BLASTER'S
HOUSE RULES - POKER TOURNAMENT
BETTING:
Players should clearly show, and/or verbally announce their bet actions, in one/clear motion. Any verbal in turn declarations are binding, & will usually take precedent over other simultaneous or later betting actions. A bet clearly previous to a verbal may stand.
No String-bets: Place the amount of your wager in front of you in one unambiguous motion, or verbally declare the amount. Going back for more chips, after you already placed out a legitimate sized bet or raise, is not allowed, except to complete a previous verbal statement.
A Verbal of "I call ( or see) your 50, and I raise you $200 more" is always considered simply a call of $50. Count your chips out clearly behind betting area, to avoid confusion. A Player, for example, just saying “raise” and placing out a call, is expected to complete the bet to any valid raise. This is acceptable action.
"One Chip" rule: If you bet a single chip, one that is larger in value than the current bet, but do not announce raise, or any specific amount, you have only called that bet. If you could have easily called with smaller chip(s) is irrelevant. Other than this, one non verbal Chip bet will equal its’ full chip value, if it is the 1st bet in a round without already posted blinds or bets. If undersized, a non verbal single Chip must be completed to the valid minimum bet.
A bet placed out using multiple chips, with No Verbal, equal their full total for the bet, if they total a valid in turn bet, or, they're only a call, if they need to be added to, due to being less than the current allowable bet. If they total at or more than half way to a raise, then they must be added to, to become the valid raise.
Undersized bets, placed in error, in turn, without any verbal, will need to be completed to a valid bet per above, or be forfeit to the pot. House Director may occasionally rule a bet can be pulled back, only if very clearly due to some very “gross misunderstanding” of the bet amount . This “gross misunderstanding” exception is usually not used, is only for the very rare & occasional extreme cases, where, for example, the actual clearly misunderstood bet was massive and/or possibly some all-in situations. A player Can lose most or all of their chips, due to a bet misunderstanding. Verbal & bet actions are binding & will apply. Host / Director's ruling in this and all matters is final.
Any all-in or large wagering Bettor or Caller should be very sure they & their opponent(s) know the amount being bet, & chips to cover the bets are placed out, before flipping over cards or deal proceeding, to avoid problems.
Players are entitled to a reasonable estimation of their opponents’ chip counts, and any player is entitled to a clear view of an opponent’s chips, thus, chips should generally be kept in reasonable / countable stacks. Higher denomination chips must be visible and identifiable at all times. For courtesy, a player requesting a count for or due to possible all-in situations may have the effected stack(s) counted out by players or the dealer. The player being asked for the count does not have to count the stack out themselves if they prefer not to.
All re-raises must add, at minimum, the last raise amount ("on top” portion of last bet) in that round. Example: $50 bet, raised by another $150, (to $200 total), if re-raised, must be re-raised by at least another $150, to $350 total (it does not need to go to $400) .
When Raising the Blind or very 1st bet of the round, the raise amount then must be at least equal or higher to that blind or 1st bet.
A minimum 1st bet, in any round, can be any amount equal to, or larger than the Big Blind, except that a player may of course go all-in with less.
There is no restriction on a player's ability to Raise, fold or call when it is their full turn to act, other than meeting the required round's minimum bet amounts, and the "All in for less" situation described next.
All-in's of less than a full legal raise, (but could be more than the current bet), are always treated as a “call”, it’s not enough itself to re-open raising for those that have already acted, those players that have already acted in the round can, in turn, call the additional, or fold only. Any player who hasn’t yet acted in the round, of course still has their option to call, fold or raise in their proper turn. Another valid raise made after the all-in, would then reopen the betting, & create a side pot(s). Multiple All-In's "for Less" in the same round are all considered calls, they will not be added / combined together to create / reopen a raise.
Do not "make Chip Change" until all betting in the round is complete. Do not grab other player's blinds/bets, or pull any chip(s) from the pot, while there are players are still acting. Relax, keep your bet in front of you, & wait for chip change until after all players have acted.
Do not act out of turn (OOT). Out Of Turn Action is generally not binding, except for a fold. If the Bet or action amount changes in the interim, after the OOT bet, then: An OOT Check or Call, may then fold or call only. A OOT fold is always binding. An OOT raise of a non specific amount may call, fold, or raise. If the caller action / pot total has not changed, the OOT is binding.
