5th Street Tournament of Champions Rules

Table of Contents

Qualifying for the TOC Championship Game

Types of Qualifier Games

Standard qualifier tournament

Two table tournament qualifier

Championship Qualifier Game

Championship Game Starting Stacks

Points

Entry into Qualifier Tournament Games

Qualifier Tournament Game Rules

Dispute Resolution

Blind Schedule

Housekeeping/Etiquette

Change Log

Tournament of Champions (TOC) Game

• Each year a Tournament of Champions series will be held. This will be a 1 table tournament that players must qualify to play.

*** If necessary due to multi game winners this tournament can be a two table tournament****

• The tournament will be a freeze out (no rebuys).
• Levels will be 20 minutes  
• There will be no special house modifiers like freeze out chips or show me chips (explained later)
• The winner of the tournament will be crowned as the TOC Champion, they will receive a ring commemorating their win and will receive 1 win that counts towards their qualification for next year's tournament.
• There is no buy in to play in this game
• $120 is pulled from all qualifying games to contribute to the pot for the championship game.
• Payouts for the Championship game will be

• 1st - 60% of the pot
• 2nd - 25% of the pot
• 3rd - 15% of the pot

• Money to cover the cost of food and the championship ring will be pulled from the pot prior to final payouts.

Qualifying for the TOC Championship Game

• 2 Qualifying tournaments a month will be held.

• Unless there are extenuating circumstances the games will be held on the 1st and 3rd Friday of the month.
• Games will start at 6:00pm CDT

• Qualifier tournaments will occur from January through November, consisting of 22 total games.

• 6 of the Qualifying tournaments will be 2-table tournaments.
• A two table tournament will be played in the following months

• January
• March
• May
• July
• September
• November

• The final qualifying tournament of the year will be a two table tournament.

• Players that win at least 3 qualifier tournaments will bypass the Championship qualifier game and automatically have a seat at the final Championship game
• A two table game will count as two wins toward qualification for the Championship game

Types of Qualifier Games

Standard qualifier tournament

• A one table tournament with up to 10 players.
• Qualifier Tournament Game Rules Apply

Two table tournament qualifier

• For a two table tournament to make, there must be at least 16 players.  If we have 15 or less players the game will only count as a single table tournament
• Qualifier Tournament Game rules will apply with the following modifications

• A win of a two table game will count as two wins

• Tables above two will follow the same rules as a two table tournament qualifier

Championship Qualifier Game

• Every player that is not already in the Championship Game and has points will have the ability to play this game.
• Entry into the qualifier game is $200

• If a player has at least 1 win they will receive a free entry into this game
• The entry fee for this tournament is reduced by $10 for every point a player has.

• Example:  Player A has accumulated 9 points throughout the year.  Their entry fee would be ($200 - $10x9)  $110.

• If the money collected for this tournament is at least $500.  $120 dollars will be pulled and put towards the Championship game.  
• Prize money will be distributed as follows:

• 1st - 60%
• 2nd - 25%
• 3rd - 15%

• Starting stacks will be:

• 30,000 for anyone with no wins
• 45,000 for players with one win
• 60,000 for players with two wins

• 20 minute levels
• The winner of this game will get an additional win added to their season total to count towards their starting stack totals for the championship game.
• The Championship qualifier will function as a satellite into the Championship game.

• If the Championship game has 5 seats open, the final 5 players from the Championship qualifier game will advance.  If 3 seats are open, 3 players will advance.  

Championship Game Starting Stacks

• 30,000 in chips is the default starting stack for any player that enters the game from the Championship qualifier game.
• Each win a player has will add an additional 15,000 chips to their starting stack.  The following table shows the starting stacks based on wins.

• A player will earn an additional 15,000 chips to their starting stack for each subsequent win.  There is no cap on the number of wins that will contribute to the championship game starting stack.

Points

• Players earn points during the qualifier tournaments.

• Single Table

• 1st - 10 points
• 2nd - 6 points
• 3rd - 3 points
• 4th - 1 point

• Two Table

• 1st - 15 points
• 2nd - 9 points
• 3rd - 5 points
• 4th - 2 points

• Points are tracked here: Tournament Tracker 

Entry into Qualifier Tournament Games

• On the Wednesday a week and half before the tournament, Rene will post in the 5th Street Whatsapp group opening the tournament for entries.  Players can claim their seat on a first come first serve basis until all seats are filled.

