Amusement devices: games – Card or tile games – cards or tiles therefor
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-11
2001-08-21
Layno, Benjamin H. (Department: 3711)
Amusement devices: games
Card or tile games, cards or tiles therefor
C273S236000, C273S274000, C463S013000, C473S001000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06276689
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to games of chance and skill. Specifically, the present invention relates to games combining elements of pool and poker with other wagering elements.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The games of poker and pool have provided countless hours of entertainment to generations of players. Almost every variation of pool or billiards requires concentration, skill, and nerve. Excellence at poker results from a keen sense of applied psychology, combined with an element of chance. Both games regularly reward their players with drama, humor, and camaraderie with their fellows.
It is not surprising that there have been many attempts to combine various aspects of poker and pool into a single game. One example of such an attempt is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,878,664 to Brookes. In this patent, a pool game uses balls marked to correspond to standard playing cards. Each player or team attempts to form a “poker hand” by sinking appropriate balls, to defeat the opponent's hand. Typically, an electronic scoring apparatus detects each ball as it is potted, and displays the state of each player's “hand”.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,840,376 to Garret is directed to a poker game used with a pool table. A plurality of balls, each ball marked with the face and suit of a card, corresponds to representations of the cards on a wall mounted scoreboard, the scoreboard carrying the same card markings for each player. A pushbutton under each card is manually operable to light up an individual indicated card when the corresponding ball is sunk on the pool table. A micro-processor is operable to determine the highest scoring “hand” of each player.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,948,128 to Emery et al. discusses a pool table designed to allow various poker games to be played using card values visibly marked on the balls and/or using plain unmarked balls. The plain unmarked balls have a unique electric name tag encoded therein which is read by an electronic reader system mounted beneath the table top. A ball mixing assembly is also mounted below the table top and there is structure for delivering specific or random pool balls upwardly through any of the various pockets of the table where they are then ejected onto the top of the table itself. An electronic circuit is connected to a computer which controls the instructions that are delivered to the various mechanical assemblies so that a variety of poker games may be played. A visual or private display is also connected to the computer to record the poker hands that are being obtained by each player.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,830,063 to Byrne illustrates a gambling game in which a collateral gambling game which can be won by players on at least one specific event occurring in the principal game, the collateral game being separate from the principal game but one when any of the possible winning events occur in the principal game, the payment to the player being calculated from the total value available for the game divided by the total number of players who bet on the specific winning event. The game gives a possibility for a large number of players to share in the success of a single player who has successfully won the main game. It may be used with various types of games including those using electronic gaming machines.
Despite their advantages, known poker/pool either fail to capture the desirable aspects of the respective games, or require relatively complex, specialized apparatus to play.
It can thus be seen that the need exists for a simple, fun-to-play poker pool game that retains the best aspects of poker and of pool, without requiring complex or expensive game apparatus.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
These and other objects are achieved by providing a method of playing a gambling game involving two or more players. In a first step, the players agree on a unit of betting, for example, a monetary unit such as a quarter, or a symbolic unit such as a certain colored chip. Once the unit has been set, each player antes one betting unit. A standard five-card poker hand is dealt for each player, and one pea is distributed per hand. At this point, the players are permitted to see their hands and peas. If the number on the player's pea corresponds to one or more cards in the player's hand (ace+1 ball, deuce=2 ball, etc.). If not, the player returns the pea to the shaker. If the pea corresponds to one or more cards in the player's hand, the pea is retained for purposes that will be described below.
The order of play is determined in any suitable manner, such as cutting cards, etc. This initial order is retained throughout the game. Shooting begins when the first player “breaks the rack”. If a ball is not made, the shooter changes. If the shooter has scratched, he adds one unit of betting to the pot in addition to giving up his turn.
If a ball is made, the shooter checks to determine if the he has made his “pea ball”, i.e., the ball whose number corresponds to the pea and one or more cards in the player's hand. If a pea ball has been made, the shooter reveals the pea and corresponding cards, and the players ante into the pot a number of betting units corresponding to the number of cards plus the pea. For example, if the shooter holds a pair of fives and a number five pea, then makes the five ball, each player must ante three betting units into the pot. If the shooter has the number
14
or
15
pea and makes the
14
or
15
ball, each player antes one betting unit into the pot. The
16
pea is “wild”, and can be applied to any card value in the player's hand. For example, if the shooter holds a three fives and a number sixteen pea, then makes the five ball, each player must contribute three betting units into the pot, one for each five held.
Next, the each player determines whether or not the made ball has completed his hand, putting the player out. If so, that player is declared the winner, and takes the pot. If not, play returns to the shooting step, and the shooter continues until a winner is determined.
The foregoing will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art when taken into consideration with the following detailed description in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:
REFERENCES:
patent: 3877699 (1975-04-01), Reiner
patent: 4002339 (1977-01-01), Reiner
patent: 4840376 (1989-06-01), Garret
patent: 4878664 (1989-11-01), Brookes
patent: 4948128 (1990-08-01), Emery, II
patent: 5372366 (1994-12-01), Gohike
patent: 5830063 (1998-11-01), Byrne
Burkhart Anne K.
Burkhart Patrick N.
Burkhart & Burkhart
Layno Benjamin H.
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