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Answer:

This is a good question, since like you said, this information isn't easy to find elsewhere.

Not every solution is perfect. Like in many other problems, what you have to do is prioritize and then work to satisfy what is most important first. So what is most important in blind and dealer button assignment?

In order, here is what is important:

1. No player should miss his big blind. In both tournament and regular ring play, the big blind is a huge disadvantage so no other solution should undermine this.

2. After the big blind, the second most important thing is the dealer button. When possible, the dealer button should move one seat. Only at the cost of keeping the big blind order intact should a player get the benefit of having the dealer button (or last position) twice.

3. No player should ever be able to sit-in in between the blinds and the dealer button. This is important for moving from heads up games to three person games.

4. In heads up play, the dealer button is on the small blind. The small blind (dealer button) position acts first preflop. Then on the flop and after, the big blind position acts first. The reason for this is because of the inherent advantage acting second has in heads up play combined with having to put in so much money preflop in the big blind. The game would be much different if the big blind was on the dealer button. The small blind would have to have a much bigger hand to actually justify playing since the big blind player has so much money in and position for the rest of the hand.

5. The small blind is fairly irrelevant and is the first thing to go when we are juggling blinds and the button around.

Now, there are two main situations. The first situation is a full table where there are four or more total players. The second situation is a game with three players. I'll cover both below. I will also cover how to transition from a heads up (two person) game to a three person game.

In the examples below, when it is said that the "Big Blind Busts Out" it means that the current big blind busts out, not the seat that would get the big blind in the following hand.

And means they busted out.

Full Table: Big Blind Busts Out

Next Hand:

Next Hand:

Next Hand:

Here we see the use of a "dead dealer button" which is basically just moving over the dealer button to the seat when a player doesn't sit there. This is to used to keep the main blind order intact. Now, there is a second solution to this that is more complex and uses multiple blinds but I prefer the above. Here it is:

Next Hand:

Next Hand:

Next Hand:

The advantage of this solution is that no player gets the last seat twice because in a dead dealer button hand, guy right next to the dealer button acts last again -- he basically gets the button twice. That isn't ideal. But the downside of this way is that one player gets a big blind one hand early. Between the two, I would say it is better to not give someone the big blind a hand early than it would be to give the guy a dealer button twice in a row. In the following examples, I'm not going to go through both ways. I'm going to just use the cleaner way that I prefer.

Full Table: Dealer Button Busts Out

Next Hand:

This one is easy, nothing tricky.

Full Table: Small Blind Busts Out

Next Hand:

Next Hand:

Here the only thing that is different is that we use a dead dealer button for one hand.

Three Person Table: Big Blind Busts Out

Next Hand:

Here we both preserve the big blind moving one spot so no one misses it or gets it twice and then also the dealer button moves one seat. The only messy part is that the small blind gets put on the same player twice. But that is preferable to having the big blind on the dealer button.

Three Person Table: Dealer Button Busts Out

Next Hand:

Next Hand:

Ok, this one is tricky (the trickiest actually), so let me explain. It looks as though we broke our rules, but we didn't. Remember, we have to prioritize and satisfy the most important rules first. The most important thing is that in heads up play a player doesn't get stuck with the big blind twice in a row. Notice that in each hand, the big blind is moved. Secondly, we want to get back to having the dealer button on the small blind as quick as possible without breaking any more important rule. The best way to do this is to put the big blind on the dealer button for one hand, then it remains in that seat for the next hand.

Three Person Table: Small Blind Busts Out

Next Hand:

This is a beauty. Nothing is screwed up. The big blind moves to the other seat and no one misses positional advantage afforded by the button.

Heads Up Game: Transition To Three Person Game

The important thing to remember about heads up games is that the dealer button is always on the small blind. The second thing to remember is that a new player cannot sit-in and be active in between the blinds. The only position for this new player to join the game and get dealt in is when he/she is the big blind. For this to happen, the player on the dealer button has the advantage of getting it twice:

Next Hand:

See, notice how the small blind guy lucks out and gets the dealer button twice. There is another more complex solution but the above is cleaner. This one involves two big blinds and a small blind on the dealer button. The advantage to this solution is that no one gets a free ride:

Next Hand:

Next Hand:

Next Hand:

The only downside to this is that you charge someone an extra small blind. So its up to you, either someone gets a dealer button twice, or someone gets an extra small blind.

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