A pool, a shaded table and a deck of cards: some of the best summer evenings need nothing more. Here is how to run a poolside card game for grown-ups that survives splashes, wind and the occasional cannonball.
The kit
- Waterproof plastic cards. Fully plastic decks shrug off wet fingers and splashes, and wipe clean. Paper cards warp after one spilled drink.
- Weighted chips. Heavier clay-composite or ceramic chips stay put in a breeze; light plastic chips blow away.
- Shade. A parasol or gazebo over the table; nobody can read cards in glare.
- A wipe-clean table cover and towels on every chair.
- Card clips or a weighted card holder for windy decks.
- Lighting for when the game outlasts the sunset.
Texas Hold'em in five steps
- Each player gets two private cards. The two players left of the dealer post the small and big blinds.
- First betting round: call, raise or fold.
- The flop: three shared cards are dealt face up, followed by a betting round.
- The turn (a fourth shared card) and the river (a fifth), each followed by betting.
- Showdown: the best five-card hand from your two cards and the five on the board wins.
Hand rankings
| Hand | Example |
|---|---|
| Royal flush | A K Q J 10, all one suit |
| Straight flush | Five in sequence, one suit |
| Four of a kind | Four 9s |
| Full house | Three of a kind plus a pair |
| Flush | Five cards of one suit |
| Straight | Five in sequence, mixed suits |
| Three of a kind | Three Queens |
| Two pair | Two 7s and two 4s |
| One pair | Two Aces |
| High card | None of the above |
Pot odds by the pool
The one piece of poker maths worth learning is pot odds. If the pot holds 30 chips and someone bets 10, you must call 10 to win 40, so you need to win more than one time in four (25%) for the call to pay off over time. With one card to come, a flush draw hits about one time in five, so on its own it is not quite enough; with two cards to come it is about one time in three. It is the same expected-value thinking we apply to buying floats in our float care guide.
Other games that suit the pool
- Blackjack: rotate the dealer every few hands so the "house" advantage is shared. Our swim-up blackjack guide has a basic strategy table.
- Five-card draw: the simplest poker for newcomers.
- Gin rummy: a two-player classic for a lounger-side table.
- Liar's dice: no cards to blow away, just dice and nerve.
House rules that keep it friendly
- Agree the stakes before the first hand. Many hosts play for chips and a prize: first pick of the floats, the last cold drink, or a trophy flamingo.
- Keep phones and drinks off the table, and glasses away from the pool.
- Wet hands off the cards: keep a towel at every seat.
- Anyone who wants to swim sits out a hand or two; the game waits for no cannonball.
A very old tradition
Playing cards beside the water is older than the swimming pool. Professional gamblers dealt faro and poker on 19th-century Mississippi steamboats, as our history of riverboat casinos tells, and the Las Vegas pool has had a card table nearby since the 1940s. For a whole party built around the idea, see the casino-night section in how to pack for a pool party.
