Download or read book The Biggest Bluff written by Maria Konnikova and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2021-06-08 with total page 369 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A New York Times bestseller • A New York Times Notable Book “The tale of how Konnikova followed a story about poker players and wound up becoming a story herself will have you riveted, first as you learn about her big winnings, and then as she conveys the lessons she learned both about human nature and herself.” —The Washington Post It's true that Maria Konnikova had never actually played poker before and didn't even know the rules when she approached Erik Seidel, Poker Hall of Fame inductee and winner of tens of millions of dollars in earnings, and convinced him to be her mentor. But she knew her man: a famously thoughtful and broad-minded player, he was intrigued by her pitch that she wasn't interested in making money so much as learning about life. She had faced a stretch of personal bad luck, and her reflections on the role of chance had led her to a giant of game theory, who pointed her to poker as the ultimate master class in learning to distinguish between what can be controlled and what can't. And she certainly brought something to the table, including a Ph.D. in psychology and an acclaimed and growing body of work on human behavior and how to hack it. So Seidel was in, and soon she was down the rabbit hole with him, into the wild, fiercely competitive, overwhelmingly masculine world of high-stakes Texas Hold'em, their initial end point the following year's World Series of Poker. But then something extraordinary happened. Under Seidel's guidance, Konnikova did have many epiphanies about life that derived from her new pursuit, including how to better read, not just her opponents but far more importantly herself; how to identify what tilted her into an emotional state that got in the way of good decisions; and how to get to a place where she could accept luck for what it was, and what it wasn't. But she also began to win. And win. In a little over a year, she began making earnest money from tournaments, ultimately totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars. She won a major title, got a sponsor, and got used to being on television, and to headlines like "How one writer's book deal turned her into a professional poker player." She even learned to like Las Vegas. But in the end, Maria Konnikova is a writer and student of human behavior, and ultimately the point was to render her incredible journey into a container for its invaluable lessons. The biggest bluff of all, she learned, is that skill is enough. Bad cards will come our way, but keeping our focus on how we play them and not on the outcome will keep us moving through many a dark patch, until the luck once again breaks our way.

Download or read book Real Poker Psychology written by Mason Malmuth and published by Two Plus Two Pub.. This book was released on 2015-12-10 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mathematician and professional poker player Mason Malmuth takes a fresh look at the psychological side of the game. He asserts that gaining a good understanding of everything poker, which includes the strategic concepts that govern expert poker play as well as the counter intuitiveness and the short-term luck factor, will usually solve a player's problems.

Download or read book The Mental Game of Poker written by Jared Tendler and published by Jared Tendler LLC. This book was released on 2011-10-02 with total page 263 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Beyond Tells written by James A. McKenna and published by Citadel Press. This book was released on 2005 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A psychotherapist and poker columnist offers tips on anticipating players' behavior by analyzing their mental and physical approaches to the game.

Download or read book Caro s Book of Poker Tells written by Mike Caro and published by Cardoza Publishing. This book was released on with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the ten greatest books written on poker, this must-have book should be in every player's library. If you're serious about winning, you'll realize that most of the profit comes from being able to read your opponents. Caro reveals the the secrets of interpreting tells-physical reactions that reveal information about a player's cards-such as shrugs, sighs, shaky hands, eye contact, and many more. Learn when opponents are bluffing, when they aren't and why-based solely on their mannerisms. Over 170 photos of players in action and play-by-play examples show the actual tells. These powerful ideas will give you the decisive edge.

Download or read book Positive Poker written by Dr. Patricia Cardner with Jonathan Little and published by D&B Publishing. This book was released on with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why are the best poker players actually the best? Every serious poker player wants to be successful and many of them have the right technical skills. However, the truth is that there are key mental factors that separate the big winners from everyone else. Patricia Cardner is a psychology professor, licensed professional counselor and dedicated poker player. She interviewed a select group of professional poker players who share two key characteristics: ALL of them have been successful over many years and ALL of them have lifetime winnings of more than $1,000,000. Patricia analyzed the results to determine exactly what psychological skills, techniques, and strategies they use. This book is the result of her studies. Positive Poker outlines the mental skills that you need to develop if you want raise your game. Positive Poker will help you to: Optimize your brain for efficient learning Increase motivation and stay positive Use psychological skills to increase your win rate Increase self-control and reduce tilt Patricia is aided in her investigations by the highly successful poker pro Jonathan Little, author of the critically acclaimed series, Secrets of Professional Tournament Poker.

