The Tournaments section lets you create and manage poker tournaments. The page has two tabs: Tournaments (for scheduled MTTs and individual Sit & Go instances) and Sit & Go (for SnG templates that auto-generate lobbies).
Navigate to Game Management > Tournaments to access this section. The menu item is hidden when the tournaments feature toggle is off.
Rule Profiles And Compliance Scope
Tournament behavior is driven by versioned rule profiles. The default production tournament profile is tournament-tda-wsop-v1, shown in the lobby, tournament detail, admin tournament rows, and live table top bar as the Poker TDA 2024 / WSOP tournament default.
The profile is a casino/TDA-inspired online tournament procedure. It is not a jurisdiction-specific legal compliance certification or official TDA/WSOP endorsement. Operators remain responsible for licensing, AML/KYC, tax, consumer-protection, and market-specific regulatory requirements.
Rule profiles control:
- tournament family behavior such as MTT, Sit & Go, freezeout, rebuy, and re-entry policies;
- late registration, rebuy, re-entry, add-on, payout, and tournament-chip restrictions;
- blind/ante level timing, next-hand level changes, synchronized breaks, pause/resume behavior;
- table balancing, table breaking, dead-button, heads-up button/blind, and hand-for-hand policy;
- showdown, all-in reveal, muck, deck-procedure, and repair policy surfaces.
Unsupported official mixed profiles such as exact HORSE and exact 8-Game are cataloged for audit clarity only. They must remain unavailable until their component games, fixed-limit requirements, button procedures, and certification work are implemented.
Tournament List (Tournaments Tab)
The list shows all tournaments with these columns:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Tournament name; shows Public/Private and prize type beneath |
| Type | Standard or Satellite (with target tournament name) |
| Game | Poker variant |
| Speed | Blind structure speed (see Speed Presets below) |
| Buy-In | Entry fee; rake shown separately if non-zero |
| Players | Registered / Max |
| Start Time | Scheduled start (N/A for Sit & Go) |
| Status | Registration / Running / Paused / Prizes pending / Completed / Canceled |
| Actions | Edit, Start Tournament, Tournament floor controls, Pause, Advance level, Schedule synchronized break, Resume, Cancel Tournament, Force End, View Tickets, Delete |
Tournament Status
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Registration | Open for player entry; editable by admins |
| Running | Tournament in progress; no more edits |
| Paused | Clock stopped by an admin; resume to continue |
| Prizes pending | Play has finished and payouts are being completed |
| Completed | Finished; read-only |
| Canceled | Canceled by admin |
Filtering Tournaments
| Filter | Options |
|---|---|
| Search | Text search on tournament name |
| Status | All Statuses / Registration / Running / Paused / Prizes pending / Completed / Canceled |
| Currency | All Currencies / USD / Tickets |
| Speed | All Speeds / Hyper-Turbo / Turbo / Regular / Deep Stack |
Creating a Tournament
Click Create Tournament. The form is organised into three tabs: Basic, Blinds, and Prizes.
Choosing a Format
Before filling in details, choose the format:
| Format | Description |
|---|---|
| Scheduled Tournament | Starts at a fixed date/time; has min/max player counts; supports late registration |
| Sit & Go | Starts automatically when enough players register; no scheduled time; creates a reusable template |
Format cannot be changed after creation.
Basic Tab
General Fields
| Field | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tournament Name | Display name in lobby | Required |
| Game Type | Poker variant | Cannot change after creation |
| Betting Limit | No-Limit / Pot-Limit / Fixed-Limit | Default set by game type |
| Currency | USD (Real Money) or Tickets | Cannot change after creation |
| Buy-In | Entry cost | Required |
| Rake | House fee on top of buy-in | Default 0 |
| Starting Chips | Each player’s chip stack at start | Auto-filled by speed preset |
| Players/Table | Seats at each table (2–10) | Stud variants capped at 8 |
Rule-profile summaries appear in tournament rows and details. Creation paths resolve the safe default profile for the selected tournament/game format; do not relabel CUSTOM_MIXED as official HORSE or 8-Game.
