11-08-2001, 09:56 AM
A recent post asked for recommendations about stud books,and I recommended Othmers Elements of Seven Card stud. Since I was rereading it again anyway I decided to post this review,and am curious about whatothers think.
If you are a 5-10 player or lower, then this is a very goodbook. There is virtually no discussionof ante stealing,and very little emphasis on advanced concepts such as semibluffing, although it is mnentioned occasionally. If you are a lower limit player then the strategy in the book may be a very good start.
For example, most of the strategies in the book are relatively straightforward. Othmer generally proposes that you should play a flush or straight primarily for their value as flushes or straights. There is very little discussion about when you can semibluff these hands, and not enough discussion about knocking others out. Also the discussion of third street contains almost no discussion about playing these hands as ante steals. But if you play lower limit games this may not be that much of a problem since the antes are small anyway and most times you will not be able to steal. Moreover in the multiway pots at lower limits playing hands straighforwardly is no the worst way to play.
His discussion about the weakness of straights when compared to flushes is pretty good and covers many of the situations you will encounter. Someone who is relatively new to stud may be surprised about how weak a straight draw really is under real game conditions.
Much of the book relies on simulations,and most of them are relatively realistic, especially when discussing pairs. But he does not take into account the size of the pot enough when discussing these hands. A hand that is less than a 2-1 dog should almost never be folded heads up in most situations especially if it has other playing advantages such as an A up, since in most games the pot is large enough. One thing you must keep in mind is that the graphs rely on matchups against random cards for the most part, so that the shape of the curve is more important than the actual numbers.
Given the lackof good stud books, i would say this book is recommended reading for any lower limit player,especially if you feel that your basic strategy is weak.
Pat
If you are a 5-10 player or lower, then this is a very goodbook. There is virtually no discussionof ante stealing,and very little emphasis on advanced concepts such as semibluffing, although it is mnentioned occasionally. If you are a lower limit player then the strategy in the book may be a very good start.
For example, most of the strategies in the book are relatively straightforward. Othmer generally proposes that you should play a flush or straight primarily for their value as flushes or straights. There is very little discussion about when you can semibluff these hands, and not enough discussion about knocking others out. Also the discussion of third street contains almost no discussion about playing these hands as ante steals. But if you play lower limit games this may not be that much of a problem since the antes are small anyway and most times you will not be able to steal. Moreover in the multiway pots at lower limits playing hands straighforwardly is no the worst way to play.
His discussion about the weakness of straights when compared to flushes is pretty good and covers many of the situations you will encounter. Someone who is relatively new to stud may be surprised about how weak a straight draw really is under real game conditions.
Much of the book relies on simulations,and most of them are relatively realistic, especially when discussing pairs. But he does not take into account the size of the pot enough when discussing these hands. A hand that is less than a 2-1 dog should almost never be folded heads up in most situations especially if it has other playing advantages such as an A up, since in most games the pot is large enough. One thing you must keep in mind is that the graphs rely on matchups against random cards for the most part, so that the shape of the curve is more important than the actual numbers.
Given the lackof good stud books, i would say this book is recommended reading for any lower limit player,especially if you feel that your basic strategy is weak.
Pat