He is known for his impeccable style and his upside down sunglasses. Beyond that, however, Marcel Luske is recognized as one of the finest poker players in Europe and one of the best tournament players in the world period. With this in mind, and some help from his friends in "A Circle Of Outlaws", Marcel has brought out a very informative and helpful DVD with "Poker My Way".
"Poker My Way" is available through the Minneapolis based World Poker Store (worldpokerstore.com) for $24.95 and is a very well done presentation of basic tournament poker theory for someone who is new to the game. In the DVD, Marcel walks the viewer through his view of a tournament and its differing stages and requirements. These stages lead to usage of what Luske calls "The Gear of Fear" and how to properly set up for that gear through your play.
While I may look at Marcel's tournament strategy for a new player as a very conservative approach, Marcel is very quick to point out that you cannot win a tournament in the early levels. In Stage One of a tournament on the DVD, he states you should only play pocket Aces in the first two hours of a tournament and, once you play them, it is for all your chips. With that said, though, Luske is also quick to point out that this is no assurance of victory. "Playing well is no guarantee to winning; playing poorly is a quick way to lose and detrimental to your mindset," he emphasizes at this level. Marcel points out by using this strategy you will last into later stages of a tournament and the potential of a big payday.
Stage Two opens up the hand selection a little more, but at those opportunities it once again advocates playing for your entire stack. In Stage Three, he accelerates the game with "The Gear Of Fear", an aggressive approach to poker using the theory that you have maintained a strong table image and, as such, can now use that image to your advantage. There is a premium placed on doubling up, especially in the early levels, to allow this aggressive strategy to work at its optimum.
Other materials included on the DVD include Marcel's recollections of his World Series of Poker performances over the last couple of years, a look at his hometown of Amsterdam and profiles of other members of "A Circle Of Outlaws", including three of them featured on the DVD in Patrik Antonius, Luca Pagano and Noah "Exclusive" Boeken, all major players on the European and world poker stages. These are nice touches and make for a nicely rounded DVD as a whole.
There were a few things that I wanted more of. First off, I would have liked to have seen more poker played between the members of "A Circle Of Outlaws". All of the gentlemen featured on the DVD have impressive credentials and I would have liked to have seen them accentuate the information that is seen. More members of the Outlaws, which include Marco Traniello (who is becoming a dangerous tournament player in his own right), Eric and Robert Mizrachi and Erica Shoenberg, could have been used to really make an interesting table, playing out of the "Poker My Way" philosophies.
The length of the DVD is also a little problematic. At slightly over thirty minutes (counting the additional material), there is much more that Marcel might have gotten into the production. He provides some excellent food for thought at every step of the DVD, but I was left wanting more. When people devote their funds to instructional material, there is an expectation of a lengthy amount of information.
Finally, "Poker My Way" is a little on the basic side. It is very much tuned to a newcomer who may be making their first steps into the tournament poker world and doesn't advocate playing after the flop. As this is where much more seasoned players take advantage of newcomers, perhaps the thought was to give new players the fighting chance that they need and, thus, to avoid post-flop play. It does whet your appetite for more in-depth information that Marcel and the rest of the Outlaws could provide, however (could there be a second DVD in the works?).
If you are a newcomer to tournament poker, then "Poker My Way" could be a very valuable tool. Beyond that, it is a very well done and informative DVD that could potentially give more experienced players another valuable "gear changing" tool that they previously hadn't considered. Marcel Luske and "A Circle Of Outlaws" should be proud of the DVD and I believe we should look forward to seeing a more in-depth poker information disc from the Outlaws.
Ed note: Party Poker have multiple tables available at every limit, 24 hours a day.
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