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Cash Games (How to Win at No-Limit Hold'em Money Games) Vol. 1

by Dan Harrington, and Bill Robertie
Released 2008-03-14
Read articles about Poker
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37 Reviews

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3 stars Want to rate the book higher...but I can't

2008-04-04     149 of 160 found this review helpful

"Harrington on Cash Games" is a two book series that deals with full ring no limit cash games. Volume I deals with general concepts, preflop play and flop play. Part one of the book begins with basic ideas. Harrington recommends skipping this section if you are already familiar with the fundamentals of no limit hold 'em and I agree. This section of the book does not cover any new ground. Part two of the book deals with broad elements of no limit cash games. The section on stack size is excellent and explains how different stack sizes call for vastly different preflop and postflop strategy. The section on hand reading is good as Harrington goes through some of the thought processes required to break down and analyze a hand. There's a very brief discussion of metagame. This involves exploiting your image and making small costly plays which you expect will reap greater dividends in the future.

Part three is about tight aggressive preflop play. This is where the book starts to lose some of its shine. The book is stuck in what is conventionally referred to as "level 1" thinking, that is "What cards do I hold in my hand?". Different types of opponents require different strategies but the book plods on with many pages of "I have X hand in Y position. What should I do?". As a trivial example an opponent who is a "rock" and rarely tries to steal your blind requires a different strategy from a maniac who tries to steal your blind every time it is folded around. The book does not really address tailoring your play to your opponent preflop.

Part four of the book is about tight aggressive flop play. Once again the book falls short in a number of areas. To take an example, if you raise preflop and are out of position, Harrington recommends mainly checking KK on a rainbow K72 flop (that is you hold top set on a board without many draws). What Harrington omits to mention is how you should play your distribution of hands in this spot as part of a balanced strategy. For example if you are checking top set but continuation betting most of your hands that miss, this begins to create an imbalance that an opponent can exploit. All the examples are about "How do I play my hand" and the author does not address the question of "How do I balance my distribution of hands in this spot".

As in the preflop section, there is very little discussion of opponent type and this is where the book loses the most marks. Discussion of opponent tendencies is extremely limited. A typical example would be "Let's call 10 percent of the time and fold 90 percent, calling only against the loosest and most aggressive players". Given that you are supposed to randomize your actions using your wristwatch and that Harrington doesn't explain how to quantify "loosest and most aggressive players" these guidelines are difficult to follow. There are other quirks and inconsistencies that would be jarring to the astute reader. For example, after calling a bet out of position with 7h6h preflop and then leading out on a TT4 board and getting raised, Harrington recommends calling 10% of the time to "balance our value calls in other situations". To me this statement is rather obscure and although this volume specifically focuses on preflop and flop play, I feel it is an injustice to leave the reader in this predicament without at least a brief discussion of turn and/or river play. Another inconsistency occurs when at one point Harrington recommends raising with middle pair "to represent top pair" whereas throughout the rest of the text, Harrington recommends mainly calling with top pair. If your strategy is to mainly call with top pair, then it is difficult to try to represent top pair by raising. The last section of the book is tight aggressive play with multiple opponents. This is basically Harrington saying "Don't bluff, play more cautiously and people usually have what they're representing".

The book certainly has moments where it shines. The "problems" sections contains detailed and well thought out analysis. The text will provoke a lot of thought about the game even if there are some specific examples which seem unpolished or unfinished. Novice players will gain a lot from the text. Intermediate players should only expect to pick up a few gems every now and again. As a brief note there are parts of the text that apply to other forms of the game for example short handed online no limit. However these types of games have a lot of specific nuances that the book does not address at all (for example light 3 betting and light 4 betting preflop). Overall I still recommend this book as a buy even though the book seems to treat poker as more of "a card game played with people" rather than "a people game played with cards".

