[TPL]

For WLLH, I read all the way through, then went back and created "cheat sheets" to keep by the PC. I'll have starting hand charts on one side, and the other side has odds charts and scenario charts (i.e., what to do when you flop trips, what to do when you flop flush draw, etc). Then, I refer to the chart every hand, and pretty much play robotic. After thousands of hands, and hundreds of playable hands, I pretty much know it by heart.

I'm mid-way through TOP, and after I finish I plan to tweak my charts a bit as I move up, adding more deceptive elements to my play. Early on, I had alot of trouble because I was trying to do everything with no rhyme or reason. My educational strategy now is to step through it starting with the fundamentals, making sure I play a solid, mathematically-correct game, before I take on more complex tactics.

Since starting this path, my game, confidence, and results have improved dramatically. The most "creative" I play I've made during this time is an occasional semi-bluff on a flush draw when there is a big pot. Oh, I also tried to play "The Hammer" last night just for giggles, flopped a gutshot draw, had the right pot odds to keep drawing... and got... well... Hammered! LOL

Won't be trying that again!

TPL