[olliejen]

i'm half-way through this book and i think i understand why there have been so many negative reviews of barry's book.

1. as Mason stated, this book isn't a tactical manual. Its not trying to give a strategic edge to a part-time student who 4-tables $10/20 on Party for spending money. The premise of Ace on the River, essentially is for an already very good full-time poker player becoming an excellent professional. In this way, it goes into a *lot* of detail into what the world of high-stakes is all about and how to operate and navigate it successfully (table demeanor, dropping stakes, traps/mistakes professional gamblers routinely fall in...) Its been said many times, but no one seems to remember; the assumption is that you are already an excellent player!

If you never accept this premise, its like trying to read a mystery when you thought you wanted to read a romance novel.

2. Maybe some of the points BarryG highlights cut too close to home for some aspiring pros. One recurring theme in this book is quelling your ego and make profitable decisions and how to keep situations profitable. Every day in every forum here, people consciously make unprofitable decisions and justify it to themselves and others with some nonsensical platitude. Whether its taking on too big a game to satiate their sense of worth, getting into headsup pissing matches with unknowns, or not dropping stakes when it's appropriate to do so. And probably many more subtle errors that never make it to the forum like playing when you're already dead-tired after a day of class/work...

Also, while many pay lip service to not "tapping the glass"; BarryG takes it a step further & says you should make the fish comfortable! Offer condolences when you beat them in a race or give a little harmless action to keep them happy. At the same time, using any perceived personality flaw as motivation to take their $$. And all the while, trying to stay as unobtrusive as possible. If just an occasional part-time player can't maintain this type of karmic balance(and MANY here cannot) how could he reasonably expect to do it as his full-time job to put food on the table? To be fair, even many well-known professionals seem to routinely display sub-par professionalism in public places.

For myself, I am enjoying this book as its a glimpse into a world I have neither the temperment nor the talent nor the desire to ever enter. And you should be nice to me; b/c guys like me supply your part-time spending $$. [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]