Two-up: The traditional Anzac Day game explained

Every year on April 25, Aussies across the country gather at pubs and community halls to play a traditional game reserved for Anzac Day — two-up.

The traditional Australian gambling game was popular among officers during the First World War and involves tossing two, sometimes three, coins into the air and betting on which side they will land.

Two-up is illegal to play on any date besides Anzac Day, unless you’re in Kalgoorlie or New South Wales’ Broken Hill.

Kalgoorlie’s two-up shed is allowed to operate games on weekends because of an exemption recognising the game’s historical significance to the goldfields region.

It’s fairly simple to play and rules vary from State to State. Here’s what you need to know to get amongst the game and its banter — and maybe even win.

The ringkeeper — known as a ‘ringie’ — conducts the game and yells out “come in, spinner” to select a ‘spinner’ for the game.

The spinner is in charge of tossing two coins into the air with the flick of the kip — a wooden paddle.

They must fling the coins at least three metres into the air while standing in a designated circle known as the ‘ring’. The coins must fall within the perimeter of the ring to be accepted in the game.

There are three possible results: two heads, two tails or one of each, which is known as ‘odds’.

Bets are placed on the impeding outcome, with two heads meaning the spinner wins, two tails sees the spinner lose their bet and right to spin, and odds results in a re-throw.

Members from the crowd gathered around the ring can place side bets against each other and whether the spinner will win or lose.