Getting Started in Hold 'Em....a review for the micro forum

[droolie]

I can now safely recommend it to all my friends who are looking for a beginners book. It's very easy to read and is way better than WLLH (my first real poker book. "Play Poker Like the Pros" doesn't count...)

I have been uncomfortable with recommending SSH as first book for beginners because it is so long and dense and easy to misapply. WLLH is super easy to read and it teaches a style that wins at micros but needs to be unlearned later. GSIHE is just as brief and easy to read as WLLH but is simply better. Miller dumbs down many of the SSH principals but teaches all the critical TAG fundamentals in a way that will make sense to anybody. He hammers home such favorites as "raising pf for value (equity edges)", "positional advantages", "implied odds", "folding offsuit holding pf", "folding when the flop completely misses you and you face a bet and a raise", "saving pots not bets (protecting your hand)", "pot odds and pot equity", "the glorious free card", "semi-bluffing" and of course "calling down big pots". His pf recommendations are super easy to use and contain no CC's! (anything worth playing is a reraise).

The limit section takes a player through 9 sample hands played in order from BB to UTG. All of the TAG principals are brought to light over the course of these 9 hands and he even tells you when and where he has left out content and that to learn more you should go to SSH to get the rest. I loved it and only wish I had it when I started out.

There are also sections on no-limit and tournament play that even the best limit players here could find helpful if that's the direction you want to branch off to.

(I have to say I learned practically nothing from the limit section. I bought it because I'm teaching friends and wanted to read it before I recommended it. For you veteran posters out there who are considering buying it for the limit content but have studied SSH (and thoroughly understand it) you can skip it(sorry ed but it's true). Everything in GSIHE is in SSH but obviously not vice versa. For those of you struggling with SSH, GSIHE will help you a lot)

[Shillx]

His pf recommendations are super easy to use and contain no CC's!

Wonderful. Now I get to spend my time trying to tell people that 3-betting (or folding) 22 after an UTG raise and 4 coldcallers is a bad thing. You can't be serious dude...

[Jakesta]

There's nothing wrong with CCing small pocket pairs with a couple coldcallers in the pot already.

[droolie]

Dead serious. Like I said he's dumbed down the TAG system considerably.

[droolie]

[ QUOTE ]
There's nothing wrong with CCing small pocket pairs with a couple coldcallers in the pot already.

[/ QUOTE ]

Uh yeah I know that. But that's not part of the GSIHE system...

[davelin]

[ QUOTE ]
There's nothing wrong with CCing small pocket pairs with a couple coldcallers in the pot already.

[/ QUOTE ]

Droolie knows, he didn't write the book...

[Jakesta]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
There's nothing wrong with CCing small pocket pairs with a couple coldcallers in the pot already.

[/ QUOTE ]

Uh yeah I know that. But that's not part of the GSIHE system...

[/ QUOTE ]

I know that you know that. But I don't see the point of reading this book instead of just doing WLLH and then SSH. I thnk teaching people to tighten up and play passively at first is better for them. Then SSHE can build on the tightness and make them more aggressive. I'm just saying that I don't understand why like half the concepts should be taught in this book, and then have an SSH recommendation.

Not that I don't want to see a bunch of noobs 3betting 22.

[davelin]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
There's nothing wrong with CCing small pocket pairs with a couple coldcallers in the pot already.

[/ QUOTE ]

Uh yeah I know that. But that's not part of the GSIHE system...

[/ QUOTE ]

I know that you know that. But I don't see the point of reading this book instead of just doing WLLH and then SSH. I thnk teaching people to tighten up and play passively at first is better for them. Then SSHE can build on the tightness and make them more aggressive. I'm just saying that I don't understand why like half the concepts should be taught in this book, and then have an SSH recommendation.

Not that I don't want to see a bunch of noobs 3betting 22.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm guessing because the transition from WLLH -> SSH is more difficult than GSIHE -> SSH.

[droolie]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
There's nothing wrong with CCing small pocket pairs with a couple coldcallers in the pot already.

[/ QUOTE ]

Uh yeah I know that. But that's not part of the GSIHE system...

[/ QUOTE ]

I know that you know that. But I don't see the point of reading this book instead of just doing WLLH and then SSH. I thnk teaching people to tighten up and play passively at first is better for them. Then SSHE can build on the tightness and make them more aggressive. I'm just saying that I don't understand why like half the concepts should be taught in this book, and then have an SSH recommendation.

Not that I don't want to see a bunch of noobs 3betting 22.

[/ QUOTE ]

His pf recommendations are just simplistic for a raw beginner. He talks a lot about how when you improve you will add more hands to his chart etc but for now his streamlined approach will be a good tight starting point. It really is a primer for SSH. That's how I see it. Playing passively is not a good idea. Lee Jones did not teach me about pf pot equity and pumping draws with 8 or more outs, that cost me money. GSIHE isn't afraid to put these concepts out there in a way that is concise and easy to apply. I don't see the point of reading WLLH and then having to unlearn a bunch of stuff. In some ways I've never really recovered.

[SCfuji]

fit or fold brad. fit or fold.


'leroy you are just stupid as hell.'

'at least i have chicken.'