Player Count Fields
For Scheduled Tournaments:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Min Players | Minimum registrations required before the tournament can start |
| Max Players | Maximum registrations accepted |
For Sit & Go:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Players (fixed field size) | Fixed number of players; tournament starts when this many register |
Scheduled Tournament Only
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Start Time | Date and time the tournament is scheduled to begin |
| Late Registration (seconds) | How long after start time players can still register (0 = no late registration) |
Showdown Delay
Showdown Delay (seconds) sets the pause at showdown for this tournament. 0 uses the global default; otherwise the valid range is 1–30.
Sit & Go Template Settings
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Auto-Create Instances | When checked, a new lobby is created automatically when one starts (keeps a queue ready) |
| Max Instances | Maximum number of concurrent lobbies (1–10) |
Quick Presets (Sit & Go only)
Four preset buttons auto-fill players, chips, blinds, and level duration:
| Preset | Players | Starting Chips | Starting Blinds | Level Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heads-Up | 2 | 500 | 10/20 | 3 min |
| 6-Max | 6 | 1,500 | 10/20 | 6 min |
| 9-Max | 9 | 1,500 | 10/20 | 10 min |
| 18-Player | 18 (9 per table) | 1,500 | 10/20 | 6 min |
Privacy
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Private Tournament | When checked, a password is required to register |
| Password | Only shown when Private is enabled; leave blank on edit to keep existing |
Table Style
Assign a visual theme for all tables in this tournament. Leave blank to use the system default. See Tables for style configuration.
Blinds Tab
Speed Preset
Selecting a speed preset auto-fills level duration, blind increase, starting chips, starting blinds, and late registration. An estimated tournament duration is shown next to the selector.
| Speed | Level Duration | Blind Increase | Starting Chips | Starting Blinds | Late Registration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyper-Turbo | 60 sec | 100% | 500 | 25/50 (ante 5) | 5 min |
| Turbo | 5 min | 50% | 1,500 | 15/30 | 15 min |
| Regular | 10 min | 33% | 3,000 | 15/30 | 30 min |
| Deep Stack | 20 min | 20% | 10,000 | 10/20 | 60 min |
| Custom | Manual entry | Manual entry | Manual entry | Manual entry | Manual entry |
When you modify a preset field manually, it shows a (modified) label to indicate it no longer matches the preset.
Blind Structure Fields
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Starting Small Blind | Small blind at level 1 |
| Starting Big Blind | Big blind at level 1 |
| Level Duration (seconds) | How long each blind level lasts |
| Blind Increase Multiplier | Factor applied each level (e.g., 1.5 = 50% increase) |
| Starting Ante | Ante at level 1 (0 = no ante) |
| Ante Increase Multiplier | Factor applied to ante each level |
Game-Type-Specific Blind Fields
Short Deck — Button Blind (Required):
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Button Blind | The button posts this additional blind on top of the regular ante each hand |
Seven-Card Stud / Stud Hi-Lo — Fixed Limit Structure (all required):
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Bring-In Amount | Forced bet posted by the player showing the lowest door card |
| Completion Bet | Optional full bet from bring-in player |
| Lower Limit | Bet size on 3rd and 4th streets |
| Higher Limit | Bet size on 5th, 6th, and 7th streets |
Note: Stud tables are capped at 8 players per table.
Mixed Game — Rotation Configuration:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Format | CUSTOM_MIXED only for production creation |
| Hands Per Variant | Number of hands played before rotating to the next game (1–100; default 8) |
| Included Variants | Choose which game types rotate (select at least 2) |
Available mixed game format:
- CUSTOM_MIXED — select a product-defined combination of available component game types (minimum 2). The engine rotates only at hand boundaries and surfaces active/next component metadata.
Unavailable official mixed formats:
- HORSE — unavailable until Razz, fixed-limit requirements, and certified HORSE button procedure are implemented.
- 8-Game — unavailable until 2-7 Triple Draw, canonical component transitions, limit transitions, and certification are implemented.
The Rotation Order Preview shows the full sequence and total hands per cycle.
Omaha Hi-Lo — an informational panel explains the 8-or-better low qualifier rule.