Download or read book Poker Essays written by Mason Malmuth and published by Two Plus Two Publishing LLC. This book was released on 1996-05 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Poker is an extremely complicated game, especially if you play Texas hold 'em or seven-card stud. In addition, the typical opponent has gotten tougher as more good information has become available. As a result, those of you who just play tightly (also known as playing ABC) are able to win only at the lower limits. To win at higher limits requires not only numerous skills, but also a lot of thinking about the game. This text contains essays written before 1991, most of which originally appeared in "Card Player magazine. Topics covered include general concepts, technical ideas, structure, strategic ideas, image, tournament notes, in the cardrooms, and poker quizzes. In addition, advice is offered on jackpot games, handling pressure, why you lose, fluctuations, bankroll requirements, differences between stud and hold 'em, too many bad players, limit versus no-limit, thinking fast, weak-tight opponents, the best hold 'em seat, playing short-handed, playing loose or tight, appropriate image, being an alternate in tournaments, taking advantage of tight play in tournaments, behaving professionally, the future of poker, and much more.

Download or read book The Psychology of Poker written by Alan N. Schoonmaker and published by Two Plus Two Publishing LLC. This book was released on 2000 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Poker demands many skills and strategies. To be successful, you must be able to master all of them and then apply them at the appropriate times. They include proper hand selection, bluffing, semi-bluffing, understanding tells and telegraphs, and reading hands. These skills do not come easily since they require unnatural actions. You cannot win just by "doing what comes naturally," Dr. Schoonmaker is concerned "only with the way that psychological factors affect your own and your opponents' ability to play properly. For example, have you ever wondered why some players seem extremely aggressive while others are passive? Why some are tight and others loose? Furthermore, have you ever wondered why some tactics seem to come naturally to you while others don't? This text will answer many of these questions. It will explain why you and your opponents play the way you do. The author also suggests strategic adjustments that you should make to improve your results against different types of players, and he suggests personal adjustments that will help you to play better and enjoy the game more.

Download or read book Real Poker Psychology Expanded Edition written by Mason Malmuth and published by Two Plus Two. This book was released on 2021-11 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Your Worst Poker Enemy Master The Mental Game written by Alan N. Schoonmaker and published by Kensington Publishing Corp.. This book was released on 2012-11-30 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: AT THE TABLE, YOU'RE YOUR OWN WORST ENEMY. --Stu Ungar, the world's greatest poker player Do you play hands you should fold? Do you sometimes go too far with hands, hoping to get lucky while knowing that the pot odds don't justify calling? Ever kept playing even when you knew you were off your game because you were losing and wanted to get even? Have you let anger or destructive urges affect the way you play even though you know better? Don't despair! Now, in Your Worst Poker Enemy, psychologist Dr. Alan Schoonmaker shows you how to reap the full benefits of the poker knowledge you already have by helping you to identify and stop psychologically based mistakes. This must-have book also features detailed sections that examine crucial points far beyond the scope of most other poker strategy guides, including: • Using Intuition vs. Logic • Evaluating Yourself and the Opposition • Understanding Unconscious and Emotional Factors • Adjusting to Changes • Handling stress Dr. Schoonmaker will help you to recognize and defeat the often crippling psychological factors that distort your perceptions about yourself, other players, and the game itself and send you on your way to becoming the best poker player you can be! Alan N. Schoonmaker, Ph.D, is the author of the top-selling The Psychology of Poker and is a columnist for Card Player magazine. He received his Ph.D. in Psychology from UC Berkeley and has conducted research and taught at UCLA, Carnegie-Mellon, and Belgium's Catholic University of Louvain. He lives in Las Vegas.

