Whether you're an advanced beginner, an intermediate or an advanced player, this valuable book can help you win more frequently and gain greater personal satisfaction from contract bridge. This is a book on the play of hands, full of wise counsel; it will entertain experts and help them teach others. EDDIE KANTAR (Santa Monica, CA) is one of the most popular and prolific bridge writers in the world. A winner of two World Championships, and a member of the Bridge Hall of Fame, his many books include Modern Bridge Defense, Advanced Bridge Defense, the hilarious Kantar on Kontract, and of course, Roman Keycard Blackwood. His work appears regularly in many bridge magazines around the world.

Want to become a better Poker Player? This guide takes a unique look on how to play Hold Em and win Learn about different "Player Types" and how to beat them This guide will help both new and experienced players.

When God created the No-Goods, which He called Man, He also taught them bridge. You'll watch Him, J.C., Sister Mary (who never draws trump) and Brother Bill (who recites smutty limericks) play out over 50 bridge hands, some of which require divine inspiration if the best play is to be found.

CROSSWORDS WITH A BRIDGE FLAVOR Now bridge players who enjoy crosswords can combine their favorite pastimes! For this book, New York Times and Los Angeles Times crossword constructor Jeff Chen has designed 52 brand-new crosswords with bridge-themed clues and solutions, providing hours of challenge and fun. The puzzles in this book range from Easy (N.Y. Times Monday level) to Challenging (N.Y. Times Thursday level). JEFF CHEN is a children's book writer and a crossword puzzle constructor with 50+ puzzles published in the New York Times and Los Angeles Times. He's been playing bridge for ten years but still couldn't identify a squeeze or a Deschapelles Coup opportunity even if it came up and bit him on the bottom.

LEARN DECLARER PLAY FROM AN EXPERT This classic book, a bestseller for more than forty years, has been updated for this edition by Gail Greenberg, a frequent partner of Dorothy Truscott, and like her a World Champion. Dorothy had a unique ability to make complex bridge concepts simple to understand, and everything here, from the basics to the most complicated squeeze or endplay, is described in an interesting and easy-to-follow way. In addition to the technical material, the reader will also learn when and how to use deceptive tactics to give the opponents a chance to make mistakes. Each chapter has many sample hands to test and challenge the reader. Dorothy Hayden Truscott (1925-2006) was the top-ranked woman bridge player for many years. She won four World titles and twenty-eight National titles including the Life Master Pairs and the Blue Ribbon Pairs. She also came in second in the Bermuda Bowl and placed third in the World Open Pairs, the highest finish ever by a woman. Dorothy was a World Bridge Federation Grand Master, and was elected to the Bridge Hall of Fame in 1998. She is the author of the classic bridge book Bid Better, Play Better, and she co-authored several books with her husband Alan Truscott. Among her contributions to bridge theory are splinter bids and DOPI.

Poker has been on a boom for almost a decade now, and writer Sean Chaffin's new book Raising the Stakes: True Tales of Gambling, Wagering and Poker Faces offers up stories of gambling and poker's unique history and lore. From underground games in Dallas to tales of the World Series of Poker to crazy stories like wagering at a Puerto Rican cockfight, Raising the Stakes features something for everyone interested in gambling, poker, or history in general. "There is just such a unique history and lore to gambling and poker," he says. "Some of these stories are really out of the mainstream and not too well-known. I just know there is an audience out there like me, who love that unique poker culture." Some of the book's features include: The Top O' the Hill casino, an underground casino in Arlington, Texas, that was a forerunner to today's modern casinos. The story of how it was raided by law enforcement and eventually turned into a seminary is one of a kind. Jack Strauss - his comeback story at the World Series of Poker spawned the phrase: "All you need is a chip and chair." Many know the phrase, but not the larger than life story of this amazing poker player, gambler, and big game hunter. The Amvets Club in Dallas - an underground poker room where many of the World Series of Poker's greatest players got their start. That history includes a gripping robbery and raid by law enforcement. And many more. In recent years, Sean's work and coverage of the industry have appeared in many publications including Poker Pro, World Poker Tour magazine, American Cowboy, Hooters magazine, Fort Worth magazine, H magazine in Houston, Poker Europa, Poker Player Newspaper, and more. He has interviewed and covered some of the biggest names and events in the poker world. For the last year, he has been a contributor to Casino Player, Strictly Slots, and Canadian Poker Player magazines. For several years, Sean has served as monthly crime writer for Advocate magazines in Dallas. He also owned a weekly newspaper in Rockwall, Texas, for five years. Chaffin grew up in Crandall, Texas, playing poker in his father's regular poker games. He is a native Texan who attended Texas A&M University, majoring in journalism and English. He now lives in Rockwall, Texas, with his wife Kathy and daughters Marie and Chloe. Beyond his magazine writing, Sean is editor of www.PokerTraditions.com, a site all about poker history, lore, and people. The site is re-launching with the book's release. ***** "Raising the Stakes takes readers from the saloons and back rooms of poker's early days to the high-stakes tables and televised tournaments of today. Its entertaining anecdotes and insider's perspective will leave even casual players itching to play a few hands." - Tom Wilmes, Deputy Editor, American Cowboy magazine "Sean's writing offers a unique insight into poker's past, present, and future." - Antonio Esfandiari, poker pro and ESPN World Series of Poker commentator "Sean Chaffin has a unique insight into casinos and gambling and is one of the go-to writers in the poker world." - John "Johnny Quads" Wenzel, Editor-in-Chief, Poker Pro magazine "Sean Chaffin is a lot more than a journalist. He's an incredible writer who understands the casino and gaming industry on a very deep level. When I need to assign a big story, I contact Sean." - Rob Wiser, Editor, Casino Player magazine "Sean Chaffin is one of my favorite writers for many reasons but mostly because he's a great story-teller. Lots of people can write but only the best can tell stories as if you were sitting around the campfire." - Paul K. Harral, Executive Editor, Fort Worth, Texas magazine "Sean has a unique voice that captures the seriousness of stories while also injecting bits of humor and irony. He does a good job of collecting oodles of information and condensing it into easily digestible short articles." - Christina Hughes Babb, Managing Editor, Advocate magazines-Dallas

