A guide for the occasional blackjack player who needs help in how and what to bet.. How to and when to double down, split and when to stand. Includes a handy reference car

Want to begin teaching bridge, but aren't sure where to start? This comprehensive and easy-to-follow teacher's manual was designed by the authors of We Love the Majors, Mary Ann Dufresne and Marion Ellingsen, to compliment their reader-friendly beginner's book. The teacher's guide contains six complete, detailed lesson plans, including hand diagrams, that teachers can easily customize to suit their students' levels of "interest and experience." This guide puts all the information you need to share your love of bridge right at your fingertips!

R.U.N.T. - the Really Unusual No Trump Master Point Press author Ken Rexford provides the first authoritative description of the R.U.N.T. Convention. R.U.N.T. is actually a two-way overcalling structure to distinguish a very sound takeout double from a weak three-suited takeout by way of an artificial 1NT overcall - preempting and intervening in the auction safely and effectively. Do you find a 4-3-3-3 hand with three Jacks a reason to sleep, or is this as good a reason to bid as any? You know who you are. Do you secretly enjoy declaring Two Clubs doubled, trying to find a fifth trick before the opponents find their ninth trick, instead of defending a boring 3NT? If you find it amusing to interfere with as many auctions as possible, this book is for you. Rexford introduces you to this effective and proven two-way overcall structure. With more advanced versions of the convention, you can add a very strong option, making the 1NT overcall almost a Multi type of takeout. After all, bridge is supposed to be fun, right?

This short, quick reference, Texas Hold'em Poker Guide is a must own for all poker players in my opinion. Nowadays Texas Hold'em is a household name and the king of the local poker rooms. Playing cards these days isn't just about having fun at the table, but knowing your odds, probabilities, and tells. This book will hopefully advance your game and serve as a quick reference guide to you in the future. Even though Poker is considered a "game of skill," just remember there's still a lot of "gambling" involved as well. So just remain calm when that Donkey "sucks out" on you. It's not the end of the world, and it will not be the last time this happens to you, because "that's poker."

Weak two-bids are well ensconced in the bridge world and are now part of any beginning program of lessons. They are, however, in that class of "most abused" conventions. An understanding of all the important tools that are at your fingertips will serve you well in making these decisions at the table. This book will walk you through the solutions to the problems you meet every day in offensive and defensive situations, delving into the more intricate aspects of the weak two-bid.

An Honors Book from Master Point Press. Author Ken Rexford has developed an intriguing new approach to overcalling 1NT openings that may revolutionize this area of bridge. If you are unhappy with Cappelletti, DONT, Brozel, and the like, this book introduces you to a new approach for tackling the opponent's 1NT opening, with an entirely new way to handle one or two-suited hands. Can your current approach tell partner whether you have a strong or a weak overcall at the two-level? Can you tell partner which suit of your major-or-a-minor is longer? Can you identify the specific minor with your major, again at the two-level? All of these are possible using Ken Rexford's methods. Imagine describing more hands than the Woolsey defense handles, all with easy but novel methods that fit (unlike Woolsey) into the ACBL's General Convention Chart! You can also use these methods to improve your response structure to your own openings and in other auctions. Imagine hearing a Four Diamond overcall of partner's Two Clubs opening and being able to describe any one suit at game or any two-suited holding, all without giving up a cooperative double. Impossible? Not with this new technique. Can you show one or both minors and slam interest after a 2NT opening, and tell partner which specific minor you have, at the three-level? Yes, using Rexford's methods.

This 1944 book of card tricks focuses on simplicity, quick results, a minimum of skill, and audience appeal. Included are: This Card Gets Around, Back Up ; New Ace Control; Military Mixup; Delayed Discovery; Hindu Slop Shuffle; Perfect Prediction; What a Coincidence ; Tell How It's Done; W.W. Color Change; Miracle Discovery; Numerical Discovery; and Instantaneous Four Ace Transposition.