Download or read book The Mental Game of Poker 2 written by Jared Tendler and published by . This book was released on 2023-03 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Imagine the edge you would have if you consistently played poker in the zone. You make all the right decisions, know instinctively when to bluff, and are unfazed by a losing hand. You're locked in and feel unbeatable. It's shocking how many poker players stumble into this elusive state of mind. As quickly as that euphoric feeling of invincibility arrives, it's gone. And no matter how hard they try, they can't get back there. Until now.In The Mental Game of Poker 2, author and renowned poker mental game coach Jared Tendler breaks down the zone and delivers actionable steps to help players get there consistently. He demystifies the zone, and for the first time, brings logic and order to this previously misunderstood concept. Above all, Tendler's straightforward, client-tested approach will have you playing at higher levels than you ever thought possible. This book provides proven strategies to:*Consistently play in the zone. *Play poker longer and across more online tables.*Improve decision making.*Learn faster. *Eliminate C-game mistakes.*Increase focus and discipline.Poker is constantly evolving and is as cutthroat as ever. Whether you're at the top of the game or just starting out, you should be looking for new and better ways to keep up and outpace your opponents. The Mental Game of Poker 2 arms you with the tools to thrive in today's increasingly competitive environment. It expands on the psychological strategies and theories from Tendler's groundbreaking book, The Mental Game of Poker, which cracked the code on managing tilt and has helped thousands of players eliminate mental leaks from their games. Like the first book, The Mental Game of Poker 2 is a must have resource for every poker player who is serious about improving their game.

Download or read book Poker Life and Other Confusing Things written by Arthur S Reber Ph D and published by Conjelco, LLC. This book was released on 2012 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The average "guy on the street" misunderstands a lot of things and poker and psychology are right up there with string theory in physics and mathematical models of economics. But there's a curious twist here. They know they don't "get" string theory and economics, but they often think they "get" poker and psychology. They typically do not. Most people think that poker is gambling like other casino games such as roulette, baccarat or even the slots. It isn't. Those are games of pure chance, dominated by random outcomes. Poker is a game of skill where the decisions players make trump the random distributions of cards. Poker is a game played with cards for money. The cards are the least important part of the game. It is ridiculously complicated. Going out on a limb the author claims that it is the most complex game people play regularly. It is more complex than chess or bridge or backgammon. Poker is also a microcosm of life. If you play the game seriously you know this. Because the game mirrors so much of life it shares many psychological burdens. We are the products of evolution and, as anthropologists, evolutionary psychologists and sociologists have shown, our genetic history carries with it a set of behavioral predispositions. If threatened we are prone to counterattack. If stressed we often lose our deliberative abilities. When we are the conquerors, certain neuro-hormonal changes occur in our brains. If conquered, different ones do and they do very different things. We pride ourselves on rationality but the ascension of our species works against it. When things look bleak, we reach for gods and angels, faces in the clouds, mystical rustling in the bushes. If hurt comes to those close, we gather forces with like against different. When it happens to those distant from us we are cavalier. It is not easy to overcome these tendencies. They share a common bond with the genetic roots that also make democracy hard, discourage tolerance and encourage us to embrace religion. These trends are found everywhere and penetrate all the even mildly interesting things we do - and that includes playing complex and intensely competitive games like poker. They are also the reason why is it such a devilishly hard game to master. Poker is a microcosm of life precisely because it is the most intellectually complex, emotionally rich, and social game we've ever invented. In these essays Arthur S. Reber tries to take elements of the human condition, those that social scientists have learned a good deal about, and show how they interlock with the game. Some chapters start with a psychological principle and look at what it can tell us about poker. Some begin with a particular aspect of the game and seek to unpack the psychological processes that underlie it. Others look at mathematical and statistical aspects with an eye to the impact they have on our perceptions and understanding of how to play the game. Still others examine individuals who play and write about poker. There is some poker strategy buried in these essays but not directly. They weren't written to teach anyone how to play poker. Some of them may help you play better but the real goal is understanding the game from the psychologist's perspective. As some wag once said, "poker is a people game played with cards and money." They got that right.

