It's Friday night. You've got the table, the chips, and four friends who swore they'd show up. Somebody asks: "so how do the blinds work?" and you realize nobody actually knows how to run a tournament.
This guide fixes that. No prior experience needed. By the end, you'll have a blind structure, a payout split, and a plan that runs itself.
Before the night.
Players and buy-in
Home tournaments work best with 3 to 6 players. Fewer than three and there's no tension. More than eight and you'll need a second table and a dealer rotation — fun, but a different kind of night.
Set a buy-in everyone is comfortable losing. $10–$50 is the sweet spot for most kitchen tables. The buy-in determines the pot: 6 players at $20 means $120 to play for.
Chips you'll need
You don't need a casino rack. 200–300 chips in three colors handles a table of six. Here's a starting stack that works:
| Color | Value | Count | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 1 | 10 | 10 |
| Red | 5 | 10 | 50 |
| Green | 25 | 4 | 100 |
That's 160 per player in chip value. Multiply by your buy-in ratio — if buy-in is $20 and starting stack is 160, each chip-unit is worth about $0.12. But honestly, the numbers don't matter as long as everyone starts equal.
The blind structure.
Blinds are the forced bets that two players post every hand. They start small and escalate — that's what creates pressure and keeps the game moving. Without escalating blinds, a tournament can last all night.
Three structures. Your call. PokerStacker offers Quick (~1 hour, 8 levels), Standard (~2 hours, 12 levels), and Deep (~3 hours, 15 levels). Standard is the default — it works for most groups of 3–6 players. You can also enable Big Blind Ante for added action in the later levels.
| Level | Small blind | Big blind | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 2 | 2 | 4 | |
| 3 | 3 | 6 | |
| 4 | 5 | 10 | Color-up: remove whites |
| 5 | 10 | 20 | |
| 6 | 15 | 30 | |
| 7 | 25 | 50 | Color-up: remove reds |
| 8 | 50 | 100 | |
| 9 | 75 | 150 | |
| 10 | 100 | 200 | Final level |
When the smallest chip denomination becomes useless (blinds have grown past it), you exchange them for larger chips. 5 whites become 1 red. It keeps the table clean and the game moving. PokerStacker reminds you when it's time.
Rebuys — yes or no?
A rebuy lets an eliminated player buy back in for the same amount and rejoin the game. It makes the night longer, the pot bigger, and losing less painful.
The house rule that works best: allow rebuys during the first 4 levels (40 minutes). After that, you're out for good. This gives unlucky players a second chance early, but still guarantees the tournament ends on time.
Each rebuy adds to the pot. If 6 players buy in at $20 and two people rebuy, the pot is $160 instead of $120.
Payout splits.
How you divide the pot among the top finishers is the most debated part of any home tournament. Here are the structures that cause the fewest arguments:
| Players | Pay top | Split |
|---|---|---|
| 3–4 | 2 | 65 / 35 |
| 5–6 | 3 | 50 / 30 / 20 |
| 7–9 | 3 | 50 / 30 / 20 |
| 10+ | 4 | 45 / 27 / 18 / 10 |
The rule of thumb: pay roughly 30% of the field. The winner should always take home at least double their buy-in — otherwise winning doesn't feel like winning.
Use Split the Pot to calculate exact payout amounts. Set players, buy-in, and percentages — the URL encodes everything so you can share it with the table.
Running the night.
Before the first hand
- Count chips. Every player gets the same starting stack. Count twice.
- Announce the structure. Buy-in, blind levels, rebuy window, payout split. Say it once, out loud, before the cards touch the table.
- Set a timer. A phone works, a cast TV is better. The table needs to see the clock — not just the host.
- Pick a dealer button. Any distinctive chip or coin. It moves clockwise after every hand.
During the game
The timer is the law. When it beeps, blinds go up — even mid-hand. No negotiations, no "just one more hand at these blinds." The structure only works if everyone trusts it.
Track eliminations. When someone busts out, note their finishing position. You'll need this for payouts. If rebuys are allowed and they want back in, add their rebuy to the pot before they get new chips.
Call color-ups. When the timer tells you it's time, pause the game for 60 seconds. Everyone exchanges their smallest chips for the next denomination. Round odd chips up in the eliminated player's favor.
Ending the tournament
The tournament ends when one player has all the chips. But most home games end with a deal — the final two or three players agree to split the remaining prize pool and call it a night.
Settlement is simple: everyone started with a buy-in. Winners are owed their prize. The difference between what you put in and what you're owed is what changes hands. PokerStacker calculates this automatically — who pays whom, in the fewest transactions.
The short version.
- 3–6 players. $10–$50 buy-in. 200 chips per player in 3 colors.
- Pick a blind structure. Quick (~1h), Standard (~2h), or Deep (~3h). Blinds escalate gradually.
- Rebuys in the first 4 levels if you want a bigger pot and a longer night.
- Pay top 2–3. 50/30/20 for most tables.
- Use a timer everyone can see. Cast it to the TV.
- Let the math run itself.