Having minors at your home game

[Xamot]

when i used to skateboard, i hung out with a lot of younger kids. as soon as i turned 18, i ditched them all due to the liability of trespassing, drinking, and getting injured.

whenever an adult is around a minor, they become at fault and responsible for the trouble that the little jerk gets into.

F babysitting

[yeotaJMU]

what is your relation to these minors? how do u know them to invite in the first place?

[wcsherry]

The answer to this is obv. no.

[Xamot]

[ QUOTE ]
what is your relation to these minors? how do u know them to invite in the first place?

[/ QUOTE ]

at the time i was in highschool, so it was very common to just bump into them at similar locations. even under those circumstances though, if any of those little kids got hurt, their parents would expect us to take care of things in a "responsible" manner. i didn't want that on my hands so i ditched most of them when i turned 18.

so taking that logic into the poker world, i can't imagine being the default guardian while an illegal gambling activity is going on. the last thing i need is some kid's dad approaching me to get his son's grade money back.

[frommagio]

My son has been playing in my neighborhood low-limit home games since he was 8 years old; now he's 13. I fund his buy-ins, and if he wins, he can keep any profit above the buy-ins.

We have alcohol, food, and general adult guy talk. The adults at the game are OK with it, because he keeps quiet and behaves, he acts quickly in turn, and his poker skills are well above the median level at the game (sad but true). To be sure of good behavior, I go over the requirements in detail before each session - and any minor transgression will be met with a meaningful glare that quickly does the trick. Basically, he better sit straight, be polite, stay alert, smile, and not say very much.

But there is also an understanding that he can't play at homes where the host has minor children of the same approximate age - it would be too hard to explain the discrepancy to the satisfaction of the other kid. In those cases, he's welcome to come along to play video games.

[BillD]

As long as everybody knows everybody else and has a relationship outside of the poker game, i.e., the parents are friends and socialize outside of poker. The minor's parent should be consent and be present. Any alcohol that the minor drinks should be served by his parent. Keys: game among friends, parental consent and supervision.

Unless the stakes are trivial ($2 buyin, 10 cent limit). Then only parental consent and reasonable hours and no alcohol.

[pismeyer]

My son and his friends (17 & 18) play in my games. They are not allowed to drink. I know all the parents of these boys and girls and if I don't, I make them get permission to play, unless they are 18 or older.

...and talk about variance. Every kid wants to be just like the pros on TV. ALL-IN with any face card.

If they want to play and understand the game, they are more than welcome to join us.

P [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[SGspecial]

[ QUOTE ]
Should you have minors at your home game?

[/ QUOTE ]

[x] No, they win too damn much.

[Zetack]

[ QUOTE ]
My son has been playing in my neighborhood low-limit home games since he was 8 years old; now he's 13. I fund his buy-ins, and if he wins, he can keep any profit above the buy-ins.



[/ QUOTE ]

If its your kid and you are there too, obviously that's a completely different animal than having kids over to your home game.

In the second instance, just don't do it. There a good possibility that as some point you're going to have a parent over at your house in your grill about it. If nothing else, you don't need that kind of hassle.

[Xamot]

[ QUOTE ]
My son and his friends (17 & 18) play in my games. They are not allowed to drink. I know all the parents of these boys and girls and if I don't, I make them get permission to play, unless they are 18 or older.


[/ QUOTE ]

you would still get hit for contributing to the delinquency of a minor. would you ever get caught? no, but be aware that you are taking on the temporary guardianship of those other minors while they are present at your house. all of these meta rules that you have created are nice but they mean nothing to the eyes of the law.

that being said though, i think that if you were to go out of your way to entertain the company of your kid's friends that transparency and open discussion with their parents would be essential since the only thing that will get you in trouble there is an upset parent.