Prizes Tab
Satellite Configuration
Check This is a Satellite Tournament to turn the tournament into a satellite. Satellites award seats to a target tournament instead of cash prizes.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Target Tournament | The tournament that winners gain entry to |
Prize distribution for satellites is auto-generated by the server based on the target buy-in and prize pool. The form shows an estimated seat count based on your configured player count and buy-ins.
Satellites can only target non-satellite, non-completed tournaments.
Standard Prize Configuration
| Field | Options | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Prize Type | Player Pool / Fixed | Player Pool = total buy-ins collected; Fixed = a set amount regardless of entries |
| Fixed Prize Amount | number | Only shown when Prize Type is Fixed |
Prize Distribution
Configure the percentage split across finishing positions.
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| #1, #2, … | Finishing position |
| Percentage | Percentage of total prize pool awarded (0–100) |
Use + Add Position to add more paid positions. The total must equal exactly 100%. The current total is shown at the bottom.
Example for a top-3 payout:
- 1st place: 50%
- 2nd place: 30%
- 3rd place: 20%
Tournament Actions
Actions available depend on tournament status and your permission level.
| Action | Available When | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Edit | Status = Registration | Modify tournament settings |
| Start Tournament | Status = Registration; min players met; start time reached (or SnG) | Start the tournament now |
| Pause tournament / Advance level / Schedule synchronized break | Status = Running | Control the clock |
| Resume tournament | Status = Paused | Restart the clock |
| Cancel Tournament | Status = Registration or Running | Cancel the tournament; registered players are refunded |
| Force End | Status = Registration or Running | Choose Cancel & Refund, Cancel (No Refund), or Complete with Prizes, with an optional reason |
| Tournament floor controls | Any status | Open the Tournament Floor modal described below |
| View Tickets | Satellite tournaments only | See tickets awarded to winning players, and refund a ticket |
| Delete | Status = Registration; 0 registered players | Permanently remove the tournament |
Required permissions:
tournaments:edit— edittournaments:manage— start, cancel, force end, clock and floor controlstournaments:delete— deletetournaments:create— create new
Running Tournament Operations
Levels, Breaks, And Pauses
The active tournament profile controls the blind/ante clock:
- level duration, small blind, big blind, ante, Stud bring-in/completion, and Short Deck button blind values;
- whether in-hand level changes apply immediately or at the next hand boundary;
- synchronized breaks and whether a break starts only after active hands complete;
- pause/resume behavior with remaining clock time preserved.
Admins with tournament-management permission can advance levels, schedule/start breaks, pause, and resume running tournaments. These operations write tournament history/audit records and are visible through the admin tournament clock/history endpoints and UI.
Table Balancing And Table Breaking
The server balances multi-table tournaments between hands:
- balancing moves players from overfull tables to underfull tables while minimizing movement;
- table breaking closes a short/empty source table and reseats remaining players at active tables;
- late registration and re-entry seating use the same audit shape as initial seating and balancing;
- dead-button and heads-up transition rules come from the rule profile.
Players may be moved automatically. The table and lobby state are server-authoritative; admin repair controls exist for floor-managed corrections rather than hidden manual database edits.
Hand-For-Hand And Simultaneous Eliminations
Hand-for-hand can activate automatically at configured bubble points or by floor/admin override. Completed tables wait for the other active tables in the H4H group before another hand begins. Simultaneous eliminations are persisted with start stack, end stack, table, hand number, hand-for-hand round, payout order, and tie-group metadata.
Payouts
Prize distributions must total 100% for standard prize-pool tournaments. Satellite tournaments award tickets/seats according to the target buy-in and pool. Completion moves through PRIZES_PENDING before COMPLETED; if payout crediting fails or is held by floor control, operators must reconcile/release before final completion.
