Usually poker books do not affect our game seriously, at lest in the beginning. Unless you’re making first steps into this game, you can get only some details from the book and try to apply them from time to time. “Pot Limit Omaha” by Jeff Hwang is an exception as the results from reading it appear immediately. I think this book deserves to be at the same row with famous Harrington On Hold’em series as in terms of readability, relevance and thoughtfulness Pot Limit Omaha Poker stands far ahead many other books in the same area.
The advices given are practical and can be applied during real game, winning strategies are well explained and are not hard to understand. Even experienced players may also like this book because it has some very important tips concerning "big play" in Omaha. In general, this book will be helpful for all Omaha players and for Hold’em players who want to try Omaha.
Even though the book is so well-written, the title can mislead you a little bit. The whole book is not about Pot Limit Omaha as you may think. I’d say almost a half of the book is dedicated to structured Omaha Hi/Lo with references to Pot Limit Omaha Hi/Lo. This doesn’t make the book worse in any case as such information is definitely useful. No need to say, you cannot often find Pot-Limit Hi/Lo descriptions and tips in books, so these chapters are really unique ones.
Section concerning Pot Limit Omaha is simply brilliant and I have not found anything like this in other books. By the way, the positive influence of this book will be seen even in other games. For example, in his book Hwang tells a lot about stack sizes and their effects. After reading it I’ve felt really huge improvements in my big stack Hold’em. Even though the book’s title tells us about Omaha, this book is good for all poker players in general as they will get good advises from it.
Whole book’s structure is also very well done. Just like mentioned Harrington on Hold’em, Pot Limit Omaha Poker has descriptions and key concepts of particular game that are then followed by series of quizzes and sample hands, in which you can make decisions and get scores. This is very useful as such manner helps to examine your own skills and check whether you have understood the chapter correctly. Such format turns this book into real tutor and you can learn a lot while reading it.
Overall, Jeff Hwang has created a wonderful and very useful book for wide masses of poker players. All advices are correct, the book is very readable and even entertaining and the ideas given really work. It’s that rare case when a book can affect your game and improve it. Pot Limit Omaha Poker by Jeff Hwang is really a must read.