Book Review: Play Poker Like the Pros by Phil Hellmuth

[pudley4]

If you're looking for a beginning book, HoldEm Poker by Sklansky and Winning Low Limit HoldEm by Lee Jones, are both vastly superior to Phil's book.

They are both easy to read, easy to understand, and both will turn you into a winning player at low limits, while giving you a solid background to work from as you move up in limits.

Phil's book might make you a winner in certain low limit games (against weak-tight players, or players who truly play horribly), but his "strategy" seems to mostly be based on betting aggressively with good-to-great starting cards, regardless of what happens on the flop and beyond, and hoping your hand holds up or everyone drops out.

[Daithi]

[eh923]

Like at least one other poster, I've still only read the HE sections...

Anyway, other posts I've seen on 2+2 have made me think about the state of the game. Particularly, how have books impacted the quality of play? There are a lot of posts with people showing extreme fear of the nuts, and weak-tight play in general...and often they'll qualify their play with a blurb from HEFAP. Obviously, they've read, but the material was over their head.

Here's what I'm getting at...is it possible that the style Phil talks about in his book actually is pretty effective against a lot of players who know some theory, but don't have enough experience to put it to use? If so, did he actually give that a thought when writing?

That's just a thought, and perhaps a weird one, but I've got to think that he has some ring game expertise. Regardless, I don't think my game will change from what I've read so far since I find myself around a lot of "elephants", and capping PF w/ 77 will just get me killed!

[Mason Malmuth]

Hi EH:

You wrote:

Here's what I'm getting at...is it possible that the style Phil talks about in his book actually is pretty effective against a lot of players who know some theory, but don't have enough experience to put it to use?

The answer is no. When at a full table, you'll run into a good hand to often to play like he advocates. This is true even if many of your opponents are as you describe.

best wishes,
Mason

[Dentist]

Should this book be read simply to know what strategies others might be using and to identify the "Phil strategy" clone at the table and be able to work against him effectively??

I haven't been playing much in the last month (too busy) but has anyone seen people using/attempting to use his strategy at the table??

Is there any instance in which his strategy for Limit HE would be correct?

Is his Omaha or 7 stud strategy remotely sound?

[DrOrg]

One of the strategies he mentions is three betting small pairs in limit tournaments to eliminate oponents, beat king high, and setup bluffs. Given the general disagreement here about his super agressive strategy in ring limit games, do people, inlcuding Mason, agree with this. I don't want to be corrupted!

[TAFKAn]

Whatever he says about how to win tournaments is probably true. I suspect his ring game strategies are a little wacky to most of us because of two reasons.

1. He plays a lot of tourneys and it's hard to switch gears

2. He plays a lot of ring games full of tourney players.

His ring games are not the ring games I play in. His opponents are often a bunch of tourney players who also have difficulty switching gears. If 3-betting with 55 worked for you 2.5 hours ago, it's probably quite difficult to re-evaluate now that you're in a ring game, especially if it's versus the SAME opponent!

Just some thoughts on possibly why some of his advice seems bizarre to some of us.

But again, if he's saying something about how to play in a tourney, I would follow it religiously unless you suspect he's deliberately giving misinformation.

[RollaJ]

I think everyone is forgetting that the title of the book is play poker like the pros. This being the case, all the advice Ive read sounds reasonable. A lot of these pros play very high stakes games where they are very often 3-6 handed at which point much of this advice is quite sound.

If the book was called winning at casino poker, or something like that then he would be way off, but that is not the audience the book is for. It is for those looking to play like a pro

[Mason Malmuth]

Hi Rollaj:

Except that once you get past the bizarre limit hold 'em information, the rest of the material is beginner stuff.

Best wishes,
Mason

[bernie]

keep in mind alot of pros play 10-20 and up with full games. only a handful of them play the high stakes with 3-6 players. and lots of pros play in casinos. from what ive read in this thread, he doesnt show a distinction between shorthanded games and full games. though someone will correct me if im wrong on that.

anyone who thinks theyll play like a pro in a ring game after reading this book, better have a good job on the side.

b