Poker Information Tournament Rules (DE, MI, PA, WV)

The Tournament Rules listed here are intended to complement our Terms of Service, not replace them. In the event of a discrepancy between the Tournament Rules and Terms of Service, the Terms of Service shall take precedence.

General
1. All tournaments will start promptly at the schedule time stated in the Tournament Lobby. We reserve the right to delay or cancel a tournament without prior notice.
2. Important information about each tournament, including the buy-in information, prize structure, late registration period, blind structure, and other critical information can be found in the dedicated detail tournament lobby. Note, the prize structure is not finalized until registration has officially closed. We reserve the right to change the parameters of any tournament at any time without notice.
3. Seats are randomly assigned. Seat Changes are not permitted.
4. When a tournament begins or a new table is created, the button will be randomly positioned before the first hand is dealt.
Registration, Unregistration, Late Registration, and Re-entry
1. In order to be eligible to register for a tournament, you must have the required funds in your account. Funds currently in play in other games are not considered available.
2. The registration information, including when registration opens, when the tournament begins, when the unregistration period closes, and how long late registration is available can be found within the tournament detail lobby for each tournament.
3. Unregistration
  1. Most tournaments allow unregistration until a time specified in the tournament detail lobby of each tournament. The exact timing may vary from event to event.
  2. Players who registered with a ticket may unregister from a tournament and will be refunded with their ticket.
  3. Please note, Registration and unregistration times may vary, and not all tournaments allow unregistration. Check the Tournament Lobby for the exact registration details for each tournament. We reserve the right to alter registration and unregistration times without prior notice.
4. Late Registration
  1. Late registration allows players to enter the tournament after it has started for a predetermined period. Late registration is available in most tournaments. The length of the late registration period varies but will always be shown in the tournament detail lobby.
  2. The late registration period will close early under the following circumstances:
    1. The number of active players is one more player than places paid. For example, if 61 players remain and the tournament pays 60 places.
    2. The next registration extends the money bubble so that all active and registered users will be awarded a prize.
    3. The maximum allowed number of entries is met.
5. Re-entry
  1. Re-entry allows players eliminated from the tournament the opportunity to buy back into the tournament during the late registration period. Re-entry information, including the number of re-entries allowed, will always be displayed in the tournament detail lobby and can vary from event to event.
Tournament Guarantees
1. A guarantee on a prize pool is the minimum prize pool that we, as the operator, are paying out regardless of how many players enter or how much money is collected in entry fees.
2. Each tournament guarantee is highlighted in the tournament lobby and within each individual tournament detail lobby.
3. If a tournament with a guaranteed prize pool is cancelled, we will refund only the total buy-ins, not the guaranteed amount.
Table Alias & Dynamic Avatar
1. When you’re seated in a tournament, your personal username will NOT be shown to other players on the table. Instead, you will be randomly assigned a first name and initial and a dynamic avatar. The Table Alias and Dynamic avatar will persist throughout the entire tournament, including any re-entries.
2. In the case of a re-entry, players will have the number of entries behind their Table Alias in the tournament detail lobby. For example, the table alias Nick S would become Nick S [2].
3. Once a tournament has concluded, the player rankings in the tournament detail lobby will update and highlight the usernames for all participants alongside the table alias they were assigned for the tournament.
4. The stats behind the dynamic avatar persist throughout the entire tournament and are based only on hands played with each individual opponent.
  1. For example, let’s say Nick S played 10 hands with Tony G. Then, Nick S was moved to a new table. After an hour of play, Nick S was moved to another new table that featured Tony G again. The dynamic avatar for Tony G would still factor in the originally played 10 hands the two played together.
Eliminations
1. The tournament ends when one player accumulates all the chips in play.
2. If two or more players are eliminated in the same hand, a player with more chips at the start of the hand finishes higher than a player with fewer chips. If all players started the hand with an identical number of chips, all players tie for that rank, and any prizes due to those players will be equally distributed between them.
3. We use a ‘forward-moving button’ rule. According to this rule, no player ever receives the button twice in a row; at the completion of every hand, the button is moved clockwise. The implication of this rule is that when players are eliminated, there may be players who get a reprieve from one or both blinds. Since these are basically random occurrences, no player will receive any long-term advantage.
4. When two players remain at the final table, the player with the button will post the small blind, and act first on the opening round.
5. As players are eliminated from the tournament, the software will 'break' tables to fill available empty seats or balance tables to ensure all tables have an equal (or as close to equal as possible) number of active players. The re-seating of players at broken tables is performed randomly and, although rare, may result in a player having to post multiple big blinds in a row. Players moved individually to balance tables will, when possible, be moved to similar positions relative to the blinds. When enough players have been eliminated, all players are brought together at the ‘final table’.
Bounty Rewards
1. In Knockout (KO) and Progressive Knockout (PKO) tournaments, each player's buy-in is split into two parts:
  - A portion goes to the main prize pool
  - The rest contributes to the bounty prize pool
2. Players earn cash rewards by eliminating opponents. The bounty reward is granted to the player who wins the relevant pot - the pot in which the bounty-marked player was all-in for their final chips. This could be the main pot or a side pot, depending on how the hand plays out.
Knockout Example