4 stars The quality is a bit uneven here, but still worth the price of admission

2008-04-19     25 of 28 found this review helpful

Dan Harrington's three volumes on no limit tournament strategy became instant classics in the world of poker literature. No one before had ever attempted such a comprehensive discussion of optimal tournament strategy, with unique and extensive hand examples drawn from real-world play. Certainly no one with Dan Harrington's record and reputation had done so. Now, in this planned two-part series, Harrington tries to tackle cash game play in the same style and manner as his tournament books. In doing so, he has written a good, solid book, but not a great one, and certainly not another classic.

Harrington was destined to fall short tackling this subject matter. To begin with, no limit cash game play has been written about extensively, starting with Doyle Brunson in 1979's Super System and carrying on through a plethora of Sklansky's 2+2 books throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Thus, while Harrington was able to discuss several unique and unfamiliar ideas on no limit tournament strategy (including the importance of blind structure, the M number, chip management, inflection points, among many others), there's not much new ground here to cover. In fact, this book only contains two new "Harrington Laws", and both of them are lifted from Sklansky (the gap theory of calling an early position raiser and the unimpressive observation that more people in the pot means that a player needs a stronger hand in order to bet).

So basically there's nothing exactly new here. I agree partially with the review by Don Nguyen below; the book does indeed focus way too much on level 1 thinking (i.e. how strong a hand do I "need" given a particular flop and position). However, to its credit the book does indeed move beyond this level of thinking, at least occasionally, to discuss playing back at loose maniacs with marginal hands or taking advantage of a handful of "prime" bluffing/semi-bluffing opportunities. But mostly, the hand analysis is fairly straight-forward, conservative, and unimaginative in the extreme. Things are even further confused by Harrington's odd insistence on assigning an exact percentage to whether he would raise, call or fold in a certain situation (sometimes on the order of 80% fold, 15% raise, and 5% call). I understand the need to randomize one's play, and could see Harrington making a suggestion such as a player should "mostly fold, but consider raising as a bluff against some weak opponents", but the random percentages thrown out by Harrington seem arbitrary. And who exactly is really going to glance at their watch to determine whether they should perform the 70% call, or the 30% raise? In my mind it's much better to vary your play to your opponent rather than according to a random number generator.

All in all, this is a good, conservative tome on cash game play that's comparable to much of what's out there in the poker literature. However, many readers may remember that Vol. I of Harrington on Hold 'em Tournament Play was also very by-the-numbers and unimaginative, emphasizing a more or less rigid, tight aggressive strategy. I have high hopes that the next installment on cash game play will feature some of the same level of insightful thinking we saw in Vols. II and III of the Harrington on Hold em series.

I'd also recommend The Poker Tournament Formula and Poker Tips that Pay: Expert Strategy Guide for Winning No Limit Texas Hold em for readers that are looking beyond the Harrington series.

5 stars I'm In Love !!!

2008-03-29     19 of 33 found this review helpful

I just finished reading Volume 1 of Harrington on Cash Games and this books is AWESOME !!! I scored it off of eBay for a good price and I'm glad I did because they're still out of stock here =)

Harrington covers a lot of material in Volume 1 and with over 400 pages it makes it even better. I LOVE what they did in this Volume by first explaining how and why certain situations are to be played and than went on to show you actual examples. The first round of examples, just covering and analyzing Pre-Flop play, is 44 Pages !!! And that's exactly what I want from a poker book =)

Each section is a lot more than I expected, and even sections like Big Blind and Small Blind play are right to the point in the information they have. I really like how clearly Harrington shows that bets in No-Limit Hold'em can increase exponentially as the hand progresses. For player's transitioning from Limit Poker to No-Limit, this section will be a really fun read. He also covers Hand Reading and in a few instances he takes actual hands from TV shows like High Stakes Poker and analyzes them too. The opening of the book is something like 12 pages of pure analysis just from 1 hand of High Stakes Poker!!! That's another big plus for me. I want to see into the minds of the professionals that I watch on TV every week and the opening alone was a joy to read.

I would have bought these from Amazon for the discount they're offering, but I'm glad that I paid a little extra because if Volume 2 is as great as Volume 1 than I'm in love!

