Best Home Game Structure
 

I've been reading forums, and visiting sites for a while to compare how other people structure their home games, but I think that the style we play at mine is one of the easiest and best ways to structure.

Game: NL Hold'em Tournament

Buy-In: We typically do friendly $10 dollar buy in games.

Typically 10-20 players (it's rude to host a game if you cant find enough players, and too many takes too long. Usually 12 is our rule of thumb)

Chips: Starting Stack $5,000 in chips. ($6,000 on a Saturday!)
Denominations: $25 (12 chips), $100 (7 chips), $500 (4 Chips), $1000 (2 chips)

It is EXTREMELY rude to have too many denominations ie: a chip worth 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 200.... it is unnecessary!

If someone wants to bet 50, they can put in two 25 chips. You might as well have a chip worth 37 or 68.

Blind Structure: 20 min blinds.
25/25
25/50
50/100
75/150
100/200
150/300
TRADE OUT 25 CHIPS
200/400
300/600
400/800
600/1200
800/1600
TRADE OUT 100 CHIPS
(Blinds go by thousands and follow same pattern as 100/200, except now 1000,2000 blinds typically don't reach this level.

Start Time 7:00pm, our tournaments usually last 3-4 hours. Be sure that if you are attending a home game you arrive 10 minutes early so you can start on time. It's very rude to show up late and keep everyone waiting.

Pay Outs: 9 people ($60, $30)
10 people ($60, $30, $10)
11 people ($70, $30, $10)
12 people ($70, $40, $10)
13 people ($80, $40, $10)
14 people ($80, $40, $20)
15 people ($80, $40, $20, $10)
16 people ($90, $40, $20, $10)
17 people ($90, $50, $20, $10)
18 people ($90, $50, $30, $10)
19 people ($100, $50, $30, $10)
20 people ($100, $60, $30, $10)

Remember that home games are supposed to be friendly. Winner take all tournaments are rarely popular and paying out top 3 and 4 makes everyone happy with a better chance to pick up a little extra spending money.

With larger buy ins (sometimes 20 bucks) we just double the pay out amounts.

Umm, what? And the number of players doesn't control the ending time as much as the tourney's blind structure does.

ummm... what? Unnecessary? Certainly... but "extremely rude"???

Personally, I go 12 green and 12 black. With only 7 black chips, you are crippled if you have to change a T500 purple at the table.

Yes more people takes to long if your blind length is always the same (which it should be)

if 10 play with 5000 in chips you have 50,000 chips in play, if twice as many people play you have 100,000 chips, and thus a longer tournament.


And yes, extremely rude. It's obnoxious to host a poker game when you don't know what you're doing.

mazzack I like your structure I use one almost idenical to it.But one feature that I started about 2 months ago and everyone likes very much is.I have a $20 buy in and put a $5 bounty on everyone head and if you knock someone out durint the game you get 5 bucks for that kill and a $10 bounty on the previous winner.It help spread the money out and there are alot more people taking cash home and that brings them back to the next game.Hope this helps

Man, you think alot is rude. While I respect your opinions. Thats what they are, opinions. Some people prefer more starting chips, some prefer less. Some don't mind longer running tournamets. I don't care how long it lasts, I'll play all day, every day. We played 14 hours straight once. Everybody has their own preference. But it doesn't mean its rude if you start with more chips, and some people don't mind playing with not alot of people. I had a game with 6 last week, we had a great time. Also my denomanations are 10,50,250,500,1000. maybe not necassary in the eyes of some, but it works for me. It is what it is. Whomever is hosting structures it the way they want. Every where I go to play it is a bit different and that is fine with me. I'm just happy to play.

Where is the game at? And how do I join?

I personally like to change up the structure of the tournament from time to time. Sometime long slow progressions, sometimes turbos (and play several throughout the evening), sometimes with rebuys, sometimes with antes.

I like different structures, it makes you adapt to new situations.

-JD