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 poker tournaments at your home, as all you actually need are tables, chips and cards.