Format
Depending on the game involved, there may be structured, semi-structured, or unstructured betting.
Structured betting involves fixed denomination wagers and raises. For example, many Texas Hold 'em tourneys use a structured raise componant. For example, in a 50-100 round, after the blinds are played, in the forst two rounds of wagering. one may only bet or raise 50, so the first bet is 50, a raise makes it 100, etc. In the final two rounds of betting, the bet or raise amount would be 100.
Semi-structured betting provides a range of potential wagers for the players. Seven-card stud will typically be of this format. At a 50-100 round, each round's minimum wager is 50, though a player may wager any permitted increment to 100. Raises are required to be equal to or exceed the current raise; thus, a player raising a current wager of 75 may not raise it by 50, but may only raise by 75 or 100.
Unstructured games are typified by No Limit Texas Hold 'em. Though there is a regularity to the blinds, there are essentially no restrictions to the wager size. The two most common words in No Limit are all in, meaning that the player is risking the lesser of his stake or any player who calls his bet on the turn of the cards. (If one player has 15,000 and calls "All In", and a player with 5,000 calls, only 5,000 of the first player's chips are at stake.)