3 stars Harrington Tournament vs Cash

2008-03-25     17 of 46 found this review helpful

I read both volumes on Harrington on Cash Games "How to Win at No-Limit Hold'em Money Games", I also had previously purchased both volumes of Dan Harrington's much heralded tournament series ...

First Harrington again has done a comprehensive job of creating an epic, however I personally found him less of a revelation in the cash game series than in the tournament books. It could be me and my base of knowledge.

Volume I covers Pre-flop play and play on the Flop.

Volume II covers the Turn and the River as well as some sections on dealing with Loose Agressive style players, Tells, Beating Weak Games and Bankroll Management.

Bottom line, I wish he never wrote it... If a sucker has the brains and discipline to read it, learn it and practice it, he will be a better player. Harrington once again has wised up some suckers.

Lucky for us, 90% of all people who claim they play poker think they already play better than 90% of all poker players. Thank the good lord that these people are too lazy and are not sufficiently motivated to read and learn.

Mark "Big Daddy from Cincinnati" Hanna

4 stars Bridging the gap between tournament and cash game play

2008-05-15     10 of 10 found this review helpful

While expectedly falling short of the tournament series which was always going to happen do to cash games being a much more complex topic, these books are perfect for someone wishing to start the transition to cash games from tournaments from a tournament player's perspective.

I for one have been reasonably successful in tournament play for 2-3 years, but have always struggled with cash game play and could never figure out why. This book was very helpful to me in that it explains WHY the two types are different, and the adjustment in perception that has to be made.
If you are a tournament player this will definitely introduce some ideas that you will not be comfortable with and hands that you have been quite happy to get all in with in a tournament are now hands that are very often beat by the turn and beyond. But if you are open minded and try the concepts introduced here, I think you will see an improvement in your results...As with the previous Harrington books, the hand problems are fascinating and provide a lot of insight...
These books will likely not help the experienced and successful cash game player much, but everyone else should learn a lot. Coupling reading thse books along with Professional No Limit Poker Vol 1 will improve your understanding. Well worthwhile

3 stars Not what I expected

2008-04-21     8 of 10 found this review helpful

I had great expectations on this book (and Vol II) but I have been a little disappointed. First part is quite obvious, pot odds, commitment and so on. Second part is an extensive but quite boring list of flop situations and how should be played...I would have liked more explanations and less percentages, but Harrington seems very fond of the latter. If you are a good player you'll not find anything new, If you are a beginner it will be quite useful.

4 stars Finally, a no-limit book for limit players

2008-04-13     7 of 8 found this review helpful

As a good-to-mediocre limit player, I searched a long time for a book that would improve my no-limit game given that I already knew a good deal about limit poker. This is that book. If you've never played hold 'em, this book is going to be over your head; you won't even understand the first few pages. If you've played limit hold 'em and want to become a solid no-limit player, this is the book for you.

The book is in depth on all betting rounds and promotes the kind of thinking that a good no-limit player needs to have. I also learned a few new ideas about randomizing my play and river bets that I hadn't considered before. At the end of most chapters, a thorough set of problems is presented that really drill the ideas well. Self-testing on those problems alone make the book fun and worth the price!

Like most poker books, the English is poor. Apparently something about playing poker well excludes knowledge of the subjunctive! It's still more readable than most poker books. The chapters on bankroll management and other miscellaneous topics in Volume 2 were unnecessary and thankfully brief. There were some minor inconsistencies in the book and maybe even some math blunders, but relatively few given that the two volumes together are around 800 pages.

I think that it's a rare player that wouldn't stand to profit from buying this book and reading it. The book isn't complete without both volumes.

1 stars Everything in this book is common sense and beyond obvious.

2008-04-12     7 of 57 found this review helpful

All the advice given in this book and the hand examples are so ridiculously obvious. If you cant think of this stuff yourself, stick to tic tac toe. This book covers no new ground at all and is so basic and simple. Seriously, if you cant figure out what this book contains on your own, you should not be playing poker. How many worthless books can 2+2 publish?