Admin/Floor Controls And Audit Logs
The Tournament Floor modal, opened with the Tournament floor controls action, is the operator surface for exceptional tournament repair and review. It shows Status, Balance State, Payout State, Rule Profile, Hand-for-hand Groups, Busted Players, and Audit History. Controls require the tournaments:manage permission and use the Reason field. Release Payouts, Repair, and Void stay disabled until you tick Explicit confirmation.
| Section | Controls |
|---|---|
| Floor Controls | Pause, Resume, Force H4H, Release H4H, Hold Payouts, Release Payouts |
| Player Controls (need a Player ID) | Warning, Penalty Sit-out, Sit Out |
| Repair Controls | Seating Repair (Player ID, target table ID, target seat), Add Note (optionally Player-visible note), Repair and Void (Game ID, optional procedure code) |
Every floor operation writes a TournamentFloorAudit row with actor, timestamp, reason, previous state, new state, affected players/tables, correlation ID, confirmation flags, and compensating-event metadata where relevant. Duplicate correlation IDs are idempotent and return the original result instead of writing another audit row.
Related audit surfaces:
- Tournament history shows level, break, pause, resume, H4H, and floor-control events.
- Seating audits show initial seating, balance moves, table breaks, late registration, re-entry, and busted removals.
- Entry audits show initial registration, late registration, rebuy, add-on, and re-entry.
- Game history shows showdown, muck/reveal metadata, deck-procedure audits, and permissioned repair controls.
Sit & Go Templates Tab
The Sit & Go tab shows the template records that drive automatic SnG creation. Each template can spawn multiple concurrent instances.
Template Columns
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Template name and game/speed |
| Format | HU (2 players), 6-max, 9-max, or Np |
| Buy-In | Entry fee; rake shown separately |
| Active Instances | Currently open lobbies / total ever created |
| Auto-Create | On = a new lobby is created when one starts |
| Max Instances | Concurrent lobby limit |
| Actions | Pause auto-creation |
Pausing Auto-Creation
Click the Pause icon on a template to disable Auto-Create. The existing lobbies continue to run, but no new ones are created automatically. To re-enable, edit the tournament and turn Auto-Create back on.
Speed Preset Reference
| Speed | Est. Duration | Level Duration | Blind Increase | Starting Chips |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyper-Turbo | ~10 min | 1 min | 100% | 500 |
| Turbo | ~75 min | 5 min | 50% | 1,500 |
| Regular | ~200 min | 10 min | 33% | 3,000 |
| Deep Stack | ~500 min | 20 min | 20% | 10,000 |
Game Type Reference
| Game Type | Notes |
|---|---|
| Texas Hold’em | Community cards; standard blind structure |
| Omaha | 4 hole cards; must use exactly 2 hole cards |
| Omaha Hi-Lo | Omaha with 8-or-better low; split pot |
| Short Deck | 36-card deck (2s–5s removed); ante structure |
| Seven-Card Stud | No community cards; bring-in; up to 8 players |
| Stud Hi-Lo | Stud with 8-or-better low; split pot |
| CUSTOM_MIXED | Product-defined rotation through configured variants |
| HORSE | Unavailable until missing component games and certified button/fixed-limit procedure are implemented |
| 8-Game | Unavailable until 2-7 Triple Draw, canonical transitions, and certification are implemented |
Common Tasks
Create a Regular MTT
- Click Create Tournament
- Format: Scheduled Tournament
- Fill in name, game type, currency, buy-in
- Blinds tab: select Regular speed
- Set start time, min players, max players
- Prizes tab: configure payout positions (must total 100%)
- Click Create Tournament
Create a Heads-Up Sit & Go
- Click Create Tournament
- Format: Sit & Go
- Click the Heads-Up quick preset
- Review auto-filled values; adjust buy-in and rake
- Prizes tab: set 1st place = 100% (winner-takes-all)
- Enable Auto-Create; set Max Instances to your desired concurrency
- Click Create Tournament
Create a Satellite Tournament
- First, ensure the target tournament exists and is open for registration
- Click Create Tournament
- Configure as a normal scheduled tournament
- Prizes tab: check This is a Satellite Tournament
- Select the target tournament from the dropdown
- Verify the estimated seat count shown
- Click Create Tournament
Start a Tournament
- Ensure the tournament has at least the minimum number of registered players, and that a scheduled tournament has reached its start time
- Click the Start Tournament icon in the actions column
- The tournament moves to Running status
Cancel a Running Tournament
- Find the tournament in the list
- Click the Cancel Tournament icon
- Confirm the cancellation
- Registered players are refunded