Choose Your Poison!

No Limit has a minimum bet. This bet is typically equal to the big blind – if the big blind is twenty dollars, for example, the minimum bet is twenty dollars. The maximum bet is simply however many chips the player happens to still have in his or her stack. When you raise, you also have to raise as much as the last bet or raise put down.

The winner of the hand at showdown is the player with the best 5-card poker hand from the 7 cards available. Whether you’re playing limit or no-limit, the basic games rules and purpose is the same. The difference is how you bet and the strategy you should use. One aspect of the game of No-Limit Hold’em that causes beginning players much grief is deciding which hands to play and which hands to dump. Given that well over half of your profitability in NL Hold’em is based on hand selection alone, we have developed these charts to help you better determine whether to play or fold. No Limit vs Pot Limit Texas Hold'em is mostly played as a no limit game, which means any player can go all-in at any given time. This matters a lot when it comes to determining the nature of the game. Omaha is mostly played as a Pot Limit game. All poker games have a minimum bet limit, a stated maximum limit or no limit & a pre-decided betting unit in which bets can be made. Usually evaluation of the ‘pot limit’ and the ‘no limit’ poker is done on the basis of structure of the bet, strategies, skills & attitude required to be employed by the player.

Ever since the events of Black Friday, when a significant portion of the world player pool disappeared overnight, limit Holdem poker and PLO games have dried up considerably.

A lot of the limit variants were American favourites, and with most of the US based players out of the game for the foreseeable future, everybody seemed to gravitate towards NL or PLO. Things didn't die off completely though. A cursory check of the Pokerstars lobby shows that there are still some die hards playing the fixed limit offerings, and if my own experiences are to be trusted then it would appear that there are also plenty of inexperienced players looking to try something new.

What was noticeable though, was that there seems to be as many players sat at 8 Game tables as the rest of the limit tables put together. It may be the case, that if you are up for testing the waters away from the comfort of NL/PLO, and you intend to play a respectable amount of volume, then 8 Game could well be the way to go.

What Differences Can We Expect?

There's a lot of potential for discussion between the no limit poker and limit variations, but lets look at some generally accepted views.

Limit games are often described as more mathematical than their NL/PL counterparts. This can probably be argued either way, but it's probably more accurate to say there is a much lesser psychological undertone to limit games. This fact coupled with fixed bet sizes means the game is much more solvable than NL/PL.

On the subject of being solvable, twelve months ago it was reported that a team of scientists from The University of Alberta had weakly solved the game of limit heads up Holdem to the point where it could never be beaten by a human player.

This has both positive and negative implications.

On the up side we should be happy that after almost two decades of online poker, this is the only news we see in the mainstream about poker being solved. Negatively though, if this truly is the case then in the future we are going to face more and more problems with maintaining the integrity of the game due to increasingly sophisticated 'bots'. No matter what scare stories you might read online we are not at the end of the line just yet. The increase in difficulty between solving heads up limit variations and six to nine handed NL games is huge, so let's not panic just yet.

For casual players who haven't yet chosen which game to specialise in yet, limit Holdem is a fine proving ground for getting to grips with the basics of poker. Concepts such as pot odds and value betting can be easily learned without the worry of massive overbet shoves and the like found in NL. If you find the psychological pressure of NL or PLO too much as a beginner, then fixed limit games might be a sensible suggestion until you improve your skill set.

Omaha Free Poker No Limit

There are a few features of the fixed limit scene which many of you will view as less than appealing. If you were to chose a fixed limit path then there is no doubt that as you move up the stakes ladder you will encounter problems with game availability if you are trying to multi table a game other than Holdem. Limit Holdem's popularity is still holding fast, but the other games have dried up somewhat. Action can be found for all the games but the number of tables running is limited. If you are a casual player just looking for fresh excitement though, then there is nothing to worry about. The 8 Game or HORSE tables can solve this problem to some degree, but multi tabling with the possibility of playing eight different games on eight or more different tables, at the same time, sounds like a recipe for disaster to me! These tables do not lend themselves well to the mass grinding mindset.

Fixed limit games might have an uncertain future, but it's not all doom and gloom. There is a lot of fixed limit based material out there, and being as these games haven't undergone the same level of evolution that NL Holdem and PLO has, there is still an enormous amount of scope for getting ahead of the crowd if you are prepared to put the work in.

Another factor which may be important for some players is the variance comparison. NL Holdem is reputed to have less variance than fixed limit, due to the high number of multiway pots which legitimately grow quite large in a limit game. In NL you can expect a lot more heads up pots due to being able to control the size of the pot odds offered to your opponents.

No Limit Vs Limit Poker Online

Maybe you're a player who likes to get on with business and doesn't take too kindly to all the 'Hollywooding' seen in big bet games. Fixed limit is a much faster game with simpler decisions.

If you're a US based player then you will have plenty of fixed limit options in the casino live games. Many of the players seen in these games never transferred over to online poker, and have kept the scene ticking over nicely.

The final distinction I want to make is about the tournament scene. Although the annual pilgrimage to Las Vegas every summer will see some fixed limit tournaments, online it is impossible to play a serious amount of volume from limit alone. Again, I am commenting to grinders who want to be more than just casual players. If you have any ambition in poker today, whether it be cash games or tournaments, the ability to play what many consider an insane number of tournaments, is necessary to complete the learning process. Poker is tough, and all but the extremely talented can not avoid the long road towards mastery. You simply must be putting the hours in.

What For the Future?

No Limit Poker Free

It's difficult for me not to be biased in any way. No limit poker is firmly keeping its grip as the Cadillac of poker, with PLO in hot pursuit. Everything else is just a poor relation, sadly. Gone are the days of table after table of fixed limit seven card stud. If your goal was to become a Razz pro, then I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed!

No Limit Vs Limit Poker Rules

The only way in the near future that fixed limit games will regain their popularity is if mixed games become the latest craze.

No Limit Vs Limit Poker Games

This idea isn't so far fetched as we watch the emerging markets in China and India fill out the poker landscape. If different games become more popular in those regions then the old school may follow suit. We will have to wait and see.

For now the big bet games are here to stay, and I for one am happy about it, even if the tables are getting outrageously tough.

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