Play Poker Like the Pros
It’s been a while since I’ve wrote a review. So, this is my attempt to get back into the swing of things. Last summer I spent a lot of time working in the garage and outside. My iPod was always there with me. I decided to down load a few audio books and see if maybe I could expand my mind instead of bomb-barding it with heavy metal lyrics.
My first trial audio book was “The Art of War”. It seemed this story teller approach appealed to the kid in me so I downloaded a few more books. One of these books was Play Poker Like the Pros by Phil Hellmuth Jr.
I’m going to jump all over the place here so try to keep up. The book was first published back in 2003 (or around there). So needless to say its old compared to the number of other books on the market.
I listened to the whole book and my first impression was: this book is just terrible. All Phil did was talk about himself and how he’s an eagle and won all theses bracelets, yadda, yadda, yadda.
In all honesty, I’ve never watched Phil play any poker or heard any other thing about him up until I listen to him recite his book. Needless to say I didn’t think to highly of him.
BUT WAIT!! ISN”T THIS A BOOK REVIEW!??? Sorry, I’m getting there. To give Phil’s book the proper review I had to give you a history of my thoughts on him. Regardless of what any reviewer tells you their personal opinions of an individual affect their reviews.
I started a draft copy of this review and never posted it. In the past several months I managed to watch Phil on several T.V. shows. At first, he seemed just as arrogant as he sounded in his book. However, after a while I finally think I figured him out.
Phil is arrogant because he can be. He is good at poker and has the history, money, and awards to back up his reputation. And, if I was that good, I’d be a little arrogant too.
So, I went back and listened to Phil’s book a few more times to make sure I was giving it a fair shake.
If you are a beginner then Phil’s book is for you. It covers most the hold’em recommendations you’ll find in any hard back poker book or online. However, this book was published pretty much before all the poker websites took off. So, I guess you can say it was ahead of it’s time.
The book covers Phil top 10 hands to play with. While this concept is great for the novice player you will need more in your arsenal.
Phil’s book also covers other forms of poker like Hi-Lo, Razz, etc. I don’t play them so I can’t comment on it. So, in retrospect Phil’s book is pretty good for the beginner.
