by Susan Malotte

Created on: November 14, 2008   Last Updated: November 09, 2010

Hosting a Poker Party should be easy, simple, and fun! Poker games tend to be interpreted as if they're a "man's" game, but more and more women are becoming fond of having their own in-home Poker Party.

The first thing you need is a place to play. Poker groups tend to start off with a friend suggesting getting together for a "game". You then call a few more buddies and soon you have a friendly group of players. A good well rounded number seems to be six; this is an ideal size group allowing an occasional player to inadvertently not show up and still be able to carry on a rousing game of Poker. With six players you can rotate your home making game playing more fun and less stressful on any one individual.

Having decided where and with whom you're playing Poker, the rest is simply. You will need a table that seats six, good lighting, 2 packs of cards with different color backing, poker chips and, of course, things to eat.

Feeding the group is essential and offers hospitality and friendliness but there appears to be two schools of thought on this. Both of these should be discussed before the first game is played so there is no misunderstanding about food.

The first thought is to feed everyone before starting the game. You don't want to get too fancy with the food so maybe meatloaf or spaghetti if it's an evening game and for an afternoon get together you might serve pizza or sandwiches. Eating before the game allows you to wash up and play without getting greasy fingerprints on the cards and helps to avoid having the cards stick together.

The second is the snacking group. A majority of Poker players prefer to snack and drink while playing. You might want to just serve soft drinks, chips, pretzels, or easy finger foods with a limited amount of wine or possibly beer, but you don't want anyone to go too wild and you certainly don't want any arguments. Having fresh coffee on hand is a great idea.

There are many varieties of Poker from Texas Holdem, which is the most popular, to Five Card Draw, Horse, Omaha Hi Lo and even if you think you can never make a hand you can shoot for the worst hand in a game called Razz. Poker's for everyone and goes everywhere. So deal the cards, anti up and let's play Poker!

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