- The Bad Beat Jackpot shall apply to the game of Texas Hold’em only. “Bad Beat” means a high-ranking poker hand that is beaten by a higher ranking hand (e.g., quad jacks losing to quad kings).
- A minimum of five (5) players must be seated and dealt in at the beginning of the hand in order to qualify for the Bad Beat Jackpot. Other player minimums may apply.
- In order for a hand to be eligible for a Bad Beat Jackpot, the pot must contain a minimum of twenty dollars ($20).
- To qualify for the Bad Beat Jackpot, a player must have that particular week’s qualifying hand, or better, beaten. Every time the Bad Beat Jackpot is hit, the minimum qualifying hand restarts at quad Aces (AAAAx). Every four weeks the qualifying hand drops in strength by one until it drops to quad deuces (2222x). At that point, the qualifying hand remains quad deuces until the Bad Beat Jackpot is hit.
Week Qualifying Hand 1 - 4 Quad Aces (AAAAx) 5 - 8 Quad Kings (KKKKx) 9 - 12 Quad Queens (QQQQx) 13 - 16 Quad Jacks (JJJJx) 17 - 20 Quad Tens (TTTTx) 21 - 24 Quad Nines (9999x) 25 - 28 Quad Eights (8888x) 29 - 32 Quad Sevens (7777x) 33 - 36 Quad Sixes (6666x) 37 - 40 Quad Fives (5555x) 41 - 44 Quad Fours (4444x) 45 - 48 Quad Threes (3333x) 49 - 52 Quad Twos (2222x) - If a table is playing a Texas Hold’em/Pot Limit Omaha mixed game, the hand in play at the time of the Bad Beat will dictate eligibility for the table share. A mixed game table is only eligible for a room share of the Texas Hold’em Jackpot if the hand in play at the time of the Jackpot was indeed Texas Hold’em. If the table is between hands, the prior hand will dictate eligibility. For the avoidance of any doubt, a new hand begins once the dealer removes the deck from the automatic shuffler (or starts his/her first rifle if doing a manual shuffle).
- The winning and losing players must use both their hole cards to create the highest possible 5-card hand.
- If the winning and/or losing player has made four of a kind, that player must have a pocket pair to qualify.
Example: If a player has quad nines, they must have a pair of nines in the hole with two nines on the board. - In order for a hand to be eligible for the Bad Beat Jackpot, the hand must go to a showdown, i.e., played to the end, where all cards have been dealt and players have completed betting and tabled their cards to determine the winner.
- Each eligible player is paid out as per rule #19.
- Two dollars ($2) are removed from each cash game pot that comply with rules #2 and #3.
- On a daily basis, for each two dollars ($2) collected, a portion is allocated to the Bad Beat Jackpot, another portion is allocated to cash game promo payouts and the remainder is held in reserve to replenish the Bad Beat Jackpot after it’s hit. Seeding of the Bad Beat Jackpot is recouped at a rate of 10% of the daily Bad Beat Jackpot drop. Playground reserves the right to alter the distribution percentages at any time.
- The minimum Bad Beat Jackpot amount is $100,000. If, after the Bad Beat Jackpot is hit, the reseed amount is inferior to $100,000, the amount will remain fixed at $100,000 until the Bad Beat Jackpot pull (portion from the collected $2 allocated to the Bad Beat Jackpot) brings it to over $100,000, at which point the Bad Beat Jackpot will start growing again.
- If a hand produces three qualifying hands, the lowest hand receives a table share of the jackpot.
Example: If four jacks, four queens and a queen-high straight flush are dealt in the same hand, the Bad Beat hand is the four queens and the winning hand is the queen-high straight flush. - In the event of a jackpot on a multiple board hand, i.e., when the board is run more than once, only the first board shall be eligible for the Bad Beat Jackpot.
- Players must play their hands independently. If any player, whether directly or indirectly involved in the hand, passes information or instructs another on how to act or reveals their hand to other players, the Bad Beat Jackpot will be nullified.
- Any discussion of the Bad Beat Jackpot during the playing of a hand may void that hand’s eligibility for the Bad Beat Jackpot.
- Management verifies eligibility of all qualifying hands. There will be no recourse if the cards are mucked before surveillance was able to verify the hole cards involved and the community cards. Management will not be permitted to reconstruct the hands in any way.
- In order to collect any Bad Beat Jackpot payout, government-issued identification and a valid Playground Player Card is required.
- The Bad Beat Jackpot payout distribution is as follows:
- 40% of the Bad Beat Jackpot is awarded to the Bad Beat hand (losing hand).
- 20% of the Bad Beat Jackpot is awarded to the winner of the hand.
- 20% of the Bad Beat Jackpot is awarded in equal shares among the balance of signed-in players at the table where the Bad Beat Jackpot was hit.
- 20% of the Bad Beat Jackpot is awarded in equal shares among all other signed-in cash game Hold’em players anywhere on the property.
- In the event that there are no other Texas Hold’Em or eligible mixed games on the gaming floor, the 20% allocated for the rest of the room in point 19.d, will be equally distributed among all players at the winning table.
- A player who removes their chips from the game prior to a showdown on a hand where a Bad Beat Jackpot is won forfeits their right to any prize money.
- A player who walks away from the game but leaves their chips on the table retains their right to a share of the Bad Beat Jackpot if the event occurs.
- Prizes won are final. No substitution or transfer of prizes are permitted.
- Playground reserves the right to delay payment for a period of up to seven (7) days.
- If the Bad Beat Jackpot is hit on more than one game at the same time, surveillance will be contacted to determine the correct chronological order. Payouts for the second Bad Beat Jackpot will be made using the reseed amount according to rules #10 and #11.
- Decisions of the Poker Room Supervisor are final and without recourse.
- Five percent (5%) of the total Bad Beat Jackpot payout is withheld as staff gratuities.
- By participating in the Bad Beat Jackpot promotion, winners consent to the use of their names and photographs for promotional purposes without additional compensation.