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what's the vibe in your home game? (2 Viewers)

LeCoq said:
I agree about the tiny buy in. I am willing to raise it, but still afraid some people will jam. Some of my players own their own businesses so $25 or $50 or $100 is probably not a deterrent. It's challenging just fielding a group of players to make the game happen. It's a different roster each week. There is a core of 4 or 5, but life happens and not everyone can attend every week.
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I believe this is the biggest challenge for every home game
 
LeCoq said:
I am embarrassed to say I have heard of match the stack, but do not really know how that works.



It was fun and wild, but I ended up playing really tight for survival. I folded AQo which I knida wanted to play.



I do free tournaments during the week in 2 leagues so I like a small cash game to keep it interesting.



It's not easy to keep the game going. I have a small regular pool and a larger extended pool from the 2 leagues and my work. About 40 players total. So far I have only not had a weekly game about 3 times in 3 months.



Agreed. I have stand up game buttons, but I have only used once for free to teach the table the game and I ended up with 3 buttons and the table did not want to play. Honestly there is so much action that this has not been necessary.



Let's party. Prefer sake over soju.



This was my original intent. I had to open up in order to keep the game going. It's all good, making more friends.



I agree about the tiny buy in. I am willing to raise it, but still afraid some people will jam. Some of my players own their own businesses so $25 or $50 or $100 is probably not a deterrent. It's challenging just fielding a group of players to make the game happen. It's a different roster each week. There is a core of 4 or 5, but life happens and not everyone can attend every week.
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Match the stack means that if someone rebuys or adds on they could do so up to the biggest stack at the table.
 
My home game is $.25/$.25 with a $25 buy-in for 100bb, up to a $50 buy-in for the max of 200bb. I think this setup works best for my group to balance sustainability, the social aspect, and fun. The vibe is casual—people show up late to a catered and stocked-bar game like it's an inconvenience to their otherwise uneventful Saturday night. The action typically involves limping to see family pots, followed by groans when there's a raise, with everyone folding their rags but claiming, "You’re lucky I didn’t call to see that flop" after the hand.

It's all about the drinking, some guests smoking, and constant chatting, with players almost always forgetting the action is on them. Poker takes a back seat, and people only really pay attention when someone exclaims, "Oh, we’ve got a hand here!" surprised to see $20+ in the pot. For a brief moment, it’s like the WSOP—intense, silent, and captivating—but then it quickly returns to socializing and joking around, with shade thrown at the loser or winner.

We’re all close friends, so it usually turns into a contest of who can make the funniest foul comment to get everyone laughing—either about the current loser/winner or even a memorable defeat from earlier in the evening. There’s plenty of inappropriate name-calling and reminiscing about dumb things we did together in childhood. It’s a fun evening where we constantly get sidetracked and have to remind ourselves, "Oh yeah, we’re also playing poker." Everyone is grateful I twisted their arms to come to a fun evening that’s cheaper than going out (though they'll forget this by the time I send the next invitation).
 
ItsAlwaysLupus said:
Match the stack means that if someone rebuys or adds on they could do so up to the biggest stack at the table.
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I see, thanks for the clarification.

TheRealTeddyKGB said:
You really should join us on a Thursday sometime!! You already know @triton
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It is on my mind. I currently have a game that I play in on Thursday, but if it does not happen then I will hit you up.

sup_squidy said:
My home game is $.25/$.25 with a $25 buy-in for 100bb, up to a $50 buy-in for the max of 200bb. I think this setup works best for my group to balance sustainability, the social aspect, and fun. The vibe is casual—people show up late to a catered and stocked-bar game like it's an inconvenience to their otherwise uneventful Saturday night. The action typically involves limping to see family pots, followed by groans when there's a raise, with everyone folding their rags but claiming, "You’re lucky I didn’t call to see that flop" after the hand.

It's all about the drinking, some guests smoking, and constant chatting, with players almost always forgetting the action is on them. Poker takes a back seat, and people only really pay attention when someone exclaims, "Oh, we’ve got a hand here!" surprised to see $20+ in the pot. For a brief moment, it’s like the WSOP—intense, silent, and captivating—but then it quickly returns to socializing and joking around, with shade thrown at the loser or winner.

