Poker Tables
Most poker players host their own games, usually starting on a dining room table. Eventually they may wish for a more authentic poker experience and choose to purchase a poker table, or, and this is for the more adventurous, build their own poker table.
Poker tables come in all colours, shapes and sizes. The poker table you choose is of course a matter of personal taste and a matter of how much you wish to spend. The amount of space you have for a poker table will of course influence your decision.
Poker Table Varieties
- A permanently assembled poker table.
- A foldable/storable of poker table.
- A solid poker table top only which can be placed on any flat surface..
- A poker felt top which can be placed on any flat surface..
Poker Table Shapes
Oval Poker Tables.
The oval table is the more traditional poker table. You can fit more card players at an oval poker table than at an octagonal one. It gives your poker game an authentic poker feeling. Oval tables make a great stage for Hold'em and Omaha poker games because they have plenty of space for community cards. Oval poker tables are designed for games with a central dealer which is why we see them i casinos. At home, the deal is usually passed from player to player so this is not such an important factor.
Octagonal Poker Tables.
The octagon poker table tops are versatile as they can be used for many different gambling games. They are well suited to both poker and blackjack and are a great space saving poker table for those with limited room, but with only eight playing positions and little common space they can easily become quite crowded. Nevertheless they are a good table for most Stud and Draw poker games.
Poker Table Options
Many poker tables have all the bells and whistles. Some have so many that they shift from being eye-candy to being and eyesore. Admittedly many players do like drink holders and chip wells, built in card shoes and more. However there are many that don't enjoy being 'forced' into having things in certain places. Chip wells and drink holders also dictate the maximum number of players at a table. If you exceed the designated number there will probably be one player holding a beer and with a pile of chips on their lap:-)
Poker Chip Wells
Many card players prefer any flat surface on which to stack their chips to having chip wells built into the table. The chips move more easily around the table without poker chip wells, but wells do have the advantage of avoiding chip drift, especially at crowded tables. A great deal of the players we surveyed said that one thing they disliked about chip wells was that it was not always easy to see how many chips another player had. This of course undermines one of the most basic strategies in poker, the ability to decide to bluff.
Poker Table Drink Holders
The more simple poker tables are often the most pleasing to the eye and give you more options with them as a piece of furniture. Home poker players who have enough room can always use smaller tables for drinks as opposed to having them on the main table. Many poker players are of the opinion that having drinks on the table is definitely not 'the done thing'.
If you are considering cup holders, there seems to be a strong argument for having them located directly in front of the player rather than to the side. This ensures that the player has plenty of room to rest their arms on the table and minimises spills of drinks inadvertently knocked ny elbows.
Colour of the Poker Felt
A lot of poker players will say that they've never seen a poker table they liked that didn't have green felt, yet today's poker tables are being made available in an increasing number of colours besides the traditional green. In second place after green is almost certainly red. We didn't see them too often, but since their prominence in the film 'Rounders' they seem to be catching of fast. Blue felt is sneaking up in third place.
One of the key factors in deciding the colour of the poker felt should probably be the colour of the poker rails. Red felt does indeed look great on a poker table with black rails, with the traditional green being a better compliment for non-standard cream/white rails. This is what it really boils down to.. are you a traditionalist or a little bit adventurous?
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