Holdem Poker For Advanced Players

by David Sklansky and Mason Malmuth

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Reviewer: Tiburon41

I actually owned this book before I owned Small Stakes Hold’em. I would strongly not recommend that idea. This book is meant for players who play in medium-to-higher stakes games, mainly with generally higher-quality players. Many concepts are similar to those presented in Small Stakes Holdem, but they are presented on a much higher level, and the book seems less applicable to the modern small stakes game.

This doesn't mean that the book is not outstanding, however. Sklansky introduces his hand groupings (or, rather, re-introduces them from his and Mason Malmuth's Poker Essays) and teaches you how to play those hands in situations. He also deals with more advanced plays and their utilization in the course of a game.

This is Sklansky's attempt at a practical strategy book, and he does extremely well. He leaves much of his famous theory writings behind and rather uses them to explain concepts in the context of a limit hold’em game. My only caveat with this book is that the title is not deceptive. This is definitely Hold’em Poker for ADVANCED players, and is most certainly not meant to teach you to play in your neighborhood $2/$4 game or your internet $0.50/$1 limit hold’em game. It is meant, in my opinion, for players who are moving up the ladder into higher stakes ($15/$30 and above), and who have fully absorbed and understood the concepts in Small Stakes Holdem and Theory of Poker. Small Stakes Hold’em was written long after Hold’em Poker for Advanced Players, but it still applies. This is an outstanding step-up book, but is NOT meant for beginners.

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