I have a few work friends who want to learn how to play poker. I'm thinking about putting together a poker night with about 6 to 8 people. 2 or 3 players have never really played before while the others have played in a few tournaments and/or cash games. Would it be better to run 2 or 3 $20 tournaments Or to play like a .25/.50 cash game?

$5 tourney to start. Maybe even just be the dealer/floor for the first one.

I recently played a no fee tourney with 3 guys who never played before and one guy with very bad habits. It went as well as expected with no cost, no blinds raising and unlimited rebuys. Lasted about 60 minutes before I busted out, declared I wasn’t rebuying and the game ran another 10 min with me dealing.

Things I learned:
It should have cost something.
I should have just dealt. I could have watched all the action, stopped acting out of turn, and bet sizes.
Giving directions of fold/check, call, or bet/raise without players knowing the difference was confusing. Definitions and being clear that one action per turn was expected. Call and raise was frequently corrected.
Advice on bet sizing, that a bet of 2bb into a 100bb pot was almost as silly as the 100bb bet into a 10bb pot.
Emphasis on 5 card hands, no 3/4 card straights or flushes, kickers don’t always play, and a straight and a pair doesn’t beat the same straight.

Good luck. If done right, should be a great time investment for an ongoing game.




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I find beginners love tournaments, but once they've got the hang of it, they hate waiting around after they're knocked out. So a tournament with a cash game starting as soon as five people are knocked out is a really popular format. Make the cash game very small, or the beginners will lose too much and start to hate poker.

I am of the opinion that everyone loves the idea of tournaments, until as Garick said, they bust out. Then it's a killjoy to wait around. So i'd go with cash from the get-go. Depending on how much your company pays, .25/.50 might be steep to start. Buy ins there should be around $30-100. If everyone is a white collar type, I'm sure they can swing $100+ for the evening, but they may not want to. .25/.25 is a better option for some crowds.

Tournament!!! $5 or $10

Have some other form of entertainment for the people who bust!

Beginner poker shouldn't be no-limit or pot limit. This might be hard to sell because being able to go "all-in" has quite an appeal to most of us.

Still, a fixed limit betting structure keeps a player from going bust on one hand. Fixed limit has somewhat more variation than skill, meaning that everyone will have a good session once in a while. Also it means even the best player is going to have trouble running over the game - - so players of all sorts can play together.

I use limit betting structures to introduce exotic or new games to experienced hold'em players. It works exactly as advertised - on a given night, anyone can score big.

Getting felted for the last time an hour or two into the night is no fun. Not having fun is fatal to player retention. The host should be trying to design his/her beginner poker night to ensure everyone has a good time - that their money lasts all night.