Contents
Running a Texas hold'em tournament with friends comes down to four decisions: how the blinds rise, how long each level lasts, how rebuys and the add-on work, and how the prize pool is shared. This guide explains the reasoning behind each one, with the formulas used by the Blind Up generator, so you can either check a result or build a structure by hand.
1. How to calculate a blind structure
A good structure starts from a simple idea: the tournament must finish on time, with blinds that rise slowly enough to let the early levels be played, but fast enough to force a result at the end.
Step 1: set the playing time and the level length
The number of levels is the playing time divided by the level length, once breaks are removed. Four hours of play with 20-minute levels gives 12 levels; with 15-minute levels, 16 levels.
Step 2: choose the starting blind
Aim for a starting depth of 50 to 100 big blinds (BB). To get the starting small blind, divide the stack by twice the number of BB you want: with 20,000 chips and 100 BB, the small blind is 20,000 / 200 = 100 and the big blind is 200. Every blind should stay a multiple of the smallest chip (here 100), otherwise it cannot be paid.
Step 3: set the final blind
This is what decides how the evening ends. At the last level, the big blind must be a large enough fraction of the chips in play. Blind Up aims for a final big blind equal to the total chips divided by 15 (standard profile), by 25 (slow profile) or by 9 (fast profile). In other words, at the last level all the chips on the table are worth about 15 big blinds, so the game is bound to be close to its end. With 8 players and 20,000 chips each, there are 160,000 chips in play, so the target final big blind is about 10,667, rounded here to 10,000.
Step 4: make the blinds rise
Between the starting blind and the final blind the progression is geometric: each level multiplies the previous blind by a roughly constant factor, and the result is rounded to 'clean' values (100, 200, 300, 400, 600, 800, 1,200, 1,500...) that are multiples of the smallest chip. In the example below the blind rises by about 40% per level on average. Avoid jumps bigger than a doubling: a sudden increase eliminates players through the blinds alone.
Example: 8 players, 20,000 chips each, smallest chip 100, 4 hours of play, 20-minute levels, no rebuys (standard profile).
| Level | Small blind | Big blind | Ends (h:mm) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 100 | 200 | 0:20 |
| 2 | 200 | 400 | 0:40 |
| 3 | 300 | 600 | 1:00 |
| 4 | 400 | 800 | 1:20 |
| 5 | 600 | 1,200 | 1:40 |
| 6 | 800 | 1,600 | 2:00 |
| 7 | 1,200 | 2,400 | 2:20 |
| 8 | 1,500 | 3,000 | 2:40 |
| 9 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 3:00 |
| 10 | 3,000 | 6,000 | 3:20 |
| 11 | 4,000 | 8,000 | 3:40 |
| 12 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 4:00 |
Step 5: add an ante (optional)
An ante is a forced bet that every player posts on every hand, on top of the blinds. It enlarges the pot and pushes players to play more hands late in the tournament. Blind Up offers three formulas: a percentage of the big blind (10% by default), a fixed amount, or a big blind ante, where the ante equals the big blind. You choose the level from which it applies (level 4 by default) and the value is rounded to a multiple of the smallest chip. It is off by default, which suits a home game; switching it on makes the endgame livelier.
Default settings of the generator
When you open it, Blind Up suggests a typical evening for 8 players: end time 02:30, 15-minute levels, a starting stack of 20,000 chips and a smallest chip of 100. A bonus of 8,000 chips is set for 5 players. Rebuys are unlimited for the first 1 h 30, then a 60,000-chip add-on is offered at the 1 h 30 mark with a 15-minute break. There is no regular break and no ante. For the payouts, 3 places are paid and the rounding is 10; the estimated prize pool is 250 (buy-in of 10, add-on of 15, counting one rebuy per player on average and 80% of players taking the add-on). Everything can be changed, and your settings are remembered in your browser.
2. The ideal level length
There is no universal length: it depends on the time available and the pace you want. Usual benchmarks:
- 10 to 12 minutes: fast (turbo) format, for a short evening or a 2-hour tournament. Many decisions under pressure, and more luck in the result.
