In a tournament color-up, a chip race allocates larger chips for leftovers that cannot be exchanged exactly. Exchange exact amounts first, race the leftovers with at most one race chip per player, then give the smallest remaining chip to a player left with nothing by the race. A player who already won a race chip does not receive another protection chip.
This guide follows Poker TDA 2026, version 1.0, Rule 26, available through the official September 7 release announcement. 2026 WSOP Rule 77, page 18 also sets the one-chip limit and protection against being raced out. Confirm the rules your event adopts; this is a learning example, not a ruling for every venue.
Sources checked September 14, 2026. The TDA’s general rules page still displays 2024; the linked official announcement provides the newer package.
First exchange the amounts that divide exactly
Imagine a scheduled color-up from 25-value chips to 100-value chips. Here, 100 will be the smallest denomination remaining in play. Four 25s exchange for one 100 without a race. Read the denominations; the colors in the illustration carry no assigned value.
Our constructed three-player example starts with these stacks:
- A: 500 in higher chips plus seven 25s, totaling 675.
- B: three 25s and nothing else, totaling 75.
- C: 500 in higher chips plus two 25s, totaling 550.
A exchanges four 25s for 100, retaining 600 outside the race. A, B and C then have three, three and two old chips left respectively. Those eight chips total 200, funding two ordinary 100-chip awards. The example divides exactly, so it needs no pooled rounding rule.
The highest cards must belong to different winners
The Ace Poker League’s chip-race procedure specifies a card for each chip and awards by highest card, capped at one chip per player. Apply that card-allocation procedure to our leftovers. A occupies seat 1, B seat 2 and C seat 3; all eight card ranks are different. For dealing order, Nuts Poker League Rule D2(b) gives each player all their cards before moving to the next seat. The displayed allocation is a fixed teaching input, not an observed deal.
Player A
3 remaining 25-value chips
A wins the first race chip.
Player B
3 remaining 25-value chips
B has the lowest cards and receives no ordinary award.
Player C
2 remaining 25-value chips
C wins the second race chip.
A has the ace, king and queen of spades. Award the first 100 to A for the ace. The king and queen cannot earn A another race chip. Continue to C’s jack of spades for the second award. B receives neither ordinary race chip.
Read the winners by player, not just by the top two cards. Giving both 100s to A would overlook the one-chip-per-player cap. The cards select recipients; this is not a poker showdown.
Now check whether anyone has no chips left
B brought only the three chips being removed. Losing this race would leave B with zero. Under the cited protection, B receives one 100, the lowest denomination still in play. A and C keep their ordinary awards.
On a narrow screen, scroll the table to see the complete chip accounting.
| Player | Before | Retained after equal exchange | Race award | Protection | After |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 675 | 600 | 100 | 0 | 700 |
| B | 75 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 100 |
| C | 550 | 500 | 100 | 0 | 600 |
| Total | 1,300 | 1,100 | 200 | 100 | 1,400 |
The accounting has two separate pieces: 1,100 retained plus 200 in ordinary awards reproduces the original 1,300. B’s protection then adds 100, bringing the final total to 1,400. An equal exchange conserves value; this survival exception adds value in this particular example.
Change one detail and the protection changes
If B also had a 100-chip: B would start with 175 and retain 100 after losing the same race. B has chips left, so there is no protection award. The initial and final table totals would both be 1,400.
If B won an ordinary race chip: swap A’s ace of spades with B’s eight of hearts, keeping the original chip stacks. B wins the first award and A wins the second with the king. B already has 100; no extra protection is due. Final stacks are A 700, B 100 and C 500, totaling the original 1,300.
The original example and the extra-100 example finish with identical stacks, but only the original adds value: B began with an extra 100 in the other example. Comparing final stacks alone would hide the reason for the award.
Being raced out differs from finding old chips later
TDA Rule 26(C) and WSOP Rule 77(c) require equal-value exchanges for a removed denomination found afterward. An amount below the smallest current denomination is removed without compensation. For example, with 100 now the minimum, four newly discovered 25s can exchange for 100; three total only 75 and do not qualify.
Keep all chips visible and watch the color-up if possible. If you find an old chip later, tell the dealer. The protection during a race does not make a later discovery eligible for another race.
Rehearse the accounting before your next event
Use the step-by-step color-up rehearsal to move through the exchange, ordinary awards and protection. All steps also remain available without JavaScript. Before a real color-up, identify the outgoing denomination, the lowest denomination that will remain, and your complete chip count.
Check whether your event races leftovers at all. For example, Nuts Poker League Rule D2 allows either a race or a round-up procedure at the director’s discretion. If a race is used, ask how a non-divisible pooled remainder is handled. Neither variation is calculated here.
TDA 2026 Rule 26(D) also permits a designated active player to buy others’ chips when there is no action at the table; our example assumes no such consolidation. A color-up also differs from awarding an odd chip in a tied pot. When play resumes, use the actual new stack and the next level’s posting schedule.
For the next study task—tournament decisions with stack and payout context—we recommend ICM Trainer’s precomputed scenarios and practice. GTO Solutions AS publishes both ICM Trainer and this site. The rehearsal here is a separate editorial tool; we do not claim that ICM Trainer simulates chip races.
Method and limits
The three cases use invented stacks and fixed distinct cards. There is no sampling, solver output, player data, equity estimate or strategy recommendation. We use 25-to-100 exchanges with exactly divisible pooled remainders and no tied card ranks.
To reproduce the three cases, download the inputs, results, generator and independent verifier and follow the instructions and checksums.