4 stars Learn Cash Game Concepts

2008-04-05     7 of 13 found this review helpful

In this book Harrington tries to describe the difference between No-limit tournaments and cash games. He has split his cash game strategy into 2 books. These books are divided into 12 different parts. This first volume will deal with the first 5 parts.

Part 1: He explains some basic ideas of no-limit holdem like pot odds, implied odds and outs.
Part 2: Harrington talks about how the stack sizes affect the game. Some other principles that he describes here are deception, balance, hand selection, pot commitment, hand reading, multilevel thinking.
Part 3: Differences between tight aggressive play and loose aggressive play.
Part 4: Teach you how to play on the flop when heads-up.
Part 5: How to handle multiway flop with two or more opponents.
Part 6: How to play on the turn.
Part 7: River play.
Part 8: Tells and observations.
Part 9: Basics of the loose aggressive style.
Part 10: Describes what weak games are and how to beat them.
Part 11: How to manage your bankroll and transitioning to live games.
Part 12: Interview with a great no-limit cash game player.

The style and layout of this book is very similar to Harrington previous books. He will describe a concept and then illustrate this concepts by showing it with example hands. He will describe in detail how the players were thinking and how they should be thinking. He got a lot of example hands were he tries to show all the different concepts involved in no-limit cash game.

If you enjoyed his previous book you will probably like this book as well. It often tries to compare differences between tournament and cash game no-limit games.

5 stars Outstanding CASH game book for a beginner

2010-01-04     5 of 5 found this review helpful

Bottom line -- I was a break-even Cash game player (and a winning tourney player) when I bought this book and now I'm a winning Cash game player.

Yes, this book is for CASH game ***beginners*** and if you're past that stage, you shouldn't be reading (and criticizing) the book for being what it is -- a beginner's book that lays the foundation of your knowledge of how to play cash games.

But let's be real -- everyone who masters anything must first be a novice and must first learn the basics, the foundation, the mundane details of the subject.

And that's exactly what you get here -- the foundation. And it does an outstanding job of doing exactly that.

5 stars Readable, rigorous, and informative

2009-05-19     5 of 5 found this review helpful

Dan Harrington is an accomplished pro, and a captivating and often witty writer. The quality of his prose is well above that of most poker books.

In Vol I, he establishes broad cash game principles, and lays a foundation for presenting a tight aggressive style. His coverage of pre-flop play is rigorous, with plenty of example hands that reiterate concepts. For flop play, there are entire chapters devoted to both heads up and multiple player hands.

Vol II, also excellent, covers the turn and river, and the loose aggressive style.

This is a great book, and is deserving of many re-reads. It is particularly good for those who want to refine or counter a tight aggressive style.

5 stars Excellent work from Action Dan!

2008-06-23     5 of 8 found this review helpful

I've played poker of one kind or another for 40 years. Before the "Moneymaker Cascade Event" that propelled tournament poker into the mainstream, I was playing tournaments...and doing well. Got the previous 3 volume series by Dan and immediately improved my tournament results. My cash rate from 2004 to current is 31%. That's up from the 20% I THOUGHT was pretty good! I credit Dan's books for a lot of that success.

This last year, I've been so busy with business, a touring band I'm in, and other things, that I haven't had the time to play tournaments on either circuit. So, when I do have time, I've started playing cash games at a local casino that's 5 minutes from my home. While I generally do well, I was having some pretty big swings.

Finished Volume 1 of Dan's new books, and headed to the casino to play. I feel like a kid in a candy store, and no one's watching me steal the chocolate! Last time out, I got myself seated at a table with 6 sharks and 2 fish. 3 hours later, I've tripled my stack. One of the biggest sharks folded to a raise from me with the statement "I can't beat this guy...he's killed me in every hand today", which was absolutely true. I was getting good cards, to be sure, but I only had the mortal nuts once all day. (Raised pre-flop with JJ, got reraised by KK, hit a set on a flop of J-5-2 rainbow, and got the case J on the turn which got the KK hand's whole stack on the river)

Because of Dan's insights, I felt I knew where I was in virtually every single hand. And indeed, I had no surprises. Just started Volume 2 last night, so I'm anxious to finish it and see what fun I can have on my next trip to the aquarium, err...casino.

