My take on Poker Zion Roots.
OK, I have completed (well, missed the last 4 vids due to stuff coming up that left me no time to do many things) the Roots PZ course, and want to give my take on it here.
First off, John and his brother Brian have both been very helpful and supportive. IMO John really knows poker and is very good at bringing his knowledge across from beginning to advanced players.
OK, on to Poker Zion, and how I saw the Roots course. This is all only my opinion. I am not a pro. I have used other training sites, but only for a couple of months.
PZ in a nutshell.
PZ is not your normal training site with new vids every week. It is a well thought out and structured 24 week learning experience. (I am only referring to the Roots course here, as I cant speak for the rest). You get access to the forums for the duration of your chosen course and can discuss
hands, topics or w/e, just like on any forum.
Pros:
I think the whole concept of PZ is very good. It gives the player (student) anywhere from 1-3 videos a week, some interactive modules as well as modules which are basically articles. The vids and modules are – for the most part – well laid out and easy to comprehend. The content week for week is usually quite specific - i.e. playing position, tilt, mindset, 3 betting, preflop play and so on - which is a great way to present things. When posting hands in the PZ forums, John answers pretty much all HH posts personally. You will also get feedback from forum members, but having a knowledgeable pro answer your questions and take part in pretty much all discussion and questions you have is nice. The topics in the vids and modules are basic stuff, but not beginner find-it-anywhere-poker-101-for-dummies stuff. But it goes into detail on all the basics for someone who knows the rules and the bare bones basics, but needs more advanced beginner and intermediate theory as well as how to implement them in game. The way the course is set up is designed to keep a player moving forward, and thinking about different things. For a beginner who can be overwhelmed by where to start or „what do I work on today“ this approach is IMO a great way to get your start in the poker learning experience. There are interactive modules as well, where you are put in a situation and have to decide what to do. You then receive per email the results of your decisions, and in some get the results immediately on site. The price is also not a BR buster.
(Since I was helped so much by the PZ staff, and was given this course for free, I am sort of hesitant to write any cons at all...... But here goes)
Cons:
A lot of the content is somewhat older. IMO PZ made a great start, and then seemed to slow down in updates and new content. There were interactive modules, and it was mentioned what would be in the next modules, but it seems the next ones are still to come. And the modules and vids are well over a year old, and older. Some of the vids are vids of webinars, which is not necessarily bad, but you only hear Johns voice, and although there is good info to be had, IMO it was kinda strange to just listen to a webinar, even tho it was on the weekly topic. I think a new vid on the topic with edits and just the pertinent info would be better than having to listen to one sided talk and pauses while people post their questions. I will add tho, that even tho most of the content is old, the concepts still apply to uNL today, as the basics don’t change all that much.
IMO the PZ Roots course will be a +ev move for beginning players who don’t know how to structure their learning time. It gives good basic info, but is not overwhelming It is presented mostly quite professionally, and the content and presentation are easy to absorb. If you use HEM, John also is one of the developers (or THE, IDK) of Leak Buster, and he can be very helpful in how to use it. They also have other tools and software – Ace Poker Drills comes to mind, which I have used and like – so it has more to offer than just anonymous content. The interaction with a pro is a great advantage.
All in all, even considering the cons I mentioned, a good move for the motivated but unsure-where-to-start player who is not grasping how to approach learning and implementing basic poker skills.
