Tournaments are the ultimate poker thrill. Whether you're competing for a few thousand or a few hundred thousand, there's nothing quite like the feeling you get when you outsmart, out bet and outplay everyone else on the table and walk away with that jackpot!

At EmpirePoker.com, we offer more tournaments and bigger prize pools than any other poker site. If you've never played in a poker tournament before, here's everything you need to know!

First, a quick definition: A tournament is a poker game in which each player starts with an equal amount of chips. All of the players in the tournament continue to play until one player has amassed all of the chips.

Each tournament has a buy-in as well as a fee. The buy-in is put into the prize pool; the fee is kept by EmpirePoker.com. The size of the prize pool depends on the number of people playing in the tournament and will be paid out in its entirety to the winners.

To start the tournament, each player is dealt a card. The player with the highest card starts the game as the dealer. Each player's goal is to amass as many chips as possible. Players who lose all of their chips are out of the tournament. As the tournament continues, more and more players are eliminated until only one remains: the tournament winner!

EmpirePoker.com offers two types of tournaments

Scheduled Tournaments:

These tournaments have a fixed starting time and are pre-announced. If you want to participate in one of these tournaments, you must register before registration closes. The registration closing time will vary from tournament to tournament, but it will always be announced in advance in the Lobby.

Sit & Go Tournaments:

These tournaments are available 24/7. They start as soon as a specified number of players are seated at the tournament table.

In addition to any rules posted in association with a particular tournament or promotion, our Standard Poker Tournament Rules apply to all tournaments.