- 15 to 20 minutes: the right compromise for a 3 to 5 hour evening with friends.
- 20 to 30 minutes: a longer tournament, more technical play, less variance.
- 30 minutes and more: club or casino tournaments.
One practical test: a level should leave time for at least one full orbit of the table, meaning every player takes the button once. At a table of 8 you play roughly 30 hands per hour live (an order of magnitude, depending on how fast the table is): a 10-minute level offers only about 5 hands, less than an orbit, while a 20-minute level offers about 10.
Total length, breaks included
The total time is the levels plus the breaks. Plan a 10 to 15 minute break every one or two hours, or a single break at the time of the add-on. In Blind Up the break can be regular (every N levels) or tied to the add-on, and the structure is calculated to fit before the end time you choose.
Effect on the structure
The longer the levels, the fewer there are and the more slowly the blinds rise. In the same example (4 hours, 160,000 chips), 15-minute levels give 16 levels and a final blind of 6,000/12,000, against 12 levels and 5,000/10,000 with 20-minute levels.
3. Rebuys, add-ons and bonus chips
The rebuy
A rebuy lets a player who has lost all their chips buy a new starting stack. It is only possible during a period set in advance, for example the first 90 minutes. Rebuys can be unlimited or capped at a number per player. They increase the number of chips in play, and therefore the prize pool.
The add-on
The add-on is a one-time purchase of extra chips, offered to all players at the same time, usually at the end of the rebuy period and often during a break. It is often more generous than the starting stack (in Blind Up's default setup, 60,000 chips for a 20,000 stack). In Blind Up it cannot be placed before the end of the rebuy period.
Bonus chips
A chip bonus rewards, for example, players who arrive on time or register in advance. It is added to the starting stack for the players concerned.
Counting the chips in play
Chips in play = players × stack × (1 + average rebuys per player) + players × add-on share × add-on chips + bonus chips.
Example: 8 players, a 20,000 stack, one rebuy per player on average, and 80% of players taking a 40,000 add-on: 8 × 20,000 × 2 + 8 × 0.8 × 40,000 = 576,000 chips.
The final blind is calculated from this total, not from the starting stack alone: with 576,000 chips the target final big blind is 38,400 (576,000 / 15). If you forget the rebuys, the structure will be too slow and the game will run past the planned time. Blind Up counts all these chips, and the 'Recommended chips' table shows how many chips of each value to prepare.
4. Splitting the prize pool
The prize pool is the sum of all purchases, rebuys and add-ons included. Enter that final amount, not just the entry fee multiplied by the number of players, otherwise the split will be wrong.
How many places should be paid?
In club or casino tournaments, roughly 10 to 15% of the players are usually paid. Among friends, the custom is to pay 1 place up to 4 players, 2 places from 5 to 7 players and 3 places from 8 to 10 players, then about one place for every 4 to 5 players. Paying too many places makes each prize so small that aiming for the win stops being worth it.
Which split?
A classic split gives 50% to the winner, 30% to second and 20% to third with three paid places. Blind Up applies the usual home-game payout table: 100% for one place, 65/35 for two, 50/30/20 for three, 45/27/17/11 for four, 40/25/16/11/8 for five, and so on up to nine places. Beyond that, the share of place k is proportional to 1 / k0.9.
Rounding
Prizes are rounded to the step you choose (1, 5, 10, 20, 50 or 100) to avoid cents and make cash payment easy. First place absorbs the rounding difference, so the prizes always add up to the pot exactly.
Example:250 pot, 3 paid places, rounding to10.
| Place | Share | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 50% | 120 |
| 2 | 30% | 80 |
| 3 | 20% | 50 |
Deal: sharing the remaining prizes
When the last players agree to stop, they share the prizes that are left (the places not yet awarded). The timer's Deal Calculator offers three methods: Chip Chop, proportional to chips; ICM, which reflects the real value of chips (the chip leader gets a little less than a pure chip share and short stacks a little more); and an even split. Amounts are rounded like the other prizes, and the difference is added to the biggest stack so the total stays exact.
