How to Host a College Poker Game

On Tuesday nights, as most students at my university are studying (or, more likely, drinking), the living room at my apartment was filled with the clattering of poker chips and the sound of cards riffling.  When the night was over, my partner at I would divide the spoils; $200 each after deducting the expenses.  Not a bad gig for an eight hour poker night, especially when I have friends who work in the dining halls on campus full time and bring in less than $200 a week.

It isn’t easy starting and maintaining a poker game on campus.  Poker is on the more black side of a legal grey area, so people tend to be weary of newcomers.  I got my “in” with the underground poker games in the usual way, I knew someone who knew someone.  I started as a player, and then became a dealer when one game was in a pinch and a dealer was needed, and eventually progressed to running my own game.

Some important things to consider when running a poker game on campus:

DO pick a consistent day of the week

People are creatures of habit.  Running a game on the same day each week allows players to get comfortable with the idea of that night being “poker night”, and can plan ahead of time to clear their schedule.

DON’T step on any toes

When starting a poker game, the most important factor to consider is the day the game is hosted.  Where I was hosting my game, there were already established games running every day of the week.  Monday was the game at the veteran’s post, Wednesday was the other $.50/$1 game on campus, Thursday was the weekly mixed game that people love to go to, etc. Operators of games are very protective of their “day” and it’s frowned upon in the community to hijack another person’s day.  So when starting, we had to consider how to disturb the peace the least.  We decided on Tuesday, since the established game was off campus, and ran $1/$2, so our on campus $.50/$1 game would be drawing from a different pool of players.

DO partner up

Running a poker game isn’t easy.  It’s hard enough making sure the players have food and drink, while managing the cash ins and cash outs.  A partner allows for far more flexibility in the game.  Need to pick up the food? A player needs a ride? A partner allows those needs to be met while still taking care of the commitments on location.

DO offer a friendly rake structure (but DON’T make it too friendly)

The going rake in the area where we ran the game was consistent across the board; the $1/$2 games had 10% rake up to $5, and the $.50/$1 games were 10% up to $3.  To differentiate ourselves, we decided to offer a $2 max rake.  And it worked.  The first few times we held the game, it was slammed, it would be consistently 9 handed with a player occasionally waiting.  Then, just as quickly as the game took off, it started sliding.  Within a couple months, the game was getting to maybe 6 handed, and the game became a total nitfest (smaller pots mean less rake).  How could this be when we offered the best rake deal in town?

The problem with our ultra friendly rake structure is that it attracted the grinders from the Wednesday game to our game, and the game became tough.  When the fish started losing every session, it stopped becoming fun, and they started going to a different game.  So what did we do in response? We upped the rake to a $2.50 max, plus added a $1 promo drop.  Suddenly the grinders flocked back to the Wednesday game, since we now “raked” $3.50 instead of $3, and we got the loose, aggressive, pot-building fish.

DO offer good value

At our game, we offered free food and drinks (including alcohol).  It doesn’t have to be much, but it allows the players to feel like they’re getting something back.  Be sure that the menu doesn’t go stale.  It’s easy to have pizza every time for a game, but a few extra dollars to change up the menu can go a long way.  Word gets around when you’re the only game that decides to cater Chipotle.

DON’T allow illegal activity at the game

The worry in the minds of the operators and players of underground games is involvement of the police.  A couple games a year get busted by the police, but how the interaction is handled goes a long way.  A game where people are smoking illegal substances or drinking underage is a surefire way to at best get a hefty ticket, a search, plus civil forfeiture of everything connected to the game (which includes your poker table, chips, and your and the player’s cash) Our game keeps the cash out of sight, (after all, there’s nothing illegal about a friendly poker game when there’s apparently no money involved) but hiding the money in the freezer does almost nothing if you give the police probable cause to search. Like any party, make sure the guests are responsible, and don’t invite any extra trouble. With that in mind…

DON’T make yourself a target for getting robbed

A poker game necessarily involves a lot of cash.  Even our $.50/$1 game could have $2,000 on the table.  Couple that with the cash the players have on hand, along with the fact that you can’t exactly go running to the police, and your game becomes a prime target for a robbery.  So keep some common sense rules about the game.  Don’t advertise to strangers about the awesome poker game.  Don’t allow anyone in the game who doesn’t have a reference (verify the reference).  If the game routinely gets bigger than $1/$2, limit the amount of cash at the game. The $2/$5 game in my area did buy-ins on Friday, played the game on Saturday, and did cash outs on Sunday.

DO have fun with it

Running a poker game may be hard work, but at the end of the night you and the player both have the same goal in mind: to have a fun night out!  As long as you have a game with plenty of action that the players enjoy, the money will come naturally.  As long as you have fun with it, you’ll be making good money while hosting a weekly party.  What’s not to love?