Bob Ciaffone & Jim Brier Book - FANTASTIC

Just finished reading the new book "Middle Limit Holdem Poker" and was pleasantly surprised by all the NEW information in this book. Congratulations to Ciaffone & Brier on a job well done!


It will certainly go into my "Top Five" list which includes about 200 poker books.

Hold'em Poker For Advanced Players - Sklansky & Malmuth

The Theory of Poker - David Sklansky

Inside the Poker Mind - John Feeney

How I Made over $1,000,000 Playing Poker (now called the Super System) - Doyle Brunson

Middle Limit Holdem Poker - Bob Ciaffone & Jim Brier


NOTE: Mason please don't scold me for posting in the wrong place...this is the only place I post!

Notice I put three of your books at the top :-)


What I appreciated the most about "Middle Limit Holdem Poker" was it gave you hundreds of examples from real games. It not only told you what you should or shouldn't do - but why!

It gives you concrete examples of correct action to take in various situations.


It gives you all types of hands and situations for you to think about and then asks...

What would you do?

You have a chance to figure out the answer first and then you can read on to see if your decision would be the same as theirs. You will usually agree, but sometimes you won't - but it does make you think!


I've played poker for many years and after reading this I noticed a couple of serious leaks in my game. It helps you to start thinking on a much deeper level and helps you to stay out of trouble.

Parts of it are very defensive and tight - while other parts is bold and aggressive!


This may be the best $25.00 you will ever spend on a poker book. However, it's not for beginners; it is for the serious players that want to improve their game. It could be good for the poker industry as well by getting more new players interested in the game.


I think Bob Ciaffone keeps getting better with ever new book he writes and for Jim Brier's first attempt ..... YOU DID GREAT!

"What I appreciated the most about "Middle Limit Holdem Poker" was it gave you hundreds of examples from real games. It not only told you what you should or shouldn't do - but why!"


great! so it's a lot like brier's magazine articles right? which are very painful, to say the very least, in their consistently inaccurate weak-tight advice, and which are regularly torn to shreds on this very forum by players whose hourly expectation is far greater than brier's will ever be.. yeah great ill rush out and buy that one.

First off, this is clearly a major work and it should get a lot of play the next couple of months. But I too share your attitude. Much of the Jim Brier poker advice that has appeared on these forums and in the Card Player magazine has been questioned by many of us for being, as you said, "inaccurate weak-thight." However, I haven't read the book yet, and will approach it with an open mind. I also hope to get to it some time in the next couple of weeks.

I agree, it's terrific. Hopefully everyone will ignore our advice and listen to mike l.


I would also put Imporve your Poker by Ciaffone in my list of must have books.

"NOTE: Mason please don't scold me for posting in the wrong place...this is the only place I post!"


Bob, I think the number of forums is now up to 19 and you don't yet know about them. Shame on you. There's much good poker discussion elsewhere in many of the other forums on this site, and, there is a "Books/Software" forum as well which is where this post should go. So in the future, I'll be looking for your posts in some of the other places as well.

I am a poster who has questioned some of Jim's advice here. But I do not find Jim's columns painful, inaccurate, or weak-tight oriented. I find them very well written, as well as well organized and careful in their explanation of why Jim recommends playing in the way he suggests. I particularly like the clarity and specificity of the hand descriptions.


Note that Bob says one might disagree with some of Jim's advice, but that the book will certainly make you think. I have never played with Bob, but from his posts and what others here have intimated about Bob, I don't think he's weak-tight.


While I also disagree sometimes with Ciaffone's recommendations on specific hands, he also is a fine writer and teacher. So it seems to me your sarcasm is premature, to say the least. Let's read the book and see what we think.

Sorry Mason - I spend a maximum of about 2 hours a month on the medium stakes forum and don't read any of the other forms (so I'm not that familiar with them)

Remember, I also praised John Feeney's book and yours on this same forum!


There is absolutely nothing for me to gain by posting this other than letting the authors know that I appreciate the hard work and time they put into this project; because it will definitely improve my game.

I have often told you that I appreciate all the books you and David write; both of you have helped make me a better player.


Jim Brier used to post here a few months ago and I know a lot of people enjoyed and benefited from his post. I've played with him for years and I have watched him steadily improve his game.

I think being able to write a good poker book is quite an accomplisment.


I don't agree with some of Jim's articles and I don't agree with some of the book either and I have told him so. But that doesn't make it a bad book. There is so much great material in the book that outweighs

any minor (debatable) advice. I can live with 90% good stuff and 5% or 10% highly debatable.


The most important thing to me about buying a book is can I get at least one or two good ideas from it that will either save me money from bad plays or make me money by learning new tactical plays.

For me this book has done that many times over!


When is your new book coming out? Hell I'll but it too - sight unseen :-)

I'm with you Andy. I have disagreed with Jim, but always found his writing to be well thought out and well worth discussing. I think Mike is right that Jim is sometimes too tight, but I still have found most of his advice to be right on the money.

"inaccurate weak-thight."


I believe you are confusing "conservative approach" with "weak-tight". Jim takes a view in my opinion that is not as aggressive as I believe should be taken in many situations. But his views are not necessarily bad or inaccurate. I would not refer to Jim as "weak tight" for the simple reason that it is obvious from his writing that Jim Brier understands the ins and outs of poker playing. If Jim found that he was not being aggressive enough I am sure he would adapt as any good poker player will. No, I may not agree with everthing Jim writes about poker but I would hardly call him weak tight. By the way I do not agree with everything Mason Malmuth and David Sklanksy write but if it weren't for them I would not be playing poker today. That's because it is obvious from their writing that they also understand poker playing.


I just began reading Jim and Ciaffone's book and will comment on it when I finish. If I ever finish. I am such a procrastonator.


vince