Last week, I saw one of the worst breaches of etiquette I've ever seen at a poker table. During a three-way Holdem pot, the dealer accidentally turned over the fourth card of the flop without realising that only one of the players was all-in, so there should have been further betting. This error always means the turn cannot go and must be replaced with the third card from the bottom of the deck.
The all-in player (who would have made a full house with the original turn card) started screaming. He ranted, he shouted, he called for the manager. The ruling was ratified, and the all-in player should now have fallen silent, but he continued to berate everyone at the table.
The ultimate winner of the pot (who made a flush) did an amazing thing: he tossed the guy £175, returning his last bet. There was absolutely no requirement for him to do this - he wouldn't have got his own £175 back if the full house had come - but he felt sorry for the guy, and wanted to restore good table spirit. This geezer looks down at the chips, looks up and snarls: "I want £185."
So it seems timely to have a little run-through of appalling poker behaviour. You should not "trash talk" and insult opponents. It is also wrong to: show your cards to anyone else during action, display favouritism to a particular opponent, abuse the dealers or waitresses, swear aggressively at fellow players, or chirrup triumphantly when you win a hand. For a horrified laugh, why not watch all these things happening at once? Go to YouTube and type in "Scotty Nguyen Belligerent Drunk".
