The main question of a beginner is: "If you don't play for money, what's the point?" In poker without money stakes the interest is not in winning cash but in the sporting result, developing skill and the atmosphere of competition.
How playing with chips works
Each participant gets a starting stack of tournament chips. These chips:
- are not bought or sold for money;
- are not exchanged for prizes or property;
- are only used to keep score in the tournament.
The goal is to outlast the other players and improve your result. That is what recreational poker is.
What the player pays for
The entry ticket is the price of a leisure event: table and equipment hire, the dealers' work, the club atmosphere. It is not a bet. That is exactly why the format is legal.
What the entry ticket includes
The entry ticket is the price of a leisure event, not a bet. It includes a starting stack of tournament chips, a seat at a professional table and participation in a dealer-run tournament. Chips are never exchanged for money under any circumstances.
Play legal poker
Poker Room GTO — recreational poker with no stakes in central Moscow. Sign up for a tournament or free training.
You can try the format at Poker Room GTO. How tournaments run is covered in "How poker tournaments work".