home game help !?!

Just wanted to post that I ran my first house game with 8 people. Had a blast and wish I could do it more than once a month. Most of them like to play holdem because that is what every now plays and the watch all the stuff on TV. I have a table, nice chips, etc.(god bless a woman who understands and addiction).

Any good suggestions how to keep it interesting?

What would be some good door prizes for first besides cash? set plastic cards etc.

Suggest ring or tournament style? we did tournament style this time

Is it required to have Rounders on the TV while you play? got about 3 requests to watch it to get them in the mood, I did have Oreos (lol)

Last bit, we had one new guy that has never played just watched on TV. He did just what we expected (calling station) and ended up winning the second tournament. LOL That will keep him coming back. He played solid hole cards. We just could never gauge what he had when he just called or folded and we were always guessing wrong to when he did not have it.

Its not required to have rounders on but it gets people in the mood and usually gets them to play decent hands. When my buds and I play usually there is some type of music on or we are watching Poker on some channel lol


No prizes. I think money is enough for people to keep coming. Maybe if yas order pizza the winner doesn't have to chip in or something.

There is lots of ways to vary and spice up home games, myself and the girlfriend run games on a regular basis for pubs and different people, but here is one or two suggestions for your own games hope it helps.

Tournament style : Probably one of the best as far as entertainment goes, but it can stressful for players that are knocked out early on as they tend to go on for up to 2 hours. Suggest 1 re-buy but only say in the first 3/4 levels. Or keep the blinds moving fairly quickly or only when there is a person knocked out.

Heads up tourney : GREAT FUN, have a heads up knockout tournament if you have a min of 8, do a draw after each round is over and make sure that the top 2 get paid in order to speed up the final.

Ring games : Can be great for a marathon poker night or if you have too many for a tourney or if your guests tend to arrive late, people can come and go as they please. We would usually only allow $20 in chips and as many re-buys as you like but to re-but you have to have $5 or less in chips.

Bonus prizes : Its always good to give a bad beat prize, ie if someone loses with a house of queens or better, a prize for the best hand of the night, a booby prize for the first one out etc...

just a few suggestions, hope they help.