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Tutorials and Articles
There are dozens of guidebooks, videos and strategies available on the internet. The Editor of Gaming Review Online has decided to begin reviewing these products and providing an unbiased assessment of their usefulness. We would like to thank each of the developers of these products for providing a copy for review on these pages, since they have no idea how we will depict their product. Besides reviewing the product, we provide information from Internet marketing company ClickBank on the reliability of the company providing the product. ClickBank provides a Gravity ranking for all products they market. The Gravity ranking relates to the number of copies of a product that are sold and the number that are returned.
 Texas Hold’em Secrets - Exposed
Drew Laughlin’s Hold’em Secrets Exposed is the complete package. It is filled with audio consults, comprehensive booklets and bonus packages. The audio course is three CDs with over three hours of instruction, from starting hands to proper betting and all aspects of play in between. The main emphasis of this product is the actual 80 plus page book.
Part One of the book contains the strategies for successful Hold’em play. Along with the booklet, you have three CDs that cover each of the 25 strategies and a video. As he explains, different people learn with different methods, so he provides them all so everyone can benefit. His Quick Tips throughout the book are helpful and well placed. The only thing I can find fault in the book is that some of the strategies are not covered in great enough detail. Though the information is present, it sometimes left me want for more.
Part Two discusses the two systems Drew discusses are not as informative. These two systems basically cover short-handed Sit and Go tournaments, either 5 to 8 player games or heads-up play.
Part Three of the book contains the bonuses, and some of these are fun. Since chip tricks are always a good way to show you as an experienced player, this bonus should be well received. The Bonus Booklet on Powerful Starting Hands is very similar to the MIT Point Counting System, developed by Ray Seakan. His 10 Critical Mistakes booklet appears at first glance to be too simple, but after you read it you will look around any table you play and see people making these very errors. The recorded consults with his clients are also valuable learning tools. They provide quality answers to some of the same questions most players have.
Many of Dew’s Strategies follow those I discuss in the soon to be published Winning Blue Collar Hold'em. Drew has a solid grasp of how to play poker and his presentation style is not difficult to understand. This program, like most on the market are not designed for the complete neophyte, but anyone with the basics of Texas Hold’em under their belt can profit from Drew’s work.
The gravity ranking for Texas Hold'em Secrets - Exposed is 4.12.
Of all of the programs and systems we have reviewed, this is, by far, the most complete and helpful product on the market. You can Click Here to purchase Texas Hold’em Secrets Exposed.
Crushing Online Single Table Tournaments
European poker professional Carl “The Dean” Sampson is a magazine author known for both live cash games and online Sit and Go (SNG) Tournaments. The book starts with a detailed discussion of the “Juice” the House makes with SNG Tournaments. The book, though small by publishing standards, is packed full of useful information.
Carl’s method of playing mid to high stakes Single Table Tournaments (STT) is similar in concept to what I talk about in the soon to be published Winning Low-Stakes Hold'em, I agree with most of his strategies, and feel this book is a good adjunct to mine, which only briefly covers SNG play.
The Dean’s book is divided into three sections. The first part, “What You are Trying to Achieve When You Sit Down,” discusses his theories and strategies of dominating STTs. In the second chapter, “Theory Put into Practice,” he walks the reader through a couple of actual tournaments. Carl discusses in detail the plays he makes and why he makes them at each stage of the tournament. Part three consists of “What an Average Player Should Achieve.” He discusses the financial aspects of improving ones profitability when playing like a Shark.
The gravity ranking for Crushing Single Table Tournaments is 3.
Though it is hard to adequately review the book for you without giving away The Dean’s secrets, I will conclude by saying this is an effective course for knowledgeable players who desire to improve their Single Table Tournament play. To order your copy, Click Here.
MIT Point Counting System
I have seen mathematical systems for roulette and personally used card counting systems when I played Blackjack, but until now I had never seen the concept in use for Texas Hold’em. The MIT Point Counting System, developed by Ray Seakan, is an interesting concept. Like most authors, he stresses the importance of position and the number of players remaining in a hand when deciding whether or not to play a starting hand. What makes the MIT System different from other strategies is the assigning of point values to a starting hand and then basing your play solely on these totals. The main goal of the system is to provide the player with a readily identifiable method of determining which starting hands you should play and which you should fold. Though his system of totaling points for card values is complex, it should not be beyond the capabilities of any serious Hold'em player.
Though this system is somewhat different that what I espouse in the soon to be published Winning Blue Collar Hold'em, I do not completely disagree with the concepts Ray puts forth. His use of pure mathematics ignores many of the factors of psychology that I feel are a major part of the game. I find it reassuring that he suggests a lot of practice perfecting his counting system before taking the system to a live game. As he says, "The calculation mistakes you make at home are much cheaper than the mistakes made in the poker room were you can’t take back the money you’ve put in the pot." Also included with the book are numerous sample hands that provide practice in counting points with various hole cards, from differing starting positions.
