Cash Game Typical breakdown for limit games (5 Viewers)

[mummel]

How many chips in front of a player is generally too much. I've started off with 40 chip stacks, and the look/feel good, and players are looser. But as the night progresses, one guy always ends up with a load (inventory just sits there, doesnt get used). Does it make sense to color up his chips until he has around 40-60 chips again? Or just leave it?

 

[jbutler]

How many chips in front of a player is generally too much. I've started off with 40 chip stacks, and the look/feel good, and players are looser. But as the night progresses, one guy always ends up with a load (inventory just sits there, doesnt get used). Does it make sense to color up his chips until he has around 40-60 chips again? Or just leave it?

Just leave it. In the vast majority of limit games, players will start with at least 100 chips. It's not at all uncommon to see a limit game where a guy has 6 racks in front of him and there is really no reason it should delay the game or cause any problem since betting is limited by the structure of the game rather than the size of the stack.

 

[mummel]

Just leave it. In the vast majority of limit games, players will start with at least 100 chips. It's not at all uncommon to see a limit game where a guy has 6 racks in front of him and there is really no reason it should delay the game or cause any problem since betting is limited by the structure of the game rather than the size of the stack.

I guess I just like to have a smaller stack and not have to worry about knocking it over, encroaching on the guy next to you's real estate etc. Do most folks just leave all chips on the table?

 

[jbutler]

I guess I just like to have a smaller stack and not have to worry about knocking it over, encroaching on the guy next to you's real estate etc. Do most folks just leave all chips on the table?

All chips always stay on the table. It's not a problem if you have a full sized table. Even if you're on an octagon or a small round table, players will have elbow room problems before they'll have chip stack room problems.

 

[mummel]

All chips always stay on the table. It's not a problem if you have a full sized table. Even if you're on an octagon or a small round table, players will have elbow room problems before they'll have chip stack room problems.

Even if you add rebuys to the table and keep adding chips?

 

[jbutler]

Even if you add rebuys to the table and keep adding chips?

I'm not sure if you're using bigger chips than I am or what - even a massive stack doesn't take up that much room unless you only stack 10 chips high or something dumb like that.

 

[mummel]

I'm not sure if you're using bigger chips than I am or what - even a massive stack doesn't take up that much room unless you only stack 10 chips high or something dumb like that.

I guess just leave them on the table then, TY.

 

[bentax1978]

Even if you add rebuys to the table and keep adding chips?

I haven't played a lot of limit poker, but when I was in Vegas last month and played 4/8 Omaha Hi-Lo w/ half kill, it was all $1 chips at the table and there were no issues. I bought in for $300, in part so I could cherry pick chips as I was playing (see the "new" chips on the left side of the picture). I would say that once you hit about 500-600 chips in front of you, maybe you'd want to color some up. But certainly a few hundred chips isn't anything to worry about, IMO.

 

[mummel]

Nice stack.

 

[Psypher1000]

Even if you add rebuys to the table and keep adding chips?

In many home limit game scenarios the rebuys are done w/the value chips so you're only adding a handful of chips to the table. Even if that's not the case in your situation, though, and you're supplying the single unit chips instead of value chips, I agree w/what Jack, et. al., have said - it's not likely that your players will run out of room.

 

[RowdyRawhide]

Just leave it. In the vast majority of limit games, players will start with at least 100 chips. It's not at all uncommon to see a limit game where a guy has 6 racks in front of him and there is really no reason it should delay the game or cause any problem since betting is limited by the structure of the game rather than the size of the stack.

^^^^^^this. It's not uncommon to see 1500-2500 chips on the table at casino limit games IME.

Even if you add rebuys to the table and keep adding chips?

For my home games after running out of workhorse chips we rebuy with a 20X-25X higher denom.

 

[Chicken Rob]

When playing in a limit game in a casino, I get anxious when I drop below 200 chips. I like to be sure I'm loaded for Max EV. And since its limit, reverse implied odds are not a factor with a big stack.

 

[DrStrange]

More chips is always better than less. My biggest limit set is 2,300 one dollar chips. I haven't ever gotten them all in play, but I got close one night when a no limit tournament player bought in for 800 so he could bully the table playing $1 to $5 spread limit. < snicker >

The best part is getting pushed the whole pot in a big hand. It is an "Oh My God!" mountain of chips that will take several hands to stack up.

Good times! -=- DrStrange

 

[courage]

Leave them. It's a violation of federal law to color up except in tournaments.

4/8 omaha/hi-lo. 2000 $1's in play. $25's for rebuys.

 

[Chicken Rob]

The best part about limit poker is the mountains of chips.

 

[moose]

Min buyin in my limit games is a rack.

The night I couldn't miss and this was only a $2/4 limit game.

 

[churlbut18]

@DaneWoj

 

[Kid_Eastwood]

Hi,

I read this entire discussion as I’ve in mind to try to run some games to make my buddies discover new variants which play in limit.

Basically the variants I’d like to introduce are:
- California Lowball
- Razz
- Stud
- Omaha-8

Myself I’ve never played California Lowball and have only played the other variants online.

My breakdown shall cover 8 people (6-max for California Lowball and 8-max for the other ones).

I don’t know yet which limit we’d play so let’s just assume 1-2 limit (does not mean $1-$2 but 1-2 units).

First - Can someone check if those structures seem fine ?

