A BlueFirePoker Review

As I'd mentioned before, I was lucky enough to be chosen by Deucescracked to receive a free month membership for BlueFirePoker, the hot new training site headed by the infamous high stakes cash game player and WSOP Omaha bracelet winner Phil Galfond(aka OMGClayAiken). Several well known players like PBJaxx, Fees, Samoleus and others make up this brain trust of a poker training site. All I had to do to win this was blog a video review of a Deucescracked video, series or any other DC product. Then follow up with a similar review of BlueFirePoker.

Sounds easy? Yeah it sort of is and I don't understand why so few people have grabbed the opportunity. Regardless, here's my review of a specific video and my overall impression of the site.

RyanFee 4 Tables at 50NL
Produced by RyanFee aka Fees
Session review format of 4 Tables of $50NLHE on Full Tilt

I briefly want to begin by mentioning the several reasons why I chose this video. I'd heard a lot about Ryan Fee, his table skills and his teaching ability seemed highly regarded. I didn't want to do a Galfond review because I figured the majority would do so and this content pertained to me. Although I feel I learned a bit watching Phil play David Benyamine at RailHeaven, it's not something I'm going to be doing anytime soon, so it was as much entertainment as anything else.

For a non series video, this is one of the best I've seen for ssnl. The quality of content packed into the 55 minute segment is top notch, touching on concepts that seem to rarely be discussed. What's most memorable for me out of the whole video is his discussion of P.S.R, or Pot to Stack Ratio. He touches on the differences and importance of bet sizing in raised and reraised pots in such a way that it really sinks in through actual examples. The first time he c-bet 1/2 pot, I didn't quite understand why. By the last time, I did. There are also great insights offered into c-betting, range discussion weighed against board texture and semi-bluffing. Most ideas flow really well, transitioning from one concept to the next with little downtime. The actual quality of the production itself was up to par as well, good editing, sound, etc.

As for Ryan's actual teaching ability, I'd put him up there with Krantz, OMGClayAiken and WiltonTilt, who are among the best imo, for several reasons. He coherently expresses his reasoning in a way that makes the viewer feel as though he's part of a conversation. He obviously has a wealth of knowledge as is evident when unexpected actions occur, as can be the case with session reviews. Not many uhhhs. Another reason I put him up with the top makers is because he throws out bricks of knowledge. I think of bricks of knowledge as the foundation of a solid poker understanding. These bricks can vary or overlap from game to game, level to level, are often of critical importance, but can be easily overlooked or not thought of. One from Krantz that has always stuck with me regarding HU play, "Treat TP like the nuts until the villain gives you a reason not to". The brick I took from Fees- "At $50NL, just play ABC poker. Your hand is only face up if your opponents can read hands". Thanks for that comment Fees.

I look at signing up at a training site as more than just viewing videos, I look at it as an interactive experience between viewing, feedback and forum interaction, so I wanted to touch on my general opinion of the site. Unfortunately there are some negatives involved, but I do think they are easily remedied with time and some effort. Also, I'm the first to admit that I use DC as a measuring stick. Having such a great experience there so far, it's hard not to. Given that, DC also had to face a lot of these same issues.

I think the vids could use a little more production time. There really aren't intro's, so the action just sort of begins with little set up of whats to come(this is really just a personal preference) and some vids that I saw just seemed to end either quickly or suddenly. I like finality. No DRM, is a huge plus. The library is obviously small, although filled with great content, because of how new the site is. It does however seem to be growing fairly quickly. There's no "other games" content, strictly NLHE & PLO. A little more diversity would be a plus.
The activity in the forums is a tad slow. Granted it again has the newness problem, but when I see some video discussion threads not responded to by the maker, it leads me to believe that more time could be spent interacting by the coaches. Everyone has been extremely friendly from what I've seen, just some aren't so visible(although a couple seem to really make an effort). The aspect of interaction is a big draw to a training site and when just starting up I think it's more critical a time than ever to focus on it. All of the coaches are really the stimulus of any training forum.

Thankfully, these are all growing pains that are easily resolved over time. Even in the short time I've been there, I've noticed what seems to be an increase in forum activity. Overall, I think it's a quality site that's worth being on the ground floor of. I really see great things being produced here.