The situation attracted much interest from neighboring Texas counties about what would be the outcome of the prosecution. Believing these poker clubs were a nuisance to the community and attracting the wrong type of crows (this will be important later) and potentially contributing to organized crime. In early 2019, a series of raids on private poker rooms made news when Harris County officials attempted to put an end to this so called loophole. This is where the loophole comes in where institutions have sought to create private poker “clubs” that are membership based. The law says that if gambling occurs in a private place and the only economic beneficiary of the wagering is the winner, then it’s legal. The loophole being attacked by the process is the question of whether or not the house takes a vig (a cut of the proceeds). Membership Based Poker Clubs: A loophole in Texas poker law?Īs an article by the Texas Bar discussed, private poker clubs have emerged that charger a membership fee in exchange for the ability to gamble legally. This will bring us to membership poker clubs which targeted a perceived loophole in the Texas gambling law. If you advertise a tournament, charge an entry fee and take some cut, you’re now in dangerous territory. For example if a group of ten friends buy in $20 and the winner gets $200, you’re fine. Similarly, if the poker tournament is being held at a private residence then you’re probably fine so long as the house is not taking a cut.

In other words, someone is making money that is not one of the players. The key focus of the law is targeting whether you are a “gambling establishment.” Where establishment is thought of as a destination where the entity makes money not as a result of skill or luck. This is among the few exceptions in Texas Gambling Law. Home games, private poker games played in a private residence, are legal in Texas.

There’s quite a bit of complexity to the Texas law but we’ll start with the one most likely to impact the person reading this and then get into the more complicated laws.

Texas home gambling law