Customer Reviews

The Ed Ponsi Forex Playbook: Strategies and Trade Set-Ups (Wiley Trading)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I'm an Ed Ponsi fan. However, I think he may have inadvertently misled people with his choice of title and cover art. In particular, the subtitle -- Strategies and Trade Set-Ups -- along with the sports diagrams on the cover, imply that he's going to get down with some powerful set-ups and management techniques. The trade set-ups consist of trading off 10 and 20 day moving averages, and the management techniques consist of the option of adding to a winning trade when it retraces. Duh.

Furthermore, there is quite a lot of rank beginner stuff, for example, an explanation of currency pairs, pip value, lot size, etc. I don't have much patience with that sort of thing. There is plenty of introductory Forex material readily available, and I don't see why so many authors seem to feel the need to pad their books with what their readers already know. It's like buying a book on computer programming that contains detailed instructions on how to turn on the computer or what a hard drive is.

Oddly enough, in a book that explains pip value, there is a chapter on trading other people's money. I think he tried to be all things to all people, from those who started trading a demo last week to the guy who wants to start a hedge fund. I don't think it comes off very well, especially in a 200 page book.

The meat of the book -- the strategy -- consists of various sources of information that can give you a head's up on currency strength. We're talking the COT Report and such things, some which are not so widely known by intermediate level traders. It's good information to have. It wasn't what I was expecting, though. And of course, it's still a crap-shoot. Was the crowd right, or was the crowd wrong? It's the same old question with the same old answer: buy your ticket and take your chances.

The take-away is that Ed feels the real money is in long-term trading as opposed to day-trading. Certainly if you are trading moving averages, you need to let your profits run. Personally, I hate trading moving averages -- or anything that wiggles, for that matter -- and no day will dawn when I'm willing to eat a 100 pip stop.

Buy the book anyway. There are useful and important nuggets and the book is worth the money. Just don't expect trade set-ups that you haven't heard about a hundred times before.

You will NOT find ANY forex strategy that you can backtest, all the trade "setups" described in the book consist of extremely subjective (and sometimes dangerous) fundamental ideas.

For example the author claims he uses the COT report to go long or short when he sees a huge imbalance between the the large speculators and the small speculators. Then he fades the net position of the large (non-commercial) speculators and bets on the net position of the small speculators. To "prove" his point he shows you plenty of (cherry-picked) charts where the market went in the direction of the net position of the small speculators.

Sure, sure, but what this genius is not telling you is that the market could move 1000 or 2000 pips AGAINST your position BEFORE actually going in the expected direction (if at all!), because it is impossible to know in advance how far this "imbalance" could go (2 to 1, 3 to 1, 4 to 1, 5 to 1, 6 to 1, etc...)!!

It is like the RSI, this technical indicator can stay in the overbought or oversold zone long enough to empty your trading account, BEFORE the price actually reverses its direction.

This trading idea alone could bankrupt you faster than you can say "margin call"!

Here is another trade "setup" from another chapter, he says that it "pays" to listen to reports from the Federal Reserve Bank and other central banks in the world, looking for "clues" and "hints". Wow, is that a fantastic trade setup or what! Gosh, why didn't I think of that?

The whole book is like that, there is not a single trading idea with specific entry/exit points. Sorry but I do no trade with subjective ideas, I learned (the hard way) that a trader needs solid, fully backtested strategies with specific entry/exit point to make it in this business, in the long run. That's the only way to trade, all the rest is totally irrelevant.

Little update : Look at all the 1-star reviews for this book (my review included) and notice how very few people think our reviews are helpful. It seems pretty obvious that Ed Ponsi cheerleaders (and friends...) were busy voting down our 1 star review, while simultaneously giving glowing 5-stars generic reviews. I guess they all think we are just a bunch of morons and we would not notice a thing.

This is an excellent follow-up to Ed's previous book. It's understandable that if an individual had not read his previous book, they would not understand the purpose in the things he shares. But it is very clear, that he gave considerable thought to what he writes. Undoubtedly, there was a purpose in almost every detail. If there were any questions that you may have had after reading Ed's first book (which in my opinion is the best book out there on Forex, and I have read almost every one of them) he more than clears them up in this book. After reading this second book, I feel confident that I understand one of, if not the best forex trading system available. And his systems can be used in any equities, futures, or commodities market. In my opinion this book is an outstanding contribution to Forex education.

