Customer Reviews

Beat Texas Hold'em

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a great book for beginner Texas Hold'em players. It is an easy, fast read, which is very entertaining and informative.

The early chapters talk about the basics and mechanics of the game: how the cards are dealt, posting the blinds and the proper hands to play. Here they also discuss betting and the various positions at the table (everything from being "under-the-gun" to being on the "button.")

Later chapters cover "Limit Texas Hold'em," which is the basic game you might play at home or in a poker room. Also, many of us watch poker on TV, and an entire chapter is devoted to that, talking about what really goes on. A chapter on online poker is very interesting, as thousands play online every day. In fact, I just won a mini-tournament using some of the inforation I learned from this book (1st prize - $25!!!!!).

The book concludes with a chapter on winning in tournaments, which explains how playing in those differs from just the regular game.

Each chapter contains practice hands and "Tom's Top Ten Winning Tips."

Again, a good book for the beginner. More advanced and/or experienced players will probably want something more in-depth.

Good luck...and may the flop go your way!

This book is what it is. "Beat Texas Hold Em" is designed to give beginners a feel for the game and ideas for strategy and tactics. It succeeds wonderfully. Its price is very cheap which is something that cannot be said of many gambling books. The narration style is very clear and concise. There's nothing confusing in the least in its structure. McEvoy provides advice on how to play common hands and also addresses internet poker in a separate chapter. No, it won't say a great deal to the pros but for those of us initially grappling with the game it's well worth the price.

I would recommend this book only if you've been playing hold 'em poker for a month max, or if you've been playing for a while and you keep loosing yet don't know why. The information here is basic, solid strategy that will prevent the novice from loosing all his money. It covers limit, no-limit, tournament and online play, therefore giving the reader a good basic foundation on all the most popular types of Hold 'em. It's also very inexpensive, a plus that's even more enticing for the beginning player considering the prices of most other poker books. But for intermediate players, this is pretty much information you already know intuitively.

To sum it up: A good, cheap, introductory strategy book meant for those who have just started playing the game.

This is a great book for people that have never in their life wither used a computer or seen a deck of cards. It's also great for 9 year olds because it's written at a second grade level. It's unfortunate that I spent 25 cents on this book when that money would have been better spent on a Sam's Cola.

This book is basically a rule book for poker. All of the most basic elements of the game are described in vague detail and the chapters for intermidiate players is insultingly dull. There's an entire chapter dedicated to on-line poker and the author's first bit of advise is to learn how to turn on a computer. That's the caliber of skill this book is aimed at. You know what? If you don't know how to turn on a computer you should just stay away from online poker. I'm done wasting my life on this review.

First off, Beat Texas Hold Em was written by Tom McEvoy, who has a reputation as a great and talented player, but a horrible writer/orator.

Beat Texas Hold Em is essentially a stocking stuffer for the complete novice who has never even read an online article about Texas Hold Em strategy. Yes, precisely; such people do not exist any more. This book is filled with regurgitated and formulaic concepts and tactics and has nothing new to add. I'm quite surprised Cardoza Publishing, which made the authoritative bible on all forms of poker "Super System", would bother to publish this scant piece of work. It is neither entertaining nor insightful nor particularly useful.

In the very least, it does cover all the bases. If you are interested in making an inexpensive purchase for someone who has recently become hooked on the game but who isn't looking to make poker more than a hobby, this may be of some use. Otherwise, don't bother.

Mr. McEvoy's view on how to approach both internet or real-life games of either limit or no-limit Texas Hold'em would best benefit someone who has just started playing the game. McEvoy informs his reader on the basics: what kind of hands are good/bad, how to bet in many different situations, relative chances of making certain hands, reading bluffs, and how to act depending on your position at the table, whether it be your chip stack or seat location.

McEvoy suggests a very tightly played overall strategy of the game. He tells of no style of bluffing--a quintessential part of poker, especially Hold'em. If you sit around and play a tight game, which normally means playing almost no hands, you will eventually be blinded until you are short-stacked or sitting at the rail.

Enough with my displeasures--I believe this book, despite its few drawbacks, is an excellent guide to those just beginning in Texas Hold'em. Mr. McEvoy gives a good synopsis on starting hand strengths and weaknesses. He also gives great insight on the impact of position, or order of bet, at the table. He argues that position is everything--I agree.

The best part of this book is the section devoted to possible hands one may come across at the table. While one hand may be wise to raise with in late position may simply be a call- or fold-only hand in the early or mid positions.

The part of the book that helped me the most was the section devoted to learning your opponents. McEvoy wisely stresses that you must know or very quickly learn the tendencies of your opponent in order to come out on top. He teaches to always fall in with the speed of the game, but at the same time, play your game no matter what. His best advice--to me--is to stick with your game and style and do not stray from it whether you are the chip-leader at the table or the short-stack heads-up against anyone from novice to poker great.

This book seems to be most beneficial to novice players, yet there are a few key things that could be learned by a seasoned-veteran who gave this book a shot. Mr. McEvoy's book was both very informative as well as entertaining and even humorous at times.