5 of the best strategy books

Selecting five of the best strategy books ever written was never going to be an easy task. Everyone’s tastes are different and, much like the music you were really into as a teenager, you may well have a soft spot for the first poker book you really connected with.

To be honest, we could have chosen 10 or 20 books and still have left some classic texts off the list, but we reckon the five we’ve chosen should each, in their own individual way, be able to fill the gaps in your poker library, should you have some.

From the book that started the poker revolution – Doyle Brunson’s Super System – to Dan Harrington’s series of tournament guides (Harrington on Hold’em), we’ve cornered all the bases with treatises on the theory of the game (The Theory of Poker), esoteric musings (Elements of Poker) and even how to cope mentally with the difficulties poker throws up (Ace on the River).

Of the ones that didn’t quite make it into our top five there are some great recent publications that should still make it onto your Christmas wish list. Books such as Gus Hansen’s Every Hand Revealed and Lee Nelson’s Kill Everyone have offered some fresh perspectives on hyper-aggressive no-limit Hold’em tournament play, while for the maths geniuses among you, Bill Chen’s book The Mathematics of Poker will test your mental muscle to the max. Get reading!

1 SUPER SYSTEM 2

Doyle Brunson – £22.95

Considered the ‘poker bible’, Doyle Brunson’s Super System was nothing short of revolutionary when first published in 1979. It brought together an array of poker talent such as Chip Reese, Bobby Baldwin and Mike Caro, who all contributed on different games such as Stud, Draw and Lowball. But the gem of the piece was Brunson’s chapter on no-limit Hold’em, which has become the cornerstone of aggressive modern tournament strategy. By the time the internet boom came along, however, many of the non-Hold’em games discussed in the book had either changed significantly or died out altogether, so a new version was produced to update these. If you’re new to poker, buying this revised edition will provide you with a wealth of information about almost any game you care to try your hand at.

2 THE THEORY OF POKER

David Sklansky – £19.95

It’s not a book for total beginners, but David Sklansky’s The Theory of Poker is still regarded as a core text for organising a lot of intricate poker concepts into one definitive volume. The title has chapters on basic fundamentals like pot odds, effective odds and implied (or reverse implied) odds, and bluffing or semi-bluffing. But it also contains much more advanced theory, including work on game theory and Sklansky’s ‘Fundamental theorem of poker’. No-limit Hold’em players should note, however, that because of its age, some of the examples relate to games other than no-limit Hold’em, such as Stud or Razz, and to the limit betting structure. However, for anyone aspiring to be a true poker player and looking to increase their understanding of key concepts that apply in all games, it’s a must-buy.

3 ELEMENTS OF POKER

Tommy Angelo – £23.99

Tommy Angelo is a writer and poker coach who has helped scores of top-flight players on the mental and emotional side of the game. His use of ‘Tommyisms’ to explain some of his ideas about how to approach poker has made him a darling of the forums and the poker tuition world. Building on his ‘Tiltless course’, which he runs on a $3k-a-day, one-on-one basis from Palo Alto, California, he has produced and self-published this book – Elements of Poker – which addresses problems that most poker players encounter but might not have leant how to deal with. These include things like avoiding tilt, when to quit, how to cope with losing etc, and in the language of Tommyisms, concepts that can help solve these problems like ‘Bliscipline’ and ‘Mum Poker’. Essential reading for anyone who suffers from tilt.

4 ACE ON THE RIVER

Barry Greenstein – £17.99

Barry Greenstein is regarded as one of the best all-round poker players in the world. However, rather than write a guide to any of the games he’s an expert on, his book Ace on the River is a general guide to the gambling life, dealing with topics such as the mentality required to succeed and some of the pitfalls you’ll need to overcome. He discusses an array of subjects, from correct etiquette at the table to how poker relates to family, society, sex and sexuality, providing a holistic guide to how poker should fit into a professional’s life (or anyone aspiring to become one). It’s also one of the best produced poker books out, printed on high quality paper and packed with glossy images of poker players, casinos and cards. And if you’re good enough to knock Barry out of a tourney, he’ll give you a signed copy for free!

5 HARRINGTON ON HOLD’EM (PARTS 1 AND 2)

Dan Harring ton and Bill Rober tie – £19.95 each

The success of Chris Moneymaker in the 2003 WSOP Main Event and the internet poker boom was quickly translated into a groundswell of interest in big live tournaments, centred around televised coverage of the WSOP, WPT and EPT. Anticipating the interest in this format among the general public, publishers began to focus on providing instructional material for multi-table tournaments. The magnum opus of these titles is Harrington on Hold’em by Dan Harrington and Bill Robertie, who released it on the back of Dan making back-to-back Main Event final tables.

It’s split into a three-part series with the first two books presenting the core of Harrington’s tight-aggressive tournament strategy (the third is a workbook and of much less value). The first takes you through all the complexities of playing Hold’em in general, focusing on the early stages of tournaments, while the second moves onto specific areas like playing with high blinds, on the bubble, short-handed, and the final table.

At a time when relatively little was written about the tournament game and strategy was still evolving, it certainly had a big impact and popularised terms like ‘continuation bet’ overnight. Despite being written a few years ago now, the two texts are still well worth getting if you’re interested in chasing the multi-table tournament dream.