Highly recommended.

5 stars The worst poker book ever!!!

2008-04-02     5 of 18 found this review helpful

This is the worst poker book ever! PLEASE do NOT buy either of these books! PLEASE! Reading and studying these books are a lock to make you a better player, and I simply can't have that!

Seriously, these are probably the best books I've ever read, and I've got a fairly small library of poker books, but I love to read the subject. A lot of the information and analysis that I've been looking for as a fairly amateur player looking to take it to the next level is in here; loose-aggressive play, reading hands, betting strategies, etc. Honestly, there isn't much information here that is 'revolutionary', and anyone new to the game won't really pick up on what he's talking about. But I've been very interested in taking my game to the next level, and play cash games, and these books are the best tool that I've seen. But please don't read them, PLEASE!

4 stars The book has already paid for itself

2008-07-04     4 of 5 found this review helpful

As a low-limit, casual online player, I've been making a reasonable profit on tournaments only to be punished whenever I try to move into ring games. One thing Harrington does a good job of (not surprising given he literally wrote the book on tournament play) is clearly describing how and when the two games diverge. On just the first read-through of this book I was able to spot a number of gaping flaws in my cash game that I didn't even know were there.

I can see how the book would be less valuable to a more experience player, but it was exactly what I needed.

5 stars Another Excellent Harrington Book

2009-04-03     3 of 3 found this review helpful

Another excellent book by Harrington. I read this book about a year ago and loved it. If you enjoyed his tournament play books, this series on cash games are perfect. Thanks for the great work, Dan.

4 stars not for beginners

2008-12-18     3 of 3 found this review helpful

fist things first. this book is not for beginners. you need a good grasp of poker lingo and basic play to appreciate this book. i read volume 1 and 2 and these are the best books on NL Holdem.
the first volume is preflop and flop play and the second book is on turn and river play plus some bonus topics. these books should be bought and read as one book.
the positives are as follows:
it gives you concrete examples that were based on live and internet play. the problems are easy to read. the explinations of what actions to take and what your thought process should be in the problems are complicated but necessary . there are so many hand examples that it becomes engrained in your brain by the end of the books.
this is a book for "big stack" no limit. 100 big blinds and up. if you know Dan Harringtons reputation as a tight player(Action Dan) you will be suprised at how loose he reccomends you play. he constantly tells you to mix up your game and raise with some pritty light hands. if you play as he reccomends you will have you opponents totaly confused.
his opinions on how to use a wristwatch to randomise your actions and the "metagame theory" are worth the pice of the books alone!
this book is not a recipe book on how to win...far from it. but if you are willing to put in the time and effort to apply his concepts...you will be a dangerous player at the table!

the only negative thing i can say is that he only raises 3 big blinds in 90% of his examples. each game is different. at my local cardroom a 3x raise gets no respect. 4x and 5x big blind raises are the norm and tend to narrow the field. and there is no advice on the caped buyin games that are common in california cardrooms.

hope my review was helpfull...Mike A

5 stars A GOOD INVESTMENT !!!

2008-09-19     3 of 3 found this review helpful

I have all of Harrington's poker books and many, many other poker books by other authors; my husband and I play poker. Harrington, in my opinion, ranks amoung the best of the best poker authors. His books on poker, tournament poker and cash games are excellent!!!

This book, and Harrington's cash game vol. II, are the best I've found on the subject.

If you play poker, you understand, or should understand, that gaining poker knowledge, acquired from study and experience, is a life-long educational experience, and that it is far cheaper to learn things the "right way" the first time around with respect to studying the variation(s) of poker you play, as this will be the basis for your personal thoughts about and analysis of your experience (the games you most recently played). If you want boks offering good reasoning about and stratagems for cash games, purchase Harrington's books, and you'll not regret it.

