This is probably what most occassional poker players are accustomed to. Limit poker as the name suggests limit the amount that the player can lose per hand. Limit poker is just what it sounds like. The bets are limited to a specific size, you cannot make a smaller or larger bet. The size of the limits will be in the name of the poker game. For, example, you might decide to play a $1-2 Limit game. Here's what the sizes of the bets would be:

Preflop: $1
On the flop: $1
On the turn: $2
On the river: $2

The above table shows how much one bet would be at any stage of the hand. So before the flop, one bet would be $1. And on the river, one bet would be $2. The maximum that any player can bet or have in the pot at showdown in a $1-2 limit game with four betting rounds is $24.

A $10/20 limit table would mean that the maximum bet would be $20 dollar and only $10 bets are made preflop or on the flop. Generally, the standard rules of betting when it comes to limit poker is a maximum of a total of three raises per betting round. Once the maximum three raises have been made, the next hand is dealt or if the final card has been dealt, the players still in the hand fold or reveal their cards at showdown.

No-Limit as the name implies means that there are no limits on the amount that a player can bet at any of the betting rounds. The only limit is determined by how much money or chips that a player has at the table. No Limit involves the most strategy of all the betting structures. It is also a very fun game although it is very intense. In each hand you could potentially win or lose a fortune. There is no limit to the maximum bet you can make in any betting round. However, there is a minimum bet similar to limit poker. For example:

Preflop: $1
On the flop: $1
On the turn: $2
On the river: $2

Now, what happens if another player bets $200, but you only have $100 at the table? You can go all-in on your $100. If you win the hand, you get only $100 from your opponent. If two other players bet $200, and you only have $100, then you would win $100 from each of them. Then the winner between the two of them would get the remaining money (the sidepot).

Having more money at the table is a huge advantage at the table in no-limit games. Because of this, most poker rooms will limit the amount of money a player can bring to the table initially. However, a player can win money and thus build a larger stack of chips and this would give him an advantage over the other players.

The limits at a No-Limit table are really only concerned with the minimum amount that can be bet and the size of the preflop antes. Generally, the lower the limits, the tighter the table. The higher limit No-Limit tables tend to be much more aggressively played and not for the faint-hearted. And remember, there is no limit on the number of raises either at No Limit. The name very accurately describes the betting of this particular version of Poker.

It tends to be much faster than limit, especially during tournament play. A 1,000 limit multi-table tournament often lasts for over 5 hours and often longer. A similar multi-table No Limit tournament might last 2-3 hours.

Pot-Limit is a popular game in Europe and in online games. It is very similar to No-Limit poker. The minimum bet is structured like in Limit Poker, and the maximum bet is the amount of money in the pot. Many people play pot-limit because they find No-Limit and Pot-Limit games to be very fun, but they think that Pot-Limit is less dangerous than No-Limit. It is true that it is slightly less dangerous, because another player cannot put you all-in unless the pot has been building. However, in reality, you are at a huge disadvantage if you are playing scared - if you fold because you don't want the pot to build, then you will fold winners. And if you refuse to bet strong when you have a good hand, then you are not being aggressive enough on your big winners. It really is true that less money is bet, since players cannot overbet the pot. So if you want a slightly less risky game than NL, then playing pot-limit is okay. But you need to realise that you must be prepared to bet your entire stack or lose your entire stack.