Edit Tournament Settings

Whether you are starting a Practice, Online, or Poker Clock tournament, you may modify the tournament settings to your liking by clicking the Edit button. The Edit Tournament window is divided into five tabs.


 

Description Tab



Tournament Name Define the name of your tournament.
Description Describe your tournament in as much detail as you wish.

Online Greeting Enter an (optional) greeting from the host to each player that joins. The variable $name will be replaced with the player's name. When you host a game, every time a player enters the poker lobby of your game, they will be sent a greeting pre-defined by you. The greeting will be further personalized to each player using their name. Example: Your greeting is "Hello $name, welcome to my game." When the player Dave joins your game, the chat message printed will display "Hello Dave, welcome to my game."
OK Click OK to save your tournament when you are finished. All tournament tabs will be saved. Note: The OK button is disabled when any entries are incorrect. For example: A big blind has a non-numeric value or the prize allocation does not add up to 100%. Incorrect tabs have a red exclamation mark in them. Incorrect entries can be found by looking for those with a light-red background.

When you are done editing and click OK, the game will Verify the structure of your blinds and may automatically change the values if the "rules" are violated. Note: You may verify the tournament structure before clicking OK with the Verify button. The rules it uses are as follows:

  • There must always be a small blind and a big blind if a level is defined.
  • Blank levels are eliminated. Example: If you define levels 1, 3 and 4, this will be converted to levels 1, 2 and 3.
  • The ante cannot be larger than the small blind and must be at least 5% of the small blind. This is done to ensure chip color-ups can occur at reasonable times. Example: It doesn't make sense to have a $3 ante with $10,000/$20,000 blinds.
  • The small blind cannot be larger than the big blind.
  • Blinds cannot be less than a prior level
  • Antes can drop to zero, then raise again as long as they are higher then previous antes.
  • Antes and blinds are rounded as follows:
    •  $1 to $100, rounded to nearest $1
    •  $101 to $500, rounded to nearest $5
    •  $501 to $1000, rounded to nearest $25
    •  $1001 to $10,000, rounded to nearest $100
    •  $10,001 to $100,000, rounded to nearest $1,000
    •  $100,001 to $1,000,000, rounded to nearest $10,000
    •  Over $1,000,000, rounded to nearest $100,000
  • Rounding is done to avoid blinds like $34,168 and to ensure chip color-ups can occur at reasonable times.
Reset Resets all the tournament settings to the values that existed when first opened the edit window.
Cancel Cancels all changes and returns to the previous menu.


Levels & Blinds Tab


Default Game This selection sets the poker game to be played when the Game column is set to "default". You may choose No Limit, Limit, or Pot Limit. See our Texas Hold'em section to learn about Limit, No Limit and Pot Limit.
Default minutes Specify how long levels last in the tournament. Hint: The pace of an online tournament moves quicker then a practice game simulating a tournament at an actual casino. Therefore the minutes should be decreased by at least half for an online tournament.

This is the time used for each level when entries in the Minutes column are left blank. You may override the default value for any level by typing a time in the Minutes column. The minimum is 1 minute and the maximum is 120 minutes (2 hours). The Hands per Hour preference on the options page is used to calculate how many hands are played during a level in practice.
Max Raises Sets the maximum number of raises used in a Limit Poker Game. (Limit only)
Ignore max raises when heads-up If this checkbox is checked, the maximum number of raises in limit games is ignored when only two players are left in the hand. This means players may continue raising as long as they desire and have chips. (Limit only)

Ante Enter the ante for the level. Most tournaments do not have an ante, and those that do, typically start at later levels.
Small Blind Enter the small blind for the level. Except in the first few levels of a tournament, the small blind is typically 1/2 to 2/3 the size of the big blind.
Big Blind Enter the big blind for the level.
Minutes Change how long the levels last from one level to the next. Although it is not common for a tournament to change the time from one level to the next.
Game Change the game type in mid-game from No Limit, Limit and Pot Limit. If default is left, the game displayed under Default Game will be played every level. It is not typical to use this option, although some tournaments begin with Limit, and end with No Limit.
Double Blinds Checkbox This checkbox dictates what happens if the tournament is still ongoing after the last defined level expires. If it is selected, the blinds and antes double every new level, starting with the last defined level. If this checkbox is not selected, the blinds and antes remain as defined in the last level.

