TPFAP or HOH 1 & 2?

[shermn27]

Okay, so I am new to MTT but a veteran limit player who has picked up tourney's as a way to mix things up and stay interested. I've read HoH1 & TPFAP (but embarrisingly have not read HoH2) and I keep wondering which book do you think is better? Honestly, between these two, I find relatively little that Harrington says that Sklansky had already not mentioned in TPFAP.

As a side note, I find that I am doing okay in MTTs thus far but not picking up as many pots as I think I should be as the blinds increase and the players get closer to the pay out. I am aggressively trying to pick up blinds, but seem to run into players who either don't understand the Gap concept, understand it and know that I am using it so they call me, or one's who have really big hands (AA/KK).

So second question is are there some obvious leaks newbie tourney players have that cost them when it gets close to payout time? And finally, the third question is, b/c I have found only minimal value out of HoH 1, should I buy HoH 2, or does Sklansky beat Harrington to the punch on that book too? All advice appreciated and I apologize for those who think these questions are a waste of their time.

[Tailgunner]

One of my common mistakes when I started playing MTT's was playing too tight-passive around the bubble. This left me wide open to aggressive attacks and I'd end up folding too often to blind steals and limping into pots where I could easily be pushed off of the flop.

While a lot of people will tighten up going into the bubble (and it's not a bad idea if you have a decent stack), there will be some who capitalize on that and you need to be able to come back with some fire of your own to discourage them.

This tendency manifested itself heavily if I caught a bad table position. Perhaps I'm to the left of 3 people sitting out and to the right of a couple solid and/or aggressive players. Doesn't leave me much wiggle room to steal or bluff, and I'd get carved up if I played too loose or too tight. I had to find a middle ground and develop the courage to make some really aggressive moves when I got involved.

Another related problem was a fear of busting out before I made the money. In a tournament you have to consider not only if the play is +EV in that hand, but how it will affect your chances of improving in the final standings. For example, if a certain play is likely to bust you out three out of four times (losing a $50 buy-in), but will enable you to finish higher when it succeeds (winning $300), you have to be able to go for it. Protecting your stack is crucial, but that doesn't necessarily mean not taking a risk. Select your targets carefully, but don't be afraid to fire.

No comments on any of the books, as I haven't read them yet /images/graemlins/blush.gif

[HeroInBlack]

If you're playing the buy-ins I play ($5-$10), when you try to steal blinds, they do call an awful lot. Be willing to fire a continuation bet of about 2/3 the size of the pot at it even if you don't hit a thing (and provided it's not a board that has a lot of draws they could be on to call with). You'll win a whole lot of pots this way.

[JC_Saves]

Well I have also read HOH1 and the TPFAP and I personally think that HOH1 was the better of the two books, probably due in large part to all the problems HOH has and how they are spread throughout the book.

I recently purchased HOH2(online saving $10, lol) and I think that it is one of the best books I have ever read. I am not quite finished with it, but I am totally satisfied.

Between HOH1 and HOH2 there is no need to read other books if you didn't want to. It covers everything, plus the problems re-enforce the lessons learned.

In the last week I have done better in tournaments than I had in the past year. I have won three satellite seats and monied once, just since getting HOH2.

I have read other Sklansky books and enjoy them, but Harrington is my mentor. I have just purchased Sklansky Theory of Poker and am looking forward to reading that book when I am done with HOH2, as that has more underlying principle type things.

good luck, get HOH2, you won't be dissattisfied