Once again, I'm hosting a no-limit
Texas Hold'em tournament this New Year's Eve Eve. The tournament will be held on Friday,
December 30st, 2009, with the first deal at 8:00 PM.
Tournament game play is a little
different than our usual dealer's choice games, and so I've put together this
document help you be ready to go.
I've made no changes to the rules from last year's tournament. The buy-in will remain our standard $20 Again, we won't be using dedicated dealers. If there are multiple tables the deal will start at the number one seat and move one chair to the left after each level of blinds. As players are eliminated from the final table they will deal until the next player is eliminated, which should spread the work of dealing around a bit.
As players bust out of the tournament
they are welcome to start a side games as they see fit, however, my chips will
be in use as tournament chips and will not be available for use as betting
tokens. I will do my best to make
another set of chips available for any players that wish to start a side game.
The game to be played is Texas Hold'Em. Each hand will be played as follows:
1. The
player to the left of the dealer button posts the small blind.
2. The
player to the left of the small blind posts the big blind.
3. Each
player, beginning with the player to the left of the dealer button, is dealt
two cards face-down (The Pocket Cards).
4. The
first betting round begins with the player to the left of the big blind. The
small and big blinds may fold, check, call, or raise,
as appropriate, when called upon to act.
5. The
dealer burns one card and turns three community cards face-up (The
Flop).
6. The
second betting round begins with the player to the left of the button.
7. The
dealer burns one card and turns one community card face-up (The
Turn).
8. The
third betting round begins with the player to the left of the button.
9. The
dealer burns one card and turns one community card face-up (The
River).
10. The
fourth, and final, betting round begins with the player to the left of the
button.
11. Card
showdown with the pot being awarded to the winner(s).
12. The
dealer button is advanced clockwise one player.
As the House Rules normally in force
for games deal largely with hand ranking and betting for dealer's choice limit
poker, they will be superseded by these rules and the tournament rules set forth
below:
1. Be
kind to the dealer, the other players, and especially the Lady and Scions of
the Manor
2. Cards
speak for themselves
3. Check-raising
is allowed
4. Cards
and chips must remain in full view of other players at all times
5. At
no time should a player or spectator make statements that could unfairly
influence the play of a hand. Examples
would be"I can't believe I just threw out (insert specific cards here)" or "The board is looking good for the straight draw"
6. Your
first verbal announcement regarding betting is binding
7. Do
not act out of turn
8. Do
not splash the pot
9. The
number of raises in any betting round is unlimited
10. Any
bet must be at least equal to the big blind, unless a player is going all-in
11. All
raises must be at least equal to the size of the previous bet or raise on that
betting round
12. If
a player cannot cover a blind, the player shall be placed all-in. This does not reduce the specified blind for
the purposes of Rule 10.
13. These
rules may be amended or added to at any time at the tournament director's
discretion.
Commentary on House Rules
Rule six above is a prohibition on what
is called "string betting." We all do
this in our monthly games when we say, "I call your bet and raise you another
(insert amount here)," but it's bad form nonetheless. If you say "I call and raise,"
your first statement was "I call" and that statement is binding.
Rule eight is another thing I like to
do, tossing your chips into the pot with verve and style - but it makes the
dealer's job much harder. For the
tournament, please place all blinds and bets on the table in front of you and
wait for the dealer to rake them into the pot once they have verified the bets
are right.
Buy-in/Rebuys.
The initial buy-in shall be $20. This buy-in shall purchase 1000 in tournament
chips, which have no monetary value. You
may rebuy into the tournament if you have lost all your chips before the first
hand of the fourth level of blinds is dealt. Rebuys will be the same as the initial buy-in, $20 for 1000 tournament
chips. Each player is allowed only one
rebuy per tournament.
Payout
All monies paid in (buy-ins plus any
rebuys) will be paid out. The prize
structure shall be posted in plain view of the playing table(s). The prize structure is dependent on the
number of players and shall be similar to the following:
|
Players
|
1-10
|
11-20
|
21-30
|
|
First
|
50%
|
50%
|
40%
|
|
Second
|
30%
|
25%
|
25%
|
|
Third
|
20%
|
15%
|
20%
|
|
Fourth
|
|
10%
|
10%
|
|
Fifth
|
|
|
5%
|
Winning
the Tournament
The final player remaining will be the
first prize winner. The last player
eliminated will be the second prize winner; the second last player eliminated
will be the third prize winner, etc. If
more than one player is eliminated on the same hand, they shall split the
combined prize money for the appropriate places. Players may cut"side deals" to split prizes
but these deals are done at the sole discretion of the players and are not
sanctioned or guaranteed by the Tournament Director.
Late
Players
Players who arrive late will be allowed to buy-in with the following conditions:
At any time during the first level of
blinds a late player may buy into the tournament for $20 with a late start
penalty of three big blinds, which will be posted to the player's first
pot. This penalty is in addition to any
other blinds the player would otherwise be responsible for posting.
At any time during the second and third level of blinds a late player may buy into the tournament for $40 (simulating a $20 bust-out and a $20 rebuy) with a late start penalty of three big blinds, which will be posted to the player's first pot. This penalty is in addition to any other blinds the player would otherwise be responsible for posting
(Do yourself - and me - a favor and Be On Time. Heck, be early!)
Chip
Values
The chip values shall be posted in
plain view of the playing table(s). The
values shall be as follows:
|
Color
|
Value
|
|
White
|
5
|
|
Red
|
25
|
|
Blue
|
100
|
|
Green
|
500
|
|
Black
|
1000
|
Blinds
Schedule
The blinds schedule shall be posted in
plain view of the playing table(s). Each
blinds level will last 20 minutes, as tracked by the tournament timer. The schedule shall be similar to the
following:
|
Level
|
Small
Blind
|
Big
Blind
|
|
1
|
10
|
20
|
|
2
|
15
|
30
|
|
3
|
20
|
40
|
|
4
|
25
|
50
|
|
5
|
50
|
100
|
|
6
|
75
|
150
|
|
7
|
100
|
200
|
|
8
|
200
|
400
|
|
9
|
300
|
600
|
|
10
|
400
|
800
|
|
11
|
500
|
1000
|
|
12
|
600
|
1200
|
|
13
|
800
|
1600
|
|
14
|
1000
|
2000
|
|
15
|
1200
|
2400
|
Timer
Use and Breaks
When the blinds timer expires, it shall
be immediately restarted. The next hand
will be dealt at the new blind level. (For the purposes of this rule, a hand is considered currently in play
once all blinds/antes are posted and the dealer is shuffling.) Breaks will be at the discretion of the
Tournament Director, who will make every attempt to coincide breaks with blind
level changes. The timer is stopped
during breaks and during any disputes that require the attention of the
Tournament Director to resolve. No
additional hands at any table should be started during such a break, although
hands in progress should be completed.
There will be scheduled breaks after
blind level 3 and 6 to color up unneeded small denomination chips.
Seating
Each Table will seat a maximum of 8
players. Players will be distributed as
evenly as possible between all tables. At the outset of the tournament, players will be randomly assigned
seats.
The last eight players will be randomly
seated at the final table upon the elimination of the ninth-place player.
Dealer
The player drawing Seat One at a table
will act as the dealer for that table for one blind level (20 minutes of
play). When the blind level expires, the
deal will pass to the player to the dealer's left, who will deal until the
blind level expires. If the dealer is
eliminated from the tournament the deal will pass to the player on his left,
except as noted below.
If a player is unwilling to act as
dealer he may pass the deal on to the player to his left. If a busted player wishes to assume the
responsibilities of the dealer he is welcome to do so, with the consent of the
remaining players at the table.
The initial dealer at the final table
will be the player drawing Seat One. The
deal at the final table will proceed in the same manner until a player is
eliminated. A player eliminated from the
final table will assume the duties of the dealer until another player is
eliminated, at which point that player will act as dealer.
Moving
Players
If the number of players differs by two
or more between any two tables, one player will move from the most populated
table to the least populated table.
When forced to choose between moving a
player from more than one equally populated table, one card will be dealt by
the lower populated table's dealer to each table in question. The table with the lower card will move a
player.
When a player is eliminated and a move
must be made, the player playing a hand in the same position relative to the
button at the most populated table must move to the eliminated player s
seat. The move must occur before the
next hand is dealt at any table. For the
purposes of this rule, a player is playing a hand once all blinds/antes have
been posted and the dealer is shuffling.
A moved player will be dealt a hand at
the start of the next deal and assume any obligation of the new seat, including
posting blinds or dealing.
Dead
Button Rule
If the big blind busts out and is not replaced
by a player from another table, the button moves to the player who posted the
small blind and the player to the left of the former big blind assumes the big
blind, and there is no small blind for that hand. On the following deal, the button moves to
the now empty seat (vacated by the eliminated big blind player) and the two
players to the left of post the normal blinds. This will result in the same player being dealer two hands in a row.
