Play Poker Like the Pros

Rating:
Summary: A fantastic book for hold'em...
Review: Phil Hellmuth has quite a reputation in the world of professional poker players. His multiple WSOP and other tournament championships in addition to his 'lively' personality at the tables makes him an exraordinary character. So, I was anxious to get this book when I heard it was out.

WOW! What a mind for poker this guy has (especally texas hold em). I have read a few books now on probablities and statistics. They were all good for helping me choose which hands to play... which is very important, but its really only half the game.

Hellmuth filled in the second half with this book by teaching my how to bet. I play a much more aggressive (and profitable) game now that I have both read and taken some time to think about the information in this book. If you are serious about improving your game, read this one a few times, and take some time to think about the lessons therein. You will benefit no little.

Rating:
Summary: Good but Dangerous
Review: Phil plays like a maniac who is also telepathic. At least that's how his opponnets perceive him and it has servrd him well. He's won the WSOP how many times?

Buy this book.

Phil is also brash and has been known to throw hissy fits when he gets a bad beat. He won't win Mr. Congeniality. Nevertheless, the main source of anger from his detractors is that Phil is a great player, and damn it all, he knows he's a great player!

(So...why shouldn't he know he's great? )

Objectively this is a goood book and far easier to read than Warren what's his name or David ( "The System " ) Slansky, the former a low limit hold'em spread player and the latter the founder of a system for no-limit tourneys which consists in 'sliding' ( going all in with A-K or any pair) and , Oh yes, co author of ' The Bible ', a.k.a "The Theory of Poker" which is um... theoretical.

The book provides very good insights into Phil's play, hints and strategies he's picked up from the likes of 'Devilfish' Ulliot, Huck Seed and Layne Flack in NLHE and Scotty Nguyen and Miami John Cernuto in Omaha 8 ( Did I mention Phil also won a World Class Tournament at Seven Card Stud? )

Having said all that , the criticisms of some of the previous reviewers are quite sound. eg; Playing only the top starting hands at an HE limit ring game will make you predictable and get you killed unless you plan to leave the table before anyone catches on ( um...half an hour? ten minutes? )

But even more suicidal is his advice on the limit HE chapter on 'intermediate play' I quote: "you have 5-5 and...three bet in front of you...just fold and live to fight another day. Still if nearly every hand is being three bet then by all means call the three bets! (In a crazy game like that---which btw I love to play--sets tend to win huge pots.) "

Then he gives a slight warning that you may have to control your emotions and be able to handle the swings in your bankroll.

(NAW! REALLY?)

That's a bit of an understatement. At aprox 7-1 odds against you in a multihanded pot in a loose AND aggressive game, it appears to me that unless you play as well as Phil, you're going to get slaughtered, whether it's low limit or $3,000-$6,000 blinds. Wish he'd tell us how he gets out of this mathematical quagmire. Do the Jackals turn to Mice on the flop?

Suggest you balance this out by also getting Bob " The Coach" Ciaffone's " Improve Your Poker. "

But buy this book, as well.

Rating:
Summary: Good book as an overall study of a style of Poker
Review: I thought I'd add my 2 cents on this book.

I started playing Texas Hold'em about 3 month ago. I bought Ken Warren's book "Ken Warren's Guide to Texas Hold'em Poker" to use as a starting guide. It worked pretty well be I started winning right away. I decided to get more info so I purchased the Sklandsky's book "Texas Hold'em" and then Hellmuth's "Play Poker like the Pros". At the time it was a flood of poker information and without any experience in the game I found trying to implement Hellmuth's strategies and tactics a tough thing to do.

Over this time though I have continued to play and constantly refer back to all 3 books. It is only now that I am beginning to get what Hellmuth's is trying to show in his book. Ultimately he doesn't bring anything new to the table. Playing tight and aggressive is advocated by all the experts. What I do like are the examples he presents. I run across these situations in my own play. Too often all you get from a source is "play tight and aggressive" with any explanation of what this means. Phil gives you examples of what aggressive means.

My main complaint with the book is that it can lead a new player into believing that playing aggressive by itself will win you money. Poker is a very contextual game. You need to adjust accordingly. Aces will lose to 72 unsuited 12% of the time. You need to be able to assess the play of the other people at the table (both live and on-line). If you play low-limit you will often get on a table with a lot of people that will follow you all the way to the river and will hit the cards they need. I found Phil advice works much better on a 6 person table than a 10 person table (at least a low-limits).

I'm sure I will continue to refer to Phil book for insight into an aggressive style of play. I would recommend the book to someone but only as part of an overall study of the game of Texas Hold'em not as the definitive source.

PS. I haven't gone into the other type of game because I don't play them (yet).

Rating:
Summary: Thanks Phil - I'm making a killing...
Review: My comments relate to the Limit Hold'em content of the book, although I suspect it is fairly consistent with the book in its entirety.

I make no pretences about the fact that I am an average Hold'em player. I play limit anywhere from 3/6 to 10/20 and make a nice profit over time, but I am definately not the kind of player that walks from a table to a round of applause :)

Phil on the other hand needs no introduction. His reputation (great at cards, shocking at manners!) is known to anyone who takes an interest in the game.

