What is a shot clock in poker?
The shot clock is now very much part of the furniture at major poker tournaments, and the EPT Main Event brings them to the tables from Day 3 onwards.
But PokerStars, a company committed to introducing as many new players to the game as possible at its live events, never assumes its players are familiar with every tiny detail of tournament mechanics.
At the start of every day, the dealer at every table ensures players know what the shot-clock restrictions mean.
It’s rather like the safety briefing before takeoff on an aircraft. Most people, the seasoned travellers, ignore it, but it might be crucial, new information for some.
With that in mind, here’s a quick shot-clock refresher for anyone thinking about playing a PokerStars live event for the first time. This should tell you all you need to know.
WHAT IS A SHOT CLOCK IN POKER?
A shot clock is the device that measures the time a poker player has to make their decision during every hand. It typically sits beside the dealer, who controls it. It typically has a digital display that counts down a player’s decision-making time.
Players are required to either make their decision (check, bet or fold) before the clock reaches zero, or to use a time extension/time bank card to request further thinking time. (See more about time extensions below.)
Dealers will reset the shot clock after every decision, and will typically give a five-second warning as the countdown reaches the end.
WHY ARE SHOT CLOCKS NECESSARY IN POKER?
In short: play was sometimes getting a bit too slow. In past years, players were allowed an unlimited amount of thinking time on every street. (This is still the case in most cash games.) However, at certain points in a tournament, most notably around pay-jumps or the bubble, players would deliberately take far longer over trivial decisions than was necessary. They would try to “stall”, essentially pretending to be thinking about a decision for as long as possible, in the hope that an opponent at a different table would be knocked out.
Toby Stone’s decision is final
This stalling might help the player in question navigate a pay jump, but it would slow the game down unnecessarily and sometimes unfairly. If everybody in the field did it, players would see very few hands and the game would become unbearable.
The shot clock limits the time any player can spend on any decision. It ensures the play progresses at an agreeable rate.
Further reading: How PokerStars Blog first reported the subject of shot-clocks 12 years ago.
HOW LONG DO I GET?
Accepted decision-making time varies from tournament to tournament, and from operator to operator. Right now in an EPT Main Event, each player has 15 seconds to act on their first decision and 30 seconds on any subsequent decision.
That means that after you’ve looked at your hand pre-flop, you have 15 seconds to decide what to do with it. That’s your first decision. If you raise and an opponent three-bets, you then get 30 seconds to respond to it. That’s your second (i.e., a “subsequent” decision). Similarly, if you go to a flop, you now get 30 seconds for all decisions.
This reflects the way in which decision-making can become gradually more complex as a hand develops. It is usually far more straightforward to make a decision pre-flop than it is at other times in the hand.
WHAT ABOUT IF I GENUINELY NEED LONGER TO MAKE A TOUGH DECISION?
If you find yourself with a genuinely tough decision that might take longer than 30 seconds to implement, you can use a time-bank card to earn another 30 seconds. You can play as many time-bank cards as you wish, provided you still have enough, until you come to your decision.
WHAT ARE TIME-BANK OR TIME EXTENSION CARDS?
At the point at which the shot clock comes into the tournament, players receive a specific allocation of these time-bank cards, each of which represents 30 seconds more thinking time. A player retains any unspent time-bank cards into a new day, and typically gets a fresh allocation at the start of a day’s play as well.
Time-bank cards buy an additional 30 seconds of thinking time
The number of time-bank cards will vary from tournament to tournament, but currently the EPT Main Event gives players six time-bank cards per day from Day 3 onwards.
Note: you do not need to physically put the time-bank card over the line or hand it to the dealer while you are still making your decision. The dealer will keep note of how many 30-second extensions you have used and ask you to settle up at the end of the hand.
WHAT IF I GO OVER THE 30 SECONDS?
As stated above, a dealer will automatically assume you wish to use a time extension if you allow your countdown to reach zero. They will restart the shot clock and you will have another 30 seconds.
If, however, you no longer have any time-bank cards and your countdown reaches zero, your hand will be declared dead and the pot will go to your opponent.
WHAT IF I DON’T NEED 30 SECONDS ON EACH DECISION?
If you can come to a decision quickly, then you should implement it as soon as possible. Although it’s acceptable to wish to conceal timing tells, or to balance your decision-making time, there’s no reason to use all of your 15 or 30-second thinking time on every street. This is particularly true if you’re just going to fold your cards and know that straight away.
The shot clock should not encourage you to take longer than you normally would. And tournament officials reserve the right to restrict a player’s thinking time, even in a shot clock tournament, if they believe a player is unnecessarily delaying the game’s progression.
This is plainly stated in EPT tournament rules, which read (under the PACE OF PLAY sub-heading):
- Players are required to make decisions within a reasonable timeframe.
- Players who are found to intentionally abuse time, deliberately stall, or purposely slow down the game’s progression will be subjected to a 5-second shot clock for all subsequent decision-making.
- In all tournaments, including shot clock tournaments, we retain the right to limit the time any player has to make a decision.
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