Tab Card ( poker )

A credit account available in some clubs to favored customers (generally those on whom a credit check has been run), to which a player can charge chips to play on. This is a convenient means for a player to get around the difficulty of carrying large amounts of cash on his person. The tab card is usually kept track of on a ledger card with transactions initialed by the player or a house official or both. The cashier is usually responsible for keeping the records straight. In most clubs, a player is supposed to leave a check for the amount charged at the end of a playing session if he does not cash in as much as he charged. Frequently a player with charging privileges does so against a blank, signed check. If he loses, he fills out the check for the proper amount; if he wins, the blank check remains attached to his tab card, to be used the next time. When such a player calls for chips at the table, he usually fills out a charge slip, called a ticket, for the amount requested.