Poker Supplies: Chips, Cards, Sets, Tables And Much More...
Poker is one of the most popular gambling games in the world today, both in real life and online. Millions of people around the world are playing poker in one of its various forms.
An essential part to poker, like most casino games, are the chips. It wouldn’t be much fun if there was nothing to win! This article will give you some information on the different types of poker chips available and the rules surrounding them.
Poker chips date back to the 1880’s when companies started producing clay poker chips to use instead of other objects that they previously used.
Poker chips are like the currency of the casino, and make playing games much easier and minimize cheating and counterfeiting. They also make counting chips in stacks much faster than it would be with cash. Poker chips are generally made of colored metal or molded clay tokens. No gaming chips post-1950’s are made of 100% clay, and are made of a selection of materials. They are usually very expensive to make and are very hard to duplicate.
For very large denominations such as $25,000 and above, gaming plaques are used in place of poker chips and are usually rectangular with a serial number.
When you are in a casino you can exchange money for poker chips, but they can just as easily be changed back at no cost.
In different casinos the chips vary, and they will usually be marked with the name of their casino on them to distinguish them from other places and to prevent people creating fake versions. The colors and denominations are generally the same wherever you go though.
When playing with basic poker chips and standard values, the following are the typical colors used for the chips. White poker chips generally have a value of $1; red poker chips have a value of $5; blue poker chips have a value of $10; green poker chips have a value of $25; and black chips are the largest with a value of $100.
For those who are playing more serious poker and with higher bets, there is a longer list of different chips and colors. White is equal to $1; yellow is equal to $2; red is equal to $5; blue is equal to $10; grey is equal to $20; green is equal to $25; orange is equal to $50; black is equal to $100; pink is equal to $250; purple is equal to $500; burgundy is equal to $1000; light blue is equal to $2000; and brown has the highest value of $5000. These can vary sometimes, but are generally typical of the colors and denominations used in most casinos and poker venues.
In New Jersey and Illinois there are laws on what colors the chips may be, and it must be uniform across all casinos and gambling venues. Nevada, the home of gambling capital Las Vegas, has no specific rules on the colors of the chips used in casinos. However, every state in the USA requires that the poker chips have a unique combination of edge spots for easy identification, as well as an imprint of the name and location of the casino and the chips value on both sides of the chip.
Every casino has a unique set of chips that are specifically designed and made for that casino. This is essential as every chip needs to be accounted for and if they became mixed up with other casino’s chips this could pose problems for the finances. In all states, except Nevada, casinos are not allowed to honor another casino’s poker chips.
Poker chips may look simple, but they are full of numerous security features. The artwork on all poker chips is of a very high, photographic quality. The colors on the edge of the poker chips are also distinctive to the casino that they are from. Often UV markings are made on the inlay for added security. In recent years, some of the larger casinos such as Wynn Casino in Las Vegas have begun implementing advanced RFID technology, to minimize counterfeits.
It is very hard for counterfeit poker chips to be successful in a casino due to such advanced security and well-trained staff. All casinos are required to have another set of chips with alternate markings in case there are any possible counterfeits in the casino.
Many venues bring out limited edition poker chips, mostly to help increase profits at the casino as many people choose not to gamble the chips but instead keep them as souvenirs. The Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas is one casino that does this.