Add Level Add a level below the highlighted level.
Add Break Add a timed break. Although only seen for a brief few seconds in practice mode, tournament formats with breaks will execute a timed break for online games and home tournaments using the Poker Clock. Note: A break will be assigned a level number.
Delete Delete the highlighted level.
Verify Run the logic to verify that the antes and blinds adhere to the DD Poker rules. See the OK button description above for the rules. By clicking the OK button, the verify check will automatically be run as you ok the tournament and exit the settings. The Verify button simply allows you to check your numbers without leaving the settings window.

Example: Doing so will remove blank levels and round antes/blinds as described in the description tab above.


Number of Players / Money & Prizes Tab


Number of Players
Number of Players Enter the number of players to play in the tournament. (maximum of 5625 players)
  • Online games can fill the table with AI opponents if enough human players are not available using the Fill With Computer Players option in the online tab.
  • The Host a Home Game tournament using the Poker Clock will use this number for the initial calculation of the prize pool.
Max Per Table Enter the maximum number of players at a table (2-10). This is useful for simulating short-handed or heads-up tournaments.

Buy-in The Buy-in, Rebuys and Add-ons area is where you define how much it costs to play in the tournament. These costs are used to track how much profit (or loss) you have in your tournament history.
 
Buy-in Specify the amount it costs to enter the tournament and the number of tournament chips with which you start. Some tournaments have a flat fee (like the $10,000 World Championship). Other tournaments charge a fee to cover the house costs. For example, a $100 + $10 tournament is a $100 buy-in plus a $10 fee. Enter $110 in the Buy-in field and account for the $10 house fee in the Prize Pool section. If the tournament you are emulating has a bonus chip purchase, add this into your buy-in amount also.

Rebuys
Rebuys If the tournament allows rebuys, check the Rebuys checkbox. Enter the rebuy cost and the number of chips it equals. Most tournaments only allow rebuys during the first part of a tournament (typically the first hour, and always corresponding to the end of a level). Enter the end of the level you wish to stop rebuys.

The maximum number of rebuys is specified here. Enter zero (0) if the number of rebuys are unlimited.

If a tournament has rebuys, you may enter the maximum value of chips the player may rebuy. Then set if the players chips can be less then the maximum chip value or less then or equal to the maximum chip value. Note: You can set the value to 999999 if there is no maximum chip value the player can have to rebuy. This is usually done when there is only 1 rebuy allowed.

Add-ons
Add-ons Some tournaments allow one more chip purchase at the end of a specified level. Add-ons are allowed regardless of your current chip count.

If the tournament allows add-ons, check the Add-on checkbox. Enter the add-on cost and the number of chips it equals. Also specify at the end of which level the add-on is allowed (typically this is the same as the end of the rebuy period).

Prize pool The Prize Pool and Prize Allocation area is where you define how the payouts are calculated.
 
Payouts
 You can specify one of 3 payout methods.
  • Prizes are paid to a fixed percentage of the number of players.
  • Prizes are paid to a fixed number of spots.
  • A Satellite Payout will pay as many spots as possible, each equal to the payout amount specified in the Prize Allocation section. Any money left over in the prize pool due to rebuys or add-ons is paid to the player on the "bubble".

    The maximum number of spots is limited to 33% of the players up to a maximum of 560 spots.
House Cut To pay for hosting a tournament, the card room either takes a percentage of the total buy-in (rebuys and add-ons) or charges a fixed fee as part of the buy-in. To accurately reflect the prize pool, you can specify those values here.

Prize Allocation
Prize Allocation There is no "official" algorithm for calculating prize payouts - there are many opinions on this topic in the poker community. DD Poker allows you to specify the payouts in three ways:

1. Donohoe Digital Automatic Algorithm - This algorithm automatically adjusts for changes to the number of players and payout spots. The algorithm is a close approximation to what you might see in major tournaments. It pays increasing multiples of the buy-in (starting at 1.5x and increasing by .5x) to tables outside of the final table. The final table is allocated using the "golden ratio" proportion derived from the Fibonacci sequence.

2. Percentage - With this option, you manually specify the percent of the prize pool each spot gets. The total percentage must equal 100%. This option is good for home tournaments because it is not impacted by a change in the number of players.

3. Fixed Amount - With this option, you specify a fixed dollar amount. The total amount must equal the prize pool. This is a good option for replicating historical tournaments where you know the actual payouts.

Opponent Mix Tab


Opponent Mix
AI Opponent Mix Set the percentage of the AI player type that will sit at your table. Since the total number of player must equal 100%, the Solid player automatically increases when decreasing other player types, and decreases as you increase other player types. See Opponents in the AI Options for more information on player types.


