[Rob1466]

In cash games...more chips on the table or minimal amount?
In other words buy in from the bank roll or buy in from a player?
Personally I prefer more chips on the table.

[Big Mike]

I hope that if you allow chips to be bought from a player, that money stays on the table in play. I would only allow that if all the chips ran out.
More chips on the table - that's why you have them!

[links_slayer]

Only buy chips from the bank.

[99%evil]

In our game, we never buy from a player unless that player has a very very large stack in comparison to the rest of the table. We want the opportunity to win back as much from a player as possible. You don't want somene doubling up and then sellin gthe chips they just won from somebody right back to them, that doesn't give the person that lost the chance to get their money, plus the other person's money.

[beekeeper]

I concur--more chips on the table.

We used to play a side cash game (for tournament bust outs) for quarters, using chips. A couple of players began to bring a wad of singles ($1) to the side game. They are the looser players--the ones who inevitably bust out first every tournament. Anyway, rather than buy in for a stack of quarter chips, both said they preferred to make change from the pot with their singles. Then, rather than make change, they just began betting a dollar a pop (we play $.25 ante, $1 max bet). Now we no longer have a quarter game--we have a dollar game, which is higher than most players want to play.

[smoore]

I wish they hadn't deleted my wrongforumman account.

We love to talk about this stuff in Home Game Advice -> Chip Breakdowns.

As for the question, I like enough "starting stacks" for 15+ people, then I like to use large denom chips. Everyone buys from the bank until we run out of chips. Since became a chiptalker, I have never run out

Sigh... I need to get a game together again. I miss hosting.

[mac40k]

Unlike High Stakes Poker, which seemingly has fueled the attraction for playing with cash on the table, the bills in a home game are not in nice neat bundles. It's hard to size up someone's stack when they have a a few bills in play as well. Is that 4 $10's or 4 $20's or is it 3 $20's and a $100? I have plenty of chips so that running out isn't an issue. If a person feels like they have too many small denom chips, I'll let them voluntarily chip up to larger denom chips, but I don't allow cash at the table. All cash must be converted to chips. Furthermore, if someone runs out of money and wants to borrow from someone else, they have to borrow cash which is not in play and that gets converted to chips from the bank. Players are not allowed to loan other players chips out of their stack. All chips in play remain in play until you cash out.

[Mike Sears]

We don't allow chips to be bought from another player in our home game unless the bank runs out.

[bounty]

Chips are only allowed to be bought from the bank in my cash games. Lots of chips on the table and especially infront of you just looks right

[Tacknight]

I agree with the others here, definitely all buys/rebuys should be from the bank and not another player. I think it's important to keep the money on the table.