Audley V. Walsh presents a fascinating overview of the popular street (and con) game of Three Card Monte, with contributions by magician John Scarne. There are multiple methods and card maneuvers used by tricksters of which the general public is unaware and magicians can incorporate into their acts Walsh (1894-1957) was a Vaudeville comic turned policeman, and an expert on gambling fraud.

An intermediate-level discussion of declarer play in the game of bridge, this book focuses on the power of the trump suit. Its subjects include trump and situations where you need to unblock in the trump suit or to put a defender on lead with a trump. The reader will learn how to make maximum use of the entries provided by the trump suit, and how to perform a trump safety play or a trump avoidance play. Two other important topics are how to make your contract against a bad trump break and how you can survive a forcing attack on the long-trump holding. Later chapters explain how to play contracts with fewer than eight trumps at your disposal, and also how to conjure extra tricks from the trump suit. Every couple of chapters or so, there is a 9-problem quiz section.

In 2004, Julian Pottage's 'Play or Defend?' was the IBPA Book of the Year. An unusual problem format, it gave the reader all four hands and challenged them to analyze the deal and decide whether they wanted to play or defend. This sequel comprises 72 problems, presented in the same unique fashion, and will appeal to the same readership.

Poker is much more than knowing the right strategies; it's also knowing how to actualize those strategies. The game is full of losing players who know how to play, yet can't seem to induce themselves to consistently make the right plays.

"Black Friday" and the current state of the U.S. economy have changed the sub-culture in which we live and play. The dynamics of the poker world have drastically changed. Internet poker is not the cash cow it used to be, thereby changing the face of live poker. The games got tougher as Internet pros gravitated to the live action, the only action they can currently find. A player looking to become a major winner in live poker this involves changes in skill sets and mindsets. For the B&M players it involves adjusting to the skills and styles of former online players.

The Internet game and the live game, though related, have very different fundamentals, not to mention all the innumerable different nuances. And, because there are fewer weak players, every

This work focuses on the opening and bidding of the major suits at duplicate bridge. It represents a cohesive and complete system that gets the partnership off to a good start on most contracts as the consideration for the score sheet is best initiated with concern for the majors--before notrump or the minors.

From the man who literally CREATED the poker ebook market and its poster child, "Let There Be Range" ("a two-thousand dollar poker manual for high-stakes poker professionals"), "The Pot-Limit Omaha Book" provides a sound theoretical framework for no-limit holdem players looking to cut their teeth on PLO and don't want to be at disadvantage.
YOU WILL LEARN:
How to crush the short-handed PLO games
Which set of starting hands to play
How to play aces without busting your bankrolls
How to 3-bet and 4-bet like a PLO expert
How to bluff big and get rewarded for it
How to AVOID common mistakes such as blinds play and failing to think ahead
How equity equalization is the most important concept in PLO
And that's just the tip of the iceberg. There are more than 50 advanced pot-limit omaha tactics covered, all proven to work under the Las Vegas bright lights, the New York underground games, the internet, the college dorms, the kitchen home games, and anywhere you can think of
You "don't" need advanced math "or" a high IQ to crush poker.
You need the right strategies and that's exactly what The Pot-Limit Omaha Book delivers.
Order today. Our winning circle awaits you

