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Looking The Part: Easiest Poker Chip Tricks To Learn Before Your Next Round

Close up image of a person performing a poker chip shuffle on a felt poker table

Playing the game of poker puts you at the center of an immersive sensory experience. All around you, expert players bid their time by performing tricks with their poker chips. 

This noisy, fanciful fidgeting is more than a way to kill time. It’s a way to show off, intimidate your opponents, and impress your fellow players. A good poker face will get you pretty far. If you don’t know any poker chip tricks, you’ll still give yourself away as a newbie! 

We’ve compiled a few easy poker chip tricks to get you started. Practice the tricks below, and you’ll look like a natural during your next game! 

Start With the Shuffle

Poker players agree that the most common poker chip trick is the standard shuffle. If you can master this beginner trick, you’ll have most of the basics down. From there, you can build up to more complex tricks. 

The goal is to “shuffle” two stacks of chips together, passing one stack through the other. The chips from one stack should end up on the opposite side. Not only is it a cool trick to do with poker chips, but it’s also one of the easiest. 

You will begin with two stacks of five chips each. When you’re learning, it can be helpful to use a different colored chip to create each stack. It’s the quickest way to visually confirm that you’ve done the trick correctly. 

Press your thumb and forefinger into the very outer edge of one of your stacks. Simultaneously, press the ring and pinky finger of the same hand into the outer edge of the opposite stack. Push both stacks together until they are touching.

From there, use your unoccupied middle finger and use it to spread the stacks apart using a gentle upward flicking motion. Use your other fingers to gently push them together. The chips from each pile should stack one on top of the other. 

Push the chips together until they form a single tower of ten chips.

The Thumb Flip Trick

The Thumb Flip is one of the best poker chip tricks for beginners. Like chip shuffling, it looks more complex than it is. 

Start by taking a stack of three of your favorite poker chips. Cradle them between your pinky and pointer fingers. You can rest them on top of your middle and ring fingers. That will leave your thumb free.

Use your thumb to flip the outermost chip (toward the tips of your fingers) upward. In a fluid motion, push it up and flip it over the other two chips. It should go to the end of your stack, leaving a new chip at the front.

From there, repeat the process as many times as you like. Once you find a rhythm, it will look natural and impressive. 

Look Like a Pro at the Poker Table

Mastering a few simple poker chip tricks is the quickest way to fit in at the poker table. Before you can look the part, you’ll need to get your hands on some custom, professional-quality chips. 

Are you looking for the best poker chip styles and sets? Look no further than our poker chip sets page. You’ll be on your way to mastering the basics in no time!

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