Official 2008 Tournament Rules
By participating in the tournament, you agree to abide by the rules and behave in a courteous manner. A violator may be verbally warned, suspended from play for a specified length of time, or disqualified from the tournament. Chips from a disqualified participant will be removed from play. Players, whether in the hand or not, may not discuss the hands until the action is complete. Players are obligated to protect the other players in the tournament at all times. Discussing cards discarded or hand possibilities are not allowed. A penalty may be given for discussion of hands during the play.
1 Whenever possible, all rules are the same as those that apply to live games.
2 Initial seating is determined by random draw or assignment.
3 The appropriate starting amount of chips will be given to each paid entrant at the beginning of the event.
4 If a paid entrant is absent at the start of the event, at some point an effort will be made to locate and contact the player. If the player is unable to be contacted in a reasonable amount of time, the chips may be removed from play at the discretion of the director anytime after a new betting level is begun or a half-hour has elapsed, whichever occurs first.
5 A starting stack of chips may be placed in a seat to accommodate late entrants (so all antes and blinds have been appropriately paid).
6 A no-show or absent player is always dealt a hand. That player’s stack will post chips for blinds and antes.
7 In all tournament games using a dealer button, the starting position of the button is determined by the players drawing for the high card.
8 Blinds are raised at regularly scheduled intervals.
9 If there is a signal designating the end of a betting level, the new limits apply on the next deal. (A deal begins with the first riffle of the shuffle.)
10 The lowest denomination of chip in play will be removed from the table when it is no longer needed in the blind structure. All lower-denomination chips that are of sufficient quantity for a new chip will be changed up directly.
11 A player must be present at the table to stop the action by calling “time.”
12 A player must be at the table by the time all players have their complete starting hands in order to have a live hand for that deal. (The dealer has been instructed to kill the hands of all absent players immediately after dealing each player a starting hand.)
13 As players are eliminated, tables are broken in a pre-set order, with players from the broken tables assigned to empty seats at other tables.
14 A change of seat is not allowed after play starts, except as assigned by the director.
15 In button games, if a player is needed to move from a table to balance tables, the player due for the big blind will be automatically selected to move.
16 New players are dealt in immediately and take over the obligations of that position, including the small blind or button position.
17 The number of players at each table will be kept reasonably balanced by the transfer of a player as needed. With more than six tables, table size will try to be kept within two players.
18 In all events, there is a redraw for seating when the final table is reached.
19 A player who declares all in and loses the pot, then discovers that one or more chips were hidden, is not entitled to benefit from this. That player is eliminated from the tournament if the opponent had sufficient chips to cover the hidden ones. If another deal has not yet started, the director may rule the chips belong to the opponent who won that pot, if that obviously would have happened with the chips out in plain view. If the next deal has started, the discovered chips are removed from the tournament.
20 If a player lacks sufficient chips for a blind or a forced bet, the player is entitled to get action on whatever amount of money is left in his stack. A player who posts a short blind and wins does not need to make up the blind.
21 All players must leave their seat immediately after being eliminated from an event.
22 Showing cards from a live hand during the action injures the rights of other players still competing in an event, who wish to see contestants eliminated. A player in a multi-handed pot may not show any cards during a deal. Heads-up, a player may not show any cards unless the event has only two remaining players, or is winner-take-all. If a player deliberately shows a card, the player may be penalized (but his hand will not be ruled dead). Verbally stating one’s hand during the play may be penalized.
23 The Ultimate Poker Charity Challenge is a “No-Limit Texas Hold’em” tournament.
24 The player must either use a verbal statement giving the amount of the raise or put chips into the pot in a single motion. Otherwise, it is a string bet.
25 Non-tournament chips are not allowed on the table.
26 Higher-denomination chips must be placed where they are easily visible to all other players at the table.
27 All tournament chips must remain visible on the table throughout the event. Chips taken off the table will be removed from the event, and a player doing this may be disqualified.
28 Inappropriate behavior like throwing cards that go off the table may be punished with a penalty such as being dealt out for a length of time. A severe infraction such as abusive or disruptive behavior may be punished by eviction from the tournament.
29 The decks are changed only when the tournament director instructs the change, unless a card is damaged.
30 The dealer button remains in position until the appropriate blinds are taken. Players must post all blinds every round. Because of this, last action may be given to the same player for two consecutive hands by the use of a “dead button.”
31 In heads-up play with two blinds, the small blind is on the button.
32 All hands will be turned face-up whenever a player is all-in and betting action is complete.
33 If multiple players go broke on the same hand, the player starting the hand with the larger amount of chips finishes in the higher place for prize money and any other award. Players eliminated on the same deal who start their final hand with an equal amount of chips receive equal prize money, with the best hand on that deal receiving any non-divisible award.
34 Management is not required to rule on any private deals, side bets, or redistribution of the prize pool among finalists.
35 If for any reason the event is cancelled you will receive a refund for your entry fee.
36 Private agreements by remaining players in an event regarding distribution of the prize pool are not condoned. (However, if such an agreement is made, the director has the option of ensuring that it is carried out by paying those amounts.) Any private agreement that does not include one or more active competitors is improper by definition.
37 The Ultimate Poker Charity Challenge is to be completed by 12 midnight.
38 Management retains the right to cancel any event, or alter it in a manner fair to the players.
39 Filming in Progress- The Poker Charity Challenge may have Press Staff inside the event filming for TV, Radio, newspapers, and broadcasting on the internet. Personal interviews will be the discretion of each player. By entering this tournament you are acknowledging you may be broadcasted on TV, Radio, Print, and on the web.
Please remember the purpose of this event is to help raise money for charity. We hope to see you at the tables supporting the children of Lamoille County!