Review of High-Low-Split Poker For Advanced Players
- Title:
- High-Low-Split Poker For Advanced Players
- Author:
- Ray Zee
- Publisher:
- Two Plus Two Publishing
- Date:
- 1994
- ISBN:
- 1-880685-10-8
- Pages:
- 333
- Price:
- $34.95
October 15, 2000
High/low split games are very popular in many card rooms across the
country. Some casinos also spread HORSE or HOSE style games, which
consist of several different kinds of poker. In these formats, High/Low
split games are quite common. Omaha High/Low is played as part of the
Tournament of Champions format, and both Omaha High/Low and Stud High/Low
events are spread as part of many major tournaments. Further, when these
games are spread, they are often fairly soft, populated by weak players
content to play for half of the pot. Therefore, every serious
poker player should be at least proficient in both of these games.
As one might expect, this is really two books under a common cover.
There are some very brief opening remarks and a shared glossary
at the end. Other than this, each book stands on its own. Stud
High/Low is discussed first, followed by Omaha High/Low. I've played
a fair bit of Omaha High/Low, and so I consider myself to be a pretty
good judge of writing about this game, but haven't played Stud High/Low
that many times,
and while I think I understand basic winning play, I would not classify
myself as an expert. Ray Zee, however, is widely considered to be
one of the best poker players alive, and is certainly qualified to
write a textbook on both games.
In the Stud High/Low section of the book, Zee starts by discussing
what makes a good High/Low starting hand, followed by a chapter about
playing one's hand on progressive streets. Next, we receive information
about various intricacies of the game, various kinds of Stud High/Low
split games one might encounter, and other skills that are important.
This section ends with a quiz on the material covered, a feature I
really adore in the Two Plus Two books, followed by a conclusion.
Overall, I found the information here to be very strong. I feel I
learned a great deal about this game. Not everything Zee states was
obvious to me, but after reflection based on a broad poker understanding,
his strategies seem to me to be correct. Again, while I haven't played
in hundreds of hours of Stud High/Low split in my life, Zee's information
has been valuable when I have played, seem to be successful, and correspond
well to general poker theory. This is certainly the best Stud High/Low
strategy I've seen in print.
The second section covers Omaha High/Low. After some introductory
remarks, Zee describes basic strategy for playing this game, followed
by "Advanced Strategy", including starting hand selection and play
on the flop. This is followed by details on playing under specific
circumstances, like short handed or pot-limit play. Zee then discusses
other skills, and ends the section with a quiz and a conclusion.
While this section is the strongest information I've seen on Omaha
High/Low in print, I don't think it's as strong as the Stud High/Low
section, nor do I think it's as strong as it could be. For example,
there's more to short handed play than is written here, the game
changes drastically from the "hold the nuts plus draws to better hands"
strategy of a full game. There are
also some uncommon situations that come up in this game that I think
are worth mentioning. I'd also extend some of the advice provided in
this chapter. For example, the author discusses situations where one
has a lock low, but one knows another lock is out there, and the pot
is so small that it is the right play to throw away one's hand. While
this can certainly happen, if this circumstance comes up more than
once per session, I think the player would be well advised to find
another game.
Overall, this is a very strong book, and I recommend it for all
poker players. While High-Low-Split Poker For Advanced Players
may not be perfect, it's rare to find good information in print on
these games, and this is the best I've seen. Also, the deficiencies
I have mentioned about this book are entirely problems of omission.
I hope that Ray Zee can
be persuaded to write a second edition where the two books are expanded
and broken up into separate volumes. I would guess that there's enough
extra information to justify this for Stud High/Low, but I feel certain
that this is true for Omaha High/Low. Until such time, every serious poker
player would be well advised to study this book.
Capsule:
The best writing in print I've seen on Stud High/Low and Omaha High/Low.
While the Stud High/Low section appears to me to be better written than the
Omaha High/Low section, they are both very strong and well worth serious
study. I believe there is probably enough extra information that could be
written about these game to justify expanding each section and splitting
this volume into two separate books, but I recommend it as it is now
nonetheless.
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