Like many players though, I rushed out and bought his book when it hit the shelves, and like most I was hugely disappointed... It's a story of "I'm Phil Hellmuth, I'm great, and I'm gonna keep telling you I'm great, and now I have your money for a book full of rubbish!" I threw it the corner with the same feeling you get when another player draws to an inside straight and hits - bad beat!

Let's face it. What seperates Mr Hellmuth and other big name players from the rest of us is an instinctive ability to accurately read a player, to the extent that they can almost read the suit of your cards, let alone the value. From there they pressure you when you're weak and back off when you're strong.

For us mere mortals we need to rely more on the technical aspects of poker that make the foundation of any good player's game. Play Poker like the Pros is extremely light-on here. In fact more information can be found for free in an hour searching a few online forums.

If you want to actually improve your game, any books by Sklansky, Malmuth or "Middle Limit Holdem" by Ciaffone & Brier and the like are the way to go. If your new to the game and need a solid introduction, you can't go past "Winning Low-Limit Hold'em" by Lee Jones. Just don't waste your money with Hellmuth.

So how am I making a killing?

Well, there seems to now be a wave of new players, "Phil Hellmuth's Pheasants" I call them - the sixth animal not discussed in his book - and they're just waiting to be plucked.

Invariably there seems to be at least 1 at every table. You'll see them three betting pocket 5's pre-flop and raising on the flop with second and middle pair "to see where their at". These players are the ones that were never good enough to begin with, hence they actually believe the diatribe, and have not improved with their latest book purchase.

Once identified these muppets can be targeted so easily, because they become so predictable pre and post flop and almost all of them have zero talent on the turn and river play. (Interestingly, areas that are hardly touched by Phil's book.)

In the 12 months prior to the release of "Play Poker like the Pro's" I averaged a profit of $57 per hour. Like I said at the start, fairly average for the stakes I play. Since his book and the adjustments to my game to target the Pheasants that average has risen to $74ph.

All I can say is "Hurry up and release your next book Phil, so we can both get rich!"

Rating:
Summary: good book for basic play
Review: I've made money since reading this book. The basic stradagy is easy to follow and the intermediate is good when you get the basics down. Since buying this book I have only left the tables down one time! A must for new hold-em players. Thanks Phil!

Rating:
Summary: It sure works for me...
Review: I've read review after review about how this is such a terrible book and it doesn't work. One reviewer claimed that he's done nothing but lose since using Phil's strategies...I don't see how. I've more than doubled my bankroll since playing with his strategy. I'm in no way a professional player; I'm barely a serious player. I've just seen no other methods from my studies and reading that work better than Phil's. I think the biggest problem with this strategy is it requires a lot of patience that most people just don't have. If you can't be patient and wait for made hands then you will not succeed with this strategy. I start every night when I get home from work with $5.00 and am consistently quitting with $25-$30 in a .25/.50 holdem game(like I said, I'm not an expert or a big money risk threat...I play for fun). I bet it will work for you if you apply it as I have. Great book.

Rating:
Summary: Simple book for a beginner, look elsewhere if you're serious
Review: This book provides a very rough introduction to how to play Hold 'em, Omaha, and Stud, including simple and easily memorizable strategy which is sufficient to beat players more clueless than you.

Other reviews I've read say that the book is strongest in its coverage of Omaha and Stud and weakest in Hold 'em, which is currently by far the most popular poker game in casinos and online.

I have little experience with Omaha and Stud, primarily playing Hold'em in AC casinos and online. This book lays out a simple and conservative Hold 'em strategy that I've found to be a consistent, if relatively small-time, winner in low-stakes games.

There are better and more thorough books available to teach winning Hold 'em strategy such as Hold'em Poker by Sklansky or Winning Low-Limit Hold'em by Jones. I would recommend these to players looking to play semi-seriously. This is a decent book, however, for casual, novice players looking to learn simple winning strategy at Omaha, Stud, and Hold'em.

Rating:
Summary: The least useful poker book I've read
Review: There is little new here, and anything Hellmuth has to say of any value has been said better before. Too much "here's why I'm so good" and not enough meat.

Rating:
Summary: Learn to play poker emotionally, not intelligently
Review: Of all the books I have read on poker, this one has to be the one I disliked the most. While there are some good tips in the book, it is poorly written. The subject matter jumps around and Phil constantly refers to a sixth sense you are already supposed to have. I especially like the section on how to beat Internet people by watching their body language.

Primarily this is a book about gambling by emotion, and not by measuring the odds or tactic. You might want to watch the World Series of Poker and look how losing situations are handled. (I've seen Mr. Heartmouth actually patronize a guy for winning and being happy about it.) Of course you will win several world series if all you do your entire life is play poker.

Please try Brunson's book first. ;-)

Rating:
Summary: Book review by a novice.
Review: I have only played in six small tournaments but have read several books including Phil's. I also use Wilson software.
The last two tournaments I entered(100 to 120 players) I made the final two tables. This is exactly what Phil predicts if you play tight like a mouse. I got there with just a few chips;exactly as predicted(I also didn't make the final table as he predicts WOW!). His sections on Hold'em are excellent. He tells you when to play tight,when to steal blinds and when to loosen up. The book has many examples of specific situations;a method I like when tackling a new subject. He covers limit,Pot limit, and no limit tournaments. These sections are very well written and logical. I recommend the book to any hold'em player novice or seasoned vet. Oh yea,there is a section for advanced players but I think it was too early for me to benefit from it.