Shuffling

Any time a deck is handled for shuffling, the shuffling must be done in such a way that is “sufficiently random.” Any method is acceptable for sufficiently randomizing a deck that satisfies the following 3 conditions: 1. Any card from the deck can be in any position in the deck after shuffling is completed. 2. It is possible for a card to start from the bottom-most position and become the top-most card. 3. No players in a game know the position of any card or cards in the deck during or after shuffling. Any method of shuffling that is non-random or produces a predictable order of cards is unacceptable. If, at any point in time, players can see a card’s face during the shuffling process, shuffling and randomization must be restarted. Players should notify judges if they believe their opponent is not attempting to randomize the deck sufficiently. Players can request that a judge shuffle their deck for them, at the discretion of the judge. Once shuffling is completed, players must offer their decks to their opponents for final shuffling.

For deck shuffling in tournaments, acceptable forms of shuffling are riffle shuffling and mash shuffling. If players opt to use sleeves, mash shuffling is recommended. Decks in limited tournaments of size 30 cards, 5 riffle/mash shuffles is considered sufficient. For a deck size of 60, 7 riffle/mash shuffles are considered sufficient. A deck size of 75 requires at least 8 shuffles, and a deck size of 100 requires at least 9.

Pile shuffling, overhand shuffling, etc are not allowed as methods to generate a sufficiently randomized deck. If players would like to use pile shuffling as a method to ensure a proper card count, this is permissible provided it is followed by a valid shuffling method as detailed above.