ISU students and faculty will be flexing their brain power and pressing their luck this weekend in intramural 500 and Texas Hold ’em card tournaments.

“Playing cards is more of a mental challenge,” said Linda Marticke, intramural coordinator.

Paul Anhalt, graduate student in aerospace engineering, won the 500 card tournament last year. He decided not to participate this year because his partner graduated last year.

“I guess I wanted to retire a champion, since I won it last year,” he said.

Both games will be played this weekend. Marticke is expecting more than 30 players for each tournament. Sign-ups end Wednesday.

500 Card Tournament

The game of 500 is played with four people, two on a team. A pack of 45 cards, including one joker, is used to play, with the threes and twos being thrown out of the deck. The joker is always the highest trump. A trump is the highest-valued card laid on a trick. A trick is the cards being laid down for that turn. Players take turns drawing from the top of the deck until a jack is drawn. That player becomes the first dealer. Each player is dealt 10 cards, and the five remaining cards are called the middle. Dealing goes three each, three to the middle, two each, two to the middle, three each, two each.

Each player then has a chance to bid. Each bid must name a suit and a number of tricks, such as “seven hearts” or “eight no trump.” With no trump, the joker is the sole trump card. It wins any trick that it is played on. However, the joker cannot be played onto a trick unless the player is void of the suit led. When the joker is led, its owner specifies its suit and the other players must follow suit, if able.

The jack of trump suit is the second-highest trump and is called the right bower. The jack of the other suit of the same color as the trump suit is the third-highest trump and is called the left bower. Then, trump follows from the ace of the trump suit.

A nullo bid is an offer to lose every trick at no-trump. The nullo bidder plays alone while his or her partner puts his or her hand face down on the table. The value of the bid is 250 points. Both teams agree before the game starts whether nullo will be allowed.

Only the first two bidders are allowed to bid six. If their partners do not bid higher than six, then the cards are re-dealt by the same dealer.

If the bidding team wins at least as many tricks as were bid, it scores the value of the bid. However, if the team wins all 10 tricks, it scores either the bid or 250 points, whichever is greater. If the bidding team is set, which means it failed to make the bid, the value of the bid is deducted from its score. A team may have negative scoring. The opposing team scores 10 points for each trick it took. If both teams reach 500 points in the same deal, the bidding team wins the game. A team who reaches minus-500 points automatically loses the game. Teammates may not talk nor show each other their cards during the game. The team that wins two of three games to 500 advances.

Texas Hold ’em Tournament

Texas Hold ’em is new to ISU intramurals. There was an extraordinary outpour of e-mails for the game from students this semester, Marticke said.

“I’ve never seen such enthusiasm towards a card game before,” he said.

Texas Hold ’em begins with two cards being dealt face down to each player. Before or while they are being dealt, the player to the dealer’s left makes the pre-determined small blind bet. This is immediately followed by the player to the left of the small blind making the big blind bet. The player to the left of the big blind is the first player permitted to look at his or her hand before making a betting decision. That player can see the big blind and call, raise or fold. The rest of the betting round conducts itself as a regular poker betting round, with the opening bet to call, raise, or fold being the big blind’s.

When the betting round reaches the small blind, if the pot has not been raised, he has the chance to raise it. If the pot has been raised, in order to stay in the game, he must call or raise the amount in the pot. The same goes for the big blind. If nobody raises the bet after the big blind, then the big blind owes nothing, as this was the player that made the last bet. If the big blind declines from raising, then the betting round is over.

The Flop

Then the flop occurs. The top three cards from the deck are flipped face up in the center of the table. The small blind opens a second betting round, which proceeds as a regular poker betting round. The cards placed in the center of the table are called the community.

The Turn

Next, the turn card is played. The top card from the deck is flipped face up in the center of the table as the fourth community card. The small blind opens a third betting round, which proceeds as a regular betting round.

The River

Finally, the last card is played.The top card from the deck is flipped face up in the center of the table as the fifth and final community card. The small blind opens a fourth and final betting round, which proceeds as a regular betting round. After this betting round, players make their best five card hands using the two cards in their hand and the five community cards in the center of the table.

The player with the highest valued hand wins the pot. Texas Hold ’em will be a no-limit style game. A player may bet as much as he or she wants.