Online Tab


Players
Invitation Only If checked, only players on the invite list are allowed to join and play the game. When the Invitation Only checkbox is checked, the Invite List button will enable and turn white. Click the Invite List button to add player's names to the list. When the Public Observers Allowed checkbox is checked, any observer with your game url may join as an observer, otherwise only observers on the Invite List may join as an observer.

You have two methods to add players to the invite list:

Method 1: Click the Table tab to type in a single name, then click the Add button to add that player to the list. Repeat the process above until all the invited players are on the list. You may remove a player by highlighting the player name in the table with the mouse and clicking the Delete button.

Method 2: The Text (CSV) tab gives you the ability to cut and paste an entire list of players to the invite list. This is handy for hosts whom already have a list of players saved elsewhere and wish to transfer them all in at once.

Note: Players may still observe your game even if they are not on the invite list.

Note: CSV is a standard format that stands for Comma Separated, Values. The entire invite list can be typed in here, with each player name separated by a comma.

Hint: You can copy the entire invite list from the Text (CSV) tab by highlighting selected text with your mouse and pressing CTRL-C to copy on Windows, or Apple-C on mac. Once in the clipboard, you may paste the list by pressing CTRL-V on Windows, or Apple-V on mac.

Hint: The Invite List is specific to only the tournament you are editing and will be permanently saved with that tournament when you edit it before opening the poker lobby. This allows you to save different invite lists with different types of tournaments.

Enable Dashboard Items If checked, the Calculator Tool, Pot Odds, Improve Hand, and Hand Strength DD Dashboard items are turned on for all players. This allows players to use the same tools that are available in practice mode.
Enable Dashboard Advisor and Playstyle If checked, the Advisor and Player Style dashboard items are turned on for all players. This allows players to use the advisor in game for advise or auto-pilot.
Fill With Computer Players If checked, empty seats are filled with computer players (up to the number of players defined for this tournament, or the DD Poker online maximum).
Allow Players Using DD Poker Demo To Join If checked, players running the demo version of DD Poker are allowed to participate in the tournament. Note that the demo players are only allowed to play 15 hands in a tournament and are forced to sit-out after that limit has been reached. See Sit-out in the Poker Table help. Note: You are permitted to host a private online tournament using the demo, although every game will be dealt the same cards.
Online Activated Players Only If checked, requires that all players who join the game have Online Activated DD Poker profiles. This helps prevent 'impostors' from joining public games by typing in the connect URL directly. If not checked, allows any player to join a game (intended for use in LAN games where players on the local network may not necessarily be Online Activated).
Observers
Maximum Observers The maximum number of observers allowed to watch your tournament. Note: As players bust out of chips, they are automatically converted to observers. This does not count toward the Maximum Observer count.
Timeout Handling
Player Action Timeout Amount of time in seconds a player has to act in an online tournament before their think bank timer is tapped. This clock resets each time the action reaches the player. The host may adjust this timer for everyone during the game in the online settings tab in the Info pop up by clicking the Info button during the game. Range is 5 to 60.

Hint: The host may adjust the Player Action Timeout and the Player Think Bank on the fly from the online settings tab of the Info button.

Player Think Bank Total amount of extra time for the tournament a player may use when considering what action to take over the course of a hand. After the time specified by Player Action Timeout has expired, then the time in the Think Bank is automatically used. Once all the seconds in the Think Bank have been used, your player sit-out box is automatically checked and your cards will be auto folded until you uncheck the sit-out box. The Player Think Bank resets after each hand. Range is 0 to 60.
Boot Rules
Boot after player disconnected for X hands Turn ON if you (the host) wish to boot (remove) a player from an online game after being disconnected for too many hands (5-100). DD Poker tracks the total number of hands a player has been disconnected during the course of the game, whether they have disconnected intentionally or not. If a player has reached the set number they will be booted from the game. Booted player's chips are removed from the game and they finish as if they busted out that hand. Use the Player Info DD Dash Item on the Poker Table to track the total number of Disconnected Hands. Hint: The host may adjust the Boot Rules on the fly during the game by clicking the Info button on the poker table and navigating to the Online Settings Tab.
Boot after player sits-out for X hands Turn ON if you (the host) wish to boot (remove) a player from an online game after sitting out too many hands (5-100). DD Poker tracks the total number of hands a player has sat out during the course of the game. If a player has reached the set number they will be booted from the game. Booted player's chips are removed from the game and they finish as if they busted out that hand. Use the Player Info DD Dash Item on the Poker Table to track the total number of Sitting-out Hands. Hint: The host may adjust the Boot Rules on the fly during the game by clicking the Info button on the poker table and navigating to the Online Settings Tab.

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