Poker Books by Mason Malmuth

Poker is a game that many people play, but few excel in, as success requires a great deal of work, study, and a deep understanding of the concepts that govern winning play. While it is fairly easy to win at poker by playing tight and sticking to easy games, usually those prevalent at low limits, this strategy won’t allow you to do much better than minimum wage. However, a small number of players, the experts, have mastered the proper skills and have done their share of thinking, enabling them to achieve much greater success. This text contains essays written by the author from 1996 through early 2001, covering topics such as General Concepts, Technical Ideas, Strategic Ideas, In the Cardrooms, Hands to Talk About, The Ciaffone Quiz, and Two More Quizzes. Additionally, it offers advice on which game to play, controlling steaming, marginal hands, selecting the best game, bluffing, unusual strategies, raising with suited connectors, keeping poker honest, reading hands, checking aces, and much more. As with the first two books in this series, Poker Essays, Volume III is designed to make the reader do a great deal of thinking. While very few readers will agree with everything this text offers, the information provided should help most people become better poker players.

In recent years, a wealth of new insights has emerged in the field of poker psychology. This aspect of poker, while less strategic, is crucial to overall success in the game, leading to the rise of mental coaching. Poker, a game rooted in probability, can mislead many players due to its counterintuitive nature and significant short-term luck factor. Therefore, psychological tools are believed to be necessary for effective play. However, a comprehensive understanding of poker, including strategic principles, counterintuitiveness, and the luck factor, can typically resolve all issues. In his book, Real Poker Psychology, Mason Malmuth, a professional player and author of numerous poker and gambling books, offers a unique perspective on the game’s psychological aspects. His approach differs from other works in the field, leading to unique conclusions. The book covers a wide range of topics, including Variance, Tilt, Craving Action, and more.

This guide is designed to help you make the correct drawing decisions and select the right machines in the most popular of all slot games.

This book compiles articles by David Sklansky, previously published in Card Player, Poker World, and the Two Plus Two Poker Strategy Magazine, along with some never-before-seen pieces. The majority of the articles focus on poker and gambling, but Sklansky has also ventured into other subjects, analyzed in his distinctive style. The book includes essays on poker and gaming topics like being a favorite, talent versus discipline, and never go broke, as well as life topics like what It Is that makes an issue controversial and crime and punishment. The expanded edition features 32 new essays, many focusing on no-limit hold ’em.

The poker industry’s phenomenal growth is evident. Not long ago, only a few places had small poker rooms. Now, numerous locations across the country offer poker, including several large facilities. This rapid expansion has increased the demand for skilled dealers, a fact clear to anyone involved in poker. Dealing poker appears easy when done by a top-notch dealer who not only excels at their job but also enjoys it. This ensures the continued growth and success of poker. This is the ultimate guide for those interested in a professional poker dealing career.

An authoritative manual presenting top-notch tactics for excelling in the foremost casino poker games like seven-card stud and Texas hold ’em, complemented by expert advice on conquering Omaha, Omaha eight-or-better, seven-card stud eight-or-better, razz, and lowball. This description might pertain to a different version of the same publication.

For today’s poker players, Texas hold ’em is the game, with tens of thousands of small stakes hold ’em games played daily around the world in homes, card rooms, and on the Internet. These games can be very profitable if you play well, but most people don’t and end up leaving their money on the table. this book explains everything you need to be a big winner, teaching the aggressive and attacking style used by all professional players. Unlike many other books about small stakes games, it doesn’t just tell you to play aggressively; it shows you exactly how to make expert decisions through numerous clear and detailed examples. The book covers topics such as implied odds, pot equity, speculative hands, position, the importance of being suited, hand categories, counting outs, evaluating the flop, large pots versus small pots, protecting your hand, betting for value on the river, and playing overcards. After learning the winning concepts, you can test your skills with over fifty hand quizzes that present common and critical hold ’em decisions, allowing you to choose your action and compare it to the authors’ play and reasoning.

Seven-card stud is a highly intricate game, making it challenging to devise the perfect strategy for every situation. This complexity might explain why few have attempted to dissect it, despite its popularity. In 1989, the first edition of this book was published, revealing strategies previously known only to a select few, thus filling a significant void in poker literature. Now in the new century, the authors have further advanced the field by adding over 100 pages of fresh content, including a comprehensive section on “loose games.” With discipline, study of this text, and proper experience, one can become a significant winner. It also covers topics like cards that are out, number of players in the pot, ante stealing, playing pairs and three-flushes, randomizing play, and strategies for each street, among others.

