In the first part the authors explain the game of Hold'Em for total beginners. Players with experience at limit hold'em can proceed to parts Two and beyond. There's information here on hand evaluation (depending on position), and deciding how much to bet depending on the size of the blinds, and your own stack of chips. There's also some discussion of types of opponent you're likely to meet, when and how to bluff, etc. And there are plenty of illustrative multiple choice questions to work through.This is all good, and the simple and clear presentation, plus the way the book is broken into short sections, make it very easy to read.
Sadly I've had to deduct a couple of stars because I have a few bones to pick on practical issues. Since the introduction explains the very basics of Hold'Em we can assume that the book is at least partly aimed at novices. Now I don't want to be prescriptive here but I certainly wouldn't recommend a beginner to start by playing No Limit. You can only learn winning poker by playing thousands of hands, and a game where you can lose all your chips in a single hand is hardly ideal.
Now if you're an experienced Limit player looking to move up to No Limit this book is much more likely to help you, but I still have issues with the approach here. Firstly, there is a lot of emphasis on recognising different player types, and playing in a certain way against each type of player. It seems to me that there are two things wrong with this approach; firstly, that some players may not obviously fit a convenient label, and are likely to "change gears" during a tournament; and secondly, that identifying the playing habits of several players is probably too advanced a skill for an inexperienced player to master, particularly in the hurly-burly of tournament play, so maybe just "playing the cards" would be a safer approach.
My final gripe (honest!) is that the authors recommend a conservative approach in terms of hand selection. Now this is just WRONG. No Limit is a game which repays loose, aggressive play. Playing conservatively just means you will lose more slowly.
I'm not saying this book has no value. I particularly like the "Betting Chart" on page 60/61. But as a guide to No Limit strategy I much prefer Doyle Brunson's "Super System".
