Harrington Poker
You Want It, Harrington Has It! Get complete access to a wide range of slots at our premier casino. We are rooting for you to win big when playing your favorite games, and having loads of fun at Harrington Raceway & Casino. Dan Harrington (born December 6, 1945) is a professional poker player, best known for winning the Main Event at the 1995 World Series of Poker.He has earned one World Poker Tour title, two WSOP bracelets, and over six million dollars in tournament cashes in his poker career.
| Volume 1: Strategic Play (2004) Volume 2: The Endgame (2005) Volume 3: The Workbook (2006) | |
| Author | Dan Harrington |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Two Plus Two Publishing |
Harrington on Hold 'em is a series of poker books about poker strategy, particularly for Texas hold 'empoker tournaments. They were all written by Dan Harrington and Bill Robertie and published by Two Plus Two Publishing.
Background[edit]
The Harrington on Hold 'em series of books were written by Bill Robertie and Dan Harrington, a professional poker player who has earned over US$4.5 million during his poker career. He has won two World Series of Poker bracelets, including one from the 1995 World Series of Poker Main Event,[1] and he has made it to four final tables in total at the World Series of Poker (in 1987, 1995, 2003, and 2004).[2]
Synopsis[edit]
Volume 1: Strategic Play (ISBN978-1880685334), which contains seven key sections, begins by introducing the reader to poker and its history, along with a glossary of poker terms. The book is not written for novices to the game, therefore it does not include some of the more basic information about the game, such as poker hands, the game's mechanics, betting, etc.[1] This entry in the series focuses on the basics of poker, such as playing styles, starting hands, pot odds, and hand analysis. CardPlayer felt that Harrington, a former chess master, wrote the book like a chess guide, noting, 'He poses situations, asks the relevant questions, and then provides solutions. A simple diagram depicts position, blinds, and chip stacks, and then a specific challenge is articulated.'[2]
Volume 2: The Endgame (ISBN978-1880685358) focuses on strategies used in poker tournaments, particularly on how to change playing styles depending on how large a chipstack is compared to the blinds. It also introduces related concepts such as the M-ratio and the Q-ratio.[2]
Volume 3: The Workbook (ISBN978-1880685365) is essentially a workbook containing many example scenarios for readers to apply concepts learned from the first two volumes in the series.[3]
Reception[edit]
Greg Hill of the website Poker News noted that since Volume 1 does not include some of the more basic information about poker, it potentially discriminates against novice players and therefore could possibly be restricting the book's audience to a more limited audience. However, Hill noted that the book is 'well written and well structured', making it easy to pick up the book and begin reading from any section of interest.[1] Tim Peters of poker magazine CardPlayer felt that the books are essential in helping players prepare for poker tournaments.[2] Jeff Haney of the Las Vegas Sun considers the series to be 'required reading' for anyone interested in participating in high-stakes tournament poker. The level of play in major poker tournaments have gotten significantly tougher and more competitive since the release of the first book in the series, according to several experts on poker tournaments, including poker professional Blair Rodman and Mason Malmuth, the owner of the books' publishing company. Harrington himself is sometimes the victim of the strategies that he suggests in his books.[4] In addition, players have thanked him afterward for teaching them the new moves. 'I find people are using a lot of the techniques I wrote about in the books against me,' said Harrington.[4]
References[edit]
- ^ abcHill, Greg (2006-08-16). 'UK Poker News Review: Harrington on Hold'em – Volume 1'. PokerNews. Retrieved 2009-08-13.
- ^ abcdPeters, Tim (2006-07-25). 'Your World Series of Poker Reading List'. CardPlayer. Retrieved 2009-08-13.
- ^Hill, Greg (2006-09-18). 'Harrington on Hold'em – Volume 2: The Endgame'. PokerNews. Retrieved 2009-08-13.
- ^ abHaney, Jeff (2005-10-26). 'How poker players use strategies learned in Dan Harrington's two popular books on Texas hold 'em'. Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2009-08-13.
External links[edit]
In no-limit or pot-limitpoker, a player's M-ratio (also called 'M number', 'M factor'[1] or just 'M') is a measure of the health of a player's chip stack as a function of the cost to play each round. In simple terms, a player can sit passively in the game, making only compulsory bets, for M laps of the dealer button before running out of chips. A high M means the player can afford to wait a high number of rounds before making a move. The concept applies primarily in tournament poker; in a cash game, a player can in principle manipulate his M at will, simply by purchasing more chips.
A player with a low M must act soon or be weakened by the inability to force other players to fold with aggressive raises.
The term was named after Paul Magriel.
Calculation[edit]
The M-ratio is calculated by the formula:
Dan Harrington Poker Books
For example, a player in an eight-player game with blinds of $50/$100, an ante of $10, and a stack of $2,300 has an M-ratio of 10:
That is, if the player only makes the compulsory bets, he will be 'blinded out' of the game in 10 rounds, or 80 hands.
Dan Harrington studied the concept in great detail in Harrington on Holdem: Volume II The Endgame, [2] defining several 'zones' in which the M-ratio may fall:[3]
| Zone name | M-ratio | 'Optimal' strategy |
|---|---|---|
| Green zone | M ≥ 20 | Most desirable situation, freedom to play conservatively or aggressively as you choose[4] |
| Yellow zone | 10 ≤ M < 20 | Must take more risks,[3] hands containing small pairs and small suited connectors lose value |
| Orange zone | 6 ≤ M < 10 | Main focus is to be first-in whatever you decide to play, important to preserve chips |
| Red zone | 1 ≤ M < 6 | Your only move is to move all-in or fold |
| Dead zone | M < 1 | You are completely dependent on luck to survive. The only move is to push all-in into an empty pot |
Effective M[edit]
Harrington further develops the concept to account for shortening tables, as is seen at the closing stages of multi-table tournaments. The M-ratio is simply multiplied by the percentage of players remaining at the table, assuming a ten-player table to be 'full'.[5]
Therefore, for a player with a 'simple M ratio' of 9 at a five player table, the effective M is 4.5:
This means that although the player's simple M value places him in the orange zone, his effective M dictates a shift in playing style appropriate for the red zone. In essence, ten times the effective M denotes the expected number of hands a player can let pass before running out of chips.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^PokerGreed.com: Understand what hands to play in a tournament [1]. Accessed 2008-03-25
- ^Harrington on Holdem: The Endgame - Poker Book ReviewsArchived 2006-12-07 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ abTournament No-Limit Hold'em: Harrington's Zone System - Poker Strategy - PokerListings.com
- ^Harrington on Holdem, Volume II, p129
- ^Poker Tracker 4 Review