Zen and the Art of Poker: Timeless Secrets to Transform Your Game [Paperback]

Larry Phillips (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1999

Inside the intriguing world of poker lies a fascinating exercise in strategy and extreme concentration--many of the same principles that underpin the one-thousand-year-old philosophy of Zen spirituality. Zen and the Art of Poker is the first book to apply Zen theories to America's most popular card game, presenting tips that readers can use to enhance their game. Among the more than one hundred rules that comprise this book, readers will learn to: * Make peace with folding * Use inaction as a weapon * Make patience a central pillar of their strategy * Pick their times of confrontation Using a concise and spare style, in the tradition of Zen practices and rituals, Zen and the Art of Poker traces a parallel track connecting the two disciplines by giving comments and inspirational examples from the ancient Zen masters to the poker masters of today.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Many readers of this original book, which mixes Zen and poker, will find it difficult to grasp Zen theories in which one becomes an arrow, is the ball, and becomes one with poker and the universe. In gambling, it's easier to be a cynic, but an open mind will be necessary in accepting the knowledge of the bodhi tree. The poker enthusiast has only one objective in winning money. Phillips, a journalist and poker pro, perhaps with his tongue in his cheek implies that an individual will be rewarded with an almost psychic internal peace by the practices and theories of Zen. The true poker player or gambler, however, is by nature intuitive, compulsive, aggressive, calculating, relentless, and one-dimensional. Still, the author's approach makes this an entertaining and well-written work worth perusing. He gives 100 useful rules for improving one's play plus proverbs and theories that are great to mull over. As to the challenge of finding peace in folding, there is no way of doing it and maintaining sanity. Highly recommended for public libraries.AMarty Soven, Woodside, NY
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Read it once, read it twice, and read it once again. -- David R. Huberman

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Plume; 1st Edition & 2nd Edition edition (November 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0452281261
• ISBN-13: 978-0452281264
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #215,934 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing poker instructional book, October 9, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Zen and the Art of Poker: Timeless Secrets to Transform Your Game (Paperback)

Ever wonder how people like Howard Lederer win so much cash over the long haul in poker? It isn't that line he and other pros like Phil Hellmuth always give ("I see into the soul of the other player"). Poker pros say that as a standard defense just in case they ever run into you at the table, so they can intimidate you (hey, these pros aren't stupid, they realize psychology is a huge factor to Texas Hold-em)... The real key is patience (a simple, yet very difficult concept in poker). It is pretty well known that Lederer has gotten into Zen over the last year or so (and his game has soared to even higher levels then before). Don't worry, there is no chanting or other mystical weirdness in this book, just 100+ quality concepts of fundamental, intermediate and advanced poker techniques and tactics. The key is being able to implement them into your game. I would guess only 20% or so of you reading this have what it takes to do that (just human nature)... If you can implement these techniques, there is no doubt you will win consistantly, whether you play on the internet or in traditional card rooms. I would imagine those who wrote bad reviews for this book are the aggresive type players who are unable to play a quality "thinking man's" or "woman's" game. The bottom line is, do you want to win cash or do you want to be a maverick who may hit a lucky big pot here and there, but ultimately give all their chips away to guys like Lederer, Dan Harrington, Erik Seidel and Andy Bloch. Yeah, I know, those are not the most flashy players around, but they are guys who probably have the most cash in their bank accounts. The truth is, grinders win. And this book should be part of any personal poker instructional library (the format of it is also great as it lends itself to not only cover-to-cover analysis, but quick reference as well).

37 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Many strong ideas marred by a few incorrect concepts, December 27, 1999

By 

Michael Hunter (Stateline, NV United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Zen and the Art of Poker: Timeless Secrets to Transform Your Game (Paperback)

This book sets out to achieve a clear and reasonable goal of applying Zen to help your poker game. It describes the limitations in doing this in a clear and reasonable manner.

Many of the concepts set out by the book are very useful. What really marrs the book is the occasionally mention of ways of detecting and leaving a cold table early and like issues. That part of the book is just incorrect.

I'd suggest this book for anybody (isn't that all of us) that occasionally or not so occasionally has troubles with emotions coming inbetween plan and execution. Read each section critically and I believe the sum output is well worth the cost.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You can't master the game until you've mastered yourself!, August 4, 2000

By 

Carol (Sparks, NV USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zen and the Art of Poker: Timeless Secrets to Transform Your Game (Paperback)

Kudos to Larry Phillips! I am a person who is very technical in approach. I was frustrated with why I understood how to play poker, yet was not winning consistently. Then I read Zen and the Art of Poker. I realised that I had mastered the rules of the game, but not myself. Having watched the emotions of many poker players, I can tell you that what is missing in their game, can be found in this book. I was amazed at what a difference it made. This book teaches you how to make peace with poker. When it comes to a bad day at poker (and we all have them), this book will be the difference between going home angry and going home wiser. Usually when you buy a book, you take money out of your pocket; this book is responsible for much money going into mine. So buy this book and next time we meet at the poker table, just remember who you have to thank for pointing you in the right direction.