One thing I have noticed, is that when those new to poker purchase a book on the subject of poker, any book, they seem to think, and often mention, that said book, is "great" when, in fact, they really have no basis for making such a judgement. Hey, we all have to begin somewhere. As a poker player progresses to higher levels of ability their choice of poker books becomes much more selective as they are better qualified to analyse the large selection of poker books now offered for sale. I've said all this to simply inform those new to, as well as those experienced at, playing either Hold'Em tournaments or Hold'Em cash games, that Dan Harrington's books are amoung the best of the best, according to my husband, and he, not to boast, should know, and he has recommended Harrington's poker books to a lot of people.

Poker is about making the best possible decisions based on available, although limited, information. Poker players who purchase Harrington's books are, in my humble opinion, making good decisions.



5 stars Very impressive!

2008-05-11     3 of 9 found this review helpful

I'm a relative beginner to cash games and I found this book very helpful. Given the amount of complete trash out there (written about hold'em) either blatant or disguised as "deeply theoretical" this book surprised me by its depth and really helped me to start thinking correctly about the game.

My advice to other authors: please don't write about poker unless your results prove that you are the top of the top. Save trees and our time!

2 stars Maybe good 2007 but in today games you will get killed

2009-12-15     2 of 7 found this review helpful

This is a decent guide to play poker but not good or close to optimal.

He teaches you a way to play that will hinder your future growth as a player. So if you really want to become good this book will hinder your longterm growth because he is teaching you ways of thinking that will put you in a lot of bad situations.

Ex: "Computer simulation has shown that it's always best to open raise if you are first to act. Still he think it's better to limp some of the time (which I can agree with) BUT he wants you to limp randomized, not because it's the best option but because he think you should mix it up for mixing sake." This is only one of many terrible advices!

[There are of course some good points also and I haven't read the 2nd book but can't recommend it for poker players that really want to become good]

4 stars Great for the nuances between cash games and tournaments

2008-12-23     2 of 2 found this review helpful

He does an excellent job of getting across the subtle differences between cash games and tournament poker. I've read his other 3 books on tournament games (which are very good in their own right) and the contrast in objectives is nice, as are some of the underlying theories. The combination of text and example hands works very well and makes the points he's trying to get across clearer.

While this is a different subject, I can see how this can be applied to deep stacked tournaments as well, which is great - and not something in his other books.

In general he advocates playing more hands (than in tournaments). The only thing I'd like to see more of in the book is more advice and direction on how to keep from playing too many hands, and some ways to detect or monitor yourself in order to catch that. Other than that, a great book on a tricky subject.

4 stars Easy to understand

2008-08-11     2 of 2 found this review helpful

I am fairly new to the game of poker and this book was very easy to understand. This is definitely a book you can re-read many times and use it as a quick reference guide. I would recommend it to anyone trying to master the game of poker.

5 stars One of the best nuts and bolts poker books in the market today

2009-12-28     1 of 1 found this review helpful

Harrington's series on cash games is one of best nuts and bolts poker books out there. His discussion on the importance of stack sizes and how each stack size should be approached, is priceless. The series deals with specific situations and provides both general and broad brush guidance, depending on the level of play. This is the book I recommended to my 3rd level supervisor at work (yes the big boss).

Five stars for sure.

2 stars A few good tips

2009-08-20     1 of 1 found this review helpful

Mr. Harrington gives a few good tips for playing certain hands in cash games. These tips will allow you to save enough money in one session of Hold'em to pay for the book.

4 stars Not perfect, but still vintage Harrington

2009-08-18     1 of 1 found this review helpful

I will add myself to the list of people who start off their review of this book by saying that there was no way that it could have lived up to Harrington's tournament series. Those books are considered foundational books for tournament play and rank among the top poker books out there. If anything, this book shows how hard it is to write a great book, even if you're a great poker player and poker author. Even Tiger Woods doesn't win every tournament he plays in. So why we expect a poker author to hit a homerun every time is beyond me--sorry for mixing sport metaphors.

