Pennsylvania Code
Title 58 - RECREATION
Part VII - GAMING CONTROL BOARD
Subpart K - Table games
Chapter 637a - POKER
Section 637a.15 - Bad Beat payout; posting of rules; contributions; counting and displaying of payout amount; procedures for implementation

Universal Citation: 58 PA Code ยง 637a.15

Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 44, November 2, 2024

(a) A certificate holder may, if specified in its Rules Submission under § 601a.2 (relating to table games Rules Submissions), offer a Bad Beat payout for one or more Bad Beat hands. A Bad Beat payout shall be made from a separate fund created from pot contributions required at tables where a Bad Beat payout is offered and shall be paid in accordance with the procedures established under this section.

(b) A certificate holder shall post at each Poker table that offers a Bad Beat payout notice advising patrons of eligibility for the Bad Beat payout. The certificate holder shall display the current amount of the Bad Beat payout and post in a conspicuous location within the Poker room the Bad Beat payout rules which must include:

(1) The maximum contribution amount that will be collected from each pot to fund the Bad Beat payout and the method of calculation for any contribution amount.

(2) The minimum pot amount required before the contribution to the Bad Beat payout is collected.

(3) Qualifying Bad Beat requirements and payouts.

(c) A certificate holder shall extract from each pot at a Poker table designated for participation in a Bad Beat payout a prescribed contribution to the Bad Beat payout. The contribution amount shall be collected in accordance with the Bad Beat payout rules as specified in the certificate holder's Rules Submission under § 601a.2. After the dealer has extracted the rake, the amount from each pot to be contributed to a Bad Beat payout shall be determined, segregated from the pot and deposited into the Bad Beat payout box. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a certificate holder may, upon amending its Bad Beat payout rules, terminate collection of Bad Beat contributions at any time in accordance with subsection (i).

(d) At least once each gaming day and upon notice to a casino compliance representative, a certificate holder shall count the accumulated contents of each Bad Beat payout box. The counting shall occur at a closed Poker table, the main cage or a satellite cage, in accordance with the certificate holder's approved internal controls, as follows:

(1) If the counting of the contents of a Bad Beat payout box occurs at a closed Poker table, the counting shall be performed by a Poker dealer in the presence of a floorperson or above and recorded by the surveillance department. Documentation of the count shall be prepared and signed by both the dealer and the floorperson or above who witnessed the count. The contents of the Bad Beat payout box shall then be placed in a locked container along with documentation of the count and transported to the main cage or satellite cage by a security department employee.

(2) If the counting of the contents of a Bad Beat payout box occurs in the main cage or a satellite cage, a floorperson or above shall account for all locked Bad Beat payout boxes transported from the Poker tables to the cage. A security department employee shall transport the Bad Beat boxes to the main cage or satellite cage for counting.

(e) Once each Bad Beat payout box or locked container is delivered to the main cage or satellite cage, a cashier shall count the contents of each box or, if the contents of the boxes were previously counted by Poker room personnel and combined in a locked container for transport, verify the aggregate count. The finance department shall maintain the official record of the amount of daily contributions to the Bad Beat payout.

(f) The Poker shift supervisor shall verify each Bad Beat Poker hand prior to awarding the Bad Beat payout. Upon verification, the Poker shift supervisor shall:

(1) Post a sign or otherwise provide visible notice that the applicable Bad Beat payout display amount is pending adjustment due to a Bad Beat payout.

(2) Notify a representative from the security department or finance department to deliver to the Poker table the applicable amount of the Bad Beat payout.

(g) The finance department shall prepare a Bad Beat payout distribution in cash or a recognized cash equivalent in accordance with the certificate holder's approved internal controls. Notwithstanding subsection (f)(2), a certificate holder may elect to pay a Bad Beat payout at the main cage or satellite cage.

(h) No less than once a day and immediately upon notification of a Bad Beat verification by the Poker shift supervisor, a finance department employee shall:

(1) In the presence of a floorperson or above, adjust each Bad Beat payout amount displayed in the Poker area to reflect the current Bad Beat payout amount.

(2) Verify that the amount of any Bad Beat payout maintained by the finance department corresponds to the amount being displayed to patrons.

(i) A Bad Beat payout may not be offered at a Poker table until a certificate holder has submitted internal controls and the Executive Director has approved procedures for discontinuing any Bad Beat payout. The procedures must address the method by which pot contributions will be terminated or transferred to other Bad Beat payouts, or both, to ensure that all payout amounts are paid to Poker patrons.

This section cited in 58 Pa. Code § 637a.1 (relating to definitions); and 58 Pa. Code § 637a.7 (relating to Poker overview; general dealing procedures for all types of Poker).

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