• Posting will typically happen between 12pm - 5pm CDT.  This can change at Rene’s discretion.

• The winner of the previous Qualifier Tournament Game will have a reserved seat into next game.

• If they play the next game they will have a 5,000 chip bounty on their head.  The first player to knock them out will receive the bounty and have the chips immediately added to their stack.  

• If a player with a bounty on their head surrenders their stack or adds on to their stack it does not trigger the award of a bounty.  To win a bounty a player must win all of the chips from the player with the bounty on their head.
• The second or third knockouts will not receive bounties should those scenarios occur.

• For single table tournaments we will track only the first 10 entries plus 5 alternates.

• If we exhaust all 5 alternates and need additional seats filled, Rene or Bill will reopen the game for entry and operate on a first come first serve basis for people that claim a seat from that point forward.

• Should we have one or more of the first 5 alternates that do not make it into the game, the first alternate will be guaranteed entry into the next tournament.  
• If a player cancels from a tournament less than 48 hours prior to the game they will receive a 1 warning.  Should they cancel for another tournament less than 48 hours prior to the game they will receive a penalty.  The penalty consists of them being added as the first alternate for the next single table tournament they request to play where they are part of the first 10 to claim a seat.

• For example: They are the third person to respond after tournament registration is opened.  They will become the 1st alternate for that tournament.
• They will not receive the automatic entry into the following tournament.
• If they are not part of the first 10 to claim a seat and they make a tournament as an alternate, they can play the tournament with the penalty carrying forward.
• A player may buy out their penalty for $80.  The $80 goes to the card room for purchasing chips, cards, christmas party, and other amenities for the group.
• The purpose of this penalty is to ensure players give alternates sufficient notice to play.
• No exceptions will be made for this penalty regardless of reason.

Qualifier Tournament Game Rules

• Buy in is $120
• Rebuy is $120
• $120 will be pulled from the pot and be held for the Championship Game.  $240 will be pulled from two table tournaments.
• The house host of the game will pay $60 for their first buy in
• The dealer will pay $60 for their first buy in

• In a two table tournament this applies to both dealers

• Starting stack is 30,000
• Rebuy stack is 30,000

• A rebuy can be made when a player is at or below 5,000 in chips
• If a player has above 5,000 in chips they can surrender their chips and rebuy.

• Levels are 20 minutes
• A player can rebuy up to two times at any time before level 11 starts
• Cash must be provided for your buy in and rebuy
• Top 3 positions payout. 1st is 60%, 2nd is 25%, 3rd is 15%
• Deals can be discussed once we get to the final three players. Only players still in the tournament can participate in the deal discussion.

• Time for discussing a deal is capped at 3 minutes to prevent excessive discussion.
• Each player can propose a deal once per level.

• For example, a deal is discussed on level 13 and declined.  Another deal discussion cannot occur until level 14.

• The clock will continue to run during a deal discussion
• Once a player calls no deal, play resumes.

• A player can only accumulate 2 wins from deals.  This means that to make it automatically into the Championship game and bypass the qualifier you must win at least 1 tournament without a deal.

• If you have more than 2 wins from deals, your win total from deals will be reduced to 2 when calculating final table chips and qualifier spots.

• House rules modifications

• A bonus 6,000 chips can be earned if a player participates in the optional 4 shots in 4 rounds player bonus. If the player drinks the 4 house selected shots before the end of the 4th round they will be provided with the bonus chips.
• We will not allow a second round of 4 shots for chips even if the players vote in favor of the second round.
• Each player is provided with one show me chip.

• A show me chip can be used by any player to force the winning player of a hand to show them their hand.

• Only the player who tossed in their show me chip can see the hand.
• They are not allowed to reveal what the hand was.

• If they do reveal what the hand was, they will receive a 1 round penalty.  The 1 round penalty means they must vacate their seat and fold all hands for 1 round.

• Multiple people can use their show me chip on the same hand.  The dealer will facilitate making sure they see the cards privately.

• The chip can be used whether the person is in the hand or not.
• The chip can be used whether the person is still in the tournament or not.
• A show me chip cannot be transferred to another player.

• The winner of a qualifier game must bring a bottle of liquor to contribute to the poker room the next time they come to play.  

• If the winner does not bring a bottle the next time they come to play they will receive a 5,000 chip penalty.

• They will continue to receive a 5,000 chip penalty for every tournament they play until they bring a bottle.