Part of the reason for this shortcoming is, as has already been said, the more varied nature of cash games. Tournament play shifts in very predictable ways based upon the format and stage of the tournament. High ante, late-stage tournament play necessitates a looser style of play, for example, and there are ways to leverage the format to gain an advantage. But cash games aren't nearly so predictable. As a result Harrington's desire to provide a foundation for cash game poker play feels like it becomes a little too ABC, with most recommendations on play being based on the cards that you're holding, rather than how you're reading those around you. After all, it would be very difficult to account for the massive variation in the kinds of players and the particular situations that you might face in cash games, although some people have tried with varying results.

Additionally, Harrington has always been a proponent of a tighter style of play, often folding when others might call. Especially in volume 1, this more conservative style is on display, both a good and bad thing. Meanwhile, his recommendation on randomly varying your play based on percentages is a great idea theoretically, and may even be used retroactively to track your play, but I want to know who is sitting at the table with cash on the line thinking that he should take a particular action because he needs to fill his 10% quota of making a certain move.

Still, despite its limitations Harrington remains one of the game's top thinkers and you can do much worse by reading his thoughts on cash game strategy. Though there are few certainties in the game of poker, there are definitely people who are more right, and there are people who are more wrong. Harrington certainly falls into the former category, and if you decide to adapt your cash game based on his recommendations, you will likely see an improvement. Not a full-throated endorsement perhaps, but still a recommendation.

4 stars Great book for the intermediate player

2009-02-20     1 of 1 found this review helpful

This is a great book for the beginner who knows the rules of the game, know a little about what hands to play or the intermediate player. I have this book 4 stars because it takes the very aggressive approach which works if you are playing with players that know what they are doing, but can cost you a lot with players that play weak. You will defiantly make the money back you paid for this book. I also suggest you get book 2 as it covers the turn and river in-depth. I am glad I found a solid book for NL cash games!

5 stars After the first 84 pages, ...

2008-12-18     1 of 1 found this review helpful

... Cash Games (Vol. I) by Harrington and Robertie has already improved my game. Previously I tended to play 90% of the time too tight, mistakenly mis-using what I'd learned from reading books about tournament play (3 of which happen to be by H & R). The other 10% of the time I was mainly getting too deep & big into small hands like top pair/good kicker, 2-pair and better hands, however devalued by threats on the board.

Early on my cash game was profitable only because of a short streak of beginner's luck. After that brief period of 'invincibility' ended I watched my bank roll steadily drop and drop and drop, even as I backed off my initial loose-weak play and (wrongly) applied tournament principles to my cash game. I remembered thinking, "I'm doing well in small tournaments; why am I losing money in cash games?!?"

I've read H & R's tournament volumes (just about to finish Vol. III) and credit Dan and Bill greatly for helping me to consistently place in online sit-n-go's and small, 1 or 2 table home tournaments. After receiving an email notifying me of the availability of this new cash game series, I ordered on the spot. Now, after reading less than a quarter of the book and applying the initial principles covered in just those pages I've enjoyed 2 profitable no-limit cash sessions and feel much more confident in my game. Although, tempered by experience, I don't expect to improve further until I read further, ....

So, I'm looking forward to finishing Cash Games and pre-ordering future volumes. I highly recommend Dan & Bill's books, and can't advise you to get this particular book more strongly.

5 stars My Poker Bible

2008-11-28     1 of 1 found this review helpful

Considering that I am new to this game, I was confused at just what "winning" strategy book by top player author I should buy. I am glad that I picked this one! The book doesnt waste time teaching the history of the game or basic how to play, rather it jumps right in to the theory that you need to win. Vol one teaches tight agressive play, while volume 2 teaches loose agressive play. I will be buying that one shortly as well. So far I have won $500 in one months time using the techniques in this book, which is pretty good considering that I am a newbie and am playing low stakes poker cash games. Great book, I cant wait to read more from mr. Harrington.

5 stars Luck is the residue of preparation.

