When amateur poker player Mike Moneymaker won the Main Event of the World Series of Poker in 2003, he changed the game forever. He changed the way the gaming public viewed poker, taking the game out of the smoky backrooms of bars and small casinos and into the mainstream.
Moneymakers showed recreational players that anyone can beat the big boys for big money at the poker table. He didn’t exactly teach recreational players how difficult it was to do what he did. He left out the small details such as how the game is played and the skills required to be a top-level poker player.
In the UK, millions of UK players enjoy playing online poker or at local poker clubs/casinos. Some UK online casinos have a sizeable customer base that takes advantage of the casino’s access to top poker sites like PokerStars or WSOP.
Because some of these players are quite talented and often relentless, they have a material advantage over recreational poker players who don’t really understand the intricacies of the game. Before anyone decides to take up poker seriously, they should know that it takes time to develop the right skills to be competitive at poker.
How do you learn how to play poker properly? You could start by sitting down at the tables and learning the hard way. The hard way is to endure financial hits one by one until you can master the trading tricks and protect yourself. Before jumping to your favorite non-GamStop betting site to take your heart rate, you might want to read what the pros are offering.
With that in mind, here are five of the best books on poker by some of the best poker players the world has ever seen.
1. Supersystem (by Doyle Brunson)
There is no more prominent name in poker than Doyle Brunson. The man has been a major force in the poker community for over 50 years.
In Super System, Brunson discusses the tried-and-true poker playing strategies that made the poker legend a multi-millionaire. These strategies teach recreational players how to play solid and consistent poker. Although the book was written in 1978, it’s still one of the most relevant reading for poker players today.
Following the success of this book, Brunson gathered more of his knowledge and eventually wrote and published Super System 2 as a great follow-up tutorial.
2. The Theory of Poker (by David Sklansky)
When that book was published in 1978, it was clear that Sklansky was way ahead of his time as a poker player. That would explain why he became one of the hottest poker players in the world in the 1990s.
Sklansky used The Theory of Poker to show that the game focuses more on math and understanding odds than on feelings and instincts. He covered forward-thinking concepts such as the importance of understanding game theory, the value of cheating, and calculating pot odds to arrive at the total value of a bet. For Sklansky, the game was ideally suited to players who can think quickly, an asset that can net millions of dollars.
3. The Biggest Bluff: How I Learned to Pay Attention, Control Myself, and Win (by Maria Konnikova)
With no poker experience whatsoever, New York Times writer and psychologist Maria Konnikova recognized that there is a psychology involved in poker. Konnikova takes advice from top pros like Erik Seidel and delves deep into the mental aspects of poker. This includes how to read other players and stay focused during tough times.
As part of the book reading experience, readers are taken on the same journey that took the author from amateur poker novice to poker champion in a year.
4. Harrington on Hold’em (by Dan Harrington)
For over two decades (1980s-2000s), author Harrington was one of the top poker players in the world. When he made the final table of the WSOP Main Event in 2003 and 2004, he established himself as a poker legend en route to the Poker Hall of Fame.
In this book, Harrington covers poker basics and the importance of understanding pot odds. It also provides information about the psychology of the game.
5. Life is a Gamble (by Mike Sexton)
Before his death in 2020, Sexton had established himself as a great poker player and one of the most popular poker players in the history of the game.
Life’s a Gamble takes readers on the same journey that made Sexton a fearless and relentless high-stakes gambler. The book covers some of the most amazing poker stories ever told. It also discusses Sexton’s involvement in the founding of the PartyPoker Network, which took place back in 2001.
In summary, without the skills you need to protect yourself, you wouldn’t want to play poker with the biggest names in the game. These books and others like them are an excellent starting point for working on your poker skills.
Markus lives in San Francisco, California and is the video game and audio expert at Good e-Reader! He is very interested in new e-readers and tablets and games.
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