MRBAA
01-26-2004, 12:47 PM
Stepping Up: The Recreational Player's Guide to Beating Casino and Internet Poker is just out from Conjelco. The author is Randy Burgess, a professional writer and serious recreational player. Disclaimer: he's also a close friend and poker buddy so I won't pretend to be impartial. That said, I think this is the best book for new players since Lee Jones. It doesn't present a lot of game strategy, like starting hands or basic questions on later street play. Burgess refers readers to Jones (or Roy West for stud) for that advice. What he does that I've never really seen before is focus on advanced concepts like hand reading, odds and tells but applied to low limits. While someone who's been winning at casino or online poker for more than a year isn't going to find much they don't know here, for newer players a lot of this could be a revelation. I especially liked the focus on hand-reading in the context of odds and opponent types. In a way, the book takes the kind of advice a lot of posters pick up piecemeal in the forums here and systematizes it. I also like the simple writing style. Reminded me of Feeney's Inside the Poker Mind a bit, lots of material in a deceptively simple package. I definitely felt the book was lacking in depth for more experienced players, but I sure wish I'd had it when I started playing casino poker 3 years ago.