Shill?

I was referred to as a shill in another poster : wizardofroz !

I'm curious if wizardofroz knows the difference between a prop player and a shill. Do you? If you don't, I'm sure you'll have time to look it up and post a nice definition. Then I'll give you the real differences.

TRAIN69: Yeah, my college hoops stats posted 88% winners since last Saturday. I'm +22.8 Units the past week. As far as handicapping, wagering ...NCAA-MB is my 4th best in overall, in standings with other sports & games making.

 So, as to the answer between a shill and a prop poker player.
A prop player is a poker player who is paid by the house to play poker. However, they must use their own bankroll. Any losses a player incurs while playing will come out of his/her own bankroll, and any win will be added to his/her bankroll. Prop’s will get paid by the poker site in a form or a higher % rakeback, per hour and even cash per hand. Each site pays poker props on a different structure. A prop player gets paid an hourly rate to help start games or to help keep them going. Depending on the time of day, a prop player can work anywhere from one to twenty games. If I work in the morning, I often start games and am required to leave one seat open for new players. Once a player fills in that seat, the prop needs to get up at their blind. There are sometimes as many as four props in a game in the early morning because the customers aren't there.
A shill is a poker player who is paid by the house and plays with the house money. He or she essentially tries to win money for the house at the poker game. Employing shills is considered immoral and is sometimes illegal. No poker players want to play at a casino that uses shills because they are afraid the games are not fair. Because of this, it is a very rare occurence for a casino to use shills. Shills are poker room employees who play only when they are need to help start a game or help keep an existing game from breaking. They play with house money, and do not have much of a vested interest in the outcome of their play. If they lose, the house takes the loss, and if they win, the winnings go into the till. Their purpose is only to fill the seat until a customer comes along who wants it. Since they are using house money, they are often given guidelines about how to play, or else it is understood that they are to play conservatively. This keeps them from winning or losing too much, both of which can be bad for the house. If they lose too much, the drop will not be enough to cover their loss, and the game will lose money. If they win too much, they may bust or intimidate the weaker players, which can cause the game to break, which is exactly what they were trying to prevent in the first place. A casino may have employees who are specifically designated as shills, or it may use idle employees, such a floor man or an out of the rotation dealer to shill as needed. Shills were once used frequently, but are rarely used anymore, except for in small rooms where the staff is expected to shill as needed to save a game.

In Commerce poker room years back, prop players got about 50-75k salary and full benefits. Also, they had to learn how to play every game, from small to high stakes, from a full game to 3 handed. Most were small winning players and played a tight agressive style, and they learned patience or went broke, After 2003 and the poker boom hit heavy, the need for props was almost endless. In NYC, we had both props and shills in our games to get 2nd tables going. That's the basic scoop on props and shills!