We’re all close friends, so it usually turns into a contest of who can make the funniest foul comment to get everyone laughing—either about the current loser/winner or even a memorable defeat from earlier in the evening. There’s plenty of inappropriate name-calling and reminiscing about dumb things we did together in childhood. It’s a fun evening where we constantly get sidetracked and have to remind ourselves, "Oh yeah, we’re also playing poker." Everyone is grateful I twisted their arms to come to a fun evening that’s cheaper than going out (though they'll forget this by the time I send the next invitation).
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I like this. I wish my game was a little more chill. I wouldn't mind a little limping. Limpin is pimpin.
 
Had my first home game in forever last week and we had a blast! I was thinking it would be similar to the OP’s plan but played out a bit more live:) $25 buy-in .5/.10 blinds all Hold’em we ended up with 6 players (one late addition) and I think 7 rebuys! Room felt great and really looking forward to a chip upgrade, particularly now that I know I have a good group of regulars.
IMG_0094.jpeg
 
JerSaint22 said:
Had my first home game in forever last week and we had a blast! I was thinking it would be similar to the OP’s plan but played out a bit more live:) $25 buy-in .5/.10 blinds all Hold’em we ended up with 6 players (one late addition) and I think 7 rebuys! Room felt great and really looking forward to a chip upgrade, particularly now that I know I have a good group of regulars. View attachment 1401087
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I miss my saltwater reef : (
 
JerSaint22 said:
Had my first home game in forever last week and we had a blast! I was thinking it would be similar to the OP’s plan but played out a bit more live:) $25 buy-in .5/.10 blinds all Hold’em we ended up with 6 players (one late addition) and I think 7 rebuys! Room felt great and really looking forward to a chip upgrade, particularly now that I know I have a good group of regulars. View attachment 1401087
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Great to hear! Love those splashy stakes, good to start a game that way. Looks fun, keep it up. Apologize to your wallet now, gonna be rough.
 
JerSaint22 said:
Had my first home game in forever last week and we had a blast! I was thinking it would be similar to the OP’s plan but played out a bit more live:) $25 buy-in .5/.10 blinds all Hold’em we ended up with 6 players (one late addition) and I think 7 rebuys! Room felt great and really looking forward to a chip upgrade, particularly now that I know I have a good group of regulars. View attachment 1401087
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Nice, glad your game went well.

A chip upgrade ... and a nice bright custom topper for your table? You know you want to ;)
 
This happened once at my game so it's rare, but it was a specific group also. Mostly family from my in laws side. They like to gamble. $25-$40 buyins. I kept running back and forth to the vault to get more chips. I rebought twice, out for $0. Towards the end they were selling casino cash-out tickets to each other for more cash. You read that right. They would immediately turn over the cash to me and get back into the melee. And I'm sure that they were rat-holing if they bought chips from each other with those tickets. I couldn't see everything.

This was the first time more than $1000 hit the table in any of my games. I recall about $1200. Usually a healthy bank for my game is about $400 total. Actual low stakes casual games could be only $200 with $25 buyins.
 
I try to go for a casino-lite (very much lite) atmosphere in terms of having a little rigidity and professionalism as much as a random person's house can have. The local casinos around here are really terribly managed so people enjoy being able to get a taste of "serious" play/gaming without dealing with all the bad parts.
 
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After action report from tonights game.
In for $50 and out for $75.
It was a good game tonight and more reasonable play.
My group email was well received and we all agreed that last week was just a little too wild with the jamfest.
 
merkong said:
We all hate each other. But I’m most hated.
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Lol

Our vibe is social, strategic poker. Many conversations based on the fact that it’s a tight group that see each other on the regular. We involve any auditions in the chatter. Eating and music. Best game I’ve ever played in or managed.

No pooping. This isn’t a wayside rest.
 
