Pick Up Your Poker Game: Tips and Strategies to Gain the Upper Hand

by Adam Slutsky

Overview

This humorous, laid-back guide to poker rules, strategies, techniques, and lingo will take your game to the next level.

Do you know what it takes to play the game? At the poker table, just like in the ocean, baitfish get gobbled up by sharks. To help you ascend to the top of the poker food chain, Pick Up Your Poker Game answers all the game's most important questions with over 50 tips and strategies to give you the upper hand. So whether you're a seasoned pro or a bare-bones beginner, this handy, information-packed guide will take your poker game to the next level by helping you discover:

• Winning strategies when you don't have a winning hand
• Bluffing techniques and when to use them
• What players to choose or avoid as your opponent
• How to help determine your opponent's hand
• How to capitalize on your opponent's weaknesses and your strengths

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781596528260
Publisher:	TURNER PUB CO
Publication date:	08/09/2011
Pages:	165
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Adam Slutsky has been published in Maxim, Outside, Chance, Mob Candy, and Casino Player, is a regular contributor to Bluff Magazine and Fight! Magazine, and is the author of six mixology books and a graphic novel. Holding a B.A. in Creative Writing from Arizona State Universityand a B.S. in Cryptozoology from the Universityof Haiti in Port Au Prince, the self-described adrenaline junkie and poker player lives in Portland, Oregon.

Table of Contents

Introduction xi

1 Be a wolf, not a sheep 1

2 Make money, not friends 4

3 Location, location, location 7

4 Look before you leap 10

5 You shouldn't shop for champagne if you are on a beer budget 13

6 You never get a second chance to make a first impression 16

7 A change in attitude is better than a change of latitude 19

8 Your cards are important—but so are your opponent's cards 22

9 Poker is a marathon, not a sprint 25

10 They're showing you nothing, but telling you everything 28

11 Peer pressure is for wimps 31

12 Rags to riches 34

13 Trust your gut 37

14 There's safety in numbers 40

15 Know when to say "when" 44

16 A fool and his money are soon parted 47

17 Don't allow ego to take the place of logic 50

18 Reputations are earned, not inherited 53

19 It's not what you have, it's what they think you have 56

20 Healthy poker equals winning poker 59

21 The eyes have it 62

22 Jabs can win a fight just as easily as a knockout punch 65

23 Don't be the table sheriff 68

24 Test the waters 71

25 Poker isn't a schoolyard fight; swing first 74

26 Take breaks 77

27 Play the man, not the cards 80

28 Dress for success 84

29 Beware the player who has nothing to lose 88

30 Take notes on your opponents 91

31 Believe in yourself 94

32 Charisma can change the course of history 96

33 Monitor your progress (or lack thereof) 99

34 Lie, cheat, and steal—its legal 102

35 Have a strategy—but know when to abandon it 105

36 Be a ninja—never let them see you coming 108

37 Stay cool under pressure 111

38 Expand your horizons 114

39 Admire the pros, don't mimic them 117

40 Avoid being the small fish in a big pond 119

41 Raise in the beginning for free cards at the end 123

42 Show one, show all 126

43 Playing well means laying down winners 129

44 Financially speaking, charity tournaments are terrible 131

45 Walk it off 134

46 Be the trapper, not the trappee 137

47 Bluffing should complement your style of play, not define it 140

48 Act like you've been there before 143

49 Toke the dealer 146

50 Chop once, chop always 149

51 Nobody rides for free 152

52 A chip and a chair 155

Glossary of Poker Terms 158

Editorial Reviews

Adam Slutsky’s work still makes me feel like a fan rather than an editor. His humor, wit, and sarcasm have made every article I have read of his a can’t-miss.” —Matthew Parvis, Editor-in-Chief/Executive Producer, Poker News

From the Publisher