As lots of our poker experiences have grown to incorporate casinos and dedicated poker rooms, so, too, have our expectations grown for our own personal poker environment.
In the old days, poker was played on anything, anywhere. I've played on kitchen tables, an ottoman, a park bench, a counter in a diner, and the back seat of my car. I've even played right at the ground, outside, with three guys huddled around in a circle during a snowstorm. (We were waiting to be picked up from college — dealing was hard with gloves on.)
Things have changed. Today after we visit home games, we frequently expect to play at an actual, dedicated poker table. Listed below are some thoughts about easy methods to acquire the correct poker table for you — and what to budget.
The Poker Table: Differing kinds for various Budgets
Just as players can play poker at whatever stakes they prefer, poker tables exist for each budget imaginable.
You can purchase something as cheap as a folding table top so one can fit on top of any existing table — they arrive new for as low as $40-$70. You too can get them more cheaply by trying out used ones on eBay or Craigslist.
Poker is a type of hobbies that attract people's interest for a short lived period of time, and when that interest fades, they still have tables, chip sets, cards, and so forth. In the event that they can recover any of the cash they lost playing poker by selling any of those poker-related items, they suspect of it as a godsend. So expect great deals in used equipment. (Sometimes people even give them away.)
One step up from the table top is a real table that folds up. On the lowest end of the size there are some cheaply made ones (usually from China) you could get for roughly $150. But these look really cheap, with the fold marks completely visible even if the stiff cardboard table is fully open. There's often also some warp within the table and unsteadiness within the thin, cheaply attached folding legs.
Better could be a wooden eight-sided poker table, with folding legs, a vinyl or felt table top, surrounded by an "apron" with cup holders. This kind of table is, I think, the minimum quality for any regular poker game not being run by a highschool or college student. I PURCHASED mine in 1994 for $150 or so, and after two-plus decades of frequent use it's still perfectly serviceable. You'll be able to find them in specialty stores and online for around $200.
One downside to this table is that it really doesn't accommodate the nine or ten players you'd want for a casino-like full ring hold'em game or tournament. That has rarely bothered me, because I had an ordinary group who liked to play stud and draw, which meant the sport rarely topped eight players. But when you need what you notice in a casino, you will have to go along with the oval table.
The best rule of thumb that I WILL BE ABLE TO apply is that after it involves poker tables, you are inclined to get what you pay for. The most cost effective oval tables are what I described earlier, and will be purchased for approximately $150. One step up are firmer but still pretty cheap-looking tables for $275 to $350.
The table that I LIKE TO RECOMMEND as an enduring addition for your poker site starts at about $500-$600. These have firm, flat, and level wooden bases, nice felt, a vinyl- or leather-trimmed cushion, and solidly applied, sturdy folding legs underneath. You too can add features that make the table even nicer, dependent on your tastes, including built-in cup holders, a cutout space for a dealer and chip tray, and custom felt and felt designs.
I had my table made by a neighborhood pub league company that still makes home-use tables. With the entire bells and whistles, including delivery and a money-back guarantee, mine cost about $700 a few years ago. It gave the impression of so much on the time, but when you work it'll last you for plenty of hundreds of poker sessions, it involves just a few bucks a game. In my opinion, it's really worth it.
The Poker Table: Covering the Bases
The next item to think about is the bottom. Are you on the lookout for something that may be moved out and in of a room — and even to someone else's house once in a while? If so, then you definately want folding legs. At the other hand, if in case you have a dedicated den or poker site and plan to make the poker table an everlasting fixture, then you definitely should get the pedestal base. It's nicer, sturdier, and makes the table look more impressive and imposing. This latter option will probably run you another $100-$200 or so.
There are many dearer options to boot. Once your table is viewed as an everlasting piece of furniture, the sky's the limit, as every kind of woods, finishes, and handcrafted designs come into play. Some can double as an attractive dining room table, by either adding an optional cover that serves as a table top. One model even has a swiveling table top — a dining table on one side and the opposite an eight-segmented poker table, complete with a depression for chips and a cup holder. Those sorts of table will cost you between $700 and $2,000.
Of course, you'll be able to spend much more for a table besides. You'll log on and find absolutely beautiful poker tables for $5,000 and up. I've even seen one who is encrusted with jewels and sells for $20,000.
One other consideration that no person envisioned until recently is whether or not you should think about using your table for taping a poker show. There at the moment are tables built with card cameras, electric hook-ups, or even phone-charging stations. As you could imagine, these options aren't inexpensive. You'll have a table with them for a couple of thousand.
Finally, for those of you who're even slightly handy, it is advisable to consider buying some plans for a table after which building it yourself. The materials are quite simple and cheap. I've spoken to many of us who say that it really is not difficult to chop the wood, add the felt, placed on the froth filled apron including cup holders, after which attach the legs. They said it took them only about four hours (not counting the time to let dry the adhesive used for the felt and cushions), with the full cost for materials only about $85. Plans can be found for purchase for $45 or so — and also you get to construct it exactly as you need it.
The Poker Table: Other Considerations
There are a couple of other considerations when searching for a poker table. For one, it's important to take into accounts where you will put it. Ideally, you should be sure you hadhaveroom for some nicely padded, reclining, wheeled, and adjustable poker chairs and small tables for food and drinks.
You also intend to make sure that there's excellent lighting. I LIKE TO RECOMMEND track lighting that provides you the power to transport high intensity lights across the ceiling to house different tables you will have within the room at different times. I actually have a nice central light fixture to light up all of the room and to eliminate a number of the shadows that top intensity lights can cast.
To complete the room, make certain there's good temperature control, a lot of places for individuals to plug of their phones and other electronic devices, perhaps a refrigerator with a freezer for beverages and ice, a microwave for heating up food, and an entire liquor cabinet. You'll also have the desire to make sure you've got some televisions mounted at the walls for the players who have to be distracted in between hands.
Put all of it together, and you have got a really perfect poker room.
Ashley Adams have been playing poker for fifty years and writing about it since 2000. He's the writer of hundreds of articles and two books, Winning 7-Card Stud (Kensington 2003) and Winning No-Limit Hold'em (Lighthouse 2012). He's also the host of poker radio show House of Cards. See www.houseofcardsradio.com for broadcast times, stations, and podcasts.
Photo: Poker Table, slgckgc, CC BY-2.0.
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