This book is the ultimate guide for anyone aiming to excel in these games, catering to both the average player and the professional. It is structured in a way that promotes growth and improvement in all players. The book imparts the mindset of a top player, a crucial element for victory. It covers a wide range of topics such as poker reasons, basic errors and strategies, technical and advanced plays, jackpot games, pot killing, psychology, game theory, high-draw mathematics. It also offers advice on avoiding bluffing mistakes, value betting in lowball, making losing bets profitable, playing patterns, going all in, acting contrary, “running bad,” raising with weak hands, maximizing value, playing short-handed, and image plays.

David Sklansky and Mason Malmuth have dedicated many years to writing about the intricacies of poker, blackjack, and other games that can be beaten. This book is a guide for the aspiring gambler who is not yet highly experienced. It offers a comprehensive look at what you need to know and do to make a living from gambling, covering both practical and technical aspects. The authors explain that making a good living exclusively through gambling is challenging but achievable. They highlight the importance of understanding which games offer a realistic chance of winning and how to master them.

Among the games considered beatable and discussed in this book are poker, blackjack, horses, sports betting, progressive slots, video poker, casino tournaments, and special promotions. The authors make it clear why they do not include games like craps, roulette, keno, or baccarat, providing explanations within the book.

The text underscores that many thousands of people successfully earn their livelihood through gambling. David Sklansky and Mason Malmuth are just two examples of individuals who have not only succeeded in this field but have also taken the time to share their knowledge. As the book unfolds, readers will discover the essential strategies and insights needed to potentially gamble for a living. However, the authors remind us that the journey requires dedication and effort, as the rest is up to the individual.

This text is a must-read for serious gamblers. It explores how a select few manage to succeed in this high-stakes field, offering insights into the strategies that give them an edge. The text introduces the dynamic concept of non-self-weighting strategies, demonstrating their application not only in thrilling gambling scenarios but also in everyday life. It also discusses the relationship between risk, fluctuations, and your bankroll, using the standard deviation as a measure. Other topics covered include bankroll requirements, win-rate accuracy, free bets, the best blackjack count, lottery misconceptions, risky ideas, poker tournament strategies, and more. It even touches on the strategies of the world’s most successful gamblers and the concept of building pyramids.

This book engages the reader in extensive thought about the game of poker. It covers a wide range of topics including advice on managing pressure, understanding losses, dealing with fluctuations, bankroll management, the differences between stud and hold ’em, strategies for playing against too many bad players, choosing between limit and no-limit, quick thinking, handling weak tight opponents, selecting the best hold ’em seat, strategies for playing shorthanded, deciding when to play loose or tight, cultivating the right image, strategies for being an alternate in tournaments, leveraging tight play in tournaments, professional conduct, the future of poker, and much more. While it’s unlikely that all readers will concur with every perspective presented, the information provided aims to enhance the skills of most players.

Gambling is an activity that many of us engage in, whether it’s a trip to a casino or a home game of poker. However, gambling, or aspects of it, can be found in many unexpected places, including history. This book revisits historical moments where gambling played a crucial role. First, it defines exactly what gambling is and explain why both luck and skill (or the lack thereof) are important. It also introduce the concept of non-self-weighting strategies, which happen to be the optimal way to gamble. Next, it explores historical events where significant gambles were made, sometimes with positive outcomes and sometimes with negative ones. It uncovers numerous instances where aspects of gambling influenced the course of history. Specifically, It examines how poor Goliath never stood a chance, how Hernan Cortes was the luckiest man who ever lived, and how the Spanish Armada employed the wrong strategy. It shows how Confederate General Braxton Bragg demonstrated that it is better to be lucky than good, and how Union General William T. Sherman understood the importance of poker. How Wyatt Earp dealt with troublemakers, how middleweight champion Stanley Ketchel was flattened by a Jack Johnson punch, and how Winston Churchill gave the English a fighting chance in World War II. It also explores how Benito Mussolini was what knowledgeable gamblers would call a “live one,” how Leon Trotsky saved Soviet Russia, and how a rainstorm may have saved the United States

The updated version of this book is called “Limit Hold ’em Poker for Advanced Players”