The system is primarily designed for fixed-limit ring play, but Ray does provide information on pot-limit and no-limit games and how to adjust the system for them. One drawback to the system is that it is written for players with a fairly extensive knowledge of the game. Therefore, I would not recommend this system for those new to the game. He admits that the MIT system is for pre-flop play and suggests getting another book to learn how to master the flop and beyond. Another problem is the system works best for nine and ten players, but is useful when there are at least seven players. This negates the use of the system in tournament play. Sit and Go Tournaments start with ten players, but normally pay-out only the top one to three players. Multi-table Tournaments often slip to five or six players as the tournament reaches the end stages or they seat the final table.
I feel this system would be best suited for players who have a difficult time determining which starting hands they should play and those they should muck. The use of a point system could be easier than trying to remember what hands are best in which starting position. I am going to try the system in some play cash games, and will report the results. Just remember, that these cash free games often have a higher preponderance of loose-aggressive players, thus skewing the results of any system.
The gravity ranking for the MIT Point Counting System is 1.85.
If you feel you have a solid grasp of the game, but need a method to determine which hands you should play, Click Here to get a copy.
Black Hat Poker
Curtis E. Williams’ original Black Hat Poker Program had a price tag of $798. This is not the typical Hold'em "How-to" manual. Instead, it is designed as one week audio-visual coaching program that provides you with the knowledge and tools to improve your Texas Hold'em game.
One thing separating this program from most courses or handbooks is Curtis’ use of materials by other authors. This provides more of a classroom feel than found in most books. His podcasts are helpful and the captured screen videos are useful in seeing his strategies in action. The course starts with a look at attaining the proper mental aspects of poker. It then moves to the identification of weaker players and shows ways to successfully play them. His 10 minute podcast strategy on Sit and Go Tournaments appears to be an abbreviated version straight out of some of the more successful eBooks. Other aspects of the course cover the use of several poker aids, proper table and room selection and the importance of building a poker team. One way costs are cut on the new version of the course is many tools and aids provided as part the original program are now available for purchase separately.
One problem I have with the course is his extensive use of online poker aids, such as Poker Prophecy, Hold’em Pirate, Poker Edge and Poker Sherlock. I have nothing against these aids. They do provide a player with a lot of important data, which can translate into increased profits. Unfortunately (or fortunately for us purists) they are also being banned by some of the online poker rooms. As a person who prefers Las Vegas over online games, I feel these tools hurt a players’ overall game. Since a player cannot take the tools into a live casino, the players are less effective when they try to transition their game from online poker rooms to the brick and mortar counterparts.
There is a reason the strategy is called Black Hat. Certain parts of the course discuss how cheating is accomplished on line. With most of these strategies, Curtis is laying them out to make players aware of what is happening around them and saying that a player should not use them. Unfortunately, he does seem to condone some forms of cheating, either against other players or against the poker rooms themselves.
There are many aspects to this program that can help an experienced player become a profitable online player, but as the ad says, if you use this product, prepare to “Join the Darkside.” If you are interested, you can Click Here to learn more and to purchase the course.
Gambling Pack
The Gambling Pack consists of nearly 20 products to help the consummate Commonwealth gambler. There are nine systems for horse racing, five eBooks for Poker and one each for Blackjack and Casinos. There are also eBooks on getting free or matching deposits from online sites and an eBook to set up a website for affiliate casino and poker rooms.
The handicapping systems are designed for British totes and do not appear that they would work for other areas with off track betting, wagering at the track or all horse racing sites. Most of the eBooks are written by Purelays.com, a new horse racing lay tips online service primarily for use on the Betfair betting exchange website. The products do have some interesting information that could be useful for a handicapper and with so many different systems to choose from, there should be one that will work, if you have the bankroll to find the right one. There is even an MS Excel spreadsheet to assist in the use of the systems. Unfortunately, most of the products are a push to join the PureLays.com and BetFair.com sites.
The Poker eBooks are mostly short tomes on the basics of Texas Hold’em. Most of the information is valid, but the amount of information is sparse that it would not help any but the most novice players. The eBooks provide too little information on too many aspects of the game. There are also too many pushes for joining their sponsored sites.
The Blackjack and Casino eBooks provide basic guidelines for play and are useful for anyone unfamiliar with the rules and basic theories of the games, including roulette, and slot machines.
The eBook on making $6,000 a Month promoting gaming sites is informative, but dated. Not only did the US Illegal Online Gaming laws hurt such sites in the US, the ability to use the major search engines to promote the sites is no longer allowed.
Though the 19 Products provided are informative, the majority of the information is useless for US players or anyone with more than the basic skills in Poker. If you are in the UK and interested in laying odds on the ponies, this can be the package for you, so Click Here to purchase it.
Poker Squatting Secrets
This is one book I do not recommend to any player who has winning cash as a main goal. To place that statement in context, below is taken directly from the e-Book:
Before going to try out poker squatting, there are a few things that you should know about this strategy since it has been specifically crafted for a certain type of game and situation.
Before trying poker squatting make sure that:
• You are playing in a play money game, not a real money game
• You are in a tournament (it doesn’t matter whether it is multi-table or sit-and-go)
• You are starting in a tournament that doesn’t put all of your play money on the line
A fourth point should have been shown, and that is to not use the system in a room that terminates a player who is on auto-fold. The actual strategies discussed in the book are valid. I have used them myself on sites that give prizes or points for future cash games.
The gravity ranking for Poker Squatting Secrets is 0.36.
If you would like to obtain the Squatting Secrets, Click Here to purchase it.
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