PokerStars will be making substantial changes to No-Limit Hold’em ring game offerings starting immediately. New 6-max tables of No-Limit Omaha Hi/Lo will also be added. These changes are being made after careful consideration of all information available, including feedback provided by players here on the Two Plus Two forums. PokerStars would like to thank all players who made suggestions about ring game buy-ins this past year for their input. PokerStars Poker Room Management has read each and every post on this topic to make sure that all players’ suggestions have been considered.


Introducing CAP Tables
PokerStars has been testing ‘CAP’ tables at certain stakes and game types for the past several months. These tables will now be offered more widely as a part of the standard PokerStars offering.

‘CAP’ tables place a limit on how much each player can wager over the course of a single hand. When this amount has been wagered, the player is considered to be all-in for the remainder of the hand.

The ‘CAP’ is always the same for each hand, and always the same for each player at the table. PokerStars will initially deploy only 20bb CAP tables that limit each player’s total betting to 20 big blinds in each hand.

CAP tables will initially be listed alongside other tables in the No-Limit and Pot Limit lobbies. PokerStars may move CAP tables to separate lobby tabs in the future. Games with caps larger than 20bb may also be offered in the future.


6-handed and 9-handed tables
The following buy-in options will be offered at No-Limit Hold’em (NLHE) tables with 6 or more seats:

0.01/0.02 and 0.02/0.05 blinds
• 40-250bb tables, unlabelled. This offering is unchanged.

0.05/0.10 and 0.10/0.25 blinds
• 40-100bb, without lobby labels. This will include all Euro currency tables.
• 100-250bb tables, labelled as ‘deep’

0.25/0.50 blinds and above
• 20bb CAP, allowing buy-ins of 20-50bb, labelled ‘CAP’
• 40-100bb, without lobby labels. This will include all Euro currency tables.
• 100-250bb tables, labelled as ‘deep’

Tables with 20-50bb buy-in ranges will no longer be offered for 6-max and 9-max NLHE.

Tooltips explaining the exact minimum and maximum allowable buy-in at each table will still be displayed when the mouse pointer is hovered over a table name in the PokerStars lobby.


New Tables: 6-max No-Limit Omaha Hi/Low
New 6-max tables will be offered for No-Limit Omaha Hi/Low at stakes ranging from 0.10/0.25 to 3/6.


Implementation
These changes will be implemented in two steps.

The first step, the addition of new tables, will occur immediately. NLHE Cap tables will be deployed at limits $0.25/$0.50 and above and No-Limit Omaha Hi/Low 6-max tables will be deployed at all currently offered stakes.

Removal of NLHE 20-50bb tables and changing of Euro NLHE tables from 35-100bb to 40-100bb will take place on February 10th. Changes to table labels will also take place on this date. Tables of discontinued types will slowly be closed as they empty, but some may exist until the next server restart.


Heads-up NLHE and Omaha
PokerStars is still considering making changes to table buy-in minimums and maximums for heads-up NLHE and all omaha games. Player input and suggestions for possible changes to these tables are appreciated. Any changes to these tables will be announced and implemented in February.


Thanks
PokerStars would like to thank all players for their patience in waiting for these changes. It is important that PokerStars consider all options and opinions before making decisions about ring game buy-ins.

Reserving this space to repost future Q&A

when will these changes take place? im still seeing the normal amount of 20-50bb buy in tables :/

New six-max tables will be offered for no-limit Omaha Hi-Low at stakes ranging from 0.10/0.25 to 3/6.

<3

Steve, I didn't see mention of removal of the 20-50BI tables for o8, does that mean they're sticking around?

"Removal of NLHE 20-50bb tables and changing of Euro NLHE tables from 35-100bb to 40-100bb will take place on February 10th. "

Reading skills ftw!

these tables seem soooo good. hope they are beatable.

CAP holdem should stay with the NL holdem games if PL holdem is staying there also.

CAP tables people wont be rat holing so the games wont be at the top of the lobby list, people cant moan about that now.

Public can decide fairly what they want to play now.

this is good i hope there no more complaining. if the rec players migrate to the cap i think the full stacking regs shouldn't complain anymore. but getting rid of those 20bb-50bb tables is nice. those games were just eating up all the rec players. rec players will still play cap but i dont think as much.


question why no cap tables for .05/.10 ?

Why there is no 0.10/0.25 20bb CAP tables?

there are lots of .05/.10 CAP already running check it out... but no .10/.25 =(

good job pokerstars! now do the same with the omaha games too please. just 20bb cap, 40 100. and deep. get rid of 20 50bb

Looks good, may move some of my play to PLO NLHE.

Thanks Steve

plz do it for PLO tooo!

I think there should be micro-stakes heads up tables. 5c/10c and 10c/25c

the way i read it there will be no cap games for .05/.10 after feb 12

+1

Plz do it Stars, i always wanted to play heads up cash but dont have the BR for 50nl

OMG THANKS YOU SO MUCH .i never thought it would happen

you would never beat the rake.

Thank you stars, for making the decision that gives both short and deep player types a place to play a game they enjoy.

+1

i have not played on stars in years but this change might make the games a lot better.. hopefully it will. It will basically be like FTP was before they ****ed it up with shallow tables.

That's false, on euro sites a lot of micro grinders play 10hu 20nl hu and they beat it for 20ptbb+

I remember when i was a player at ongame, while they were no 200nl ring games running, i would open every single 30nl HU table (so almost 25nl) and play everyone and still had a positive winrate on a good sample

1.
This reminds me of the joy everyone had when stars introduced 20-50 bb tables. I wasn't happy about it then and now I hate this cap change even more.
So they just changed 20-50 to 20 cap.
Can someone detail what good that will do for the games? Won't the 20-50bb fish play 20bb cap now but harder to stack them in a single hand? Why are we assuming that some of them will migrate to 100bb?

2.
For the shortstack haters(me included): how is this hurting the shorties? can't they simply leave the table like before? This is just giving them an extra choice. If they notice their games get hurt by the change they can just make an agreement between them to simply leave after a double up like before even if they don't have to.

P.S : if PS made a separate tab for CAP then yea, I would get high hopes of fullstack games improving.

would be soo soo funny if all the rec. players switched to cap games

We win