In the flop stage, what are your odds of achieving a straight by river and what are the odds of your opponents achieving something higher? If you will achieve the straight, what are the new odds of your opponents beating it in the river stage? How about the full house? How strong is your hand from mathematical point of view and how can you use this information in your play? This is the kind of questions that this book deals with.In improving poker skills, acquisition of information is vital, whether we talk about data a player collects during a specific game or pre-established mathematical facts behind the card distribution, including prediction. Texas Hold'em Poker is a game highly suitable for probability-based decisions. The power of a single card changing the hand hierarchies at every stage is a strong argument that every objective strategy should be probability based and so the card odds should be part of such a strategy. The book is a complete probability guide of Hold'em Poker, covering all possible gaming situations, an improved edition of the bestseller "Texas Hold'em Odds," published in 2004. In this edition, the author focused on the practical side of the presentation and use of the probabilities involved in Hold'em, while taking into account everywhere the subjective side of the probability-based criteria of each player's strategy.The first part of the book deals with the odds of specific card formations, from one pair to straight flush, at every stage of the game, grouped in three large categories: long-shot odds for own hand, long-shot odds for opponent's hands and immediate odds. These odds are collected in tables at the end of each section and, where generating two-dimensional tables was not possible, the compact formulas returning the odds are provided. All tables and formulas are followed by examples of how to use them for finding the desired odds in a specific gaming situation. All probability results were worked out through compact mathematical formulas and not by the use of any software based on partial simulations. The chapter "Operating with and Weighting the Odds" is the main new material added to the first edition and deals with the rules of estimating and evaluating the probabilities of complex gaming events in order to use them in a strategy, by using the odds provided in the first part of the book. When we are allowed to add together the partial probabilities of a union of events for an overall probability and when we are not, methods of approximation and tips of avoiding hard calculations, all have their dedicated subchapters, packed with suggestive examples of application on concrete hands. The author also introduces the concept of strength matrix of a hand, within the adequate mathematical model of the strength of a Hold'em hand, and argues why the strength of a hand should be defined through mathematical probabilities. At this point, he proves that what most of the so-called odds calculators return are not mathematical probabilities and cannot stand as objective strength indicators for Hold'em hands.The last chapter is a suggestive collection of probability-based hand analyses on concrete Hold'em hands that can be generalized to categories of hands having identical results associated.The author is a recognized authority on casino/gaming mathematics and his books are in the official bibliography of the students of several gambling institutes and organizations around the globe. This book is the most trusted and professional source for the mathematical facts of Hold'em Poker, a must-have completion for any strategy book.

The Ultimate Edge, by Mark Billings, tells the little-known story of four men who became instrumental in changing the face of contemporary professional blackjack, winning the admiration of players the world over, and the disdain of casino bosses everywhere. Through traditional narrative and detailed examples, deep technical insights, and his own instinct for the game, Billings tells a compelling tale of improbable friendship, cutting-edge blackjack, and good old human obsession. In The Ultimate Edge there is something for everyone: the general reader, blackjack enthusiast, or even the professional gambler. Mark Billings' book reads like a novel, teaches like a textbook, and entertains like a good Hollywood movie. Told with wit and filled with insider secrets known only to a select few of blackjack's elite, The Ultimate Edge recounts the gambling adventures of four unique men you will not soon forget.

Making Sense of No Limit Hold'Em 3rd Edition: Adaptations

This book investigates the underlying logic of the game of Bridge, and how this logic dictates the bidding structure found during the game.

Ken Rexford's first book, Cuebidding at Bridge: A Modern Approach, took on the topic of Italian cuebidding, primarily in the context of a 2/1 Game Force system. However, he noticeably skipped the topic of cuebidding after a strong 2 opening. With this new book, we now know the reason, and his answer to the Big Problem. This book describes an exciting new approach, using TWO strong openings (2 and 2 ) to define PATTERN, in such a way that you can actually describe both opener's and responder's hands effectively, and even cuebid intelligently. In many ways, this approach is even better than Precision! Could you imagine agreeing spades at the two-level after a normal 2 opening? How about having no problems with 4-4-4-1 hands, or hands with both minors? Ken Rexford's method lets you do that and much more, allowing you to use cuebidding, relays and pattern bidding on strong hands as effectively as Precision players, but in the context of what is essentially a normal 2/1 GF or Standard system.

