Betting structures and buy-ins in poker:

 Just as with any casino game, you must be aware of the table requirements as well as the rules of the game when you sit down to play poker. Although you will probably see only two types of poker games in a casino, you will see considerable variety in betting limits.

In a fixed-limit game, you will usually find a two-tiered betting structure, with one number specifying the amount you can bet or raise in early rounds of the game and a second number the amount that you can bet or raise in later rounds. Some common fixed limits are $1-$4 and $5-$10. You might even encounter $100-$200. Usually the higher the limit is twice the lower limit, but this is not always the case. The amount is both minimum and maximum in a fixed limit game; that means in the $5-$10 game, you can bet only in increments of $5 in the early rounds and only in increments of $10 in the later rounds.

In a spread-limit game, a player might bet any amount in a specified range during each round of a hand. $1-$4/$8/$8 is typical shorthand of the betting limits of a spread limit hold'em game. This means that in the first two rounds players may bet anywhere from $1 to $4.In the third round, they may bet $1 to $8. However, any raise must be at least as large as any bet or raise that was made earlier in the round. So if a player opens the round with $3, the next player cannot raise $1, but $3 instead.

Each game has a minimum buy-in, which indicates the smallest amount of chips you must purchase. You should ask what the buy-in is when you are finding out the stakes for the game. In most cases, the minimum buy-in is five times the amount of the maximum bet. So for a $5-$10 Texas Hold'em game, the minimum buy-in would be $50.

All casino poker games are player table stakes. This means you can bet only with money you have on the table during the hand - this includes cash you have on the table and chips. If you run out of chips while calling or betting, you go all-in, meaning all subsequent wagers by other players go into a side pot in which you have no interest. You are only contesting the pot to which you contributed chips. At the end of the hand, you can not win the side pot - even if you have the best hand - because you invested no money in it. But you can win the main pot. Between hands, you are free to buy more chips or put cash on the table.

Two betting structures you are unlikely to encounter unless you are getting very serious about poker are pot limit and no limit. In pot limit, a player may bet any amount up to or equal to the amount of chips in the pot. In no-limit, a player may bet any amount of chips up to or equal to the amount of chips in front of him or her. Both of these variations involve a lot of posturing, bluffing, and intimidation. Particularly in no-limit, players can be bumped out of the game in a blink of the eye.