Brunson & Co. wrote this book in the mid 1970s and if your interest in poker as a game with a very rich and colourful history is anything like mine its well worth buying. The chapters where Brunson talks about his past are great background to understanding one of the all-time great champions.

As for the lessons in this post-graduate school of poker, some really are of historical value only. I suppose Caro's lecture on Draw might be of use in home games but Skalansky's on hi-lo has been out-flanked by time - the qualifier did for it. Baldwin's chapter on limit hold'em is also of no value - not only has the game changed (they used to play it with a single blind and antes from every player - to make things easier and quicker in casinos they changed to the big & little blind structure) but there are five or so more books that today to a better job.

Two chapters retain value. Firstly, and often overlooked, is Chip Reese's chapter on Seven Card Stud. Its not particularly profound and I feel Chip gives away less than the others, but its still a very good starting place. Seven Card Stud hasn't changed much since the 1930s so this chapter retains value.

But the the real gem is Brunson's own chapter on no limit Hold'em. Its extremely interesting and given the greater freedom no limit gives the change in the game structure matters less. No limit is not a war of fine percentages like limit, it is a game of great psychological violence. Brunson's system is VERY aggressive. I think very few people would feel so comfortable playing so many connectors out of position in no limit games so they can stage all-in bluffs. You would need to be up against a very timid rock garden to play just as Brunson says. But it remains, undisputedly, the best guide to no limit cash games (but not tournaments - see Cloutier and McEvoy).

Buy it. You'll thank me.

I would say this: If you don't read and learn this book's strategy and theory regarding no limit hold'em, you are missing something at the table. Yes, the lowball sections and some of the others are outdated because those games have changed or disappeared entirely. However, the no-limit holdem sections, and especially Brunson's own, are still bible.

This is THE poker book. This is the most respected poker book of poker professionals, and is considered the poker player's bible. The above review mentioned that the book is 'out of date'. Sorry, but I disagree.

I'll admit it: I'm a geek, and the idea of a bunch of math geniuses using homebuilt computers to beat roulette is right up my alley. The plot does not disappoint, as an eccentric band of high-octane misfits create a commune motivated by discovery, innovation and greed.

Unfortunately, the author's style is often ham handed, leaving the reader with the unsettling feeling that the story should have been told differently. For one thing, the plot follows the project's timeline with mind-numbing accuracy. It's okay for journalism, but it leaves many of the juiciest details buried amongst mundane activities. In addition, the pacing does not change, giving the book a feel of bloodless efficiency rather than real passion or excitement.

A few years ago I read Paul Hoffman's "The Man Who Loved Only Numbers," the excellent biography of mathemetician Paul Erdos. The whole way through "Eudamonic Pie" I found myself wishing that Thomas Bass had emulated Hoffman's engaging intertwining of Erdos' life, the history of math and the obscure culture and argot of top mathemeticians. Instead, I found this book to be an interesting plot bogged down by a flat and lifeless style.

Sort of like Leonard Nimoy singing "Proud Mary."

A motley bunch of talented individuals driven by a mixture of altruism and selfishness but above all by a challenge simply because it is there, is a setting as old as humanity itself. This book is about one such enterprise. Mathematics, physics, chemistry, free thinking and sheer guts and the inevitable frustration, despondency and dropping out were the more specific components of this episode strung out over several years. For those interested in ~ the sixties era and its fallout into subsequent years ~ chaos theory ~ electronics ~ casino busting ~ aging hippies ~ mad scientists ~ sociology ~ anthropology ~ starting all over, this book is a must read. It is only the vastness of the human dimension where the author, perhaps understandably due to space and market niche considerations, has compromised. It would, otherwise, have been a five star book. (And considering it is out of print in any case, a lesson might be there for those who give disproportionate weight to market niches; When there is a richly textured tale to tell, go ahead and weave the rich tapestry. At the worst one's work might still go prematurely out of print but would leave at least one less unsatisfied reader and at the best....)

What this team tried to do was only possible during a very narrow window in history. Sharp analytical and electronic skills at the dawn the microelectronic age made it possible, and at a time when casinos weren't paying attention to the threat posed by emerging technology. Those days are gone forever.

