Thanks to the popularity of online poker games and they hype given by the media to the Texas Holdem poker game through the television broadcasts of the World Poker Tour and through the latest James Bond movie Casino Royale, poker games are now played for fun in households rather than in smoky back rooms where they used to be relegated. There is no longer any need for you to go to Las Vegas just to enjoy a few rounds of Texas Holdem. You can simply round up your friends and host your very own Texas Holdem card party.

Preparing for Your Card Party

Informal as a card party usually is, a little preparation will go a long way to make sure that your card party will not be a bust. One big detail that you must attend to is to check if it is legal in your city to play poker games. No one wants to start a card party only to end it with the guests spending the night in jail. Before you even think of planning for your card party, make sure that the cops will not crash it right in the middle of the action.

If hosting a card party where poker games will be played is not illegal in your city, then you can proceed with planning your card party. What you would need for your card party are decks of cards, playing chips and a dealer’s button.

Figure out how many people would be going to your card party. From that information, determine how many tables you would need to set up at your place. If there are less than eight people showing up at your card party, then just one table will do. If there are more than eight people coming, then set up two or more tables. You will need to provide around four decks of cards for each table.

As for the playing chips, just having a sufficient number of them around will do. Buy chips in five different colors so you can easily assign them to different denominations without causing any confusion. Even if you are not playing for real money (and you certainly do not have to play for real money in your card party), having playing chips around will be helpful in determining who is winning and who is losing. You do not have to buy real casino chips if you think they are too expensive for you. Just get some cheap plastic chips in different colors.

A dealer’s button can also be a nice prop for your poker games, but it is not necessary for you to buy one either. You can just bring out some items or tokens that you can arbitrarily assign as dealer buttons – like the lid of a small plastic jar.

Kicking Off Your Card Party

It is highly likely that the guests who will show up at your card party may have little to no experience with playing Texas Holdem poker games and have come to your card party to try it out. In this case, it will be up to you as the host to make sure that these guests will not feel left out and still enjoy themselves even if they are not that knowledgeable with Texas Holdem.

You can gather these newbie guests around you and explain to them how the Texas Holdem poker game is played. You can elaborate on the finer points of the Texas Holdem and tell them how Texas Holdem is different from other poker game variants. Better yet, get a few of your guests together, those who know their way around the Texas Holdem and do a demonstration poker game. A demonstration game will help your newbie guests get a feel of how Texas Holdem is played.

Entertaining Your Guests at Your Card Party

Of course the poker games themselves will keep your guests entertained way into the night, but you have to provide refreshments as well. What kind of host does not prepare refreshments to his or her own party, and what is a party without some food and drink?

Because the highlight of your card party is the Texas Holdem poker game, it would be a great idea to push a Texas theme into your card party. It does not have to be an all-out Texan cookout. Simple dishes, preferably those that can be eaten with just the hands, will do. Chicken and beef barbecue as well as some steak sandwiches will do just fine. For drinks, stock your fridge with some authentic Texan beer. If you are expecting guests who do not take in alcohol, better have some Texan ice tea waiting for them.

Set up a separate table for guests who would want to eat or take a break from the poker game. You can allow your guests to bring their food to the poker table, but your other guests may find it bothersome to have food around while playing, so setting up a separate table is good.

It does not take a lot of work to plan and prepare a Texas Holdem card party, and you certainly do not have to have a big bankroll to enjoy the game. The important thing is that you and your guests would have a fun-filled night playing poker games.