• If at least 4 players at the next tournament when a bottle is brought vote the bottle to be crap, that player will be required to only take shots or drinks from that bottle until it is finished.  No other liquor in the room can be consumed until their bottle is finished.

• Players that buyin before the official start of the tournament will receive an early registration bonus of 2,000 chips.
• New players are required to bring a bottle to contribute to the club.
• If a player brings a bottle worth $50 or more in addition to any required bottle (winners bottle, new player bottle), they will receive an extra 5,000 in chips for their starting stack.

• This can only be done once per tournament.

• Other than house modifications we will follow official TDA poker rules.

Dispute Resolution

• The dealer will make rulings based on TDA rules which can be found here: TDA Rules
• If there is a dispute of a ruling, Bill will make the final decision.  

• In Bill’s absence Rene will make the final ruling.

Camera Reviews

• For tournaments hosted at 5th street, a camera has been installed and is setup to record the games in progress.  
• Content of the video will not be shared with players or posted publicly without consent from all players on the video.
• A camera review can be requested by a player if there is a dispute on how the action is played out, chip counts are in questions, or an improper payout is thought to have occurred.  
• It is at the discretion of the dealer, Bill, and Rene to determine if the hand should in fact be reviewed.
• Only Bill or Rene will perform the review and rulings will be made in accordance with TDA rules.
• If the hand in question is deemed to be inconsequential to the tournament, it will not be reviewed.

• For example, there is only 1,000 in chips in the pot and all players have ~30,000 chips.

Blind Schedule

Housekeeping/Etiquette

• Do not treat other players poorly, you will be asked to leave and not return
• One player per hand, do not comment on the cards that have been dealt, what you folded, or what you think a person has.  This can give information to a player they may not have previously had and unfairly influence their play.

• No smoking inside the poker room
• Please place cigars and cigarettes inside the discard bucket.  Players are leaving these all over the yard and driveway, please pickup after yourself.
• At the end of the night, please place your glasses in the sink.
• One of the biggest requests is that we try to finish the games earlier, the biggest impediment to an earlier finish is players not being at their seats when cards are dealt or players not paying attention to the game and taking 30s to a minute to realize it is their turn to act on every round.  This easily adds 30 minutes to an hour of dead time every time we play.  Please make every attempt to pay attention to the action and keep the game moving.  We will be enforcing the rule that you need to be within arms length of your seat before the final card is dealt or if you have an active hand.  We will also be instituting a 30 second immediate clock call for players that are not paying attention and need to be repeatedly reminded it is their turn to act.  It is up to the dealer's digression on when to implement the immediate clock.
• Please try to not park directly across from a driveway.  We’ve had multiple cars hit by residents and guests backing out of driveways.  Avoiding these spaces will help prevent your car from being hit.

Change Log

2025

• Increased rebuys from one to two
• Added an early entry bonus of 2,000
• Added a bring an extra bottle bonus for 5,000
• Added a bad bottle clause
• Changed qualification for automatic entry into the championship game from 2 games to 3 games
• Changed a win at a two table tournament back to counting as 2 wins
• Put in clauses around deals, only the players still in can debate and only one deal can be discussed per level
• Only 2 wins can be accumulated from deals
• Added guidance around camera reviews
• Changed the bonus structure associated with wins
• Updated the penalty clause for late cancelations
• Updated the guaranteed seat rule for alternates to account for 1 player not 3
• Included guidance around how requests to play will be handled should the 5 alternates be exhausted
• Limited new players being added to games before a table opens so it can only happen on two table tournaments
• Implemented a set schedule of 6 two table tournaments, no more will be allowed.
• Added a 5,000 chip bounty on the head of the previous tournament winner
• Updated the point structure for two table tournaments
• Updated the buyins for the qualifier game
• Changed the rules on the qualifier game so only $120 goes towards the championship

2024

• Starting stack will be 30,000 and rebuy stack will be 30,000
• Rebuys can happen when at or below 5,000
• 4 shots will provide 6,000 in chips
• Championship starting stack is 30,000
• Additional wins contribute 15,000 to a players starting stack
• 2 table winner no longer gets an auto entry into the championship game.
• 2 table winner counts as 1 tournament win but results in an additional 15k to their starting stack to the qualifier game if they play it, if they bypass the qualifier they will have the 15k added to their starting stack for the championship game
• Added a blind schedule including a big blind ante
• Winning the previous years TOC counts as a single tournament win and gets you into the qualifier not the championship game
• Added a housekeeping/etiquette section
• Updating start time to 6:00pm