Home Game Rules

Thanks everyone for the assistance. Quick question - when breaking down of two tables to the final, which is the preferred method of seating the final table?

1) Allowing the players at table 1 keep their seats and draw for the players moving from table 2

2)Drawing for seating of all 8 players to the table?

Also, how is the dealer button assigned at table combining? In the past I have done method 2 above and a draw for the button (high card).

 

Here is what I have come up with. I took some of the rules posted here from @Trihonda and @TexRex, a big thanks to you both! Also added in a few of my own. Please feel free to comment and make any suggestions.

Windy Crest Poker Room
House Rules


Game Play
1. Cards speak; the best hand wins even if you did not realize what the best hand was.

2. No splashing the pot, all betting is to be placed in front of you. The dealer will move the chips to the pot once confirmed that the pot is right.

3. Raises must be 2 times the previous bet/raise and a minimum opening bet of the big blind.

4. Verbal is binding. If you say, “call”, you have called.

5. Betting one chip is always a call. Raising with one chip must be announced.

6. No string betting. “I call and raise, or I see your $10 and raise you $50” ß these are calls. Always announce your action – “I raise”.

7. You must keep your cards on the table during play, preferably protected with a chip or card guard to prevent accidental muck.

8. Mucked cards are dead cards.

a. However, a hand that is clearly identifiable may be retrieved and ruled live at host’s or Table Captains discretion if doing so is in the best interest of the game. An extra effort should be made to rule a hand retrievable if it was folded because of incorrect information given to the player.

9. You may not look at mucked cards.

10. If you win because everyone folds, you may muck your cards without showing.

11. If you fold, muck your cards without showing. If you show one person, you must show everyone.

12. No talking about the hand until a winner is decided. This includes commenting on the board such as “look at that flush draw”, hinting about what hand you would have had “damn, would have flopped a boat” or offering advice to others, such as “I’d call him”.

13. Exception to Rule 12 – Players who are heads up may speak openly about their hands.

14. If you are playing a hand, please pay attention. Players should wait until they have folded a hand to chat, check their phone, go to the restroom, or to get food or drink.

15. Do not act out of turn. Wait to call, raise, or fold until the person to your right has acted.

16. It is bad form to “Slow Roll” at showdown. This means you have the winning hand (Four Aces?) and you purposely wait to show your hand in order to sweat out your opponent. This is poor form.

17. However, it’s ok to “Slow Play” a hand, meaning you have a strong hand, but bet and play as if you don’t, trying to elicit your opponent to bet into you… but once it’s time to show, just show.

18. All in’s, without any other players in the action, will be turned face up for the remaining deal.

19. Most importantly, everyone here is a guest in my home. Please have fun and treat each other with courtesy and respect.

The Dealer
1. The dealer is responsible for shuffling the hand they just dealt.

2. The dealer will cut the cards shuffled for them.

3. The cut card is to be used at all times and placed at the bottom of the deck to prevent exposing the bottom card.

4. The dealer should not burn the next card until all action is complete.

5. Before burning a card, the Dealer should announce “Pots Right” letting the players know that round is over and they are about to deal. This enables the player to stop the action in case the betting is incomplete.

6. At no time will the dealer look at the burn card, the bottom card, or cards of folded players.

7. When dealing, leave the cards in the order they were dealt, never arranging them to show potential hands (i.e. Straight).

8. No rabbit hunting allowed! The hand is over when a winner is determined.

9. If a card dealt to a player is exposed, continue dealing and replace the exposed card last. The exposed card becomes the first burn card.

10. Misdeals

a. If two or more cards are exposed on the deal, it is a misdeal.

b. Two or more boxed cards (improperly faced cards) are found.

c. If cards are dealt to a seat not entitled to cards, it is a misdeal.

d. If cards are not dealt to an eligible player, it is a misdeal.

e. A misdeal must be called prior to two actions; checking and folding do not count.

i. Any two raises or calls

Miscellaneous


1. In the event of a question arising that is not covered under the house rules, Roberts Rules of Poker version 11 will be consulted.