Download or read book Poker Winners Are Different written by Alan N. Schoonmaker and published by Kensington Publishing Corp.. This book was released on 2010-04-19 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What Makes Winners Win? Every serious poker player knows there's a big difference between playing well and winning: Winners successfully master specific attitudes and habits. What Do I Need To Win? It's right in your hands. Poker guru Dr. Alan N. Schoonmaker explains the key skills that enable winners to bring in the money. With his expert guidance you can master them, too. You'll learn to: • Manage risk and information • Develop better discipline • Improve your decision-making processes • Focus on the right issues • Choose the information you give others • Control your reactions to feelings • Act decisively By mastering the behaviors and skills that Schoonmaker teaches, you'll be able to play more confidently--and win more often. Alan N. Schoonmaker, Ph.D, is the author of Your Worst Poker Enemy, Your Best Poker Friend, and the top-selling The Psychology of Poker; he is also a columnist for Card Player magazine. He received his Ph.D. in psychology from UC Berkeley, and has conducted research and taught at UCLA, Carnegie-Mellon, and Belguim's Catholic University of Louvain. He lives in Las Vegas.

Download or read book Reading Poker Tells written by Zachary Elwood and published by Reading Poker Tells. This book was released on 2012-04-01 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides information on common poker tells and gives a mental framework for analyzing and remembering that behavior.

Download or read book Hold em Poker for Advanced Players written by David Sklansky and published by Two Plus Two. This book was released on 1999 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Texas Hold 'em is not an easy game to play well. To become an expert you must balance many concepts, some of which occasionally contradict each other. In 1988, the first edition appeared. Many ideas, which were only known to a small, select group of players, were made available to anyone who was striving to become an expert, and the hold 'em explosion had begun. It is now a new century, and the authors have again moved the state of the art forward by adding over 100 pages of new material, including extensive sections on "loose games," and "short-handed games." Anyone who studies this text, is well disciplined, and gets the proper experience should become a significant winner. Some of the other ideas discussed include play on the first two cards, semibluffing, the free card, inducing bluffs, staying with a draw, playing when a pair flops, playing trash hands, desperation bets, playing in wild games, reading hands, and psychology.

Download or read book Beyond Bluffs Master The Mysteries Of Poker written by James A. McKenna and published by Kensington Publishing Corp.. This book was released on 2006-10-01 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Play your opponents, not just your cards! The most important game being played in a poker room has nothing to do with cards--it's the psychological battle being waged between players. In Beyond Bluffs, poker columnist and psychotherapist James A. McKenna shows you how to elevate your game to a new level by playing your opponents as expertly as you play your hand. With these advanced people skills, you'll be able to determine how and when a player is bluffing, and know which bluffs to use in response. You'll even be able to predict how different types of players will think and react in any game situation. Go beyond spotting bluffs to reading your opponents! In his acclaimed Beyond Tells, McKenna introduced a unique way of integrating personality types with reading tells. Beyond Bluffs delves further into those six key personality types--The Boss, Party Hardy, High Roller, System Player, Loner, and Hunch Player--revealing the psychological patterns that govern the way they live and the way they play. McKenna shows you how to spot the subtle clues that reveal when a person is bluffing or telling the truth. You'll learn when, how, and against whom to bluff with "garbage" hands, how to avoid bluffing when you don't have to, and the difference between planned and unplanned bluffs. Discover the clues to look for and unravel the mysteries of poker! Plenty of poker books outline strategies that can help you become a good tactical player. Beyond Bluffs goes further, unraveling the real mysteries of the game and providing the psychological advantage that will help you play smarter every time. James A. McKenna, Ph.D., has been a practicing individual and group therapist for over 35 years, as well as a management consultant to Fortune 500 corporations. His column, "Power Poker Psychology," appears regularly in Poker Player and Gambling Times magazines. He lives in Dardenne Prairie, Missouri.

Download or read book Poker Faces written by David M. Hayano and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 1983 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: