Internet Texas Hold'em (Matthew
Hilger)
Internet Texas Hold'em
by
Matthew Hilger
-Dedicated to limit ring games and some online tells
-Our rating: 7 (out of 10)
-Beginner and Intermediate advice
Overview
Yet another book on limit hold'em ring
games. This one is written by internet poker professional Matthew
Hilger and shares his observations over thousands of hands played
out online. The bulk of this book is dedicated to beginner's
strategy on basic concepts. In that area it is actually quite
detailed and new players will solidify their game by reading and
rereading many of the sections.
One of the positives of this book is how
Hilger lays out the chapters and important strategy concepts. For
example, the chapter heading will be "Buying a Free Card". He will
then continue by telling you "Why you buy a free card" and "How you
buy a free card" with bullet points outlining the answers. Also, at
the end of each section there is a handy review chart for
reiterating important points.
What is supposed to be unique about this
book is the "Internet" part of the title. Unfortunately, the section
for internet play is relegated to a few obvious and somewhat
unreliable tells in the back of the book. While Hilger does
incorporate the wild and bluff-happy players you'll find online into
his overall strategy, you can read about this in better detail from
Lee Jones. However, one of the best parts of the book is the
starting hand selection table, which is an excellent resource for
new players. This is one of the few charts that actually bases
folds/calls/raises on how many players are active in front of you.
Comments
I was excited when this first book came
out. Instead of another how to play online poker, I thought
that Hilger's book was going to be all about unique strategy that
you should employ online. I was largely disappointed that this was
only a small part of the book. I also think that Hilger's strategy
is a bit too loose and steers beginners in the wrong direction in
many of the example hands. Plus, Matthew Hilger just annoys me for
some reason. Did you see him bust out Doyle Brunson in the 2005 WSOP
Main Event? I just didn't like him... That biased personal opinion
aside, the starting hand selection table is very good and I would
recommend this book to new limit poker players.
Score
Out of 10, I give Internet Texas
Hold'em a
7. Matthew Hilger bothers me, but I like the starting hand chart and
he provides pretty solid advice for new players. Just don't expect a
wealth of original information about how specifically to beat online
games.
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