A tournament rulebook, an online software policy and advice in a forum answer different questions. Start with the authority for the game you are actually playing.
Choose the right place to check.
| Your question | Start here |
|---|---|
| A live tournament procedure | The event's rules and tournament staff; a TDA reference where adopted. |
| Cash-game betting, fees or seating | The room's posted house rules and floor staff. |
| An online tool, HUD or chart | The exact operator's current software and game-integrity policy. |
| A disputed online hand | The operator's support or integrity channel, with the hand reference. |
| A claim in a strategy discussion | The original explanation and its assumptions, not an implied official ruling. |
The TDA page currently displays its 2026 rules, version 1.0 dated September 7, 2026. Its floor-decision rule emphasizes fairness and final staff decisions. Do not assume a tournament rulebook is automatically the governing cash-game policy. TDA's download page links long and short formats and a route to translations; check each document's own version.
Clarify facts without announcing an unintended action.
Before acting, ask for the amount or the action to be clarified. TDA Rule 3 warns that action terms used in questions can be interpreted as a declaration. Neutral questions reduce avoidable ambiguity. For a dispute, ask for the floor and describe the sequence, amounts and statements without deciding the penalty yourself.
Preserve the distinction between a rules question and strategic advice. A dealer can clarify an amount; another person should not choose your action. Keep filming, note-taking and devices within the event's actual restrictions.
A minimum raise follows the increment, not a doubling rule.
The example illustrates the full-raise and reopening distinction in TDA Rules 45 and 49. Players who have not acted, cumulative short all-ins and limit games require their own checks. Read the applicable examples or ask the floor instead of extending this one sequence into a universal shortcut.
“Between hands” does not necessarily mean “allowed.”
PokerStars' third-party-tools policy distinguishes tools permitted generally, tools prohibited always, and tools restricted while its software is open. That last category is not limited to the seconds when a player faces a decision. A tool's marketing claim that it is compliant is not the operator's approval.
GGPoker's Security & Ecology Policy is a separate operator document with its own treatment of external assistance, software and player conduct. Do not transfer a permission from one room to another, or assume that a second device changes the rule.
For this site, the intended use is before or after a playing session, away from the table. Close the playing client when its policy requires that separation. These links are policy references, not endorsements, location-eligibility checks or permission to use this site's search during play.
Report a concern with a record, not a public accusation.
Keep the event or table identifier, time, relevant hand reference and a factual description. Separate what you directly observed from what you inferred. Send concerns through the room's appropriate private channel rather than posting another player's identifying information, account data or unsupported accusations.
Ask what information is needed and preserve your own relevant records without covert collection. Do not buy mined opponent histories or try to investigate by breaking the operator's rules yourself. For account-security problems, use the operator's authenticated support route, not a link from an unsolicited message.
Make practical needs part of preparation.
Ask the organizer ahead of time about seating, communication or other accommodations you need. TDA Rule 10 addresses accommodations where possible; it is not a guarantee that a particular event has the arrangements you require. Confirm the actual plan before traveling.
For gambling-related distress or difficulty controlling play, the support directory offers a separate route. Help is not something to postpone until you have studied more or recovered a loss.
Check the scope.
A site allows a tool. Does that authorize using it in every poker room?
No. Policies apply to the operator and circumstances they describe. Check the current policy for the exact game and platform.
After a bet of 100 and a raise to 250, why is the next full raise to 400?
The last full raise increment was 150. Adding that to 250 gives 400. This fictional no-limit example assumes no short-stack or reopening complication.
Does a suspicious-looking fold prove collusion?
No. Record the observable facts and report a concern privately. A single action and an interpretation are not proof of another person's intent.
Go to the source
These selections retain the directory's access labels, individual review dates and limitations. Public-page reading is not a product accuracy test.
Poker Tournament Directors Association
Poker TDA rules and procedures
Tournament rules, recommended procedures, and examples from the association that publishes them.
Before you use it: Directly read the official 2026 rules, version 1.0 dated September 7, 2026, including procedures and the addendum. TDA rules supplement house rules; applicable agency rules take precedence.
Public page read · · Full directory listing
Poker Tournament Directors Association
TDA rule downloads and translation access
Official access point for longform and shortform tournament rules, illustrated material and translation links.
Before you use it: Search-index description checked; direct page retrieval timed out. Downloads and translations were not individually reviewed. Check the document version and the event rules actually adopted.
Search index only · · Full directory listing
PokerStars
PokerStars: third-party tools and services policy
Operator policy distinguishing permitted tools, tools prohibited at all times and tools restricted while its software is open.
Before you use it: Policy text read, not independent enforcement testing. Applies to this operator and can change. This is not an endorsement, eligibility check or permission to use a specific tool.
Public page read · · Full directory listing
GGPoker Network
GGPoker: Security and Ecology Policy
The network policy on game integrity, external assistance, player conduct and account responsibility.
Before you use it: Policy text read, not an audit of enforcement or operator safety. Recheck the current version and applicable operator terms; inclusion does not establish local eligibility.
Public page read · · Full directory listing
Prepared with AI assistance. Published . Worked examples are fictional, not Nolan's hands or results. This is educational material for before or after play, not live assistance.