Pit Bull: Lessons from Wall Street's Champion Day Trader [Paperback]

Martin Schwartz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 24, 1999

Welcome to the world of Martin "Buzzy" Schwartz, Champion Trader--the man whose nerves of steel and killer instinct in the canyons of Wall Street earned him the well-deserved name "Pit Bull." This is the true story of how Schwartz became the best of the best, of the people and places he discovered along the way and of the trader’s tricks and techniques he used to make his millions.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

After working several years in what he considered to be a dead-end job as a financial analyst at E.F. Hutton, Schwartz quit the firm, accumulated a nest egg of $100,000 and on August 13, 1979, bought a seat on the American Stock Exchange where he began trading stocks, options and futures. He quickly became an expert at trading S&P futures, and in his first full year as an independent trader made $600,000 and a year later earned $1.2 million. Schwartz's style was to get in and out of positions in a hurry; he rarely held on to any financial instrument for more than a day. As his success on Wall Street grew, he began his own fund in which he would manage other people's money as well as his own, a move he would regret. The stress of running the fund contributed to his developing pericarditis, which nearly killed him. His doctors advised him to slow down his lifestyle, so at the age of 48, Schwartz, along with his wife and two children, moved to Florida where he took up golf and developed a daily routine that allowed him to keep trading, but at a more relaxed pace. This is one of those rare autobiographies where the subject unintentionally portrays himself in an unfavorable light. As he grew ever richer, Schwartz became consumed with generating even more money and prestige so that he could "run with the top dogs." Inadvertently, he has written a cautionary tale on the dangers of being addicted to money and power. Coauthors Morine and Flint are freelancers.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Schwartz narrates his personal account of trading big-money options on several financial exchanges. Options trading is very risky, and the average investor won't ever be involved with it. In the rapid-fire narration, Schwartz comes across as money-driven and obnoxious. He sprinkles vulgar words in an attempt to be humorous. The self-absorbed content won't help those who are looking for practical investment tips. Unfortunately, while bragging about his money and trading deals, the author doesn't tell the listener how to make some money. Instead, Schwartz goes off into details about his stress-related health problems. The promised investing lessons in the subtitle are not delivered. No sale.?Mark Guyer, Stark Cty. Dist. Lib., Canton, OH
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: HarperBusiness (March 24, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0887309569
• ISBN-13: 978-0887309564
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (87 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #90,758 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best ever, September 26, 2004

By 

Cassie C. Goodman "David Smith" (Gilbert, AZ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pit Bull: Lessons from Wall Street's Champion Day Trader (Paperback)

I think some people here missed the point of this book altogether. There is no doubt that this is one of the best trading books ever written. This book ranks among the top trading books ever including Reminiscences of a Stock Operator, not because of the technical trading secrets it revels, but because of the insights it offers on the mindset of one of the greatest traders ever. This book elevates itself above almost every other trading or financial book out there for that exact reason, the author made his living (and it was a very good living) from trading the markets. He didn't have a website that offered trading ideas for fifty bucks a month. He didn't fly around the country giving seminars on how to trade at a thousand bucks a head. He didn't have a radio program where he would solicit money from listeners and call himself a money manger. He trading his own money and made a fortune.

Marty started out with a hundred grand, but his seat on the AMEX cost him ninety thousand dollars, so he was left with ten thousand dollars of trading capital. With only ten thousand dollars he made over eight grand on his first trade. In his second year of trading he made six hundred thousand dollars, and in this third year he made 1.2 million. Unbelievable!

The book is full of insights into how Marty spent all of his money, which can become a little uninteresting, but the rest of the book is pure gold. The last chapter of the book details (for lack of a better word) some of Marty's trading ideas, but that's not valuable information. The valuable trading insights are found throughout the context of the book. Much like Reminiscences of Stock Operator doesn't outline Jessie Livermore's trading strategies; however, it does give insights into how Jessie thought about the markets. Pit Bull is written in the same manner, in that, it doesn't outline Marty's strategies but offers insight into his mindset. For instance, at one point in the book Marty discusses how he likes to trade the S&P 500 futures. This information is just glanced over by ninety-five percent of people who read the book, but it is some of the most valuable information the book has to offer.

This book is underestimated because most people just see Marty Schwartz as a self absorbed, egomaniacal jerk. I'm not going to make a judgment on Marty's attitude; instead I'm going to say that this book does one thing: it offers insight into the mind of a great trader. Notice throughout the review I've been using the word trader. If you're unclear on the differences between traders and investors you probably won't like the book. If you're a trader, Pit Bull should definitely be part of your trading library.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Big Ego Proves to Be Both an Essential Asset and Worst Enemy., November 26, 2005

By 

mirasreviews (McLean, VA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Pit Bull: Lessons from Wall Street's Champion Trader (Hardcover)

"Pit Bull" is the trading memoir of Martin "Buzzy" Schwartz, multimillionaire stock and futures trader who won the "Champion Trader" title in the 1984 U.S. Trading Championship, the "Most Money Made" title in 1983, and conquered the futures division in 1992. He made a lot of money too, but Mr. Schwartz loves the limelight and a good competition. The book starts in 1979, when Schwartz abandoned his 9-year career as a securities analyst to trade his own money on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, and progresses through his tumultuous, exciting trading career until the mid-1990s.

Schwartz sometimes digresses to relate incidents of his childhood and youth, illustrating that he was always a gambler by nature, so "Pit Bull" has some qualities of an autobiography. Schwartz' story is peppered with trading advice, and many of its best moments are when he describes his experiences during specific market events, such as his losses when the market surged after the 1980 presidential election, the idiosyncrasies of trading on the Merc, and October 1987's Black Monday and its aftermath. Martin Schwartz has a big personality and a frank sense of humor that keep the reader entertained. It seems he was both a success and a failure, having succeeded in making himself quite wealthy but not always wealthy enough for his tastes. But he gives the impression that he enjoys trading immensely most of the time.

"Pit Bull" concludes with "The Pit Bull's Guide to Successful Trading" in 30 pages, for those seeking insight into Martin Schwartz' success on the markets. It's a pretty handy guide in which Schwartz lists the trading tools and market analysis services that he uses, outlines his techniques for using moving averages and some chart patterns, and summarizes how he plays stocks and futures. That's followed by a description of "My Typical Day". "Pit Bull" is fun, I instructional, and easy to read. I was surprised that Mr. Schwartz sometimes tries to anticipate -or bet against- the market instead of following it. But sometimes he got burned. No surprise there.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Funny & entertaining insights into the life of a top trader, November 7, 2005

By 

Franco Arda (Palo Alto, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Pit Bull: Lessons from Wall Street's Champion Day Trader (Paperback)

Pit Bull gives a good and entertaining insight into the mind of a Market Wizard. "Buzzy's" book makes you sometimes laugh out loud.

Particularly interesting; anyone who considers managing other peoples money should read this book. Buzzy shows the dark side of this business and how negatively it can affect the money manager.

Don't expect another Remiscence of a Stock Operator, for that Pit Bull lacks depts on the psychology of a trader and focuses mainly on short term trading (the author is basically a scalper).

All in all a worth-reading book on the life of a top trader.