This is an excerpt from the opening of section 2 of Performance Poker - No Limit! We've been having fun with 19 hand holdem - which I recommend to any beginners. There are slight differences on how others interpret it, but it's a good strategy for anyone who wants to start to develop the discipline and mentality of playing NL Ring. The following is just to help the advanced players (and people whom I have alot of respect for) understand that Performance Poker - No Limit! is not about how to play 19 hand poker. It uses 19 hand as the framework for learning the mentality of poker and then moves beyond it. So, here you go:

Section 2 - Why 19 Hand Hold-em Sucks

Now that I've convinced you to create a new game using the 19 hand holdem strategy let me tell you what's wrong with it. But more importantly, let me show you how to create alternative strategies to 19 hand holdem.

I'm assuming you actually put some work into your game so far using the 19 hand strategy. If you haven't then you need to commit to it for at least 10,000 hands. This will teach you the benefits and weaknesses of the 19 hand strategy. Here are some of them.

Benefits of 19 hand holdem stratgy.
1. It keeps beginning players out of trouble.
2. On tables with the right dynamics (40%+preflop callers and 20xBB average pot) it works really well to not only keep you out of trouble but maximize your winning hands while helping you see when someone has caught up with you.
3. It begins to teach the discipline of poker. That is to say, it starts to teach you how to think like a performance poker player. This includes the value of folding, knowing what you are going to play preflop and why you are going to play it, considering betting strategies as not only how to get money into the pot but also how to bet for information.
4. With the right table dynamics 19 hand holdem works.
5. As long as you pick your sites and tables deliberately you can play 19 hand holdem for years and years as a winning poker player.

Weakness of 19 hand holdem strategy.
1. As the level of competition increases 19 hand holdem becomes less profitable. Your competition makes plays and moves that either appear to be fishy or appear to be strong when that is not the case. On the lower, more fishy tables the dynamics considered in 19 hand holdem are accurate the vast majority of the time. As your competition increases in skill, however, those "rules" begin to break down.
2. As the level of competition increases players will start to "put you on hands" much more easily if you limit your play to 19 hands and your betting to the rules associated with 19 hand holdem. Now-a-days players use poker tracking software that creates a database of hand histories on you and other tools (both learned and techological) to get reads on your game faster and faster. So, while you might win at a certain level early, if you start seeing the same players over and over then you might find they are taking advantage of your tight playing style - especially postflop. You can see this if a player you commonly play against starts compulsively raising your continuation bets postflop or starts betting into you consistently after the flop just to see what you do.
3. 19 hand holdem is SLOW. As you played it you may have noticed that other players build the stack of chips in front of them more quickly than you generally do (at least other good players). They are playing a more varied game that gives them more risk but also more reward. Be sure to distinguish between the good players who are playing a varied and skilled game and the weak players who simply got lucky making stupid plays.
4. 19 hand holdem doesn't incorporate bluffs on either the turn or river. Basically if your continuation bet doesn't take the pot and you don't improve, bluffing is not recommended. 19 hand is about not giving back your winning, reducing your losses, and playing a disciplined, focused, consistent game.

So, what other types of games are there beyond weak fishy play and 19 hand play? As you've probably seen there's a wide range. We'll discuss some options. But the point of this section of the book is to introduce you to the skills needed to create your own game as your experience increases.