Which book is better?

barracuuuda

barracuuuda

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I happen to have Doyle Brunsons Super System books and Harrington on Holdem Volumes. I have plenty of free time today, I just want to know which book is the better one? I gotta love doyle brunson but in the other hand the reviews on Harrington is quite significant. I'd like to hear opinions on people who have read both please.
 
Daniel72

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If you are a tournament player, read the Harringtons. Supersystem 2 is a collection of many weird variations :) but also very interesting.
 
barracuuuda

barracuuuda

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If you are a tournament player, read the Harringtons. Supersystem 2 is a collection of many weird variations :) but also very interesting.

Yeah gotta love the dolly :D
 
triplesyxx

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if you have plenty of free time read all of them! when I read doyles I skipped to the end of the book which was all about hold'em. too much filler in there for me
 
imafish

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I think you should go with Harrington's book first. It will give you a solid understanding of the fundamentals, and will teach you how to think about each hand you play.
 
barracuuuda

barracuuuda

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I think you should go with Harrington's book first. It will give you a solid understanding of the fundamentals, and will teach you how to think about each hand you play.

Yeah I'm reading it right now and its actually really good for someone like me just stepping into this game.
 
Poker Orifice

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Harrington On Holdem ainc.

If you can get your hands on it, you might want to read through 'Phil Gordon's Little Green Book' before Harrington's books (especially seeing as you're just getting started).
 
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tcummo

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Imo, read as many poker books as you can, whenever you 'think' about the game you are learning..
good luck..
 
BluffyouBAD

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Read both. Only book I refuse to read is hellmuths
 
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kevbot

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The nice thing about doyle's is you can skip to the chapter that talks about whichever form of poker interests you, and it is ALL very insightful.
 
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bizro2

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I like Doyle's books. Barry Greenstein's book Ace on the River. Mike Matisow's book is also an entertaining read.
 
rocket316

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I have read both the harrington books and they are definitely the best out there in terms or readability and sound fundamental knowledge (for tournaments anyway). They are a little outdated in some areas however such as his recommended preflop raise size and Cbet sizes. In most live and online tournaments these days no one really raises more than 2.5 - 3x (he recommends 3-5x), and general post flop bet sizes have become a lot smaller in recent times compared to 2005 when the books were written
 
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rhombus

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definitely harringtons books for tournaments and Doyles for other games like PLO, PLO8 Stud and Stud8
 
Arjonius

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Focus on books that are appropriate for the current level of your game. Harrington's are fine and so are Gordon's except for the gold one which is at a more advanced level.
 
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toomuch22

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Hi, I'm a beginner who just started playing holdem micro stakes and would like to start reading up on a book that would best educate me on the fundamentals of poker so that I can pick up pace in both learning and playing.

Sorry to budge in on the thread TS, but would like to know what books would you guys recommend for micro players who aim to at least beat micros convincingly before moving on in the future.
 
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AvaloNNN

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Always Harrington. He is an old school player (just like Brunson) but his books are far better in my opinion. Those are bestsellers and must read for any beginner or tournament player. When you're done with Harrington, try Elky's book 'The Raiser's edge', a very good and modern book.
 
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Tangerine 53

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Hi, I'm a beginner who just started playing holdem micro stakes and would like to start reading up on a book that would best educate me on the fundamentals of poker so that I can pick up pace in both learning and playing.

Sorry to budge in on the thread TS, but would like to know what books would you guys recommend for micro players who aim to at least beat micros convincingly before moving on in the future.
As others have said Phil Gordon's Little Green book is a good place to start. If it's cash games you're interested in then Black Rains book has excellent reviews (still to get round to reading it myself), for tourneys Harrington's is still excellent in my view and if it's SNG's then Collin Moshman's is first class.
 
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I like them both. Super System covers every type of poker. If you are just interested in NL Hold 'em, there are only a few chapters that apply, which you can probably read through in an hour. Harrington's books are all good, and I recommend read all three volumes. The workbook (vol 3) is a really good place to test your thinking.
I also highly recommend read Psychology of Poker, which is very different than the ones you mention. But it will give you a way to think about how/why you play, and how/why others play and how to adjust accordingly.
My favorite quote from that book is "Expert players refuse to play a hand without an edge (hole cards, position, etc)".
 
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toomuch22

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thanks for the responses, much appreciated!
 
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