Bass has done a great job of telling the story of how a couple of physics postgraduate students and their friends develop tiny computers controlled by toe switches enable them to achieve an edge over the casino at roulette.

This was particularly poignant for me, because I independently developed similar wheel-clocking methods and verified a 26% advantage over the house on a rented casino quality roulette wheel in 1976. The 'device law', which Nevada passed in the early 80s in response to people attempting to use technology to sack their coffers, largely put an end to concealed computers in casinos. Those to whom a felony rap is no deterrent are presumably still at it, using extremely advanced and difficult-to-detect hardware.

Bass' story is a fascinating read and highly reccommended.

If you want to play games of complete chance, there are any number of books available through Amazon or elsewhere that can explain how these games work and how one plays them. Ellison does some of this, but then spends much of his book talking about how to "spot patterns" and how such nonsense can be used to "beat the house" at games like roulette and craps.

Nonsense.

Spend your money wisely, and buy a book that shoots straight. Ellison's "wise guy" tips will only make one person wealthier-- Ellison.

This book is a pleasure to read. Ellison describes the psychology and mechanics of gambling better than any other author I have read. He is a superior writer. It's been painful for me to read Patrick, Scoblete, Grafstein etc.-really very painful. I enjoy Ellison because he is a refined intelligence reporting clearly and elegantly from what is after all, a sewer of sorts. Gambling is not a good thing. Gambling is related inevitably to moral and emotional degeneracy. Naturally, I enjoy it as often as I can. Ellison writes as a literate gentleman for the great unwashed hordes-wonderful dissection of the underbelly of the beast that is gambling. Mr. Ellison, hang on to that pen.

This book is a must read for anyone who is interested in playing seriously. True, the author does not give you a specific system to use. He gives you much more! He gives you all the tools you'll need to survive the mighty opponent we call the casino. He teaches you how not to lose first, which by my experience and other pro-gamblers I have spoken to, is MORE important that how to win. If you can control yourself, your urges and recognize the casinos weapons against you, you are on your way to winning. Now, that being said....he does give plenty of information,advice and a few strategies on how to win. In one section of the book, he teaches you how to build a large bankroll from $100 sessions in stages and outlines exactly how to do that. I am a much better gambler because of it.

I love Vegas and books about Vegas so it pains me to tell you that I truthfully hated this book. I was tempted to not even finish it, although I've never walked out on a book before.

I found the writing style to be sort of... archaic, I guess. It sounds like it was written in the 50s, or by a guy who is in his 80s (which may be the case, I don't know).

But primarily I disliked it because it simply cannot be a factual account. A few of the cheating methods he discussed are quite simply impossible. Even Madonna french-kissing Britney Spears at the craps table would not have been enough distraction to pull off what they supposedly did.

Some of the side stories were interesting, but nowhere near enough to recommend this book.

I enjoyed this book. A very quick read. It chronicles the life of a group of professional cheats who swing the odds in their favor and reaped the winnings. Most of the action takes place in the 60's and 70's in Vegas. So much has changed in Vegas since then that I don't think these tactics would work anymore. An interesting historical account nonetheless.

This is a really good book! I started to read it just for the content but found myself really LIKING this guy Soares. Another surprise was that he is actually a good writer. I would enjoy reading another book by John Soares. How about it John?

I really found this book to be boring. I would recommend this book to a person who does not know anything about sports betting. This book is not for experts. To much basic stuff, like what straight bets, parleys, teasers, ect are. Three quarters of the book explains betting terms. The only one good thing I got from this book is the charts in chapter 13. I found these win loss charts against the spread to be great information. Everything else was weak. Do not buy this book if you are looking for ways to win. I could write a book that would help you do a lot better in handicapping then this book will. There are some great points in this book, but those great points come from other authors. The author gets most of his information from a certain website, so I guess you pay to find that sites name.

Sharp Sports Betting is a complete lesson in betting on the NFL. For the beginner, there is instruction on what kind of bets are available and how to place them. And there is detailed instruction on how to handicap sporting events and determine what bets are worth taking using complex statistical analyses. I say that it is a complete lesson in betting the NFL because most examples that the author gives are from the NFL. Much of the book's content can be applied equally to other sports, and the author frequently tells you exactly how to do that. But I would say that it is not a complete lesson in betting on other sports, due to its emphasis on the NFL.