5. Starting and running the game
Once the structure is calculated, the “Start the game” button on the Structure page opens the game clock. It follows the levels and breaks for you and works on both computer and smartphone.
The clock
It shows the current level, the time left, the blinds and ante, the next level, the next break and the planned end time. You can pause the game, jump to the next or previous level, adjust the time by one minute either way, mute the sound or set the volume, and go full screen to show the clock on a TV.
Voice announcements
The clock announces aloud, in the language of the site, that the blinds will rise in 30 seconds, then the new blinds (with the ante, if any) when the level changes. The announcements follow the sound setting and depend on the voices installed on the device.
Counters
The Counters panel tracks the players left, rebuys, add-ons, average stack, chips in play and prize pool. The admin records eliminations, rebuys and add-ons there, and the end of the game is suggested when only one player remains.
Changing the game while it runs
In Settings the admin can change the end time or the level length (it applies to the coming levels, never to the current one), jump straight to a level, or edit the price of a rebuy and of the add-on. The remaining structure is then recalculated so that it still finishes by the end time.
Following the game on another device
Each game has a 6-character code, which can be shared as a link or a QR code. On a TV, a tablet or a smartphone, open the link or enter the code in “Join a game” (the camera can also scan the QR code): the same game appears, in sync, in read-only mode.
Admin code
When you start the game you choose an admin code of 4 to 12 digits or letters. Only the admin can change the game; other devices are read-only. To run the game from another device, enter that code (or the 8-character code the app provides in Settings). After 5 wrong codes the game is locked for 5 minutes. Games are deleted from the server after 7 days.
Deal Calculator
The calculator icon on the game screen (also visible in read-only mode) opens the deal calculator. It starts from the remaining players, an average stack per player and the prizes of the remaining places: enter each player's stack, adjust the amounts or the number of players if needed, then pick ICM, Chip Chop or even split to read each payout. The calculation is local and does not change the game.
6. Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate the starting small blind?
Divide the starting stack by twice the number of big blinds you want. With 20,000 chips and 100 BB, the small blind is 100 and the big blind 200. Round to a multiple of the smallest chip.
How many levels should I plan for a four-hour evening?
With 20-minute levels, 12 levels; with 15-minute levels, 16 levels, before counting breaks. Each break takes time away from play.
What if the tournament runs past the planned time?
Choose a faster progression (the 'Blind progression speed' setting in the advanced settings) or shorter levels: the final big blind should be about 1/15 of the total chips in play. Also check that all rebuys and add-ons are counted in that total.
When should rebuys stop?
Usually after 1 to 2 hours of play, at the end of the level in progress at the chosen time. After that, a player with no chips is out for good.
Should rebuys and add-ons be included in the prize pool?
Yes. The prize pool is the sum of all purchases: buy-in, rebuys and add-ons. Enter that total on the Payouts page.
How many places should be paid among friends?
Among friends, one paid place is enough up to 4 players, two places from 5 to 7 players, three from 8 to 10 and four from 11 to 14: this is the number Blind Up suggests. Paying more places shrinks the prizes until they are no longer motivating.
Do I need an ante?
Not among friends: the structure works very well without one. It becomes useful when the blinds are high compared with the stacks, because it forces more hands to be played. In Blind Up, switch it on in the Ante block and choose the level it starts at.
How do I show the clock on a TV and follow the game on a smartphone?
Start the game from the Structure page, then on the other device open the game link, enter its code in “Join a game”, or scan the QR code. The clock appears in read-only mode and stays in sync; only the admin, who chose a code when starting, can change the game.
Can I change the structure during the game?
Yes, in the clock Settings: the admin can change the end time or the level length. The coming levels are recalculated and the current level stays as it is.
How do we split the prizes when the last players make a deal?
Open the timer's Deal Calculator (calculator icon), enter the stack of each remaining player and choose the method: ICM, Chip Chop (proportional to chips) or even split. It shares the remaining prizes, rounded like the rest of the prizes, with a total that is always exact.