Where to start

[CasinoR7]

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Get Getting Started in Hold'Em then read Harrington I. At that point if you want to get into NL cash, read Little Green Book, all the uNL stickies, sign up for CardRunners and get all their low limit series videos, play atleast 1,000 hands a day, and post atleast two of YOUR trouble hands a day.

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Does that include the hands I fold, or do you mean that I have to see the flop that many times a day? Thanks for the tip on cardrunners.

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NL cash seems to be the most profitable game, so unless there's a good reason, should concentrate on that. Also, this is good for a beginner: http://www.notedpokerauthority.com/c...r-made-simple/

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With larger profit more risk is associated. At this stage I do not want to take higher risks than what I am taking with the micro limits. When I become better at this game, I will definitely start playing NL.

[Harv72b]

The first poker book I ever read was Hilger's ITH. Good book, solid advice, very easy to digest, and it will most likely turn you into an instant winner at small/micro-stakes online hold'em.

Small Stakes Hold'em by Sklansky/Miller/Malmuth is your limit hold'em Bible. By far the best book out there on the subject, as it not only tells you what to do in numerous examples, but also walks you through the why (and gets you thinking along the right lines to develop your game even further). Some of the advice in it seems counter-intuitive at first (raising a flop bet when you know your hand isn't best??), but trust me, as you implement that style of play into your game & begin to grasp why these seemingly unorthodox moves are correct, you will quickly see increasingly good results.

Theory of Poker is a must-read for anyone playing any version of poker.

Hold'em for Advanced Players is also a good book, but I'd steer clear of that for a while as you get the basics down. Many of the concepts that this book is geared towards simply don't exist at the stakes you're playing now, and it's very possible that reading the book at this point would just confuse you & hamper your development. The same goes for another excellent LHE book which you didn't mention, "How Good Is Your Limit Hold'em?" by Jacobs & Brier.

[shyturtle27]

No you just need to be dealt 1000 hands a day, but study ALOT before you start playing or you'll be misapplying concepts.

[lucksack]

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With larger profit more risk is associated. At this stage I do not want to take higher risks than what I am taking with the micro limits. When I become better at this game, I will definitely start playing NL.

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NL actually has less variance than limit. Especially when you begin, since you can play ultratight at the micro/small stakes games, while still making good profit. Even with very tight play you should have a bankroll of at least something like 15 buyins to play. You can loosen your game a little when you get more experience (be careful not to play too loose still though).

You would probably regret not taking my advice later if you waste your time playing limit (since your clear goal is to become an NL player).

[jeffnc]

If you're going to play NL you should read Largay's book.

[Jeff76]

[ QUOTE ]
NL actually has less variance than limit.

[/ QUOTE ]Mistakes, however, are more costly. The lower variance is applicable to the experienced player who can induce big mistakes from opponents that simply isn't possible in limit.

Not saying you shouldn't start with NL (I did), just that a beginner should not expect it to have lower variance since he won't initially have the skill to avoid big mistakes.

[CasinoR7]

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You would probably regret not taking my advice later if you waste your time playing limit (since your clear goal is to become an NL player).

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I guess that NL might become the main source of my poker earnings in the future. I do not want to limit myself to NL, I am eager to study every type, including limit and pot limit.

When I played NL last week I won a pot of $12 in a 0,25/0,50 game. But I was also stupid enough to call a re-raise when I had great cards against a loose opponent who was all in everytime, but a few times when I had called him, he had better cards. I lost a big part of my bankroll this way. Everytime he was all-in and I had great cards, I had a very difficult decision to make.

The reason why I want to start with limit Hold'em is that the downswings in my bankroll will be lower. That gives me more space to make mistakes and learn from them. I have added 16 dollars in my account, which is 400BB in 0,02/0,04. The profits aren't large, but my bankroll is going up steadily with 50 cents to a dollar everytime I play for an hour.

[CasinoR7]

[ QUOTE ]
The first poker book I ever read was Hilger's ITH. Good book, solid advice, very easy to digest, and it will most likely turn you into an instant winner at small/micro-stakes online hold'em.

Small Stakes Hold'em by Sklansky/Miller/Malmuth is your limit hold'em Bible. By far the best book out there on the subject, as it not only tells you what to do in numerous examples, but also walks you through the why (and gets you thinking along the right lines to develop your game even further). Some of the advice in it seems counter-intuitive at first (raising a flop bet when you know your hand isn't best??), but trust me, as you implement that style of play into your game & begin to grasp why these seemingly unorthodox moves are correct, you will quickly see increasingly good results.


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Thanks for your suggestions. I am reading Hilger's book and I think it is a great introductory book that will help me a lot to speed up my learning curve. Although, the section on odds and probability annoys me a little that it isn't written in an organised manner. I will study the two books by Sklansky that you mentioned as soon as I finish Hilger.

[lucksack]

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Not saying you shouldn't start with NL (I did), just that a beginner should not expect it to have lower variance since he won't initially have the skill to avoid big mistakes.

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How hard can it be to avoid big mistakes?? Just fold, fold, fold, fold, fold, fold...

Also, remember not to play too big game compared to your bankroll.. You should probably also deposit enough money so that you can start from at least nl10.

[CasinoR7]

Only looking at the literature so far, reading the first few chapters of HOH1 and of Hilger's book, I prefer Harrington. I made a list of limit books and a list of NL books from what I have available. I am inclined to start with NL, just because of the quality books that I have on the subject:

Harrington on Hold'em 1,2,3
Doyle Brunson, Super System
Phil Gordon, Little Green Book
NLHTAP
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