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Most poker books focus on betting and how and when
to play certain hands. Mike Caro's book is different
because he focuses on how to use the tells of your
opponents to your advantage. Obviously this book is
not great for those who play on-line. Caro is well
respected in the Texas Holdem poker world and the
beginning of the book talks about how other experts
value his work.
"Caro is primarily known as a teacher and a
theorist, but beyond that--twice world poker
champion Doyle Brunson calls him 'the best draw
poker player alive,' while the late gambling expert
John Scarne ranked him in the top five, and premier
authority David Sklanskly has also rated him first
in the world in that important category. But today,
draw poker isn't even Mike Caro's strongest game.
Most of his recent breakthrough research has been in
Texas holdem, seven card stud, and other popular
forms of poker." [7]
Early in the book this writing stlye is
explained, "Caro is known as 'The Mad Genius' for
good reason. Much of his teaching is unconventional
and very profound. Yet he explains things in crisp,
clear language that will have your pulse racing as
you learn the secret keys to winning." [8]
Caro breaks the book up into two sections,
natural tells and acting tells. His Great Law of
Tells defines these situations. "Players are either
acting or they aren't. If they are acting, then
decide what they want you to do and disappoint
them." [12] The first 130 pages of the book looks at
situations where players are not acting. The rest of
the book involves cases where opponents are acting.
One tool that separates this book from other
poker books is the use of charts to explain
Texas Holdem poker hands without
needing excess verbage. The MCU charts made things
much easier. Complicated poker hand situations were
clearly communicated concisely without the book
being too wordy.
One reason tells are important is that players
are unpredictable. It is not enough to just look at
the way they usually play hands or just look at the
way they bet. In explaining his Law of Loose Wiring,
Caro shows this volatility. "You see, your poker
opponents are volatile beings. They can be
impressionable, irritable, playful, capricious, and
more. You don't know when they're going to short
out, cross-circuit, or doing the silliest or the
most brilliant things. This goes for all poker
players, from the weakest beginners to the most
seasoned pros.
The deal is that even when opponents are
playing a disciplined game of
Texas Holdem poker, so many of their
decisions are borderlined that what they're going to
do is anybody's guess." [39] This is one reasons why
tells are so important, good players dynamically
change their style throughout sessions but there are
always subconscious signals as to what they are
doing.
Caro sums this up at the end of chapter 4,
"And from that powerful lesson, explaining Caro's
Law of Loose Wiring, we can begin to comprehend the
importance of tells. Since so many poker opponents
often decide at whim, we need to do more than just
strategically analyze their actions relative to what
they should be doing. We need to watch and listen
and determine what they are doing. "[41]
Caro provides useful information on keeping
tells in the Final Thoughts section. "When you spot
a tell, you should not act on it instantly! Wait a
short time and seem in doubt, That way, your
opponent will be less likely to adjust his behaviour,
and you probably will be able to use that same tell
again for more profit. " [307] Documented
experiments were explained efficiently. Most tells
are subtle and the book teaches the reader how to
pick up on minor signs.
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