1 minute timer

[DONMEGA]

Hi,
I play heads up poker with my friend and he complains that i act too slowly. He wants a 1 minute timer and says its in the rules and if i don’t make my mind up before the time runs out he wins the pot. Is this true and is there anything i can do about it as i like to take a little time with my decisions.

Any help would be much appreciated.

[Iron Butt]

LOL... First, there's nothing in any official rules I know of dictating how much time a player is allowed, and home game rules are whatever you make them, that is, whatever the host and/or the players agree to. I personally think a flat 1 minute time limit is unreasonable and I'd probably not agree to it especially in a home game.

There is a procedure in tournaments and casino games where if a person is considered to be basically ruining the game by taking really unreasonable amounts of time, the brush (manager) will be called and he will at his discretion put a clock (usually a minute) on the player. This procedure might take several minutes on top of whatever time has already been taken, and it's usually considered pretty hostile, so you don't see it that much (at least I haven't).

Of course it's a matter of courtesy not to take any longer than you have to; if you really do take a long long time to make most decisions you should work on that, no one likes a really slow player and most decisions in poker aren't that hard.

I've never had a clock put on me except of course online there's always a clock. When I have some jackass making a fuss about how much time I take online (I'm not a particularly slow player), I usually say something to the effect of "Hey, if you're going to be an ass, I'll time out on EVERY PLAY until you shut up" which is usually very effective. Some variation of that might work for you; a minute is a LOOOOOONG time when you're just sitting there waiting.

[Dave B]

It shouldnt take over a few seconds to make a decision heads up.

[Ensano]

it all depends on how long you're taking... like previously said most of your desicions shouldn't take you more than 10-15seconds but if you're slowing the game up...

this one homegame i played in there was this old man... literally took 5 minutes every time the action came to him... like preflop it would be folded to him in MP... he'd have a drink of his beer... stretch... look at his cards... look at them again... stare at the cards for a while... then fold...

if you're acting like this during the game you deserve to have a timer on you every time... even if it's only you who has a timer...

especially heads up there's no real reason you need more than 1 minute to make a choice...

[vyni]

To take so long... to me that's not a decision issue as much as it is a commitment one (decide what to do, and do it without second guessing yourself for so long). Anyways, all home games should adopt some set of rules for play, and a max tank time should be defined. If you can't get your read off opponent in a minutes time, you're probably not going to get it in 5.

[Iron Butt]

Yeah, that's true, a minute is a real long time heads up and you should probably work on that if it's such an issue. You might want to look into heads up strategy if you're not familiar with it, it's a bit different.

But:

He wants a 1 minute timer and says its in the rules and if i don’t make my mind up before the time runs out he wins the pot.

As described, that kinda sounds like angle shooting (bending the rules to your advantage or "cheating" within the rules) to me. People shouldn't be trying to pick up pots on technicalities in home games IMO.

[jeffonline]

You say you friend wants to limit you to 1 minute for you to make a decision, like how long does it normally take you to make a decision, your friend may be considering finding part time work whilst waiting. I suggest that you both agree that when a reasonable time has elapsed like 30seconds, time can then be called by whoever and the person to act has one minute from then or auto fold. (House Rules)

[LeafsFan1122]

When I have some jackass making a fuss about how much time I take online (I'm not a particularly slow player), I usually say something to the effect of "Hey, if you're going to be an ass, I'll time out on EVERY PLAY until you shut up" which is usually very effective.

That's a dick move. What about all the other players that have to put up with it?

[Iron Butt]

That's a dick move. What about all the other players that have to put up with it?

Gee, I never thought of that, thanks for the consciousness-raising...

No, you're right, I guess I shouldn't promote that kind of behavior. Usually the situation where that would come up is there's quite a bit of provocation and the mere remark is enough, the jackass will STFU and the game goes on.

I guess the point I was trying to make is that the OP shouldn't let this guy bully him and that he has options. Everyone seems to be assuming that the OP is at fault here, I guess I was assuming the opposite. I mean, who puts a clock on someone in a home game? You make a few "camper" jokes at their expense, the slow guy catches up, the game goes on.

I think Jeff's idea is good, just work something reasonable out.

[jimmer]

and if i don’t make my mind up before the time runs out he wins the pot.

or it counts as a 'check'.