What the Author says about his book... 1. Play Blackjack for hours now with this newly developed procedural way of playing, without a card counting system, and without stopping due to hands lost. 2. Play in an apparently unreasonable betting pattern, that even pit bosses do not follow, calling the bets "erratically placed..." but yet, and un-knowing to them, a simple mathematically supported procedural plan of a bet pattern does exist, by the player, and is being placed, played and won 3. Learn the basic strategy moves the casinos want you to know...and you will be at an even more disadvantaged position in the modified blackjack games they offer. Then learn, with this new developed gambling procedure, the real basic strategies needed on these new table games of blackjack that the casinos actually offer, that have on them varied player disadvantageous rules and modifications, and make it all to your betting advantage. 4. Learn some simple things of what not to do, and what to look out for in casinos. A simple distraction for instance that can cost you a big hand...and there are a lot of them designed into the casino that have nothing to do with the game of blackjack but that can be recognized by a player, and thus easily ignored. 5. This new playing procedure will show the serious blackjack player simple "stealth" moves that will confound the "Pit Critters" and the casinos, and keep the winnings coming in. 6. Learn in this new procedural way of playing that everything (hit or stand?) and every call you choose to make in the playing of blackjack counts. The casinos know that every call counts... as they watch. And it all ads up and "counts" up to those really big player's lost wagers. So find out in these pages those same things, and to the player's advantage, what it is that counts. 7. This book will teach you how to keep some very simple and very easy records of play. "Records" did you say? Yes, a simple "type" record. It is the one main reason all blackjack players get lost. They do not keep records or even know won or lost playing amounts - imagine that. The casinos know. 8. This new playing procedure will show you clearly the immense developed odds that are in the player's favor when he simply plays them correctly. 9. This newly developed procedural way of playing blackjack, no matter how the blackjack game is currently modified and offered by the casinos, clearly puts the house advantage way below the player's advantage. 10. In whole, the game of blackjack, and the way it should be played, is rejuvenated in this book to match the way casinos now offer the play of the game. (One of those ways is being a deterrent to card counting.) And for the betting gamblers to once again be able to win blackjack... and all without those card-counting systems which mostly fail the player. 11. This book exposes the enigmas in the game of blackjack along with how to play it for perpetual winnings... enjoy.

This book is the complete package when it comes to No Limit Hold'em. Filled with starting hand strategies, NEW poker theories, professional secrets, reading your opponents correctly while making the proper adjustments against them, advanced concepts on position, money management, poker math and odds, tournaments vs. cash games and how to be successful in both and so much more. No matter what level you play at you'll find something new to improve your game.

Take All Your Chances at Bridge was published in 2009 and has already been reprinted twice. It won the American Bridge Teachers 2010 Book of the Year Award for best intermediate-level book. In this sequel, Kantar presents another collection of play problems for advancing players. Again, the theme is not just finding a good line of play: the trick is to combine as many possible lines as possible to optimize your chances of making the contract. Full of Kantar's inimitable humor and extra tips, as well as lots of good bridge, this one is another sure winner. 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.

Originally published in 1989, this book quickly became recognized as a 'must-read' for any would-be bridge expert, and has never been out of print. Now, more than 20 years later, the author has revised, updated and expanded it to take into account modern developments in the theory and practice of competitive bidding.

Duplicate Pairs is the most absorbing and demanding form of Bridge: a true mental combat sport. Starting with the mechanics of the scoring system, through the key philosophies for success, to detailed tactical advice, esteemed author Paul Mendelson takes the reader through all the steps needed to improve your scores, boost your enjoyment and become a successful Duplicate Pairs player at club level and beyond. In the second part of the book, sit at Paul's shoulder and play a Duplicate Pairs tournament with him, observing the inferences taken, myriad components considered, and decisions made. Paul Mendelson is the UK's best selling Bridge author and his books are sold worldwide, having been translated into numerous languages. He writes weekly for the Financial Times and contributes to numerous magazines. He has also written books and articles on Poker and casino gaming

This is not a book for beginners, and will not bore you with rehashing things you already know. Some of the topics are somewhat controversial, and as always Marshall Miles urges his own, often original, point of view. Some of the topics discussed include: Game invitations after a raise of opener's major Fast arrival and picture bids When the opponents double a transfer or Stayman Mini splinters Rubens advances of overcalls Playing in the opponents' suit The Kaplan Interchange, and many more. As he often does, Miles ends the book with an "It's Your Call" bidding quiz, with detailed discussion of options and the rationale for his own choices. Marshall Miles (California), though now in his eighties, is still regarded as one of the world's leading bidding theorists. His long and successful playing career includes a World Senior Teams Championship in 2004, and his book How To Win at Duplicate Bridge is considered among the all-time classics on the game.

If your answer is 'YES' to the following three questions, this is the PERFECT book for you: 1. Have you read A Bridge to Simple Squeezes? 2. Did you see merit in the structured approach introduced in that book for executing simple squeezes? 3. Do you feel that in spite of your great effort you are still not finding squeezes? In this book, Still Not Finding Squeezes?, the structured approach is applied to the 39 squeeze examples that David Bird and Tim Bourke created for their book, Test Your Bridge Technique: The Simple Squeeze. These examples will give you the experience you need to include squeezes in your arsenal.

Considered by many magicians and card sharps to be the one essential guidebook to attaining the highest level of card mastery. Includes author's own systems of false shuffling, false riffling and cutting, dealing from the bottom, palming cards, "skinning the hand"-even three-card monte, plus 14 dazzling card tricks.