For those unfamiliar with the workings of sports books, Sharp Sports Betting explains how to place bets, money management, calculating what you stand to win on bets, and what types of bets are available, including separate chapters on money lines, over/under bets, props, parlays, and teasers. There is a glossary of sports book terms in the back of the book. And there is a chapter on internet sports books.

Moving beyond the basics, the author lays out his highly mathematical methods of handicapping sporting events and choosing bets. I have to say that I was not at all surprised to find out, on the last pages of this book, that Stanford Wong is also a professional blackjack player. He earned his way through graduate school playing cards. He has written books on blackjack. And he handicaps sports precisely like a blackjack player. I think the cardshark perspective that Wong brings to handicapping sports lends a little extra interest and unique content to Sharp Sports Betting. Not to put too fine a point on it, but the guy is a statistics and probability nut. He doesn't actually make his own lines, so there is no instruction on line-making. He just tells you how to beat the lines that the sports books are offering, using probabilities. At least half of this 384-page book is dedicated to teaching the reader how to calculate probabilities of various things happening in a game -pretty much anything that could happen in a game, actually. I wouldn't know how to begin to explain it, so I won't. In addition to instruction, the author includes a lot of charts which aid you in predicting outcomes, many specifically for the NFL, but some relevant to other sports. There are also 2 appendices with charts of Poisson distribution of events (probabilities), one cumulative and one not. A third appendix contains charts for win-lose-push probabilities.

Sharp Sports Betting is a good introduction to sports betting for the novice. Its very mathematical tone and in-depth instruction on calculating probability make it useful for the intermediate bettor, as well. The author's passion for applying statistics to sports, in the spirit of a card player, may result in some fresh ideas for the experienced handicapper also.

Like the person before me I think Sharp Sports Betting is better for the beginning bettor. This is a pretty thick book which might make you think there is a lot about how to handicap your own games but there really is very little on that subject. The book deals mostly with defining types of bets and only really addresses football specifically. However, the reason I gave this 4 stars is because I liked the mathematical approach to prop bets. It gives you a really good way to figure out if they are worth betting on depending on the payouts by the sportsbook. Also, as another reviewer pointed out, the charts at the end were interesting and gives you a few good angles to bet on football. I would have liked to have seen more on handicapping though and less defining of terms and bets. Overall though, Sharp Sports Betting is a pretty good book. The information is current and also addresses things like internet betting, while providing some interesting websites.

ed it's me tyler my love how you been sorry for the disappointments your book is a star sweet bee

For a beginner, this book is a good starting point to casino poker. Most of the in-depth material is on Hold'em and 7 card stud, but the book does skim over some lesser-played games too. If you're curious about getting into the game, the price is right.

This is an excellent book. It contains a great deal of information about what to expect when you enter a casino, the games to play and those to avoid, ettiquette etc. In addition to all this casino-based information it also has a wealth of knowledge on the games themseleves (hold-em, 7 card-stud, Hi-Lo variations, omaha and more) and at this price it is an absolute bargain. Perhaps the only area in which the book needs improvement is its information on tells and psychology.

This book does a decent job of defining and describing craps but John Gollehon is a terrible writer. I would recommend Edwin Silberstang's "Winning Casino Craps" as a much better book for a person who wants to win. After reading Silberstang's book, I won over $800. You will not get that from this book.

A friend of mine told me about this book and it helps me understand, enjoy and have more success at the tables. Before, I'd blow through $100 before finishing a drink. Now I make more when I'm winning and quit before losing too much. Also, I don't make sucker bets that dealers try to talk you into. Feel more confident when walking up to a craps table- I don't expect to lose; I know I can win!

I bought this book while on a short vacation in Vegas. After reading the book for a half hour, I then went to the craps table with a simple system that gives the best odds. I won. I WON!! And guess what, craps is THE most action packed exciting game (with the best odds for the player - when played correctly) in Las Vegas. I highly recommend it!!