If the small blind busts out and is not
replaced by a player from another table, the button does not move. The player who was the big blind will now
post the small blind and the player to his left will post the big blind. This will result in the same player being
dealer two hands in a row.
If both the big blind and small blind
bust out and are not replaced by players from another table, the button does
not move. The player to the left of the
former big blind assumes the big blind, and there is no small blind for that
hand. On the following deal, the two
players to the left of the former big blind assume the big and small
blind. This will result in the same
player being dealer three hands in a row.
Players
Leaving
If a player leaves the table for any
reason and will return before 20 minutes are up, they can opt to drop every
hand that occurs during this absence. They will be responsible for all blinds and antes but will not be dealt
cards and cannot win any hands. Players
remaining at the table, or another person designated by the absentee, will post
all blinds and antes for the absent player. If the missing player is moved to another table, their chips will move
and they will continue to post blinds and antes as appropriate at the new
table.
If a player leaves the table for any
reason and is away for longer than 20 minutes, the player forfeits all
remaining chips, which will be split evenly among the remaining players at that
table, with odd chips returning to the bank. There will be no refunds or cash-outs given to players who leave after
the first hand of the tourney is dealt.
Tournament
Director
The Tournament Director is responsible
for all table, seating, and dealer decisions. The Tournament Director is responsible for handling the blind timer,
although they may delegate this task to any player at their discretion. In the case of disputes and rules
interpretations, the Tournament Director will have final authority. If the dispute directly involves the Tournament
Director, a third party will be appointed to resolve the dispute.
Dealer
Errors
If the first or second hole card dealt
is exposed, a misdeal results. The dealer will retrieve the card, reshuffle,
and recut the cards. If any other hole card is exposed due to a dealer error,
the deal continues. The exposed card may not be kept. After completing the
hand, the dealer replaces the card with the top card on the deck, and the
exposed card is then used for the burn card. If more than one hole card is
exposed, this is a misdeal and there must be a redeal.
If the flop needs to be re-dealt
because the cards were prematurely flopped before the betting was complete, or
the flop contained too many cards, the board cards are mixed with the remainder
of the deck. The burn card remains on the table. After shuffling, the dealer
cuts the deck and deals a new flop without burning a card.
If the dealer fails to burn a card
before the flop, turn or river, the card will be shown to all players and then
discarded, the next card will take its place.
If the dealer turns the fourth card on
the board before the betting round is complete, the card is taken out of play
for that round, even if subsequent players elect to fold. The betting is then completed.
The dealer burns and turns what would have been the fifth card in the fourth
card's place. After this round of betting, the dealer reshuffles the deck,
including the card that was taken out of play, but not including the burn cards
or discards. The dealer then cuts the deck and turns the final card without
burning a card. If the fifth card is turned up prematurely, the deck is
reshuffled and dealt in the same manner.
Misdeals
The following circumstances cause a
misdeal, provided attention is called to the error before the two players after
the blinds have acted on their hands. If these two players have acted in turn,
the deal must be played to conclusion.
(a) The first or second card of the
hand has been dealt face-up or exposed through dealer error
(b) Two or more cards have been exposed
by the dealer
(c) Two or more boxed cards (improperly
faced cards) are found
(d) Two or more extra cards have been
dealt in the starting hands of a game
(e) An incorrect number of cards has been dealt to a player, except the top card may be dealt
if it goes to the player in proper sequence
(f) Any card has been dealt out of the
proper sequence (except an exposed card may be replaced by the burn card)
(g) The button was out of position
(h) The first card was dealt to the
wrong position
(i) Cards
have been dealt to an empty seat or a player not entitled to a hand
(j) A player has been dealt out who is
entitled to a hand. The player must be present at the table or have posted a
blind or ante
Dead
Hands
Your hand is declared dead if:
(a) You fold or announce that you are
folding when facing a bet or a raise
(b) You throw your hand away in a
forward motion causing another player to act behind you (even if not facing a
bet)
(c) The hand does not contain the
proper number of cards
(d) You act on a hand with a joker as a
hole card in a game not using a joker. (A player who acts on a hand without
looking at a card assumes the liability of finding an improper card.)
Cards thrown into the muck may be ruled
dead. However, a hand that is clearly identifiable may be retrieved at the
Tournament Director's discretion if doing so is in the best interest of the
game. An extra effort will be made to rule a hand retrievable if it was folded
as a result of false information given to the player.
Cards thrown into another player's hand
are dead, whether they are face up or face down.