The Art and Sport of Two-Up or 2-Up

A gambling game which originated in World War II, played by Australians in the Depression as a cheap form of entertainment and taken to the trenches by ANZAC soldiers, many of which were rural peasants and young men told they were going on a great big adventure to save Australia, little did they know they were to become fodder for war. After World War II, 2-Up was outlawed in common society except for being played on ANZAC Day where it remains a symbolic act of liberty.

On ANZAC Day, descendents of ANZAC soldiers, friends and relatives of current servicement and women make a pilgrimage to “the local” to day drink and play 2-Up. Due to the death toll and shell shock of postwar Australia, it is highly innapropriate to “be happy” on ANZAC Day as it shows grotesque direspect to people who were, and are fighting in War and whose lives are imperiled in undesirable conditions. It is an unnegotiable fact of ANZAC Day, that 'commitment to task’ and ‘reverence of War Service and associated Freedoms’ is the tone of ANZAC Day. We enjoy playing 2-Up and Day Drinking DUE TO the pain of others, and at 2-Up it is encouraged to display upright and proper respect to all players, while approaching 2-Up as a sport not a pastime, to be taken seriously and played with aplomb.

When the ANZAC soldiers returned to Australia, many were severely debilitated by War and suffered “shell shock” or PTSD. Many ANZACS returned to normal civilian lives after war - yet some were too damaged to return to normal society and they lived their days as a class of people which were highly respected by those who did not fight in the war, and enjoyed some societal benefits due to their War Service. But it must always be mentioned that there is no privelege in War, those very damaged people were collateral damage and their lives were not easy as they had accumulated physical and mental trauma that affected their daily peace and function.

The ANZAC Day public holiday commemorated on April 25 every year, is a day when the game of 2-Up is a) legal and b) revered to be played by descendants of, and communities with ANZAC heritage.

Two-Up is a simple game in that it has three outcomes: heads, tails or a foul.

But to play Two-Up is quite difficult as it requires careful positioning of the body, and a dextrous flick of the wrist to launch three coins into the air, off a narrow piece of timber. So to “come in Spinner” and toss the coins in front of your local community, on ANZAC day, with a lot of people watching and counting on your toss - is quite difficult and requires courage to throw the coins high - and aptitude to ensure that the coins spin in the air, then land within a ring on the ground which is usually a mat, a box made of timber or a thick piece of rope laid out as the “Two Up Ring”.

The Bottler talks to the crowd, keeps the cash safe, regulates the fairness and integrity of bets, and ensures that the whole game runs smoothly and fairly.

The Ringer talks to the crowd while drumming up atmosphere, paying respect to ANZAC soldiers, and managers the Spin Toss.

The Spinner is a person from the crowd or community, who has the opportunity to hold the Kip and toss the coins as the ring bets are laid on. The Spinner has to attempt to give a HEADS toss from the kip, and the spinner is OUT if they toss TAILS.

The Back-Better is a person from the crowd or community who bets AGAINST the Spinner on a TAILS bet.

The Spinner lays down their bet, say $10 that they give to the Bottler and by entering the ring as Spinner, that person hopes they can toss HEADS, three consecutive times. If the Spinner does a tail toss, they are out and they lose their initial bet to the Back-Better who will take home the pot from the Bottler.

A Spinner has to match their bet for every toss, so if they start at $10 it doubles to $20 - if they add $20 second toss the pot becomes $40, if they add $40 for third toss the pot becomes $80 which the Spinner will take if they toss heads thrice.

THE CROWD are all gathered around the Ring, and the crowd bet that the Spinner WILL or WILL NOT toss Heads. If the crowd believe the Spinner will toss heads, they wave money above their head and call out HEADS. If the crowd believe the Spinner will flub the toss and deliver Tails, a tail better hands their money to the Head better, and the Head Better holds all the money until the toss is declared heads, tails or foul.

Thereby Two-Up is the Spinner betting against the Bottler, and the Crowd betting for or against the Spinner.

On ANZAC Day, 2-up can be played for 6-8 hours of constant tossing and betting with large bets changing hands.

Over time, Spinners become known to their community and I have seen a bloke toss Heads 27 times in a row with a highly adept coin toss honed over many years of playing 2-Up.

Therefore 2-Up is not just a gambling habit, but an adored lifestyle sport of Australians who play the game both in reverence to the ANZAC memory, and as a living practice of maintaining tradition on ANZAC day - that the day is not to be spent talking about tragedy but it is to be spent celebrating with friends, family and fellows at the local pub or RSL, each places where Australians traditionally have enjoyed many cultural habits due to a lack of established Theatres and other specialised venues in small communities.