The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Tournament Poker [Mass Market Paperback]

David Apostolico (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2, 2006 | Series: The Pocket Idiot's Guide

The world of tournament poker is growing at an amazing rate, and one of the most significant areas of growth has been the increased interest in no-limit hold'em tournaments. Hold'em, as opposed to standard stud poker games, has boomed in popularity and so have related tournament events including much larger, no-limit events than ever before - including the four no-limit hold'em events at the World Series of Poker. Tournament play is changing. Most tournaments in the United States are nonsmoking, more novice and intermediate players are playing in no limit games, and more players are playing on the Internet and via satellite than ever before. While tournament rules still aren't standardized, some keys to tournament play and strategy can help players be more effective. Readers learn how to make the best use of their breaks, how to study the blind levels ahead of time to prepare for play, tricks for calculating chip stacks quickly, and how to adjust play for stacks and round timing. Whether a fast-moving, low-buy-in tournament or a five-day main event, "The Pocket Idiot's Guide[trademark] to Tournament Poker" will quickly become a must-have for a player's library. Learn about slow increases, round times, blinds, final table play, and the pluses and minuses of each. Find ways to adjust your strategy not just for the games but also for limits, length of rounds, big and small stacks, and other factors in today's tournament trends. Whether first timers or more experienced players, readers will learn tips on etiquette and format for all sorts of tournaments - as well as the basics of tells, wardrobe, habits, and more. Discover tournament strategies for Texas hold'em, Limit hold'em, Omaha Hi-Lo, and Seven Card Stud. Also included is a chapter on strategy and tournament basics for online tournaments. Find out how to adjust rules for a charity poker tournament.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

David Apostolico has won tournaments in Atlantic City, Las Vegas, and online and has finished in the money at the U.S. Poker Championships. He competes in dozens of tournaments every year from low buy-ins to events on the WSOP circuit and is the author of the recently published Tournament Poker and The Art of War (Lyle Stuart, March 2005) and the upcoming Machiavellian Poker Strategy.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Alpha (May 2, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 159257470X
• ISBN-13: 978-1592574704
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,336,811 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I love a good book whether it is a terrific work of fiction, an historical biography or a current non-fiction book. I'm a fan of many genres. Lately, I have really enjoyed the works of Malcolm Gladwell. Both The Tipping Point and Outliers really resonated with me. The books challenged some of my beliefs and were eye opening in their relevations. Gladwell is a master of tackling cutting edge concepts and presenting them in an oh so easy to read style.

In my latest book Compete, Play, Win: Finding Your Best Competitve Self, I hope to do for competition what Gladwell did for marketing in The Tipping Point. I want the reader to look to discover a few things about him or herself as to why and how they compete and how they can harness that innate instinct for maximum gain in today's strategic world. How we're wired has not changed in thousands of years but how we need to channel that competitive drive productively has changed dramatically. Just about all of us will, at times, let our competitiveness get the better of us and lead us down a path of self destruction rather than production. Recognizing that tendency and knowing how to combat it is critical to achieving success. I want people to become results oriented rather than focused on winning little battles that accomplish nothing more than satisfying the ego.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good thinking but too basic, May 3, 2006

By 

2many2read (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Tournament Poker (Mass Market Paperback)

I can believe Mr. Apostolico would make a tough tourney opponent.Unfortunately this isn't The Idiot's Guide, it's The

Pocket Idiot's Guide. It's not everything, it's everything that fits in your back pocket.

The whole thing runs about 200 pages and there's an awful lot of the basics covered here: examples of HE poker hands, a glossary, where to find poker tournaments, and on and on.

I'm looking forward to his book later in the year on the Pro Poker Tour. That may well be a worthwhile read.

For now, read one of Dan Harrington's tournament poker books instead. He knows his stuff. (If you know the ranking of poker hands and have played a few times, you can follow it.)

For HE in general, read Getting Started in Hold 'em by Ed Miller for basics and the mindset needed for Texas Hold'em.

4.0 out of 5 stars Good concise book, November 15, 2010

By 

Thomas Meier "thegerman" (Germany) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Tournament Poker (Paperback)

This is a great book to get familiar with the mechanics of tournament poker, which are quite different from a normal cash game. It also gives some valuable tips about how to play in different stages of a tournament and what aspects are crucial to staying in the game. I highly recommend this book as an entry level guide.

5.0 out of 5 stars A wealth of advice, counsel, warnings, suggestions, strategies and tactics on every aspect and sequence of tournament play, August 8, 2006

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Tournament Poker (Mass Market Paperback)

Tournament poker, especially that form called "No-Limit Texas Hold 'Em" has become something of a national phenomena over the past few years. Now tournaments are played in every major American city, are all over the television airwaves, and easily available online. David Apostolico has won poker tournaments in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, online gaming websites, .and writes a monthly poker column for "TopPair Magazine". In The Pocket Idiot's Guide To Tournament Poker, Apostolico draws upon his more than twenty-five years of experience to introduce the reader to the rules of poker, layout basic tactics and strategies, find a suitable tournament, and become a better poker player -- especially in a tournament setting. One of the principle advantages of The Pocket Idiot's Guide To Tournament Poker over the many "how to" books on poker that are now available, is that this one is quite literally "pocket sized" and can be slipped into the shirt or coat pocket and taken along to the tournament table for reference. Offering a wealth of advice, counsel, warnings, suggestions, strategies and tactics on every aspect and sequence of tournament play, no novice poker player or aspiring professional can afford to be without their own well read copy of The Pocket Idiot's Guide To Tournament Poker.