Before starting to play or even hosting the next online poker game at your home, think of this – there are things in life that are more fun than just inviting friends over for a regular Canadian poker night, so why settle for a regular game when you can enjoy an exciting night with a great experience with friends, feeling as if you are in a real Las Vegas casino rather than in your home?

If you’re planning on hosting a home poker game for the first time, make sure that everything is arranged properly. There are some important things you should know before sending out e-mails or making phone calls:

1) What kind of poker night will it be? Are you interested in an informal gathering of friends and playing by the dealer’s choice, saying that anyone can choose the game played in any hand? Or do you want to focus on one game during the whole night, such as Texas Hold’em?

2) How many people should you invite? If you are playing by the dealer’s choice, stick to 5 to 7 players.

3) What is “supply” and what are the risks? No matter what kind of poker night you choose to have, you have to clarify how much money your friends need to bring with them to the game.

After knowing all the answers to these questions, choose a date and time and send out invitations. However, you can’t forget any kind of game equipment and obviously get some food and drinks, which are obvious. The essential equipment is mostly chips and other snacks, 2 decks of cards, a table cover and a folding table.

That’s it! Maybe put on some music in the background, wait for your friends, start the game and enjoy the Las Vegas shindig, Canadian-style.

Have you ever dreamed of organizing a home poker tournament even though you live far, far from Las Vegas, but you never knew how to get it done? Well, it isn’t very complicated and if you go by these instructions you can only be proud of yourself for being Vegas all the way to Canada!

First thing to do is get a “supply” – in other words, poker chips – because without it there is no action. The chips are a substitute for dollars. You have to know how many to issue each player and how to seat and move players around. Later you could even buy a professional table and not a plastic one, as they are uncomfortable and uneven. If you want your home to feel like Las Vegas instead of Toronto, it’s a good investment!

After placing the tables and chairs, it’s time to shuffle the cards. At the beginning of the poker game you need to choose a dealer. The dealer has to know how to shuffle the cards and not just mix them. Once he is finished shuffling it’s time to deal the cards. Each player gets 4 cards and the first round begins.

Every player, in his turn, tries to get the highest hand out of the following list: “Royal Flush”, “Flush”, “4 of a kind”, “Full House”, “3 of a kind”, “2 pairs” and a “Pair”.

The two first players who gain the upper hand will compete over the whole pot at the showdown (the showing of the cards). Whoever holds the highest cards wins the whole pot. So why run to a casino when you can host a tournament at your home, as all you actually need are tables, chips and cards.