This book is a good investment if you're interested in learning how to trade currencies. It contains many intricate concepts that are presented in an easy-to-understand language. There are many concepts that traders and analysts talk about on tv but I was never quite sure what they were talking about until I read this book. I finally understand what makes this market tick and how real traders make money. Great Book!

This book is very different than his first book in my view and not what I was expecting. This book focuses more from the fundamental side of things vs a technical viewpoint which actually is really needed. Most of the books I've seen or read have always been focused heavily on the technical side of things. This is the first book I think that has throughly explained the power and peril of a 'Carry Trade' and looks at it in all different angles which too me was awesome!! Also the explanation of how to use COT reports were invaluable to me as well. All and all not a bad read...i've learned a few things that made it worthwhile.

The book was full of information. But like the other reviewer said, it was information most average trader already knows. I know that Ed means well and he must of put a lot of effort to write his book, which is not that bad, but I just wish someone would write a book on how they became successful at forex trading in todays market without having a Phd or being a guru. The closest I've got so far was a book by J.J. Glenellis "Survive and Prosper in the Great Depression of 2009-2012". It's not perfect, but it's the best for the average trader. I'm starting to get the feeling that every forex (and stock) book was written by a person that could not make a lot of money trading so they wrote a book. Where is the guy or girl that makes $1,000,000.00 every year? Show us how you do it and write a book.

I'm an experienced trader and I read most of the books printed on the subject. If I could only choose one book to explain to someone how to REALLY trade the market, this would be the one. The techniques are solid, the strategies are detailed, and the writing itself is excellent. The resulting combination of trading techniques gives a well-rounded arsenal of tactics for trading forex or really any market.

Early in 2005, I signed up for an online, beginning forex course. One of the instructors was Ed Ponsi. I saved all of the forum posts from that course. Of the four assigned instructors, Ed's responses were the clearest and most useful. Here is a brief example:
"Traders will typically start their analysis with a long-term chart such as a daily or weekly chart. This is done to determine the major trend or theme in the market. The Daily chart is like a roadmap, it sends you in the right direction. The shorter-term chart is like a signpost, it tells you exactly where to enter."

When the course was over, I was still unsure about how I should organize and use all of that knowledge. I wrote to Ed, who kindly recommended a book. Although it may have been the most useful at the time, it included so much fluff that I found it difficult to extract much actionable information.

Finally, in 2007 Ed published his first book, "Forex Patterns and Probabilities", probably due to his own frustration with recommending anything. It was the book I needed immediately after the basic course. It was precise in describing several proven strategies to becoming a successful trader. After that, I was very interested to read this second offering, "The Ed Ponsi Forex Playbook" to see how his trading philosophy had evolved.

Although this new book focuses on just one of the strategies described in his earlier book, it was interesting to see how it had been expanded, and how Ed had evolved to focusing on very long term trading, combining market and economic fundamentals with technical indicators.

For a trader like me who has been severely hammered by short term strategies, this was a welcome confirmation that the direction my trading has taken me has brought me back to Ed Ponsi and to mainly long term looks.

I have read a lot of forex books and followed a lot of analysts and I think Ed Ponsi consistently gives the best and clearest explanations. So in general, I think this book is great, and highly recommend it. Specifically my favorite sections were the Commitment of Traders report and how to use it, useful insights on intervention, and a detailed explanation of what is really happening with interest and exchange rates on a carry trade. I have never seen these things explained this clearly and in this much detail anywhere else.

Even when some of the topics seem daunting, the author writes with a genuine confidence that anyone can understand them, and the book is actually pleasant to read, very motivating, and very positive. Ed Ponsi comes off as a successful guy who really enjoys what he is doing.

Although this book does go over the basics in the beginning, if you are new to trading I would consider getting the author's earlier book "Forex Patterns and Probabilities" first. It gives more specific, numerical trading strategies, some of which are referenced and expanded on in this book.

If you want a solid foundation in forex education, start with Ed Ponsi.

This book is better than most of what is out there on fx trading. I personally prefer Cornelius Luca, you never hear much about him anymore (I'm an old-timer) but Ed comes in a close second, he does a good all around job on this book. I think if you read both Trading in the Global Currency Markets by Luca along with Ed's books, you'll be in good standing. Also be sure to read Market Wizards if you get the opportunity, and you'll be well rounded.

Pat