N.H. Admin. Code § Pari 1207.03

Current through Register No. 45, November 7, 2024

Section Pari 1207.03 - Conduct of Games of Chance

(a) Pursuant to RSA 287-D:14, XVIII, no games of chance shall be played unless all of the games of chance being offered have been approved by the commission in accordance with Pari 1206.07 above, and identified on an approved game schedule, as required by Pari 1206.02.

(b) In accordance with RSA 287-D:14, VI, no one under the age of 18 years shall be admitted to the area where the games of chance are being conducted, except when the games are being conducted at a carnival.

(c) Card games shall be conducted in accordance with the following, in order of priority:

(1) The game procedures approved by the commission;

(2) The house rules approved by the commission; and

(3) Rules explained in The New Complete Hoyle: The Authoritative Guide to the Official Rules of All Popular Games of Skill and Chance, Revised Edition (1991) or Hoyle's Modern Encyclopedia of Card Games (1974), available as noted in Appendix A, or a similar authoritative book on card games.

(d) For games or tournaments where chips have no monetary face value:

(1) The licensee shall post the location of the game or tournament in the public place prior to commencing the game or tournament;

(2) The licensee shall not charge any amounts, by whatever name, other than buy-ins and re-buys;

(3) Except as allowed by (4) below, the charitable organization may offer any number of games per licensed event provided each player is limited to spending up to $150 per game, including buy-ins and re-buys;

(4) The charitable organization may offer one game per authorized event where each player may spend up to $250 for the game, including buy-ins and re-buys;

(5) The prize shall either be a set prize amount or a percentage of the prize pool;

(6) Prizes shall not be awarded to more than 50 percent of the players starting the game or tournament;

(7) The total amount awarded in prizes shall not exceed 80 percent of the total amount collected from players; and

(8) At the end of a game or tournament, any chips held by a player not receiving a prize shall:

a. Have no value for any purpose;

b. Not be traded, bartered, used or exchanged for any purpose whatsoever; and

c. Not be used for play in any other game or tournament.

(e) Except as allowed by (f) below, no single wager by a player, on any game of chance, shall exceed the amount of $4.

(f) In poker where chips have monetary value, play may be conducted under table stakes rules, as follows:

(1) The amount of blinds, antes, and any other type of forced bet shall not exceed $4 per player, but the amount wagered by a player during the play of a hand shall not be limited except by the amount of chips the player has in his or her possession at the table;

(2) Except as allowed by (5) below, a player shall arrive at a table to begin play with no more than $500 in chips;

(3) A player may purchase up to $500 in chips at a time from the cashier area, also known as the cage;

(4) A player may purchase up to $150 in chips per hand at the table where he or she is playing provided that the amount of chips being purchased will not raise the total value of chips in the player's possession above $500, or less as otherwise specified in the house rules.

(5) When a player is forced by management to move to a new table of equal or lesser table blind in order to balance the player load at each table, known as a forced lateral move, the player may bring all of the chips in his or her possession at the time of the move to the new table;

(6) If a player voluntarily moves to a new table with more than $500 in accumulated chips, the player shall remove any excess chips from public view, but may augment the number of his or her chips on the table at the rate no more than $150 per game at a time, provided that the player has not more than $500 in chips on the table at any one time;

(7) Once chips are on the table, the player shall not remove chips from his or her stack, unless the player is concluding play and leaving the table; and

(8) A game operator shall not require a player to maintain the minimum amount of chips to continue to play.

(g) For the purposes of paragraph (f) above, a hand begins when the cards are dealt to the players, and is complete once all wagers have been concluded on the cards in play, the pot has been awarded, and all cards have been collected and shuffled.

(h) In accordance with RSA 287-D:14,XV-XVII, all tournaments shall comply with the following:

(1) A tournament shall be a single event in which all players begin with the same number of chips and play until the posted prizes are paid out;

(2) A tournament may be held over multiple days to accommodate the number of players as long as the event is operated as a single licensed event, hosted by the same charitable organization;

(3) When a player has lost all of his or her chips and is eliminated from the tournament, the player may buy in again to continue playing until such time as the player reaches the spending limits set by RSA 287-D:14, XV and XVI;

(4) Prize payouts shall not exceed 80% of the total amount collected from players, and as such, a portion of the money collected from players cannot be carried over to be awarded in a separate event or tournament; and

(5) Funds shall not be added to the prize pool to enhance the payout if doing so would exceed the 80% restriction noted in (4) above, and as such, a game operator cannot subsidize the pot in order to reach a guaranteed prize amount that cannot otherwise be met using player money.

(i) Wagers shall only be placed in the form of chips, or the like, or, when electronic gaming tables are used, in the form of representations of credit.

(j) No licensed charitable organization shall extend credit to any patron at an event.

(k) The game operator shall collect and store his or her tips in a tip box or in a clearly designated area of the gaming table.

(l) No licensee shall permit side bets between players or other such activities that involve a participant wagering money or other items of value against another, when the activity does not provide for some portion of the proceeds to go to the licensed charitable organization and the state.

N.H. Admin. Code § Pari 1207.03

#8691, INTERIM, eff 7-25-06; ss by #8804, eff 1-20-07; amd by #9413, eff 3-12-09

Amended byVolume XXXV Number 10, Filed March 12, 2015, Proposed by #10792, Effective 2/26/2015, Expires8/25/2015.

Amended by Volume XXXV Number 40, Filed October 8, 2015, Proposed by #10929, Effective 9/10/2015, Expires 9/10/2025.

Amended by Volume XXXVI Number 45, Filed November 10, 2016, Proposed by #12019, Effective 10/27/2016, Expires 10/27/2026.