Learning to Play With the Bishop

Earlier this year in the Jan. 18, 2002, issue ("A Tale of Two … "), I wrote about Carlos and Jay, and the two different roads they took to learn, play, and win at the game of poker. Carlos took the route of going to the casino many years ago, sitting at an instruction table, and learning the ropes by playing the game. Jay, on the other hand, made analogies to chess and therefore took a more conceptual approach to learning the game. As I said then and I'll say now, neither approach is wrong. Jay just has many more tools available to him than Carlos had. These tools are the books, computer software programs, online forums, and so on that I've mentioned many times.

Since Jay is in the learning mode and is starting to play in casinos, I wanted to update you on his progress to show you that the learning curve isn't as long as it might seem to be. He has been updating me via E-mail, as you are welcome to do, and has allowed me to paraphrase his E-mails.

"In my last E-mail to you, I told you that I had bought The Theory of Poker by David Sklansky, and Turbo Texas Hold'em and Tournament Texas Hold'em by Wilson software. I read the book and I beat the computer."

I'm glad he took my advice; I think it is a great way to start. First, find the experts, and then pick their brains by reading and rereading their material. Remember, the only thing you can't acquire quickly is experience, which comes with time. So, learning from the experience of the experts is a great road to take.

"I had been playing online for play money and was doing OK, and thought I was ready to sit at a real table. I've played the last three Mondays at The Orleans in their no-limit hold'em tourney."

This is more advice well taken. Available today is a plethora of play-money sites and poker software that will run millions of scenarios from which you can learn.

I have played in The Orleans tournaments in Las Vegas. They are run professionally and offer lots of variety in game selection. They have small buy-ins and nice prize pools, not unlike the daily tournaments that are run in casinos all around the world. I'm not sure, however, that I would have chosen no-limit hold'em for my first tournament. In my opinion, no-limit hold'em requires the most skill of any game out there, and while learning the game that requires the most skill is important, I think learning a game that is more basic might have been a better place to start (to learn hand selection, pot odds, and so on).

"As in chess, I'm afraid I don't have any natural talent in poker. In chess, I can study, practice, and play for years, and still lose to a 10-year-old. The same will be true for me in poker. But, unlike chess, I think there are more poker players who play worse than I do, and fewer who play better. We'll see if this theory holds true in the real world."

I'm not sure natural talent, as in athletics, applies in the poker arena, although I'm sure some people pick things up more quickly than others. Unlike chess, you can't, due to age and law restrictions, lose to a 10-year-old, but I understand his point. His other point is extremely important, however; there are far fewer players who play at a level known as the "A" game. Some players have played for 25 years and still fail to improve their game.

"Now, here's the update: Last night I won first place in the no-limit hold'em tournament at The Orleans. I think there were 110 entrants. Actually, there were four of us left, and we chopped it for $835 each. But I was the chip leader, so I took the trophy.

"In retrospect, I think this was a mistake. I was the favorite to win, and I was confident that I could beat those guys. But, in my mind, I had already won, and the money didn't seem as important as the trophy.

"The trophy validated me as a formidable opponent, at least at that level. I've learned a lot by playing those tournaments."

Congratulations, Jay, on a job well done! I don't know if he did the right or wrong thing by chopping it up, because I don't know the chip counts or the relative strengths of his opponents. Getting the trophy certainly would not be as important to me as the cash, but in this case, I think the trophy was very important. If he believed the trophy validated him as a player, it certainly follows that it can only boost his confidence. It also validated how his learning curve is going, and the value of reading those books and playing those mock hands. Oh, by the way, Jay, $835 is exactly my fee for advice (only kidding).

"I was looking for a hold'em-specific book to further my education. I had no recommendations, so I went ahead and bought Hold'em Poker for Advanced Players by Sklansky and Malmuth. I haven't read it yet."

That's a great choice, and very insightful. There are also other books advertised in Card Player that are excellent.

I have received other E-mails from Jay and will continue to update you as they come in. Jay seems to draw great analogies, and asks many questions that relate to many of you. So, with his permission, I will continue to use him as my bishop on our chessboard to poker.

In the meantime, come and join us.