The vibe of my game (which, you will recall, was mothballed for several years) is as chill as one would expect when you get 5-8 Deadheads in the room with a few "civilians". Deadheads speak their own language, and its fun watching the outsiders try to figure it out. And the music... hell, most of us have been trying to figure out the Grateful Dead for decades. If you can easily describe them, and what they are trying to accomplish, odds are you don't like them. lol.

As @merkong said above: My game is also quite social. But, the play is pretty sharp. We follow TDA rules at my house, when it comes to gameplay... not the "cell phone rules". We get a lot of newbies, both to our game and to the game, and we have our share of "its your turn to act" reminders... but not just with the newbies. Deadheads, it seems, can lack attention at times.

I have found that finding players for my game is quite easy... but finding a fit for our game, not so much. Some folks I can tell after night 1 that they will never return... others are texting me on their way home thanking me for a great night out. Free food, free booze, free anything... it will NOT make a person who thinks your games suck like it anymore... but the regulars, they will appreciate that if they show up hungry, or get the munchies, that you have looked out for them.

Also, how you notify people can be an issue too. Some folks are using a group text... I refuse to do that. Why? Its freaking annoying. Then, of course, there is the "Society Killer"... oh, sorry, I meant 'Social Media'. Everyone is on a different social media. Me... I use good old fashioned email, and I "BCC" the recipients so no one can "reply to all" and make it annoying like a group text.

I switch my tournaments up as much as I can... buy ins, starting stacks, blind levels, bounties, re-buys... shake it up. You will see what is the most popular with your group and can pivot to please them. Important: People change, be open to changing with them to keep your game (as long as it doesn't cross a red line for you... you are, the host), you may need to raise or lower stakes, based on the group mind. You may see that one of your nights is more fun than the others... so, pivot.

My group of Deadheads wants to have a "MicroDose" night, and as much fun and absolute mayhem that I forsee with that, I would have to imagine the civilians will not be too hip on trying that type of tournament... and they will likely get very agitated with the silly giggles and grins.
 
Depending on the friend group(s) that show up:

1. Friend group one likes to limp/call to showdown and gets upset when people play aggressively. It's not about poker it's about having a good time and hanging out with friends. Lots of drinking and smoking, and no one is particularly good at cards or likes to gamble anything over $5 because it makes them uncomfortable.

2. Friend group two has been playing poker for 10+ years and likes to play aggressively, play deep, and think about hands, but also loves to gamble a decent chunk of change on cee-lo, street craps, and side games. They still love to hang out with the guys and have a good time but they take the game a little more seriously and have deeper pockets (ie. play power poker and are not afraid of losing buy-ins when they're getting it in good)

We usually get a blend of the groups on any given night. I would consider myself in the "friend group two" category.

It's tough to balance a game where some people want to play super deep and play power poker while some want to limp along and see who has the best hand at showdown.

We play .25/.25 so for the longevity of the game, I limit buy-ins to 200BBs max and that helps keep everyone happy :) we used to play 400BB max then match the stack and that got wayyyy out of hand I think I might have lost a lot of people if I didn't change the max buy-ins.

The vibe is really determined by how many of each group show up to play, expect little action but a good time with the lads for group 1, expect to be put to the test and gamble with group 2. half and half gives you the best of both worlds.
 
mooncereal said:
Depending on the friend group(s) that show up:

1. Friend group one likes to limp/call to showdown and gets upset when people play aggressively. It's not about poker it's about having a good time and hanging out with friends. Lots of drinking and smoking, and no one is particularly good at cards or likes to gamble anything over $5 because it makes them uncomfortable.

2. Friend group two has been playing poker for 10+ years and likes to play aggressively, play deep, and think about hands, but also loves to gamble a decent chunk of change on cee-lo, street craps, and side games. They still love to hang out with the guys and have a good time but they take the game a little more seriously and have deeper pockets (ie. play power poker and are not afraid of losing buy-ins when they're getting it in good)

We usually get a blend of the groups on any given night. I would consider myself in the "friend group two" category.