Out of turn Statements such as “ Hey, I’m going to call whatever you bet” or “I’ll raise anything you may bet” are not binding (& may be considered bad etiquette OOT & may get a warning / penalty if abused).
Statements of I'll put you all-in" should be avoided, (you can’t play someone else’s cards), but if used in the game, in turn, it will be considered a valid bet, equal to the amount of the total chip stack(s) of the player it was directed at. If that player has more chips than the bettor, then it will be considered a valid All-In bet by the bettor. Never "joke around" using any verbal betting statements, as they may possibly be ruled binding regardless of intention, and are generally bad etiquette.
Be Very Sure your bets & raises have been clearly called, & chips placed out correctly, BEFORE flipping your cards over to claim the pot.
Do not splash/ throw / fling / toss / pitch / flick / slam chips out into the pot or across the table when betting. Leave your bet in front of you, either the dealer will collect, or be sure to get the bet in the main pot when the betting round is complete, if acceptable to dealer and host.
Any player who declares or is assumed to be all in, and loses the pot, then discovers that one or more of their chips were hidden, missed, disregarded, and/or not bet or collected, is not entitled to benefit from this. That player is eliminated from the tournament IF the opponent had sufficient chips to cover the hidden ones; the covered chips are then given to the winning player.
Any odd chip tie (cut to lowest chip denomination), goes to the winner 1st clockwise (left) of the dealer( button seat).
A Bounty or other "Bonus" Chip in a Player's stack is not live for tournament bet/call/raise purposes, however be careful, as tossing out your Bounty Chip in turn could possibly be regarded as an All-In Bet and may possibly be ruled as such ....
GAME STANDARDS:
Please, No discussions, remarks, conversations, arguments or debates regarding politics, political policies/politicians, religion or other controversial / debatable topics allowed, please. Keep the game friendly, You're here for Poker.
"Show 1 show all", if you do tell or show any cards to 1 person, please you must show all, even folded hands. Do Not show hands or folded cards physically or verbally. Shows of folded hands / cards must show all, after hand is complete. If an active player is shown a card, all other active players must see that card.
No "Rabbit hunting" to see the un-dealt Board cards after the hand is over. The Clock is running.
Do not 'slow-roll’ the showing of your hole cards or stall. Turn over your winning & called hands promptly or fold your cards.
If no betting occurred on the river, 1st to show is clockwise from button, otherwise show promptly 1st , if your bet was called, or fold.
Don’t touch other players’ cards or chips. Don’t splash the pot ( toss chips).
Cards should not be brought or held under the table rail to be looked at, or otherwise held on a player's lap, or off the table.
You must protect your own hand. Use of your hands, a chip, or card protector are good examples. However, a Player will have no claim if their live hand in any way becomes somehow folded, or fouled by other cards or players/dealer.
Don't “Hang On” to folded hands, they must be discarded clearly.
Only one player to a hand, Don’t show, give or ask advice of others.
Never suggest odds, strategies, or suggest to a player to bet, fold or call in a current or future hand.
No obvious agreeing to, suggesting, or future plotting, to check down hands if/when another player is all-in, (collusion), or any other forms of collusion between players. Suggesting that someone check a possible future all in, IS collusion.
Please DO NOT verbally speculate on Any hand possibilities while there is still action in the hand. Never comment on the board hand possibilities out loud. (“Someone Needs a Diamond”, “3 to a straight”)…
Keep all cards and chips on the poker table and in plain view at all times. All Chips and cards always stay on table at all times, including during breaks.
Keep your high value chips un-hidden, and visible to all, try to keep hole cards in View, and not blocked by chipstacks or hands.
Please do not grab and /or start counting out someone else's all-in stack, bet , or the pot, if the involved players in the hand have not actually requested a specific count.
If you are not the Dealer of the hand, or a designated Host/Director, avoid shouting out rulings, clarifications, or otherwise making decisions that should be normally made by the current dealer, host or involved player(s).
Don’t place anything on the poker table, except a card-protector or cell phone, Drinks in the drink holders, or off the table. Keep food off the table, please wash hands after eating, keep your hands clean often.
