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The Theory of Poker: A Professional Poker Player Teaches You How To Think Like One Paperback – July 1, 1999
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- Print length316 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication dateJuly 1, 1999
- Dimensions5.5 x 0.72 x 8.5 inches
- ISBN-101880685000
- ISBN-13978-1880685006
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About the Author
More recently, David has been doing consulting work for casinos, Internet gaming sites, and gaming device companies. He has recently invented several games, soon to appear in casinos.
David attributes his standing in the gambling community to three things:
1. The fact that he presents his ideas as simply as possible (sometimes with Mason Malmuth) even though these ideas frequently involve concepts that are deep, subtle, and not to be found elsewhere.
2. The fact that the things he says and writes can be counted on to be accurate.
3. The fact that to this day a large portion of his income is still derived from gambling (usually poker, but occasionally blackjack, sports betting, horses, video games, casino promotions, or casino tournaments).
Thus, those who depend on Davids advice know that he still depends on it himself.
Product details
- Publisher : Two Plus Two Publishing; 4th edition (July 1, 1999)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 316 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1880685000
- ISBN-13 : 978-1880685006
- Item Weight : 12 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.5 x 0.72 x 8.5 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #53,555 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #21 in Poker (Books)
- #48 in Card Games (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the authors
David Sklansky is generally considered the number one authority on gambling in the world today. Besides his twelve books on the subject, David also has produced two videos and numerous writings for various gaming publications. His occasional poker seminars always receive an enthusiastic reception, including those given at the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City and the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas.
More recently, David has been doing consulting work for casinos, Internet gaming sites, and gaming device companies. He has recently invented several games, soon to appear in casinos.
David attributes his standing in the gambling community to three facts:
1. The fact that he presents his ideas as simply as possible (sometimes with Mason Malmuth) even though these ideas frequently involve concepts that are deep, subtle, and not to be found elsewhere.
2. The fact that David s teachings have proven to be accurate.
3. The fact that to this day a large portion of his income is still derived from gambling (usually poker, but occasionally blackjack, sports betting, horses, video games, casino promotions, or casino tournaments).
Thus, those who depend on David s advice know that he still depends on it himself.
Photo by flipchip / LasVegasVegas.com [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.
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Instead of focusing on one aspect of poker, Sklansky decided to focus on the "big picture". Odds, psychology, information, using these things in combination to make the correct decisions is what poker is all about. And with The Theory of Poker Sklansky wrote a book that attempted to teach you how to do just that. Simply stated, if you make more correct decisions than your opponent, and make less wrong decisions, then in the long wrong, you will win. Luck is the thing that keeps beginners and gamblers coming back to try and "hit it big". And it's what keeps those in the know in the money.
That said, this book is not the easiest read for the uninformed. I admit that I was one of those caught up in Poker big boom a few years ago but I have truly fell in love with it since then and have become a true student of the game. I have gone from dead money to a profitable player - and alot of that thanks goes to many of the books I have read by many great authors. In an attempt to categorize them to help beginners like myself choose what's right for them (in order):
Beginners:
Phil Gordon's The Real Deal - A very easy read to get beginners thinking about the game.
Sklansky's Hold'Em Poker - Not much more complicated than Phil's book and offers more good ideas for the novice for getting started.
Caro's Book of Poker Tells - Pretty straight-forward. Even most beginners should be able to grasp the concept of the tells and the psychological aspects of poker. Just beware of others who've read this book.
Intermediate:
Sklansky's The Theory of Poker - Certainly a must have. Will definitely get you thinking critically about the game.
Doyle Brunson's Super System - A classic, but you won't be able to dominate the tables like Doyle used to. And considering all the poker types it covers it's an invaluable book.
Harrington on Hold'Em vol. 1 and 2 - Even though this applies to mostly tournament play, much of this advice can be used in cash games. But if you play many tournaments (like I do) these are invaluable books and I would even put them ahead of Super System.
Phil Gordon's Little Green Book - A great suppliment to The Real Deal. Offers some great ideas and concepts and a pathway into the mind of one of the better Hold'Em players in the world.
Advanced:
Sklansky's Hold'Em for Advanced Players - Simply the best book on Hold'Em written but a pain in the brain to read if you're not in the know. Definitely work your way up to it.