Travel and Teach at Sea Learn how to break into the wonderful world of teaching bridge on luxury cruise ships. This little book covers everything you need to know from finding an agent and making a lesson plan to packing the right clothes. " A must read for any bridge teacher who wants to teach on cruise ships." Barbara Seagram

This is the definitive book on the oldest - and most useful - convention in bridge, the takeout double. Originally published in 1994 (Magnus Books, 978 0963753 31 1), this book quickly became recognized as a 'must-read' for any would-be bridge expert, and has never been out of print. Now, almost twenty years later, the author has revised and updated the text to take into account modern developments in competitive bidding, one of the most rapidly changing parts of the game, not least in the new and varied uses of doubles.

Winning Notrump Leads was a ground-breaking and very well-received book that used the power of computers to determine which opening leads work best against a variety of auctions at notrump. Using enhanced software, the authors now turn their attention to suit contracts. They generate millions of random deals, retaining those that match the chosen auction, for example 1S-2S-4S. By playing these deals automatically against each of the 13 possible opening leads from a given hand, they are able to discover which lead is most likely to beat the contract (also the best lead at matchpoint pairs). The authors provide insightful commentary to each result, answering timeless questions such as: When should I lead a trump? When is a doubleton a good opening lead? Should I lead differently against a partscore? Should I make an aggressive or a passive lead? Should I lead an ace against a small slam? Which leads work best against a grand slam? By using the number-crunching computer power available nowadays, there is no longer any need to rely on general opening-lead guidelines passed down by our ancestors. We think you will be surprised by many of the discoveries made during this investigation! DAVID BIRD (top) and TAF ANTHIAS were contemporaries at Cambridge University, both reading mathematics. They carried out research and development on software systems for over 30 years at IBM's UK Laboratories. In the 1970s they formed a successful bridge partnership, winning a number of national events. David is now one of the world's top bridge writers with 116 books to his name. Taf moved on to the USA, where he became a vice president of Cisco Systems. They have joined forces on this ground-breaking book.

Book Review Information: How to Become a Successful Professional Poker Player, written by Barton M. Gratt. 1. What does this book do? Poker is very popular. There are over a dozen TV poker shows (e.g., High-Stakes Poker, WSOP, WPT, Poker After Dark, etc.). Many of the competitors shown on these TV shows are "pros"- poker professionals. Viewers, seeing rich, cool, professional poker players, watch and wonder exactly what it takes to become a professional player? This book teaches readers how to become successful professional poker players - how to make a great living by playing cards. This book is well organized, detailed, and provides step-by-step instruction, teaching poker knowledgeable readers how to become successful professional players. This book provides instructions on how and when to play and win. It explains, in intentional repetitious detail, the four key elements needed for success: Patience, Money Management, Game Selection, and Card Playing. Included are when to play and when not to play. How to select the correct stakes and games in which to play. How to play at each position on the table, playing pocket pairs, playing a set, playing pocket Ace King, playing on the button, playing in the blinds, and finally, when to fold your cards. This book is aimed at no-limit poker games played in busy brick-and-mortar casinos and cardrooms, where opposing players are plentiful, active, and visible. In addition, overall poker playing strategy is discussed, covering many topics, including life style issues, cheating, and internet poker playing. Twenty-six (26) Practice Hands are included aiding learning. Finally, a typical 6 hour real-life poker session is included, showing the play of 79 hands, with a winning outcome. If followed precisely, this book will make a knowledgeable poker player into a successful Professional Player. 2. Benefits of this book? The information in this book is easy to learn and it really works. After reading this book only once, a knowledgeable, disciplined poker player will be able to become a successful professional player, making a living by playing poker. 3. Intended audience? This book is intended for knowledgeable card players who have aspirations of becoming Professional Poker Players. In addition, all poker players around the world, playing no-limit Texas Hold'em, will gain valuable winning information from this book.

Canadian expert Roy Hughes' first book, Building a Bidding System (2005; ISBN 9781897106 02 5), has become a must-read for expert pairs looking to develop effective constructive bidding methods. Now Hughes turns to the theory and practice of competitive auctions, a critical component of the modern game. Beginning again by establishing what the bidding system needs to accomplish, Hughes goes on to discuss every type of contested auction, and recommends useful methods and agreements from which the reader can select. This is a state-of-the-art discussion, covering many topics in detail that have at best seen cursory treatment in print up to now.

A Beginners guide to playing Texas Hold'em Poker.Starting with the basics. Included are many pointers for understanding the game, whether it is a cash game, tournament, internet or home game, this guide explains them all along with some of Gator's columns regarding this fascinating game of poker.