2008-10-06     1 of 1 found this review helpful

They say that 'luck is the residue of preparation'. This is especially true when it comes playing poker. So, plan to get very lucky after you read Dan Harrington's 2 volumes on cash game no limit hold'em.
I've been a limit player for 20 years. Recently, I decided to devote myself to no limit because of the greater profit in these games. From my general knowledge, I knew that there were significant strategy differences in correct strategy for no limit so I read a couple of books. However, these books didn't really help very much. Then I got Harrington's books and it was like someone had turned on a light in a dark room. It made a world of difference in my game. I 'get it' now.
To put some perspective on this, I'm playing in a $2/$3 blind no limit game with a $200 cap on the buyin, in a brick and mortar poker room. I mention this because some of the reviews of these books have critized them for being too basic. However, if you're playing in a small game, basic strategy is probably the BEST strategy. In the second volume, there is a chapter about playing in small no limit games. I recommend you jump ahead and read it first. Keeping this chapter in mind as you read everything else will really give you a great perspective on how to beat a small no limit game. With respect to beating the bigger games, I really don't know if these books will help because I'm not playing in those games yet. But if you are new to no limit, or you are just having trouble beating the small game you're playing in, these books are great.

5 stars Don't read this...you'll beat me

2008-08-11     1 of 2 found this review helpful

recommended for those of us, myself especially, who think that they're ready to excell at the cash tables. take the time and let this book river you out of $30, if that, and then take the time to learn, relearn, and over-learn all the book has to offer.

5 stars Great work!

2008-06-21     1 of 4 found this review helpful

This book is equally suited for novice and expert player alike. I have not finished reading it, but I can't put it down because every page is full of valuable information that is easy to follow and understand. Congratulations for a job well done!

5 stars One of the Best poker books about Cash Games

2008-06-05     1 of 5 found this review helpful

Whit this book, I improved my skills on cash games, and learnt how to avoid mistakes. Recommended reading for beginners.

5 stars May be the best for no limit cash

2010-07-20     0 of 0 found this review helpful

I think Harringtons books may be the best on the market. The cash game books aren't as great to most as the tournament editions but they are an easy entertaining read covering a different subject. In my opinion the 2 volumes are the best no limit cash game books out there. It's hard to find a good cash game book covering no limit as most are written for limit games or no limit tournaments. If someone really has a deep stack cash game strategy book they rate above this and all others I would like to read it. Please reply to my review so I'll know what it is.

The thing with this book is like Harringtons tournament editions, if you buy vol.1 your going to want to buy vol.2. So save yourself trouble and if you can get a better deal on the purchase or shipping price by buying both at the same time I would recommend it.

4 stars Not great literature, but great poker

2010-06-05     0 of 0 found this review helpful

Kind of a hard read as the writing is a bit "choppy." However, it's has great information and introduces concepts that 'medium' strength NLHE players may not be familiar with.

5 stars Excellent Book and Service

2009-12-21     0 of 5 found this review helpful

I have been a customer of Amazon.com for a very long time and the book "Cash Games" was for my husband who read the book in two days. The customer service that is provided via Amazon.com is excellent and that is the ONLY reason that I order from them and only them.

The vendors who sign up with Amazon are intelligent business people because if you do not treat your customers right, your business will fail. That is reality and I, as a previous retail store owner in New York, knows all about what makes a business work and it is making sure yur customer's are happy. I do wish I would receive a coupon once in a while as that would add to my purchasing. Coupons are what consumers look for. The shipping and condition of this book was top shelf and that is why I will continue to shop here and use this vendor again, as well. Happy Holidays to all. A discounted coupon would be great to receive; especially with the holidays approaching us.

Nancy Krol

5 stars Absolutely Spot On

2008-09-15     0 of 1 found this review helpful

This book is the bible for Deep Stack cash game play. Highly recommended to anyone who plays cash games.

5 stars Gran libro!! -Si tu nivel de ingles es medio, lo entiendes perfectamente

2008-08-03     0 of 6 found this review helpful

Muy buen libro, necesario para jugar al poker. Si no lo has leido, no te enteras de nada de lo que ocurre realmetne.

5 stars Extremely lousy

2008-07-10     0 of 4 found this review helpful

I am having a hard enough time making money playing cash Holdem. If you read this book (Vol 1 & 2) I may have to quit.

Buy it from AmazonNew for $23.07