It's tough to balance a game where some people want to play super deep and play power poker while some want to limp along and see who has the best hand at showdown.

We play .25/.25 so for the longevity of the game, I limit buy-ins to 200BBs max and that helps keep everyone happy :) we used to play 400BB max then match the stack and that got wayyyy out of hand I think I might have lost a lot of people if I didn't change the max buy-ins.

The vibe is really determined by how many of each group show up to play, expect little action but a good time with the lads for group 1, expect to be put to the test and gamble with group 2. half and half gives you the best of both worlds.
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Friend group 1 will likely disappear over time - many of us have been through this type of transition.
 
MrCatPants said:
Friend group 1 will likely disappear over time - many of us have been through this type of transition.
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You know what, I could see that. Honestly, I wouldn't mind it so much. I don't like having to remind people when it's their turn or tell people not to hit a weed vape at the poker table haha
 
gnasher said:
At my home games we do a £25 buy in and play 0.25/0.25
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We do this at my home game. None of my friends (including me) know what the hell they are doing so it turns into a jamfest pretty quickly. I have noticed that match the stack while keeping the blinds at .25/.25 improves the overall quality of the game. 10x preflop raises are getting called by 3-4 opponents but you still have enough stack behind to actually make moves post flop

Its kind of a balance between keeping the game small so that its friendly and making sure there is enough money involved for people to care about protecting their stack.
 
JerSaint22 said:
Had my first home game in forever last week and we had a blast! I was thinking it would be similar to the OP’s plan but played out a bit more live:) $25 buy-in .5/.10 blinds all Hold’em we ended up with 6 players (one late addition) and I think 7 rebuys! Room felt great and really looking forward to a chip upgrade, particularly now that I know I have a good group of regulars. View attachment 1401087
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This is a dream set up. Once you get some nice chips and some drinks in that fridge itll be home game heaven lol
 
I am changing up my game this week to 8 players max. I am also adding a small dose of derailment, Scarney and bomb pots.
 
I enjoy hosting games in my garage. Tried to create a fun vibe, theme, and aesthetic for the players. Free coffee, soda, water, fridge beers, and they can have at my bourbon. My labrador retriever loves to linger when we play and also doubles as the game's bad beat support animal. It's a wonderful group of poker friends and most are pretty sharp players and on the ball with passing the deal and game flow. We usually mix it up between 1/1 NL, 1/1 Pineapple, 1/1 PLO with 5 dollar bring-in, and some bomb pots. Originally it was .50/1 but they didn't want to fumble around with fracs :(. I've thought about collecting 5 or 10 bucks from every player before we start to pay out a high hand for the night as well. I'm going to pitch that idea for the next game. Generally, play from 7pm to 1am. It's a low stakes game but definitely has some pot skirmishes where it plays much bigger, enough action to appetize them all, and sure as hell offers a nice break from the tilting annoyances you'll experience in our local casino's card room (Rivers Portsmouth).

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My home game has just the right vibe and is a resounding success. The biggest factors that I feel have contributed to our game's culture are:
  • The balanced crowd that I invite.
  • Having strict caps in place to keep the game from getting out of control.
  • Investing a little extra in the table, chips and cards to give a near casino experience.
  • Having a clean and comfortable setting to play in.
  • Emphasizing that the game is a social event as opposed to a poker/ gambling event.
That doesn't mean we don't play serious poker, but rather that winning or losing isn't what is most important at the game.

A couple of other factors that I don't think are entirely necessary, but have helped:
  • Having a dedicated dealer to speed things up, even if they are a player dealer.
  • Buying a tray of chick fil a nuggets as a snack for everyone.
  • Mandating a break about half way through the session for us to chat and eat nugs.
  • Not hosting the game too often. About every 3 weeks has been right for us.
  • Staying away from side games such as the 7-2 or nit game that change play dynamics (this one might be controversial to some). Instead we...
  • Have a double board NLHE bomb pot at the top of every hour to spice things up.

Our game has been going for nearly two years now with the same group of folks so I'd say we've got something figured out.
 

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