Poker Essays vol. 1-3 by Mason Malmuth - Much like The Little Green Book these offer some great ideas but is more advanced. I still highly recommend them.
There are no doubt many other great books out there I haven't read. But the fact that these books have helped (and I say helped, because it requires much more than just reading books) turn me from dead money to a profitable player is good enough for me to recommend them. I recommend buying them in the order listed if you're new to Poker or reading them in that order if you've already bought several.
***UPDATE***
It's been more than a year since I wrote this review, and since then there's been a wealth of new poker literature out there.
Among them, Sklansky's No Limit Limit Hold'em: Theory and Practice is the most invaluable. It is akin to this wonderful book, but focuses on No Limit specifically. It belongs in the "super-advanced" section, but it has been the book that has raised my game to the next level.
Also in that advanced category, "The Mathematics of Poker" delves into the complicated math behind the game, and while it is not exactly a practical book, it may introduce the math inclined to an insightful look behind the math that rules the game.
Joe Navarro's "Read em' and Reap" is now the definitive book on poker tells. It was written by a career FBI agent who specializes in reading people. It not only gives you the tells, but goes into the deepest psychologies of what makes people reveal these tells.
Both Phil Gordon's Little Blue Book and Harrington vol. 3 tournament book are invaluable additions to each's library. Harrington vol. 3 especially for its breakdown of famous hands, and the thinking behind them. Weighing the Odds in Hold'em Poker is another superb Limit book, and has become perhaps my biggest aid when playing Limit. Doyle's Super System 2 is a valuable addition to vol. 1 if you wish to read up on various other games besides Hold'em.
I wish the best of luck to everyone at the tables - there's still enough fish to go around!
According to Sklansky's Theory of Poker, the game is one of mistakes - the point is to induce mistakes in your opponents' play while avoiding mistakes in play yourself. The basic nature of poker, in any of its forms, implies that you have imperfect and limited knowledge of the value of the hands your opponents hold, and they have limited knowledge of yours; it is because of this limited knowledge that mistakes can take place.
Mistakes and errors are simple to define. If you had perfect knowledge of all hands, you would play your own hand in a certain, mathematically correct way. To the extent you play your hand differently, due to lack of knowledge or deception or whatever, you have made a mistake. Sklansky teaches various ways of inducing those mistakes in others, and also how to correctly analyze your own hand and options for play.
Sklansky draws on multiple forms of poker for examples; not just Hold 'Em, but also 7 Stud, 5-card Draw, Razz, etc. For the player only familiar with Hold Em this may be a little confusing at first. The book is meant as a theoretical examination of principles built into all poker games, and is not really a how-to-play for Hold Em or any other form of poker.
Sklansky's writing is dense in the sense that he does not beat around the bush or waste time or fill his book with fluff. The book is not light reading, and probably should not be your first book if you are not thoroughly familiar with the play as well as the language and jargon of the game. It cannot be skimmed. But there isn't a player out there who would not benefit from a careful reading, and would not benefit more from re-reading again six months later, this book.
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There is a few things it talks about which at my level currently are explained in a way that I'm not too sure however I know that I am learning more and more and this information will be vital in the near future such as pot odds and outs. There is a lot of information that is helping me out instantly such as position and raising and semi bluffing which instantly is being utilized. I am really satisfied with my purchase but I know it will have to be read a few more times to fully understand it.
Now this is THE book for any poker player, beginner, intermediate or pro. This has all of the theory's you need to beat your potential opponents.
I'm not going to give you a run down about what it covers as you can see from the description. What I can tell you however is how i went from being a bit of a fish in cash games / live tournaments, to placing and now i'm winning. It's helped a lot with judging when to call, when to fold and why. It's pretty much nailed it on the head here.
Unfortunately if you're looking to be pro online then i suggest another book. Online poker is a shark tank and full of bad beats here there and everywhere. Oh you got 4 of a kind on the flop? Ah soz bro i rivered a straight flush. gg.
Back on topic however this is one of the books you actually have to read if you want to be a semi-serious poker player otherwise you'll be that fish at the table. And NOBODY wants to be that fish.