At River City Casino, where he deals blackjack and baccarat on the overnight shift, Ammar Ali holds all the cards.
• I’m from Iraq. I came here in 2008 when the United Nations gave me refuge in the United States. They chose St. Louis for me. I spoke no English but met a friend, Mike, who helped me. I started cleaning at River City. When they opened dealer school, I put my name down. I thought, “I feel happy when I’m talking to people.” Also, I wanted to make a better life for my family.
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• Dealer school is six weeks, and new people only learn blackjack. After that, when you hit the floor, you start learning other games from the more experienced dealers.
• I deal four-card stud, Mississippi, Let It Ride, Texas Hold ’em… One game I deal now is baccarat; that’s not an easy game to deal. People bet a lot, and there’s too much money on the table. Not every dealer can deal that.
• In my country, I had a small business making plastic. In 2005, some militia kidnapped me inside the factory. They took me somewhere for three days, tied my hands, hit me a lot. They let me go when my parents paid $20,000. Usually, they take the money and kill you, so I got lucky. My parents were afraid they would come back, and now we had no money, so they decided I should leave. First I went to Syria, then got an interview at the U.N., and came here after waiting for papers.
• My wife is also from Iraq. I met her at the International Institute. My caseworker told me to help her because we are from the same country. I talked with her and decided we should marry. She works at River City, too. I work only part-time now because we have two babies. My wife works in the day, and I work 6 p.m. to 4 a.m.
• Some players think the dealer just wants to take their money. We try to explain, no, if you win, we win—because if you win, you will tip me!
• Sometimes I like to play Mississippi at home with friends—it’s also my favorite to deal.
• I never gamble; I don’t have the money.
• I had one big win Saturday at 4 a.m. My Mississippi table was empty until one guy joined. The maximum bet for that game is $25. I give him two cards, and he gets two aces. He has the choice to go three times and three times and three times his bet. That means he put $75, $75, $75, and now it’s up to $250. I deal again two aces—now he has four of a kind. That pays 40 to 1, so that means he won $10,000. That was great. I was so happy! Also, he gave me a $150 tip. That’s a big winner.
