This is the first book I read when I began to play online poker. I understood poker, but I had never played anything more then a kitchen table game. So I understood how to play poker in general but I knew nothing about what was good for Texas Hold’em.
Winning Low-Limit Hold’em showed me what starting hands to play, when I was getting the right odds to draw, the importance of position, and how to play hands when I had the lead.
When I began playing online in 2004 the games were very loose. As a result, you could get away with playing out of position and you almost always had the right odds to draw. Lee’s information on starting hands and taking control of the hand taught me how to make a great profit at the low-limit game.
Recently, I reread the Third Edition of this book. Lee has added information about playing No-Limit Sit and Go’s, and he has also revised some of his marginal points from the first two editions. The first time I read this book it was the second edition and at that time I had very few preconceived notions about how to play hold’em let alone A5s in EP. (If you don’t understand what I am talking about in the last sentence, this book is EXACTLY what you need.) Now with a greater understanding of the game, my first thought was this was not a perfect fit for my game, but I still found a majority of this book to be useful. However, a few weeks after I read the book I noticed a few things that had improved in my game, such as the awareness of position. So despite that fact I found myself mentally arguing with Lee about some points or how the games I play differ from the ones he talks about, I still found that I learned a lot and improved my game after reading this book again.
If you are just getting started playing hold’em this is a great book for you. Some of the loose game specifics that Lee refers to, do not always exist at a $1/$2 or $2/$4 game online but $0.25/$0.50 and below…..this is perfect.
One word of caution, Lee talks about Low Limit Ring game hold’em and No-Limit Sit and Go’s. While Lee tells you in both to play a tight aggressive game and take advantage of your position. Make sure you understand that the strategies for one do not translate directly to the other. I think the Sit and Go strategy is solid but I don’t feel it fits well with the other topics. I also feel that after two editions when Lee has changed marginal points he then refers to the old advice to a point that might make it distracting for some new players and detract a bit from the topic. Therefore I recommend the second edition over the third edition, but the third edition is still very good so don’t skip this book just because you cannot find a used copy.
What was the first poker book you have ever read? Have you ever read it again? How has that book helped your game?
