Book for NL. Better book than Harrington's for regular NL?

[henkeee]

Hi!

I'm looking for a NL book. I'm new to NL, but I don't want easy reading. I want the best NL book! Harrington's seems to be liked by many, but is there a better book if you're not especially interested in tournaments?

/henke

[Rudbaeck]

Pot Limit & No Limit by Reuben and Ciaffone.
SuperSystem 2, the section by Doyle Brunson.

Both are required reading, but moving from the text to actual application in games can be hard work. Plenty is left for you to work out yourself.

[jtnt1096]

[ QUOTE ]
Pot Limit & No Limit by Reuben and Ciaffone.
SuperSystem 2, the section by Doyle Brunson.

Both are required reading, but moving from the text to actual application in games can be hard work. Plenty is left for you to work out yourself.

[/ QUOTE ]

I Agree. Those are the two books I recommend when friends ask about NL cash game books.

[maurile]

[ QUOTE ]
Pot Limit & No Limit by Reuben and Ciaffone.
SuperSystem 2, the section by Doyle Brunson.

[/ QUOTE ]
Both are excellent, but I wouldn't say they're necessarily better than Harrington's first book (which is very good even if you're not interested in tournaments).

Just read all three.

[henkeee]

Thanks!

But I'm only going to buy one now, since I also will buy a new
limit book (I will probably play mostly limit in the future too). So, if you would buy only one, which one would it be? Or, what is the main difference between them?

[jojobinks]

if you're new to nl, i recommend hoh.

[maurile]

If I could just get one I'd get Harrington's book because it is the most comprehensive of the three. Even though the focus is on tournaments, book 1 is on the early stages of a tournament when you really wouldn't play a particular hand any differently from how you'd play it in a ring game. The Harrington book gives specific advice on pre-flop play, and walks you through the thinking process of how to put people on hands and make proper decisions on each street.

Brunson's chapter is much more brief, but his advice is very good. Brunson gives you a particular approach to the game -- a very aggressive one that works for him -- while Harrington describes several different approaches (including a tight approach and an aggressive approach). Brunson gives some particular advice about how to play certain hands, and how to stay out of trouble with problem hands. But he doesn't walk you through numerous hand examples the way Harrington does.

The Ciaffone & Reuben book is more general in its advice, but is also very good. The strongest part of this book is in considering stack sizes -- describing how a certain bet from a smallish stack can mean something completely different from an identical bet from a bigger stack, etc. This book is also relatively brief compared to Harrington's, especially the parts that apply specifically to hold 'em.

In short, all three books are very good. But I'd go with Harrington's for its breadth & depth if I could just get one.

[bweiser8311962]

I read SuperSystem over Christmas and was not impressed. Brunson's recommendation is great if you can burn through money ... It's basically win big, lose big to me.

[Walter Pullis]

No matter what book you get, if you are new to NL, play tournaments first! Otherwise you will lose your shirt.

[MonkeeMan]

[ QUOTE ]
In short, all three books are very good. But I'd go with Harrington's for its breadth & depth if I could just get one.

[/ QUOTE ]

Agree 100%.