Tournament Structure - Total buy-in of $20:
- $10 to the main prize pool
- $10 to the bounty prize pool:
  - Each player starts with a $10 bounty
  - You receive $10 cash for each player you eliminate
Players:
- Jason (750 chips)
- Alice (1,000 chips)
- Phil (1,500 chips)
Hand Playout:
- All three players move all-in.
- Jason wins the main pot (2,250 chips)
- Phil wins the side pot (500 chips)
Outcome:
- Jason was at risk and survived, so no bounty is awarded from the main pot.
- Alice is eliminated by Phil in the side pot → Phil earns a $10 cash bounty.
Progressive Knockout Example

Tournament Structure - Total buy-in of $20:
- $10 to the main prize pool
- $10 to the bounty prize pool
Bounty system:
- 50% paid in cash
- 50% progressive
Players:
- Jason (750 chips)
- Alice (1,000 chips)
- Phil (1,500 chips)
Hand Playout:
- All players go all-in.
- Jason wins the main pot (2,250 chips)
- Phil wins the side pot (500 chips)
Outcome:
- Jason survives despite being at risk → no bounty from the main pot
- Alice is eliminated by Phil in the side pot
  - Phil receives $5 in cash (50% of Alice's $10 bounty)
  - The remaining $5 is added to Phil's bounty, raising it to $15 (his original $10 + $5)
Tied Hands
If two or more players tie for the winning hand and split the relevant pot, the bounty is equally divided. Any odd cents go to the player seated closest to the button in order.

