No-limit hold 'em, horse conformation DVDs teach poker, athletic potential

17 December 2009

By Howard Schwartz

Two well-done DVDs, each in its own way, hopefully guiding players to winning ways, are now available for those who watch, take notes, absorb and learn.

BobboFitos' Winning Strategy in No-Limit Hold'em, a 3-DVD set (total of more than two hours), covers Key Winning Concepts; Pre-Flop Play and Post-Flop Planning and Bet-Sizing ($59.95). Robert Eckstut (nicknamed BobboFitos) is the instructor -- very organized, very low key, a good format for those who enjoy learning from a confident, organized player.

Blood-Horse DVD Collection has produced Conformation for Performance: An Essential Step-by-Step Guide for Learning How to Judge Athletic Potential in Horses (65 minutes, $29.95).

The poker video describes equity and reverse equity, the power of aggression, optimal play versus perfect play, attacking stacks and attacking blinds and exploiting weakness.

The author focuses, too, on raised pots in position, hand values, unopened pots, bet-sizing and deception.

Through logic, ideas, examples and illustrations, Eckstut, a highly successful no-limit cash game player both live and online, teaches in a deliberate, no-nonsense format and it's well worth the price.

Top experts in the field of learning how to judge athletic performance in a horse offer clear examples of what to look for when buying a horse.

Ryan Mahan of Keeneland and Bill Graves of Fasig-Tipton walk the viewer through the all-important yearling selection process and then skillfully analyze horses with good and bad conformation.

Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Michael Matz talks about assessing yearlings at the sales and offers a rare look at the conformation of several horses in his training stable. Bloodstock agent Buzz Chace shows a time-tested approach to looking at yearlings and two-year-olds in training.

Overall, it's about helping potential buyers develop an eye for a racehorse, including correct leg conformation; the way a horse walks; how well the horse covers ground; the fluid stride; good muscle mass; the demeanor; length of leg.

This DVD may not help you when doing a post and paddock inspection to determine a horse's "body language" before a race, but it will clarify what buyers look for when bidding big bucks on expensive thoroughbred flesh and hoping for a money-making stakes winner.