Poker Betting Structures

There are several different ways a poker game can be run when it comes to betting: structured limit, pot limit, spread limit, and no limit. Knowing which is which and how to play them is very important.

Structured Limit Betting

Structured limit betting is very simple: all it means is that the limit has been set by the table. Betting limits take the form of two numbers, like $5/$10 for example; in Texas Holdem what this means is that the minimum bets are five dollars, until the Turn card when the minimum is raised to ten dollars. You may come across some games where it's broken up even further, say to $5/$10/$20. This works exactly the same, except that the minimum doubles again on the River card.

Pot Limit Betting

Again very simple, with pot limit betting players can place bets anywhere between the amount of the big blind and what's already in the pot. So for example, if you're playing that same $5/$10 game from before and there's $40 already in the pot, you can bet anywhere from between ten to forty dollars.

Spread Limit Betting

Spread limit allows players to bet along a range of amounts. For example, in that same $5/$10 game, players can bet any amount between five and ten dollars during any round. If the structure has four numbers, like $5/$10/$20/$40, this means that betting changes by rounds. Pre-flop and flop bets are between five and ten dollars; on the Turn card betting is between five and twenty dollars; on the River, between five and forty dollars.

No Limit Betting

This betting structure kind of speaks for itself, doesn't it? There is a minimum, but there is no limit to how high a player can bet, including their entire chip stack (called going All-In). So for example, in a $5/$10 game the small blind is five dollars, the big blind is ten dollars, and the limit... well, the sky's the limit!

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