TDA Summit XII: Key Changes to Live Poker Rules

The Tournament Directors Association held its XII Summit. The event gathered more than 200 representatives of the poker industry from all over the world. The TDA's goal remains unchanged: a single set of rules that players, tournament directors, and poker room managers can refer to.

Key changes

🟣Wording and penalties have been tightened, including for hate speech at the table.

🟣In heads-up, a passive action out of turn — a check or call — now strictly forfeits the right to bet or raise when the action comes back to the player.

🟣A player going all-in must push either all their chips or none of them. It won't be allowed to bet part of the stack.

🟣Control over electronic devices has been reinforced, and "smart glasses" are now strictly prohibited.

🟣Stacking chips in columns of 20 has been upgraded from a recommendation to the status of a full-fledged rule.

🟣It is recommended to break tables in random order and not to publish the table-breaking order in advance.

🟣At TV tables, players are now required to show their cards to the reader cameras even before the flop.