Cash Game First Cash Game Setup for Buy-in and Rebuys? (3 Viewers)

[jkoclanis67]

I'm planning to host my first cash game in a couple of weeks (I've always hosted tourneys), which should be a fairly casual game with some players who are fairly new to NLH. I'll most likely do .25/.25 with a minimum of 100 bb buy-in (should I set a max?) What are the generally accepted rules for rebuys/top-offs in a "casual" game like this? Should I allow rebuys at any time, and for how much?

 

[Tonystark137]

Ask your players to bring cash. Get some change from the bank so you can make change.

How much are your usual tournaments? How much do you think your players would be comfortable losing in a night?

$25 min buy in, $50 max.

Top up under $10 , for a whole dollar amount. Either up for $20/$25 or maybe $50.

 

[jkoclanis67]

Ask your players to bring cash. Get some change from the bank so you can make change.

How much are your usual tournaments? How much do you think your players would be comfortable losing in a night?

$25 min buy in, $50 max.

Top up under $10 , for a whole dollar amount. Either up for $20/$25 or maybe $50.

Tournaments I have are usually $25 buy-in, with a $25 rebuy in the first hour. I think $50 would probably be the most each player would want to lose in a night since it's going to be a group of 3 to 4 married couples, so that would really be a $100 loss for them if you think about it.

 

[exodus]

From my experience the rules depends on your players. Most of my guys won’t rebuy until they are completely felted. Our rebuy rules are you can rebuy anytime in between hands up to 200bb or half the biggest stack. Whichever is more. Usually for cash games the buy in is what controls the action more than the stakes. YMMV.

 

[Tonystark137]

From my experience the rules depends on your players. Most of my guys won’t rebuy until they are completely felted. Our rebuy rules are you can rebuy anytime in between hands up to 200bb or half the biggest stack. Whichever is more. Usually for cash games the buy in is what controls the action more than the stakes. YMMV.

This or move the game down to 5/10c so they have 3-5 bullets instead of just two.

 

[4SUMERZ]

I run a $0.25/$0.25 cash game, $25 buy in, top up once stack to approx $5, but can be a bit more. Can top up an additional $25 at that point, or minimum of $10.
We play for 4.5 hours, self deal changing decks each hour. Dealers choice between Hold'Em and Pineapple. The occasional Big Omaha gets dealt, but typically when we are on the last time around the table prior to cash out.

Good Luck

 

[Duvalpoker]

!

 

[Kentucky]

Tournaments I have are usually $25 buy-in, with a $25 rebuy in the first hour. I think $50 would probably be the most each player would want to lose in a night since it's going to be a group of 3 to 4 married couples, so that would really be a $100 loss for them if you think about it.

Based on this I’d do a $25 max buy in.

Most of my guys won’t rebuy until they are completely felted.

This is my experience too. I’d encourage people to rebuy for the whole amount when they get down to $5, or you could do $20 rebuys if that’s what change people have.

Bottom line recommendation is to keep it simple and keep it friendly as it’s everyone’s first time.

 

[potatolei]

why do you change decks every hour?

 

[AlbinoDragon]

I set a cap so nobody can buy in with a stack to bully others at the table. Helps keep the game a bit more friendly. No set minimum a player has to be below before they can rebuy or add-on, only that it can only happen between hands. My rebuy rule is "to the max buy-in value or 50% of the large stack, whichever is larger." Again, I think that helps keep things in check a little bit, but also helps minimize losses a bit as well.

Good luck with the game. Cash games are a slightly different animal than a tournament, but I have found they tend to be a more friendly and social form of poker as there are no escalating blinds and short stack all-ins in desperation.

 

[CincinattiKiddo]

I run a $0.25/$0.25 cash game, $25 buy in, top up once stack to approx $5, but can be a bit more. Can top up an additional $25 at that point, or minimum of $10.
We play for 4.5 hours, self deal changing decks each hour. Dealers choice between Hold'Em and Pineapple. The occasional Big Omaha gets dealt, but typically when we are on the last time around the table prior to cash out.

Good Luck

Why chance the decks, if i may ask?

 

[TheYeti]

In my cash game, we play it as close to casino rules as possible and that means you can rebuy (aka top-up, add-on) at any time for any amount as long as your total stack doesn't exceed the max buy-in. I never understood those who require players to get below a certain amount before they can rebuy.

