Poker night

The inaugural Strugglers poker night will be taking place in April 2006.

Who?

 * Andy (played once)
 * Matt
 * Phil (played a bit - but not exactly in the big leagues or anything)
 * Simon (also never played before)

When and where?
At Andy/Dana/Phil's place, about 6pm on Saturday 1st April 2006.

Game rules
We'll be playing Fixed Limit Texas hold 'em.

Chips
Andy will be providing the chips and each player will pay &pound;5 for an equal share.

Total chips available:

144 white at 2.5p each =  360p 104 red  at  5p   each =  520p 56 blue at 10p   each =  560p 28 green at 20p  each =  560p

Total                  = 2000p = £20.00                       = 332 chips

We'll each have:

36 white at 2.5p each =  90p 26 red  at  5p   each = 130p 14 blue at 10p   each = 140p 7 green at 20p  each = 140p

Total                 = 500p = £5.00                      = 83 chips

Black chips will be worth 50p but we won't use them to start with, only change them up later in case we start running out of others.

Now turn those denominations into "strugglers currency" just to make it sound slightly less silly, and:

white = $5 red  = $10 blue = $20 green = $40 black = $100

Each of us will get (36 * $5) + (26 * $10) + (14 * $20) + (7 * $40) = $1000. All betting in the game will be carried out in "strugglers currency", i.e. the fake dollars:

ante       = $5 small blind = $5 big blind  = $10 small bet  = $10 big bet    = $20

Divide the dollar value by 2 if you need to know how much it is in real world pennies!

Betting
There will be an ante before each hand, a small blind equal to the ante, and a big blind equal to twice the small blind.

Real money
Whoever ends up with all the chips at the end takes all the &pound;5s.

Do

 * Wait your turn before taking any action. Even if you're sure you are going to fold, doing so before it is your turn gives away information to those acting before you.
 * Pay attention to when it is your turn to post the small or big blind.
 * Place your bets/raises all in one motion moving only the chips you need. Don't drag things out by throwing in one chip at a time, or try to scare other players by moving your whole stack in and then out again.
 * Keep your chips on the table. Other players need to know how much you have left.
 * Show all players your cards if you decide to show one player (see below).
 * Question any error you think has been made in dealing, betting, blinds, etc.
 * Ask if you are not sure if it is your turn to act, or how much is required to call/raise, or any other matter to do with the mechanics of the game. It's better to ask if you're unsure, as opposed to acting incorrectly which may not be noticed until much later.

Don't

 * Throw your chips into the pot when you bet/raise. It's hard to tell how much you've just put in.  Place your bets/raises in front of you near the pot and the dealer will sort it out at the end of each round.
 * Touch any other player's cards or let any other player touch your cards.
 * Show your hand until the showdown or after. You don't need to show your hand unless you're  in a showdown and all possible bets/raises have been made.  If you choose to show your hand anyway, only do so after everyone else has acted.  When discarding cards be careful not to reveal them.  Showing your hand when some players are still to act can give away useful information.

More information

 * Poker
 * Poker hands
 * Poker jargon
 * Learning Texas Hold'em

Examples
An example of gameplay can be found at http://www.pokerlistings.com/fixed-limit-texas-holdem-set-up-and-play