Venetian Poker Room Changes How Cards Are Dealt to Foil High-Tech Cheats

Las Vegas’ Venetian has stopped pitching poker cards through the air in preference to a dealing method designed to stop cheats from catching a glimpse of opponents’ hands with miniature cameras. The casino is the first poker room on the Las Vegas Strip to introduce “slide dealing,” where dealers push cards face-down across the felt rather than flicking them toward players. Cardroom management hopes it will guard against technologically sophisticated cheats. As cards are tossed through the air, their faces can briefly become visible to opponents with hidden cameras placed at table level.