 

[jkoclanis67]

In my cash game, we play it as close to casino rules as possible and that means you can rebuy (aka top-up, add-on) at any time for any amount as long as your total stack doesn't exceed the max buy-in. I never understood those who require players to get below a certain amount before they can rebuy.

Thanks! This makes sense and is along the lines of what I was looking for. I haven't played a cash game at a Casino in years, so I couldn't remember how they did it.

 

[TheYeti]

Thanks! This makes sense and is along the lines of what I was looking for. I haven't played a cash game at a Casino in years, so I couldn't remember how they did it.

At my game, we do differ a bit from casino rules in that we allow rebuys up to "half the Big Stack", but my players like to play deep.

 

[4SUMERZ]

Why chance the decks, if i may ask?

It's something we all agreed upon when we first started playing at my new table years ago. Prior to that, it was left up to the dealer if they wanted to change decks.
We also do it because it may change the luck of someone that is going badly.
I play at other home games where the same deck is used, or can be changed by someone saying, time to change decks.
It's all about what your game wants to do. I don't think there is any written rule on this...that I know of.

None of us play poker to become rich, so it works well for our games.

 

[TheYeti]

It's something we all agreed upon when we first started playing at my new table years ago. Prior to that, it was left up to the dealer if they wanted to change decks.
We also do it because it may change the luck of someone that is going badly.
I play at other home games where the same deck is used, or can be changed by someone saying, time to change decks.
It's all about what your game wants to do. I don't think there is any written rule on this...that I know of.

None of us play poker to become rich, so it works well for our games.

Do you change to a brand new deck each time? Unless you're using paper cards, that could get expensive real fast.

 

[4SUMERZ]

Do you change to a brand new deck each time? Unless you're using paper cards, that could get expensive real fast.

I use Modiano, Fournier and Cogag plastics. I have about 10 decks altogether and 4 more Broken Arrow decks coming soon.
They are all open, and used and get rotated between sessions. It's not like I'm using then throwing them out lol.
In today's game, we used 2 poker size Fourniers and 2 poker size Copag's.

 

[TheYeti]

I use Modiano, Fournier and Cogag plastics. I have about 10 decks altogether and 4 more Broken Arrow decks coming soon.
They are all open, and used and get rotated between sessions. It's not like I'm using then throwing them out lol.
In today's game, we used 2 poker size Fourniers and 2 poker size Copag's.

So, all the deck changes are more about "luck" and extending the life of each setup. That's cool if it works for you.

At my game, we don't change decks unless someone notices something wrong with one or more of the cards (crease, dent, etc). We've been using the same KEM 2-deck setup for 13 games without a single sign of wear, no bowing either. Love my KEMs!

 

[upNdown]

Should I allow rebuys at any time, and for how much?

Yes. It’s a cash game - people can get more chips whenever they want and for whatever amount they want (subject to maximums.). Some hosts put restrictions on this for their own convenience. Don’t be that guy. You’re the host; do your job - get them more chips!

 

[Mick]

This or move the game down to 5/10c so they have 3-5 bullets instead of just two.

Yeah, I second switching to a 5c/10c game. Our game is 5c/10c, $20 max buyin, and we're sure to have 1 player up $60, and 1 player down $60 at the end of any given night. Losses over $100 are less common, but not rare. I think our record loss is around $180ish? 25/25 blinds seem like they are going to butt into your players' comfort zones real quickly, especially if you allow a 200bb buyin.

 

[4SUMERZ]

So, all the deck changes are more about "luck" and extending the life of each setup. That's cool if it works for you.

At my game, we don't change decks unless someone notices something wrong with one or more of the cards (crease, dent, etc). We've been using the same KEM 2-deck setup for 13 games without a single sign of wear, no bowing either. Love my KEMs!

It works for our game and players. Each game can do what they want, that's the beauty of home games, there are no set rules that dictate the buy in, the chip denominations, chip types, card types, etc. It depends on the host and players. Some home game host offer free drinks, food, snacks, hot dogs, and other have BYO stuff.
It's all good...we all love chips and playing poker as long as we play by the rules of poker.