many of the regulars seem to tip $2 and $5 much more often than I do), but I am also not known as a deadbeat.
I have tipped a floorman ONCE to hold ("lock up") a seat for me at a game if my name came up while I was out of the poker room and didn't hear my name get called (while waiting for a seat, I usually go play VP for a while, checking back in every 15-20 min, and I explain that's what I'm doing -- or sometimes I'll go eat while waiting if it looks like it might be a while). Only if I expect to be gone for more than 5-10 minutes would I consider such a tip to request such a seat, and in many rooms, I've been told that if I don't answer within 5-10 minutes when my name is called, they'll move on to those next in line.
If I'm in the room and listening for my name, I have never been passed over because I'm not a big tipper. If I'm out of the room and get back after my name is called, I've always been placed back at the top of the list, unless I was gone a really long time. Perhaps some of the regulars can get their name added higher on the list when they first sign up, but I don't know that the desk personnel signing people up on the list actually will do this, and have never observed anyone directly tipping them to do so (which would probably be the strategy to use if it is a working strategy).
While tips may get you the game you want or the seat you want, in my experience, these are "awarded" first-come (first-request for seats) first-served, and pretty consistently, with no preferential treatment to anyone; only if there are two people requesting a seat change almost simultaneously would dealer preference be a factor.
While the dealer may ATTEMPT to get you food or beverage service more vigorously if you're a big tipper, in my experience, the tips to the server are a bigger factor in how fast they come back with an order and how frequently they come around to request orders, and even then, bigger tips are not needed for good service UNLESS the server has too much area to cover effectively (due, for example, to someone calling in sick), and then they may serve big tippers more frequently. Since I'm usually not there to eat or drink, slow service is not that important to me, so maybe that's a factor in my perception. Again, NOT tipping at all might result in slow or no service, either intentionally or subconsciously.
As far as keeping me posted on "special rules", I have never seen a dealer explain such rules to anyone except in the case of an infraction, an objection by a player to someone's alleged infraction, or in response to a direct question (and I've often seen the players then disagree, and the floor person on duty who is called to the table is the one who really resolves any rules questions / disagreements that arise, not the dealer).
There are indeed some special rules that exist at some poker games, such as what kind of actions consist of a bet (if you go past a betting line with more chips than you drop, some casinos consider the entire amount you took past the line to be a bet), although verbal announcement of a bet is binding wherever I go, no matter how you handle your chips, and therefore is best practice for the player.
It is often best to ask EACH dealer what they think such rules are, as some dealers may have a different understanding than others, and to ask the floor personnel if you wan a more authoritative answer, understanding again that a different floor person might apply a rule differently.
As for "bonus" hands, only a small percentage of casinos offer these, and they are usually clearly posted, and once I know they exist (again, usually not too hard to find out), I take responsibility for claiming my bonus when I have such a hand. Other players at the table usually are just as helpful as the dealer in assuring such hands are properly rewarded.
As for mucking my cards "accidentally", I am responsible for protecting my cards, as are all players, and only when the player does not protect his cards is this even a possibility -- if you don't protect your cards like you should, I suppose the dealer might behave differently according to your tipping. If a dealer ever mucked my properly protected cards, I'd not only stop tipping him/her, but would report it to the floor personnel, unless I was convinced it was a total mistake, not intentional, and not a result of poor performance (not paying attention), AND was convinced that the dealer was authentically apologetic.
As for time to make a decision, I've never seen a dealer do anything more regarding a slow decision than be sure a player knows it is his/her turn to act; that is the dealer's responsibility anyway. Players get all the time they want unless another player calls a clock, in which case the dealer calls a floor person to start the clock. Again, IF the floor person knows he/she is being called to a table to start a clock on a player and IF they know who is taking the time, they MIGHT get to the table more slowly for a big tipper -- but this would be an unusual situation.
I do agree that "regulars" in a poker room are probably given a little bit of preferential treatment by dealers and floor personnel, since those players are the ones who keep the room alive on a day to day basis, and since they are familiar faces rather than strangers, but if those players are not known for troublesome behavior (and I observe a lot of regulars who are indeed always complaining / demanding / cursing / misbehaving), then I don't think they get preferential treatment in any way very often, since there is simply too much of a poker room's reputation riding on how it treats all customers. Among the regulars, if there is any preferential treatment, it is likely based on how well-behaved they are more than on how much they tip, unless they are visibly giving money away in excess. Some regulars may gravitate to places that perhaps DO give such preferential treatment in violation of "all customers are equal", but if they do, they'll soon find
themselves in a poker room playing mostly with other regulars who are equally demanding and argumentative, not a poker room that I will ever choose to frequent.
--BG
=====================
> 1.2. Re: Tips
>
> Add 2 more that directly affect your winnings:
>
> g) they're more careful NOT to "accidentally" muck your
> cards
> h) they'll make a point of special "bonus" hands for the
> tippers
>
If you play regularly somewhere however (or
> even if you just
> plan on spending a day or several days playing in a poker
> room) - you may
> find that the dealers can help you:
>
> a) get a seat at the table and game that you want
> b) get the seat that you want at that table
> c) get you food service promptly
> d) help you with special rules that might exist at
> that club
> e) make sure that you have as much time as you need
> to make your play
> f) make things easier all around
>
> Also, your nontipping reputation can spread to
> floormen and others who can
> make things easier or not as easy for you as well.
> They work hard for their money, and it's a job based
> on tips.
>