It is understood by all players, that if anyone takes a bathroom or similar break away from the table, deals will simply continue, & their hand will be folded in turn. No suggesting to wait, stop the clock or stalling the tournament, waiting for a player to return.
Respect the host location. No Smoking indoors. Stay in designated play area, don't touch things you shouldn't. Clean up your trash and drink containers to provided areas.
Please remember wash & dry your hands often after eating/dirty/greasy, etc., to protect cards, table, chips , house, please.
House may "Cut Off" anyone at anytime for any reason, from access to Drinks & Food.
Suits, a 3rd pair or a 6th card are, Of Course, never used to break a tie. Best 5 cards.
No Agreements between players to alter the game hand, such as "run the board twice" , pull back blinds , collusion or disregard rules in any hand.
Never reveal any player's folded cards or the burn cards.
The cards speak for themselves. Players do not have to verbalize their winning hands to claim a pot. Actual Best hand wins. Please point out misinterpreted hands. Pot generally stands if the next hand has already been dealt.
You must always Show 2 cards to win the pot, even when playing the board, if the hand goes to a showdown with other player(s). Player(s) live at showdown "may" be required to show an un-shown hand if asked.
If a Player, qualifying for showdown, does decide not to show, instead just "folds", BUT his hand is folded / flipped / exposed face-up, ( both cards are either face up, or 1 up , & other is easily identifiable and retrievable, if the card is seen to be the winning hand ), it will be considered live, regardless of verbal statement, and qualifies for the pot, if for example, it was misread and is actually the winning hand.
All active hands must be turned face up promptly, whenever a player is all-in and no further betting is possible.
The starting Chips & Blind structure are calculated to normally produce a single winner within the time allotted, however if the game does run too late, or must be cut short for any reason, the house reserves the right to call off the game, on a house determined notice, & award prizes based on player chip counts at that end time.
Host is not responsible for any problems, monetary or otherwise, that may arise during game.
If you expose your card(s) on purpose during play, you may incur a penalty. Exposing of live hands is never allowed in the tournament.
When officially removing a smaller chip value from game, simple rounding up to the next chip values will be used, Color up is usually during a break, however, host may do partial / full color ups at any time.
Rounding up must get as close as possible, & may sometimes require adding “in use” chip colors from player's stack to do so. (example: having $875 in 25's, requires also adding a $100 chip, in order to get a $1K round-up chip)
A Player, asked to make change from their stack, to help either the pot or another player, must do so.
The blinds timer generally will not be stopped, other than for breaks, chip removals, & very occasionally at host/Director's discretion. … The clock runs.
It is understood that the House or Host, (which may be an active player in the game), has the right of final decision on any and All rulings.
Effort will be made to follow these listed rules, but to allow for game fairness, keeping it friendly, quick decisions & speed, even if a strict interpretation of the rules may indicate a different ruling , exceptions, variances additions and differences from these written rules may sometimes be made, and new rule(s) created for unlisted circumstance. All Host rulings are final.
In tournaments that have rebuys, &/or Add-ons, a player must be dealt into every hand, post all blinds, & must rebuy immediately upon busting out, “Take a break & re-buy later " is never allowed. During the re-buy period, a player also has the option to "surrender" their current chipstack & then rebuy a new stack. Add-ons are to be made/paid for/requested at their specific designated time only.
By Playing in the game, it is considered and an indication that the player agrees to abide by all house rulings, and these rules, regardless if the player has actually taken the time to read these rules.
DEALING, CARDS & MISC:
Never pre-deal, advance setup face down, or pre-burn any of the board cards.
Always use a cut card on the bottom of the deck. Never bring deck under the table or out of view.
Try to shuffle the deck in a manner that those around the table will not see the bottom cards during shuffle.
Keep the Burn Cards separate from the folded/muck cards during the deal to avoid confusion.
Dealer Button may be placed on the neat muck pile in front of the Dealer, at dealer's discretion if desired.
All Stacks at the table are always to be dealt every hand. Players not at their seat will have their hand folded, & Blinds posted as required. Deal of course proceeds clockwise, starting with the SB.
If two decks are being used in a self deal game, 2nd deck is always Shuffled behind (the current dealer), by the previous dealer of that deck. ( The new “cutoff seat”). A minimum of 4 riffles, 1 strip/hand shuffle, & a cut, must be made. No need to delay due to over shuffling.