The basic premise of this book is that the best paying
slots will be in the high-traffic areas, and to walk
away if you don't win more than you put in for eight
pulls or so. The author puts about one paragraph on each
page and triple-spaces. Lots of white space in this book!
The 94 pages could have been ten or perhaps an interesting
webpage instead. Phooey.

I bought this at the same time as buying BREAK THE ONE ARMED
BANDITS and can recommend that one instead, very highly.

Stay away from this one.

A. Reader

I believe anyone who follows this book can win. I certainly did. A book with facts to help you make better decisions. If you are on a junket this book can show you how to come home after ten hours with more than a bus ride! He is standing in front of a jackpot and since the casino let him take the picture I'm sure it was a good one. Thank you Amazon for offering this book.

I actually WON MONEY following the advice of the author! This is a no nonsense book that is highly informative and tells you everything you need to know to beat the slots. It is compact and easy to carry, it has large type so it is easy to read, and it is very affordable. A must have for anyone who plays slots!

Written nearly 20 years ago, Alvarez focuses mostly on the personalities that made up the early years of the World Series of Poker, the Binions, David Sklansky, Doyle Brunson, Stu Unger and many others. He gives their personal histories and repeats anecdotes that help explain them. He also gives a decent profile of Vegas itself and the many regional poker masters from around the world who come to Vegas to lose all their money.

I know this book is 20 years old, so its not particularly surprising that most of the anecdote and stories seem old. Its all about Johnny Moss and Nick the Greek and Amarillo Slim and Doyle Brunson. Naturally there's a new posse in the world of poker today, Men the Master Nguyen, Phil Hellmuth , Poker Dick Cook. and the brilliant Russell Rosenblum. The world of the world series of poker has changed much since this book was written in 1983, there remains a question even about how much longer Binions will host the world series and the there is a real possiblity that Bellagio will even buy the trademarked name. This book advertises itself as a timeless cult classic, and as a period piece from 25 years ago, A. Alvarez captured a time and place. I wonder how much of this however will resound as novel to the poker player of today. When Alvarez mentioned Stu Unger winning the world series, it left me wanting to read about how stu ungar moved from world champion to dying in a run down Vegas motel room. Or when he talked about Ted Binion running Binions, the mind flashes to the fact that binion has since been murdered .Plenty of good advice in here for hold em play, of course the problem in gambling isn't usually knowing what to do, its being able to do it, to fight fatigue, to fight temptation to play too many hands, to summon up the courage to pitch aces when you know they have been cracked. The problem with the gamblig genre is that there just arent that many good books out there. Too many agents and publishers think they won't sell and bookstores tend to look down on gambling books as being anti-literary. Snobbery in the bookstore world is a real problem, as anyone who has ever asked a proprietor if they carry the Racing Form on their mag rack will quickly find out.

Fine reading for anyone that has been around the poker scene. Alvarez provides a beautiful and captivating description of the vegas poker scene during the ealy 80's. A captivating and inspirational read.

Apparently, Amazon.com has some sort of private agreement with the publisher, as the first review that I wrote has been censored. This "book" is without merit. Two thirds of the content is filler - useless anecdotes that won't lead to putting any money in your pocket. The money management "system" proposed by the author is statistically unsound. If you want a solid sports betting primer, pass on this title and buy "The Complete Book of Sports Betting" by Jack Moore. For more in-depth info, obtain any work written by Bob McCune other than the "Gambling Times" book.

If you're looking for "get-rich-quick" systems on sports betting, then look elsewhere (and you'll be looking for a *long* time, too!). But, for the average income gambler like myself, you'll make good use of the author's betting theories, money management and discipline guidelines. Filled with dozens of examples, John Patrick's book on one of the most popular forms of gambling explains how to manage your money and turn a profit simultaneously at this exciting game of chance. Read it, digest it and follow it. You'll be glad you did.

This is the first of John Patrick's books I have read. From other comments, you either love or hate his writing style. I think he is hilarious while also very informative. All I have to say about this book is, betting with the money management ideas he presents, I ended up positive where I have so many times previously ended up negative on the same number of wins. If you bet on sports, buy this book!