Book review: Poker Tournament Formula By Arnold Snyder

Author: Simon Dexter

Arnold Snyder’s Poker Tournament Formula has proved incredibly popular ever since it was published late last year; rarely has a book been discussed so widely among poker players in online forums – and with good reason.

Snyder doesn’t necessarily debunk traditional theories, he enhances them by focusing on one particular area: the exceptionally fast hold ‘em tournaments where blinds increase at great speed, usually every 20-30 minutes or so. Such tournaments are among the pillars of online play, hence the book’s widespread appeal.

Underpinning Synder’s theory is his emphasis on position, stack size, betting and the size of the blinds rather than the particular cards you might hold. Significantly, he suggests that playing a tight game – say when your stack is diminishing or the blinds are rising – is no longer the most appropriate winning strategy in a sizeable MTT.

Instead, he believes players should contemplate going all-in rather earlier than traditional textbooks might suggest and he lays greater emphasis upon the benefits of late position. If this sounds overtly aggressive, that’s because it is: Snyder is a firm believer that to succeed in fast tournaments, poker players need to keep the pedal to the floor if they’re to have any chance cashing.

Of course, building a decent-sized stack early is central to this strategy, ostensibly because it becomes much less risky to take chances, you can afford to take the occasional hit and perhaps most importantly, players holding bigger stacks are in an excellent position to bully those with smaller stacks.

Unlike some writers, Snyder explains his ultra-competitive theories in a clear, comprehensive fashion; the book is packed with charts and rule summaries which explain how hands should be played from specific positions.

Snyder is a great believer in playing to win – not just to survive. To do this, it’s imperative that your stack remains competitive, or else you’ll soon be eliminated. This attitude has become increasingly prevalent amongst online players, which suggests that to match them, a lot of other online players would do well to familiarise themselves with Snyder’s theories.

Tags: Arnold Snyder, Book Review, poker book, Poker Strategy

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 13th, 2008 at 11:27 am and is filed under News & Promotions Blog.