As per above, The Current Dealer, upon end of hand, & awarding of pot, will promptly pull his dealt cards in, and shuffle those cards. Shuffled deck is then placed out of way to his left, ready for next cut/deal. There must be a cut before dealing. No rapping on deck to pass without a cut. Cut is usually made by player on the new dealer's right.
If the Blind Rounds timer has expired, next deal hand is the new blind amounts. If new deal deck has already been cut, and blinds posted, before timer expired, old level amounts apply to that hand.
Dealers should make sure the pot is correct, chip change made, player(s) are not still holding any folded hands, & ALL bets are pulled into the pot, before proceeding on with the deal.
Please never leave bets or folded cards in front of players, or scattered all around the table when proceeding with the deal.
Generally Avoid dealing the board & “Figure it out later” on an all-in / with side pots.
Try to keep the folded cards together & neat, & separate from the burn cards. Dealer should keep Control of the hand, make sure correct Blinds/Bets are posted, pull in bets, muck folded cards, make change, Move the button, notify players it's their turn, Award the pot, etc ..
If a player is not comfortable as dealer, the player seated to his or her right shall deal (again) for him, being careful of the deal-out order, and Dealer button is in the "correct" button seat.
Correcting of dealing board card errors should generally try to keep remaining un-dealt board and burn cards as “original” as possible. *** ** Acceptable examples are:
If the Flop is dealt prematurely, it should be shuffled back into the deck without the burn card, Any Post-flop bets (only) pulled back, & flop then re dealt (without another burn). (Dealing Out the Turn/River Face Down, before re-shuffle is acceptable only in this case)
If the Turn is dealt prematurely, the river should be burned & dealt as the new turn, & then the original turn will be reshuffled into the stub, & river will be dealt (no additional burn). All actions stay.
If the River is dealt prematurely, it should be shuffled back into the stub without the burn card, & re dealt without another burn.
If the flop/turn/river contains an extra card, it will generally be shuffled back in & re-dealt, even if dealer claims they can determine the correct order.
A single boxed (face-up) Card found in the deck, during a hand, will be treated as a burn or additional burn card, & shown to all players. 3 or more face-up/wrong cards are a misdeal with bet refunds.
A single Joker, wrong back color or other discovered non-valid card in the deck will be ignored, & and simply removed. Deal will continue as normal. Wrong cards are not used as burn cards. If the board is found being erroneously dealt from the wrong color deck (in relation to player's cards), that hand is void.
A player's already viewed hand, discovered with 3 or more cards, is void & folded. Any bets / Blinds placed by that player, are forfeit to the pot, if action has continued on , however if it is discovered pre-flop, before that player looks and/or acts, dealer shall pull 1 card from the face down hand at random, & use it as the burn card.
A card dealt face up is a misdeal, only if it’s one of the 1st two cards dealt, otherwise leave it in place, continue the deal in order, & simply swap the burn card for the player's face up card at the end of the deal. Multiple face-up cards are a misdeal.
A deck change may be requested Only in the event of damaged, marked, bent, duplicate, or missing card(s), and at host's inspection and decision. Requests for new decks based on whim, luck, color, feel, style etc, are not allowed.
In most cases, error(s) will stand as-is, if discovered or mentioned after the hand has played out, the pot already awarded & next deal has begun. No re-visiting previous hands. Players are responsible for holding onto their cards until a winner is declared and the hand is over. An error also may stand if significant action has occurred. ( Example: Burn/Turn cards were reversed, but discovered after completed betting of turn, during the river action).
Any player may (& should) check all full deck's integrity before start of game, and may do so during game on the 2nd deck not in current hand use, without stalling the game.
If it is discovered during a hand that there are two or more of the same rank/suit in the deck, or a face up card is seen elsewhere not in the deck, all bets returned & play voided for that hand, deck then corrected or replaced.
Although not expected to be needed, Penalties of verbal warnings, sitting out # of hands or amounts of time, forfeit of chip amounts, &/or expulsion from game without refund, are all possible for rule infractions. Keeping game the friendly & smooth should be the goal of all players. Please, accept any ruling once it has been declared, and move on.
SEATING / MOVING PLAYERS:
Players will draw for seats at the start of the tournament, & when combining to the final table (usually 9) in a multi-table tournament. Change of assigned seat position not allowed.
