[jfk]

A couple of additional thoughts:

I've had some PMs and such asking about the value of the book for NL games. While any good limit hold 'em book may provide information that can be applied to NL cash games, there's no particular reason for a NL player to get this book.

Some have asked about the winrate information. The authors draw their data from three separate databases.

The first group of data is that of a high stakes shorthanded player with 300K+ hands at levels between 50/100 and 500/1000. His winrate is .73BB/100

The second set of hands is drawn from a mid-stakes shorthanded player who draws from 430K hands from levels between 10/20 and 100/200 and shows a winrate of .04BB/100.

The third set of hands is drawn from a mid-stakes full ring player who has just short of 700K hands at limits between 10/20 and 100/200 and wins at a .55BB/100.

There's been some disappointment voiced about the perception that these are relatively modest winrates which doesn't seem to be a reasonable criticism. Even at .04BB/100 such a player may be be in the top 10% of players in those games (and these number may not include rakeback which could be significant portion of such a player's earn). These are tough games played against other tough players. Any winrate should garner a degree of admiration.

The review above may not have stressed enough the degree to which this is a post-flop oriented book. The authors provide a starting hand chart based on position and recommend that players follow it by rote. The authors feel that breadth of the starting hands is such that following the recommendations exactly will not be able to be exploited due to predictability. Being that nearly 30% of hands are being played from the cutoff and 40% from the button, this argument has merit.

There is a lot less of the full ring oriented concern about domination. There is a great emphasis placed on semi-bluffing, especially with good draws. There are a lot of very aggressive turn raise and 3 bet semi-bluffs described, raising for a free showdown and calling down with any pair. There's passive play and aggressive play. A great theme of the book is balance and the weighing of contradictory principles. There is a great deal of subtlety in the advice.

This is not a book about "Krushing" games. The authors' default assumption is that these opponents are talented and formidable. There's an emphasis on game selection, on bankroll conservatism and on always being at one's best when playing. The authors recommend a 1000BB bankroll for playing these tough games. That's a significant departure from Mason Malmuth's "Gambling Theory" and another indication how different, more difficult the games are today versus a few years ago.

This is not a book to replace King Yao or SSHE or HEFAP. Those books are still going to be more applicable to a typical live 20/40 game. WTHEG is a book which describes a different incarnation of limit hold 'em though one that is becoming increasingly common and familiar to those who have moved up the ladder in online play.