Aficionados equate the game they love to a bowling league or a golf tournament rather than blackjack or roulette. Utah's clubs require players to pay only for the preliminary table. If they win that game, they can play at the final table for free. The towers of neatly stacked chips don't represent money, only the chance of winning a new barbecue, TV or trip to Las Vegas.
"People who don't understand the game are quick to call it gambling," said Jamin Epperson, part-owner of Layton's Club Full House. "I don't think tournament Texas Hold 'Em is gambling at all."
Luck of the draw: Attorney General Mark Shurtleff is skeptical. He agrees with Salt Lake County prosecutors that most poker tournaments violate the law.
As Assistant Attorney General Thom Roberts explains, Texas Hold 'Em still involves luck.
"Even though skill at the game may increase the chances of winning, victory or defeat can turn on the random draw of a card," Roberts wrote in a letter sent to all of Utah's private clubs in February.
Saying the final table is free doesn't get around the law, either, in Yocom's eyes, as players had to pay to get that far.
Without clearer guidance, cities with a licensed poker club have taken their own positions, varying from acceptance to less-than-subtle hostility.
Layton has welcomed Club Full House. The city attorney agrees poker is a skill game, though the police question that interpretation and have promised to keep watch.
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