In Multi-table tournaments, a table will usually send the next BB, (or the requested matching seat position for next hand, TBD@ game start / by host), to the table that becomes short a player. Tables should normally be within 1 player of each other, otherwise they must request a player to balance the table. Player can’t be dealt a hand if coming in ‘between’ the Button & small blind, in that case, Player is not the button next hand, he must wait until button “passes over” him. A player must move promptly when requested, and must accept the position given at the new table.
CALLING “CLOCK”:
Any player originally dealt into the hand may call “clock” on someone taking excessive time. If clock is called, Player will have 30 seconds (PLUS an additional last 10 seconds verbal countdown by dealer or host ) (40 sec total) to act, otherwise his hand will be declared dead. Abuse / excessive use of "clock" may incur penalties and be void.
The "DEAD BUTTON” rule will be used. There is always a Big Blind every hand, the next live player in order, but there may not be a SB, if a player(s) busts out who would need to be the very next SB. Player(s) do not skip one or both of their Blind(s) due to a bust out. Big & Small Blind will never “skip” over a player. The Button is always the SB when heads-up, & may be “corrected” at the beginning of heads-up, to avoid the same player paying the BB twice in a row. The Dealer button, SB, & is dealt last in heads up play.
PLAYERS ARRIVING LATE/LEAVING EARLY:
If a player must leave before making ”the money” , & after the 2nd blinds round has already started, their chips will be removed from play and buy-in is forfeit. If leaving “in the money”, next-out position is paid, regardless of their current stack size. ( Host may divide stack to live players, depending on circumstances) A player arriving late, will either have a chip stack being dealt to on the table, Blinds Posted until 1st break, stack is removed if player still not arrived, or Host/Director may allow a late arriving player without a table stack, to be given a full buy-in, less an estimated “x” amount of blinds removed, for elapsed play...
AWARDING OF PRIZES:
In The event 2 or more players bust out at the same time, the busted player(s) with the Higher Starting chips in that hand will be used to determine ranking. Exact amount chip stacks busting out on the same hand are rank determined based on higher hand, ties could be possible.
Host/Director will determine the number of places paid, and percent/amount place payouts, which will usually be announced before game start, during 1st break, or another time before Payouts begin. Side Deals / Chops are between players, must be agreed upon by all involved, and are not ruled on or the responsibility of Host. No rake, all buy-ins are paid back out as prizes.
Any High Hand jackpot can't "play the board", and both hole cards must be used, and shown, to qualify, even if everyone folded.
Any details regarding use of Bounties, High Hand or other Tournament Bonuses, will be announced before game start.
In The Event of an Exact Tie of 2 or More Players, in a pot having an extra/odd chip or Bounty being awarded, the extra goes to the 1st winner clockwise from the button.
Tournament Poker Chips Have No Redeemable Cash Value. No Cash is ever to be on the Table, Chips Only.
CASH GAME IF PLAYED:
If a regular cash game is played, it is with Chips Only, Table Stakes, No Cash plays, and No Cash ever on the Table .
No Partial chip cash outs allowed, no pocketing / removing a portion of chips from play. No Cashing out, to then later re-enter game after a break with less chip$, No buy/selling chips between players. All paid for chips play live until redeemed, other than to tip a possible dealer, or for house/food donations.
All transactions are made directly from the assigned chip bank "teller" only, and no credit, delayed payment or IOU's accepted, no chips ever handed out until paid cash is accounted for & in the bank.
When chips are either bought or cashed out, those chips Must be fully counted / verified / totals accepted by a minimum of 2 people, (usually both the banker and the player), 3 is preferred or may be required.
A Player may fully cash out, and leave, at any time, upon notice between hands, and all chips must be cashed out upon exit from game, no credit ever given for any missing chip(s), & chips will not have value for use in another day's game.
Player Chips stay on table at all times. No adding chips while in a hand. Reloads/Rebuy allowed between hands only, up to announced limits ( No Minimums, the Maximum allowed would be either the announced max buy-in limit, or 1/2 the current biggest player table stack value, whichever is greater). No pocketing chips. Players may take any open seat at a cash game, and moving to another seat position may require posting of any additional blind(s) avoided.
