Hosting a home poker game

In a cash game the chips stand for money. Players buy in for what they like within agreed limits, can leave whenever they want and cash out what they have. The blinds never change. It suits groups that drift in and out, but someone can lose more than they planned if rebuys are unlimited.

In a tournament everyone pays the same buy-in for the same stack, the blinds rise on a clock and play goes on until one player has all the chips. The cost of the night is fixed in advance and there is a clear winner. Players knocked out early have to wait, which is why some home tournaments allow one rebuy in the first hour. The rest of this post plans a tournament.

A structure is a list of blind levels and how long each lasts. The test of a good one is how many big blinds the players have. With 100 or more there is room to play; short stacks make shoving more important, though small raises and limps can still be useful. For a three-hour gathering, agree both the blind schedule and what happens if play has not finished by the end.

Here is one for 8 players with 10,000 chips each and 20-minute levels, starting at 7:00 pm:

If four players remain at 9:40 pm, they average about 16.7 big blinds. Heads up, the average would be 33.3, so this schedule does not guarantee a 10:00 pm finish. Before starting, agree to stop then and offer a unanimous payout deal, using the method below; otherwise continue at 800/1,600, then 1,000/2,000, with 20-minute levels. Include breaks and any rebuys in the plan, since both can extend the night. A larger field puts more chips in play and usually needs a different schedule.

Give each player enough small chips to post the blinds and make change, and few enough large ones that the stacks stay easy to count. For a 10,000 stack that means 29 chips:

After level 5, the blinds are multiples of 100, so the 25 chips are no longer needed. Swap them for 100s at the break, rounding each player's odd 25s up to the next 100, and the table gets tidier just as the pots get bigger.

Agree the payouts before anyone sits down. With 8 players at $20, the pool is $160. Paying the top three, 50%, 30%, 20%, gives $80, $48, $32. With five or fewer players, paying two places is simpler, and winner takes all suits a group that wants one big prize.

Home games often end in a deal: with three left and people ready to go home, the players agree to split the money instead of playing on. Splitting by chip count, a chip chop, can leave the short stack with less than its guaranteed prize. Cal's share of the chips is worth $30, less than the $32 that third place pays, the smallest prize Cal can finish with. A common fix gives everyone third place first and splits the rest by chips. An ICM chop goes further, pricing each stack by its chance of finishing in each place with the independent chip model.

Most arguments at a home game are about things nobody decided in advance. Settle these when people arrive:

• Buy-ins and rebuys: how much, how many and until when.
• Late arrivals: whether they can still buy in, and with a full stack.
• Verbal bets: a bet or raise you announce is binding. Facing a bet, a single large chip pushed forward without a word is a call.
• Cards speak: at showdown the best hand wins whatever its owner says it is.
• One player to a hand: players who are out or not in the pot cannot give advice.

The order of play and what counts as a legal raise trip up new players most. The trainer's free lessons on who acts first and what you owe and what you can do cover both in a couple of minutes.

Check the law where you live. The Gambling Commission's Great Britain guidance allows private gaming in places the public cannot access, without participation or admission charges or deductions from stakes and prizes. That is more specific than simply calling an event a home game. US rules vary by state. Use the linked regulator guidance for the conditions that apply to your gathering.