I'm back!!!

Hi all,

I haven't really posted for a while, mainly due to embarressment. Having completed the Take 2 Promo on FT, and collecting my $50 bringing my bankroll to $65 (which I must say boosted my confidence greatly).... I promptly went on to lose the lot, continuing to play the cash tables. Thus, I went underground.

"What have I been doing since then?" I hear you cry? Studying. Still playing, but not posting... Until now!

I cashed in some loyalty points and got Phil Gordon's Little Green Book, and Phil Helmuth's Texas Hold 'em. Which I have now read, cover to cover. My game improved, and I cashed in two partypoker freerolls, earning 90c for finishing 165 from 35,000 and 27c for a 300ish finish from 15,000.

As a Christmas present, my mother-in-law gifted me John Vorhaus' Killer Poker and Killer poker online, which at the time of writing this I am still getting through the first of these. But folks it doesn't stop there!

I have since; twice qualified for the PLO freeroll 2nd round on betfair, winning both first round heats, managed to qualify for the 2nd round of the WPT freeroll on Party and tonight, I play in the Poker2nite Challenge on UB!!! Something seems to be working. I hope I can keep it up!

I've also just ordered Phil Gordon's Little Blue Book.

A friend and teammate of mine once said, "you can't just play the game, you have to become a student of it."

Wise Words.

Welcome back.You might enjoy reading Doyle Brunson"s books.Super System 1 & 2.They are very insightful.

JV's Killer Poker 1 and 2 books are for the absolute extreme beginners in my opinion. They basically teach you how to go to the website and download the software. I like a bunch of the Killer poker books, just not those two(and I'm not even going to mention Hellmuth's book....)

It's good that you are really trying to absorb all of the information you can get your hands on, but it sounds like you are cranking through these books a little too fast, that was my impression anyway. The only way you are going to really pull the information out of those books is by REALLY STUDYING. By that I mean, as a beginner it should be taking you longer than a week to get through a book. You might have to read a chapter a couple times and dissect it. One thing that books like the Killer Poker ones and Harrington on Holdem books have is problem sections at the end of the chapter.... go through those problems on paper, not just think of an approximate answer in your head and move onto the next chapter(like the absolute majority of people do). When you're done with those problems, if you get any wrong, go back and read the section where it talks about that specific subject. Once you get all of them right on your own, make some of your own problems up. They can be off the top of your head, ones you saw on TV, from a game you played in, etc. and figure it out. Doing things like this will help you down the road with your away from the table analysis and will really help your game down the road.

Very true...

I agree with your comments absoluthamm, you cannot truly absorb a book in a week, and I am not claiming to have done so. I have however picked up SOME invaluable tips that have elevated my playing from that of complete rookie, and thus I am lasting a lot longer in the freeroll tourney's that I currently play. I'll probably go back a read them over and over until I feel confident that I have digested each chapter as suggested.

As for Helmuth's book, whilst I gained some useful tips on poker, it seemed more like one long advert for Ultimate Bet, combined with a series of (well remembered!!) hand histories and wsop stories.

I have in fact stopped reading KP1 in order to obtain a 'Poker Notebook' and start again from page 1 and complete the exercises as they were intended. Although I must admit the sections on 'self analysis' have proved thought provoking to say the least... I'll keep you posted as to my progress.

Welcome back . and appropo see that talk about books. I am a beginner playing poker a few months earning less. I would know and I know if any books in several languages