Tournament Winner
- In a KO tournament, the winner receives their own bounty at the end.
- In a PKO tournament, the winner is awarded their full accumulated bounty.
Hand for Hand
1. Hand for Hand play is a special rule implemented at critical stages of the tournament, particularly around the money bubble (i.e., when the next elimination will determine which players earn a payout), and the final table bubble. In hand-for-hand scenarios, all tables play one hand at a time simultaneously. After a hand is completed at any of the remaining tables, the tournament pauses to wait until all tables have finished their current hand before the next hand begins across all tables.
2. Most of our tournaments feature the hand for hand rule around the money bubble and the final table bubble. Once the hand for hand rule is initiated in either situation, there is clear messaging on the table.
Breaks
1. Every tournament has a synchronized 5-minute break starting 55 minutes past every hour.
2. In all cases, each tournament will wait for hands at all tables to complete before the break period begins. This means the starting break time can vary by tournament.
Time to Act and Time Bank
1. Each tournament allows players a predetermined time to act, depending on the tournament speed type:
  1. Regular Tournament: 18 seconds
  2. Turbo Tournament: 14 seconds
  3. Hyper Tournament: 12 seconds
2. If you have a difficult decision to make, every player has a predetermined time bank that allows you additional time to think about your move. This extra time is known as the time bank. Whenever your normal time to act is about to finish, the time bank will automatically be activated giving you extra time to act. Every player starts with a predetermined time bank, depending on the tournament speed type:
  1. Regular Tournament: 30 seconds
  2. Turbo Tournament: 20 seconds
  3. Hyper Tournament: 15 seconds
3. Throughout the tournament players will earn additional seconds towards their timebank, depending on the tournament speed type:
  1. Regular Tournament: 10 seconds is added every 50 hands
  2. Turbo Tournament: 5 seconds is added every 25 hands
  3. Hyper Tournament: 5 seconds is added every 25 hands
4. The maximum timebank a player can have varies by tournament type:
  1. Regular Tournament: 90 seconds
  2. Turbo Tournament: 45 seconds
  3. Hyper Tournament: 30 seconds
Sitting Out
1. Players can sit out in tournaments, but their blinds and antes will continue to be posted while sitting out, and the most passive action, check or fold, will be taken by default.
2. If a player does not act before their time to act and time bank deplete, they will automatically be sat out, and the most passive action will be taken until they choose to return.
Disconnection
1. By participating in a tournament, a player accepts the risk of Internet disconnection, due to problems with the connection between their device and the servers, lag or freeze, or some other problem with the player’s device or connection.
Prohibited and unethical play
1. Any action intended to help another player or to take unfair advantage of another player(s) is prohibited.
2. Tournament gameplay is expected to be played on an individual level. Decisions are to be made by the account's rightful owner, and these should be done without external assistance from other users or software that breaches our Terms of Service or Game Integrity Policy. Any variant of teamplay is also deemed unethical and prohibited.
3. Forms of team play, such as collusion, chip-dumping and other unethical behaviors like but not limited to soft-play are not permitted. Account sharing, ghosting, and other unethical behaviors that imply assistance from others in the decision-making process during gameplay are not permitted.
4. It’s important to note that our tournament features are not designed to be used in a way that creates an unfair advantage or deteriorates the experience for other players.
5. A user or group of users found in breach of our Tournament rules, Terms of Service, or Game Integrity policy may result in penalties and the account(s) being permanently banned.
6. To learn more about our integrity policies, visit our Game Integrity section or contact our customer support team.
Server Issues
1. In the event of a server crash, the hands in progress at every table will be restored by rolling back those hands. Each player's chip count will be reset to the amount at the beginning of the hand. In special circumstances, when a tournament needs to be cancelled because of a crash or some other reason, players will be compensated according to the tournament cancellation policy (see below).
Pauses and Cancellations
1. Pauses
  1. There are instances where we may need to pause play in each tournament. In a pause, the tournament will be paused at the end of the current hand across all tables. The tournament clocks, including late registration, will be stopped. A message will be displayed across every table and within the tournament detail lobby.
  2. Before the tournament resumes, players will be notified at the table and a countdown timer will appear, informing players when the tournament will resume.
2. Cancellations
  1. If we have to cancel a tournament for any reason, we try to compensate players in the fairest and most equitable way possible. There are three different possible compensation methods, depending on the exact circumstances and timing of the cancellation. Which method is applied is at the sole discretion of the tournament management.
    1. Rollback
      1. The tournament is “rolled back” as if it never happened and every player gets refunded (buy-ins + rake) - Players are refunded in the exact same format with which they bought in (cash or tournament ticket)
    2. Roll Forward (Not in the Money)
      1. Each remaining player is refunded his rake and then the prize pool is divided as such:
        
        50% of the award pool is distributed evenly among all remaining players
        
        50% of the award pool is distributed proportionally according to the chip count.
    3. Roll Forward (In the Money)
      1. Each remaining player is refunded his rake and then the prize pool is divided as such:
        
        Each player receives the minimum prize not yet awarded at the time of cancellation.
        
        The remainder of the award pool is distributed proportionally according to the chip count.
  2. In the event a Knockout tournament is cancelled, each remaining player will be credited with their individual knockout bounty amount, similar to how rewards are distributed when a player wins the tournament.
  3. Whenever a SNG is cancelled and rolled forward, it will be treated as a Classic SNG with the fixed prize pool used as the payout distribution method. The rake and Glitch Prize contributions are returned.
Table Cap
1. When playing on a computer, we allow a maximum of 8 simultaneous active tables across all game types (Cash Games, SNG Select, and Multi-Table Tournaments). For example, you could be playing 4 cash games, 2 SNG Selects, and 2 MTTs.
2. When playing on a mobile device or tablet, we allow a maximum of 4 simultaneous active tables across all game types. For example, you could be playing 2 cash games, 1 SNG Select, and 1 MTT.

*Please Note - you can join a tournament while at another table, up to a maximum number of tables, which depends on the device you are using to play. For PC, the max is 8 tables across all Poker game types, and for mobile/tablet, the max if 4 tables across all Poker game types.

To review

If you need any further assistance, please contact our 24/7 poker support team at:

For players at BetRivers - pokersupport@betrivers.com
For players at PlaySugarHouse - pokersupport@playsugarhouse.com

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