Each Bunco Group will have it's own set of rules agreed upon by the group. There are variations with how much the monthly dues are, how many Bunco games will be played, the rotation of the players, the scoring, and how the winnings are paid out.
The Bunco group in Freehold, NJ that I belong to plays with these rules:
1. Bunco Dues: Each month, each Bunco lady will put $8.00 into the pot for the next month. These dues are used for prizes for the winners.
2. Bunco games: There are generally three games of Bunco(6 rounds per game) to be played during each monthly Bunco night.
3. Rotation of Players: There are three tables. Table One rings the bell to begin play and when the first team of doubles scores twenty-one at Table One, the bell is sounded to end play. The winners at Table One stay at that table and the losing team moves to Table Three. The losing team at Table Two and Three stay and those tables and the winners advance to the next table. The partners of each game cannot be partners for the next game so one of the teammates has to buddy up with one of the other players coming to the table to play.
4. Scoring: Each Bunco(three of a kind of the number being played in that game) is twenty one points. Three of a kind of another number is five points. Anytime a player rolls a Bunco, three of a kind, or one or two of the number being played, that player rolls the dice again. A roll of Travel( three of a kind of threes) is also 5 points unless it is during when threes are being played. In that case it is a Bunco at twenty one points. If a player gets Travel, they get to hold onto the Travel Bear(the Bunco bear which is a small stuffed animal) unless someone else gets Travel.
5. Prizes: It is up to the Bunco lady hosting Bunco night as to the prizes they are going to give out. Most of the times it is an object and not the greenbacks. The approximate win amounts are broken out below.
Most Buncos-a $35.00 prize
2nd Most Buncos-a $25.00 prize
Most Wins-a $13.00 prize
2nd Most Wins-a $10.00 prize
Travel -a $7.00 prize
Most Losses -a $6.00 prize
The most important rule of the game: To have fun!