2. The table captain is designated by the host at seating and will be responsible for managing his assigned table during the tournament. The table captain will be called on to resolve any disputes the host maybe involved with at his table for fairness of the table.

3. Cash game will start after the first table breaks. Unless otherwise agreed upon the cash game will be $1/$2 No Limit Hold Em.

a. Minimum buy in is $40

b. Maximum buy in is $200

 

Nice mix of rules. Only thought would be to simple say "the most recent" or "current" version of RROP will be used, rather than specifying version 11...

 

As someone who runs tournies a good bit - you always draw for final table seating and the button starts at seat one - typically we play 10 handed but some prefer 9 - we use second table for cash game so the quicker we get to one table the better -♠️♥️♦️♣️

 

You never know who may show up to play

 

I only have 8 seat tables, so we combine when we have 8. We draw for seating and the button. Why would you always start the button at seat 1? Do you do it this way for the tourney start as well?

 

Yes, seat one is typically the button draw in the games I've played. And often times, when the seats aren't numbered, seat # 1 gets to pick their "actual" seat too, and the rest fill in.

 

We always redraw for all seats at the final table. The two dealers with the largest chip stacks draw for the 1st dealer position and position 6 (if we have 10). Other players sit around them. That way, I'm relatively sure that the two people in the middle are both willing to deal and fairly good at it. That's the small benefit dealer's get in our game.

When going from 3 to 2 tables, we put the empty seating chips for T1 and T2, and have the remaining players at T3 draw a chip and go to that table and seat. In that redraw, they assume the seat's position in the game.

I use seating chips. I allow up to 30 players. Each chip is marked "Table X, Seat Y." Players not only know their starting table, they know their starting seat as well and position. There's nothing wrong with another method to determine the first dealer, but I like the efficiency of drawing a chip that tells you everything.

 

I like the seating chip idea! Did you have chips made for that, or did you do it yourself?

 

Craig, I did it myself, and it was easy. I have several sets. Here's how I made them.

Take blank chips. Get a sticky label page (in my case I used round labels that fit in the recess of chips). I printed

Table 1 (1-5) Table 1
Seat 1 (0-9) Dealer (2)

For every player that comes, I put out a seating chip. If I have an odd number for 2 tables, I put out an even number of chips so we don't know which table will get the extra player. If using 3 tables, I do the same thing.

First, I have my dealers draw for only the dealer chips. Two dealers per table. The Dealer 2 sits directly across from Dealer, who also takes the first dealer position. That's their reward for dealing.

Second, I put the other chips face down and shuffle them, then have players draw a chip and go to their table. Once there, the dealers instruct them where to start. Seat 0 or 1 is the first small blind.

I have the players leave their seating chips in front of them. When it comes time to table up (from 3 to 2 for example), I pick up the seating chips for the empty seats for T1 and T2. Players from T3 draw from those seating chips. They go to the assigned table and seat and assume whatever responsibility that seat has.

For final table, I have all players redraw. The two surviving dealers with the largest chip stacks are the final table dealers, and they draw the two dealer seats. Then others draw their seats.

When we have a bounty night, if I want a bounty chip, the seating chip can be the bounty chip. I can also use blank chips from another set for that, or you could buy actual bounty chips. I can use a different color of seating chips to locate the seats and for tabling up.

I rarely use a bounty chip (1x/year for a special tournament where bounties can't be split -- our Pirate Tournament) because bounties can be split 2, 3, or even 4 ways. To track those and the money, we record those on paper.

Here's another way to do the same thing. If you have 2 tables for example, use the A-10 ( or 8 ) of Spades and the same on Hearts (suits for example purposes only). Shuffle the cards and have players draw. The go to the color table and seat. Use the A as the first dealer position. I like the seating chips better, but this works just as well.

 

One of my biggest peeve's is splashing the pot. Especially because that's what they do on TV for dramatic effect, throw a big handful of chips into the pot. Ok so which chips are yours and how much did you actually bet?