Hold'em On The Come

by Rolf Slotboom & Dew Mason

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Reviewer: pjensen

Have you ever had a big hand cracked on the river by someone chasing a draw? As much as you may curse the poker gods when the chips are pushed towards your opponent, don’t automatically assume that he is a “fish”. The odds may have been good enough for him to draw at his hand, even if it was a long shot; and if he had a big enough draw, he may have even been the favorite! As the authors say: “Every time you call when you should fold, you're giving away money. Every time you fold when you should call, you're giving away money.”

It may seem odd to dedicate an entire book to limit holdem drawing hands, but there is actually a lot of material here. This is not a book for beginners, and is instead for players that are looking to advance their game to the next level. Everyone has had experience playing drawing hands, but with Holdem on the Come you will hopefully get a better idea of when a draw is profitable or not, and how best to play the hand.

The book covers a number of different topics, such as types of draws, counting outs, classifying your opponents, the advantage of relative position, and counting the size of the pot. There is no introduction to the game or starting hand suggestions – it is assumed that you already know how to play.

After the first section which discusses the different types of draws (flush/straight draws, one low pair, overcards, etc), we get to the part of the book that I found the most helpful – counting outs. Pretty much every holdem strategy book discusses pot odds and how many outs you have to make a flush or straight draw, but in Holdem on the Come the authors stress the importance of calculating the odds of you actually winning the hand when you hit your draw. This is why they teach you the concept of “modified outs”, which discounts your out count depending on what is on the board and the number of opponents. For example, everyone knows that an open-ended straight draw is “8 outs”. But if there is a two-flush on the flop and you have three or more opponents, there is a very good chance that someone has a flush draw. Thus, when you calculate your pot odds you must take away one or two outs from your count, since a card that makes your straight will probably make someone else a flush.

The concept of modified outs can also work in the opposite direction, where you can sometimes add a few hidden outs. For example, if you have about five outs to your hand but also have a three-flush on the flop, you can often add another out, since the odds of hitting that flush is about the same as hitting a “one-outer”.

The other main section of the book deals with counting the pot size. Not just the current size of the pot, but also using a formula to estimate the size of the pot on a future betting round. This part can get a little muddy, and the “action charts” are downright confusing. But it’s still worth reading.

Holdem on the Come is a unique book, and will make you look at drawing hands in a whole new way. It is an excellent addition to anyone’s poker library, and is a must-read for any limit holdem player.

4/5

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