Make a Night of it!

Play Poker LIVE in a club near you!

Rileys have equipped over 130 clubs with full Poker Facilities - another opportunity to have some fun with old friends or to make some new ones!

You will find our friendly, trained Tournament Directors are able to offer LIVE POKER TOURNAMENTS to suit every kind of player, from beginners to the more experienced. With branded chips and tables, comfortable seating and a great atmosphere, Rileys poker players can enjoy a fun and friendly poker game. It´s just like you´re playing with friends at home... but with the added benefit of a fully licensed bar, helpful staff and food available at all times!

Rileys clubs all over the country are holding fun and friendly Poker Tournaments every week. A full listing can be found by clicking here or alternatively, just give your local club a call.

Remember, you don´t have to be an expert! We operate varying tournament styles from FREE to enter Poker Schools to Re-Buys and Freeze Out's for the more experienced and you will always know someone there to help you learn to play better.

See you at the table!

Rileys are an active supporter of GamCare.

How to play Texas Hold'em - the basic rules

Introduction

In Texas Hold'em, each player is dealt two cards - the hole cards, which they keep secret from everyone else. Later In the game, five cards are dealt face up in the middle of the table. Each player can use their own two hole cards and those in the middle to make their best hand with five cards:

The hands in descending rank order:

1. The ultimate poker hand is the royal flush - Ace, King, Queen, Jack and ten - all of the same suit
2. The straight flush - five cards of the same suit in sequence (the ace counts as 1)
3. Four of a kind - four cards of the same rank, such as four jacks or four sevens and one other card. The higher the rank, the higher the hand
4. The full house - three of one rank and two of another e.g. three eights and two fives. The higher the set of three cards, the higher the hand
5. The flush - five cards of the same suit. The higher the cards, the higher the hand, starting with the highest ranking card
6. The straight - five cards in sequence. The higher the cards, the higher the hand, starting with the highest ranking card. The ace can be high - above the King, or low - below the two
7. Three of a kind - three cards of the same rank and two of different ranks. The higher the three of the same rank, the higher the hand, with the rank of the other two counting if the threes are the same
8. Two pairs - two cards of one rank and two cards of another, with one other card of a different rank. Ranked by the highest pair, then the other pair and then the fifth card
9. One pair - two cards of one rank and three of different ranks. Ranked by the pair followed by the next three cards in rank order
10. High card - any hand that is not one of the above i.e. five different, non-sequential cards of at least two different suits. Ranked by high card, then second highest etc
N.B. All suits are of equal ranking and are not used to decide the winner in the case of identical hands - the pot is split equally

Dealing

The person dealt to last becomes the next dealer and is identified with a dealer marker at their place on the table. After the hand is over, the marker should be passed left to the next dealer

Getting started

In order to move the game along and ensure a reasonable pot for each hand, there are two 'blinds' - players who bet before the any of the players see their cards - the hole cards. The blind players are the two immediately to the left of the dealer. The player on the left next to the dealer Is known as the 'small blind' - they make the first bid and the next player to the left, known as the 'big blind' makes the second bet. The big blind's bet is always the same as the minimum bet at the table - the small blind's bet is half the minimum bet

During play

After the blind players have bet, each player in turn moving left from the dealer can choose a play:

Betting - putting money in the pot
Calling - matching another players bets with the same amount
Folding - handing over their cards and taking no further part in this hand
Checking - doing nothing - this can only be done if no bet is in play
Raising - increasing another players bet
Re-raising - increasing another players raise

The first round - the pre-flop

Once the blind bets have been made, two cards are dealt to each player (the hole cards). Players then decide if they want to bet, starting with the player after the big blind - in the first round you must bet, call, raise or fold - you cannot check. All players who continue to the next round must put the same amount into the pot - if one player raises, the others must re-raise to continue - they can of course fold

The second round - the flop

The dealer now turns three cards face up on the table - the flop. These cards can be used by all players in combination with their hole cards, which are kept hidden

The remaining players now start the second round - the first player to the dealer's left starts. Players either bet/raise, call, fold or check. All remaining players must put the same amount into the pot or fold before the round has ended. These rules now apply to each successive round...

The third round - the turn

The dealer now turns face up the fourth card in the middle of the table, meaning that each player now has effectively six cards to play with. A further round of betting now takes place

Fourth round - the river

The dealer now turns face up the fifth and final card In the middle of the table. A further round of betting takes place

The showdown

Each player makes the best five card hand that they can with the five cards in the middle of the table and their two hole cards - this could mean just using the five cards upturned in the middle of the table - this is known as 'playing the board'. The remaining players now show their hands and the winner is determined. You do not have to show your cards if you don't want to, but you will not win unless you do and you have the best hand

Find your nearest club

Poker is coming to a Rileys near you. Over the coming year, we will be introducing Poker to many of our clubs. Search below for your nearest Rileys offering Poker.

King of Clubs II begins in January 2008

You wouldn’t believe how much time and effort it took to come up with a name for our new Poker tournament. We hired expensive consultants, burned the midnight oil and ran focus groups. It was a long and difficult process and good men and women were driven to drink, but at the end of it all we’re pretty pleased with what we came up with, and we know our members are going to get a kick out of taking part in our latest and greatest Poker tournament. So without further ado may we proudly present, King of Clubs II. Hey, it was worth the effort.

Ok, so maybe you don’t believe that, but you better believe we’ve really put the effort into coming up with an amazing tournament for you. There’s a £30,000 guaranteed prize fund at stake, with an amazing £10,000 first prize in our online invitational event at RileysPoker.com and as with our previous tournament, you’ll be able to play in club as well.

Here are the key things you need to know and a schedule of events for your calendar.

But wait, there’s more…

Normally there can only be one big winner in Poker, but we know Rileys Poker players are a sociable bunch, so we’re giving you the opportunity to represent your local club as a team and compete for the glory of being crowned the sharpest Poker team in the country. There’ll be a big shiny trophy, and we’ll even pay your travel costs to get to the final. Here’s what you need to know.

So watch out for further news here and at RileysLeague.com, the site with all the poker info. Look forward to seeing you at the table!