Dear Reader,
Below is a list of my poker book collection, indicating what I have already read and am currently reading.
Bold = Read/Reading
% = How far through the book I am
- World Poker Tour: In the Money with DVD Poker
- The Real Deal
- The Book of Bluffs : How to Bluff and Win at Poker
- No Limit Hold ‘em: Theory and Practice – Reading – 75%
- Harrington on Hold ‘Em: The Workbook: Expert Strategy for No-Limit Tournaments
- The Poker Face of Wall Street
- Championship Hold’em Tournament Hands : Championship Strategies at Limit and No-Limit Hold’em! – Reading – 50%
- How to Win No-Limit Hold’em Tournaments Making the Final Table – Reading – 75%
- Pot-Limit & No-Limit Poker Tournament Poker for Advanced Players
- Inside the Poker Mind
- Fortune’s Formula: The Untold Story of the Scientific Betting System That Beat the Casinos and Wall Street
- The Psychology of Poker
- Poker Essays II
- Poker Essays
- Poker Essays, Volume III
- Hold’em Excellence: From Beginner to Winner
- More Hold’em Excellence: A Winner for Life
- Texas Hold’em Odds
- Internet Texas Holdem: Winning Strategies from an Internet Pro – Reading – 25%
- Improve Your Poker
- Winning Low-Limit Hold’em
- Phil Gordon’s Little Green Book : Lessons and Teachings in No Limit
Texas Hold’em - Middle Limit Holdem Poker
- Getting Started in Hold’em
- Caro’s Book of Poker Tells – Reading 50%
- Harrington on Hold ‘em: Expert Strategy for No-Limit Tournaments:
- The Endgame Harrington on Hold ‘em
- Small Stakes Hold’em
Currently I play in a sporadic Limit/No Limit Hold Em game with my friends in the burbs’ outside of Toronto. Initially a $.50/$1 limit cash game, I was able to do quite well. One of my best friends introduced me to poker way back when we were kids, and we had fun but video games were the interest du jour at the time. We then moved to No Limit tournaments, with a $20 buy in. This was a big swing, and I had a steep learning curve. I think I went out on the first 10 hands of the first tournament I played with KJs. I actually put the opposing player on the right hand (smaller pair) but he ended up filling up to a full boat (toot toot!). In the interim I purchased a Hold-Em simulator that has actually been really good. I routinely finish in the top 3 hands now. I’ve really been able to ramp up my No Limit Hold Em skills. It’s been great to be able to play with great players such as Thumbs, JayRo, Goat, MattyP and the other friends I’ve played with recently, both people I’ve met at work and in my MBA program. I’ve developed from being a Level 1 player (what does my hand do) to Level 3-4. Level 5 is the highest (What do I have what do they have what do they think I have that that have that I think they have). Level 5 is the Pro level. That being said the lower quality the level of player the more dangerous it is to play at a higher level. The optimal level, I believe, is 1 level above your opponent. What this means is that you can bluff good players but not bad players. That being said, I think that at the highest level, it’s circular, (that is you move back to level 1).
I was at the Mirage in Vegas for the first time a couple of weeks ago. I brought my best NLH game to the limit tables. Let me reiterate: I brought my best NLH game to the limit tables. I did not do well. The first time I sat down, I got AKo on the first deal, but missed the flop and didn’t see anything after that. Th second time I sat down, it was at the most random table .Sitting beside me was some Michael Jackson wanna be with a blonde afro. Even I can’t make this stuff up. I think he was playing with the rent money cuz every 15 mins some haggard looking Eastern European woman (“Kat”) would come by and he would berate her for harassing him. He would then give her a couple of buck to play at the slots. Right opposite me was some crazy compulsive gambler dude. It was a full table and after a couple of hours as the rock I had doubled up. At this point you would have figured I had “learned”.
In order to demonstrate that I was the “rock” I would flip over ALL MY HANDS. A keen observer would have noticed that I was playing the top 5% of hands. Even if you were mildly retarded you probably would have noticed this. I then proceeded to lose all my winnings on the following 2 hands. Hand #1 I have QQ, flop comes J 6 2 or something like that. I bet out heavily, so does the compulsive gambler. We come to the river and it’s a 5. I bet out heavily so does he. We flip, Ohhh.., he hit trip 5’s on the river. Nice! the sweetener was when random dude says “Never go in with Queen’s. Wow, thanks for that insight Doyle. I got outdrawn by a really bad hand. Your insight will certainly improve my game. Hand #2. I am big blind with 6-5, flop is 10 -6-5, I bet out heavily so does random guy, he draws out to a straight. Limit is all about the nuts. Nuff’ said.
The last time I played I lost a little bit but not as bad as the dude beside me who got busted in 20 mins. Dude sits down beside me with $100. The 3rd hand he gets into a re-raising contest with random dude and gets busted with 84s on a flush. He had pocket Aces. So naturally he goes on tilt. A couple ofhands later he has k-x Diamonds and gets into a raising war with random girl. They flip and she has A-10 Diamonds. Up to that point she had been playing garbage like q-9 and j-8. Wow. I just got up and left at that point.
I’ll try and post reviews of actual books when I have time, especially if I have requests. I am currently reading the latest Sklansky/Miller book and it’s pretty good. I am about to read about the Sklanskly-Chubov rankings in the book. Currently I used generic % hand calculations, but I recently began using actual out % calculations (using rule of thumb % accurate to with 2%)
I plan on starting a monthly No Limit tournament and will keep stats, so that there can be a year end tournament of champions.
Daily Quote – Confucius on Hold’Em ” The cautious seldom err”