Omaha-8
- Small Blind = 0.5
- Big Blind = 1
- Small Bet = 1
- Big bet = 2
- Min buyin = 20
- Max buyin = 100

Stud and Razz
- (Button) ante = 1
- Bring-in = 0.50
- Small bet = 1
- Big bet = 2
- Min buyin = 20
- Max buyin = 100

California Lowball
- (Button) ante = 1
- Small bet = 1
- Big bet = 2
- Min buyin = 20
- Max buyin = 100

My concern is that the lower denom (0.50) would only be relevant for the small blind or bring-in.

Second - The breakwown - How to stay with a set not exceeding 1000 chips.

Would this breakdown be fine per player as starting stack
- 0.50 x 100
- 10 x 5
And then all rebuys are done with 10.

Or we have a case here to only issue small amount of Small Blind / Bring-In chips but then play with 3 denoms.
- 0.50 x 20
- 1 x 90
And then all rebuys are done with 10.

 

[JustinInMN]

I think you are on the right track here. If you are set with a button ante and 1000 chip set then the break down is easy imo, get 900 workhorse (or "unit" in your terms) chips and get 100 color up chips, ideally with a 20x value to make it easy to swap chip for barrel.

When considering limit structure, you want to focus on how many chips in the small and big bets. If you hear someone referring to "two and four chip" or "three and six chip" that is what they mean. Here are examples.

Two and four chip limits

1/2 if played with denom of 0.50.
2/4 if played with denom of 1
4/8 if played with denom of 2

Three and six chip limits
3/6 if played with denom of 1
6/12 if played with denom of 2
15/30 if played with a denom of 5

And so fourth.

If you always do at least two and four chip structures you can always divide the small blind/bring in as a single chip. If you do three and six chip you would make the small blind either one or two chips.

You could in theory do one and two chip structures. But then dividing for the small blind and bring in become issues and the chance of misinterpreting single chip bets goes up.

As for your stud structure I think it's fine to just a small bet on the button and a force of half that value. That's pretty standard. If you want to drive action, double the ante .

So I think that breakdown works pretty well for two and four or three and six chip structures. If you want to do four and eight chip you might want to either expand the set or dedicate another rack to color up chips.

Hope that helps. I think we're saying most of the same stuff. I am just avoiding the use of fractions since the numbers can represent anything.

 

[moose]

If that is the format you are going to use then I wouldn't go with more than 10 of the smallest unit per player, because as you say, they don't play anyways.

What I do is buy all the small chips to start the game and slowly put them into pots and make change when someone needs to post. That way everyone can buy in for a rack which is easier and I buy in for $150. There doesn't need to be a max buyin for limit because it's limit.

 

[JustinInMN]

There doesn't need to be a max buyin for limit because it's limit.

I agree with this, really you are only constrained by your chip set here as far as a Max buy in. But players will seldom go deeper than 3 racks (or one rack and ten color up chips) except for four and eight chip games, so doing 900/100 breakdown should have you covered. And you could permit large notes to play in the rare emergency.

5x the big limit is a standard casino minimum, but there is some merit in making it 10x just to make life easier on the banker. Always consider the balance that with how easy you want the game to enter.

I wouldn't go with more than 10 of the smallest unit per player, because as you say, they don't play anyways.

What I do is buy all the small chips to start the game and slowly put them into pots and make change when someone needs to post.

If there were a need for ante chips I would take this approach for sure .

But I think if @Kid_Eastwood is going with a rotating consolidated ante and at least a two and four chip structure, the need for some chips is removed. If there were a need for ante chips I would go even thinner, plan 4 per player and no more than half a rack in the set.

 

[Kid_Eastwood]

Thanks a lot guys, your comments really help.

I didn’t know what was the meaning of 2-4, 3-6 and 4-8, ...

Now it’s very clear.

And indeed, the goal of button-ante would be to not have ante chips. That’s what they do at the H.O.R.S.E WSOP events if I’m not wrong.

Max buyin was indeed to make it more manageable for the bank.

 

[Baldeagle9]

Personally, I think the best limit sets are those that use only two denominations -- a workhorse denominations (tons and tons), and a high-value denomination (typically 10x to 20x the workhorse value, but can vary). So a combination of these denominations, depending upon stakes:

25c/$2 or 25c/$5
50c/$5 or 50c/$10
$1/$10 or $1/$20 (or $1/$25)
$2/$20
$5/$100

Depending on the crowd, I personally like playing 2/4 with 50c chips (4/8 chip game), and 3/6 or 4/8 with $1 chips (3/6 or 4/8 chip game). As jbutler noted, one chip/two chip games suck. If building a set from scratch, I'd plan on 2-chip/4-chip as a minimum.

As far as the massive quantities needed, I think Jack has that side nailed down pretty well.

New here, quick question for you. I'm starting a home poker game $1/$2 Limit holdem, I know this post above, is from you years ago. Do you feel the same way now that you did back then about not only to at least use a 2/4 chip structure, along with using only two denominations? Meaning do you still recommend that my $1/$2 limit game, with .50/$1 blinds with a buy in of $50. I should purchase at least 1,000 (.50) chips and 150 ($20)???

 

[FearlessFred]

New here, quick question for you. I'm starting a home poker game $1/$2 Limit holdem, I know this post above, is from you years ago. Do you feel the same way now that you did back then about not only to at least use a 2/4 chip structure, along with using only two denominations? Meaning do you still recommend that my $1/$2 limit game, with .50/$1 blinds with a buy in of $50. I should purchase at least 1,000 (.50) chips and 150 ($20)???

The recommendation is for a rack of betting chips per player but 60 each can work at a squeeze. The 1000 recommendation is for 10 handed which in my opinion is too many players in general and a number of limit circus games are 6-7 player max. The value chip would be 20x the betting chip so would be $10 in your case.

Of course you can just ignore everything and use a regular set with some small adjustments