I neglected to mention the kind of bonuses that some of these recent posts have mentioned. During our April game, we celebrate April Fools by playing the 7-2 game (bonus if you win a hand with 7-2).
We did something similar with T-2 when Doyle Brunson passed.
We also sometimes run a double bounty on the winner of the previous tournament.
This is one format that I’ll never understand. Why would you want to play in a tournament where you’re not playing half the time?
To try to answer my own question, I guess it would work if it was part of a larger social even, so you can mingle with the wives or play bocce or something, when you’re not playing. But then my question becomes why would you want to squeeze poker into a larger social event?
Our group had fun with the tag team event for a few reasons. First, my game has a pretty large player base (25-30 players), but most of them are very casual. They come in part because we make it a fun social atmosphere (themed food, music, etc.). In fact, my players enjoy chatting on the breaks and color ups so much that it is sometimes hard to get them back to the table. So, they really enjoyed the format that allowed half of the group to chat, spectate, etc. while the other half were playing.
We also structured the event to create a bit of a strategic element. We allowed teams to swap players out at blind increases and we required each teammate to play at least one out of every three levels. Some teams (mostly the teams that were equally skilled) swapped every level (or every two levels). Other teams played their better player as much as possible (two levels on, one level off). Other teams seemed to take other factors into consideration, especially as blinds got high and/or tables got shorthanded. Some players are more skilled at short-stack play, some are more or less comfortable shorthanded, some match up better against different playing styles or skill levels, etc.
We also introduced a limited number of “talk it over” chips; use one of your chips and you could discuss a hand in progress with your teammate before making a decision. It was interesting to see how people took advantage of those opportunities, and they seemed to enjoy the idea.
Whatever the reason, this ended up being one of our liveliest events with people seeming to have a lot of fun with the different elements.