My 50 Most Memorable Hands (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

This instant classic relives the most incredible hands by the greatest poker player of all time. Great players, legends and unforgettable events in the history of poker march in and out of fifty years of momentous hands. Sit side-by-side with Doyle as he replays the excitement and life-changing moments of the most exciting and crucial hands in the history of poker—his early games as a rounder in the rough-and-tumble ?Wild West? years where a man was as likely to get shot as he was to get a straight flush, to the nail-biting excitement of his two world championship titles.

Doyle brings to life the high stakes tension of sidestepping police, hijackers and murderers, competes for hands worth more than a million dollars, and sweats out situations where his last dollar relies on the outcome of a card. Engrossing, captivating, riveting, and ultimately, educational, this is a momentous and thrilling collection of great stories and sage poker advice from the living legend himself.

About the Author

Doyle ?Texas Dolly' Brunson, two-time World Series of Poker champion, is considered the greatest poker player in the world. He is the acclaimed author of four books including, Super System 1, the most influential book ever written, and the sequel Super System. Doyle is regularly seen on TV playing in high stakes games and tournaments and is the spokesperson for an online site, Doylesroom.com, that spends more than $5 million a year advertising in the U.S.

Product Details

• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: Cardoza; 1st edition (March 27, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580422020
• ISBN-13: 978-1580422024
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #496,076 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great book for the poker fan-atic in your life!, September 3, 2007

By	bryan12603 (Poughkeepsie, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This is a review of _My 50 Most Memorable Hands_ by Doyle Brunson.

This book consists of a series of very short chapters (typically 2-3 pages) describing hands from all over Brunson's career, from a family game to the WSOP Main Event final table. Brunson says that the hands are not in any particular order (p. 9). Some readers will enjoy this book an immense amount, but others will find it completely uninteresting. Do you know who Doyle Brunson is? Have you heard of Johnny Moss, Stu Unger AND Phil Ivey? Are you amazed that anyone would re-raise pre-flop and then bet out on the flop, turn and river with 22 and a board of KK767 (hand no. 30)? Do you even understand what that last sentence meant? If you answered "Yes" to all these questions, you will probably really love this book. (If you answered "No" to any question, don't even bother finishing this review.)

I have to admit that, prior to reading this book, I had a sort of romanticized image of the life of Doyle Brunson. I guess I really bought into the persona he projects in televised games. I assumed that he was born into some Bible-belt community where gambling was frowned upon, and had to hide his new profession from his family. I imagined that he had gambled in seedy places where people did things like pull a knife on him for having a higher flush. I fantasized that he had seen people literally drop dead of exhaustion at the table during marathon multi-day gambling sessions. I even supposed (don't laugh at me here) that Brunson had seen someone shot dead right at the poker table. Yes, that was my silly, unrealistic vision of the gambling career of the man known as "Texas Dolly."

Well, guess what? That's all true, and much more equally amazing stuff. (For the particular stories I just adverted to, see hands no. 22, 24, 10 and 2.)

But true poker fans will be even more interested in the details of the hands that Brunson played. The famous hands are certainly here, including Brunson's stunning back-to-back 1976 and 1977 WSOP Main Event wins with the same hand: 10-2 (nos. 3 and 6). He also includes his second-place finish to Stu Unger in 1980, a hand he admits he misplayed (no. 17). But for me, the single most spectacular hand was the one in which Brunson had AA, the board was A4224, no flush (hence no straight flush) was possible, and he folded to a bet on the river. Did you get that? Brunson had the nut full house, aces full of fours, he folded on the river - and it was the correct laydown! (See no. 7 for this one.)

This book is not perfect, even for its target audience. Sometimes I would have liked more information about the details of each hand. How large was the pot? Who bet how much pre-flop, and on the flop, turn and river? Sometimes this information is provided, but not always. But overall this is a terrific book for any big poker fans you know.

4.0 out of 5 stars Fast Easy Read, May 5, 2007

By	T. Gooding - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

From the title you can tell that Doyle is going to give an acount of his most memorable hands and that is exactly what he does. He gives about a 2-3 page description of each entailing why the hand is memorable. Sometimes it is Doyle laying a bad beat on someone or someone dying at the table. I guess that would make a hand memorable for me too!

Obviously, this book is not technical. There is no hand analysis or percentages listed. Just a first hand account of some interesting poker hands from one of the legends of poker.

As always, I hang on ever word that doyle writes, and he writes precious few. The book ends abruptly after the last hand. Too bad Doyle isn't half the writer that he is a poker player, otherwise this would be an outstanding book.

All-in-all this is a very light book and an easy read. I laughed a couple of times, and gained a little more respect for the legend... About a 2 hour read.

5.0 out of 5 stars A fun, fast read -- read it before a night at the tables, August 4, 2009

By	L. Aiello (West Coast, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A well laid-out book, told as if Doyle is sitting there next to you recalling everything in person. He doesn't start out explaining everything, so when you get this be ready to know the basics of Texas Hold 'em. There are about 10 hands of the 50 that are not hold 'em hands so be aware of those.

When he talks about many of the hands, there are nicely detailed photos of the cards so that you can really get a feel of what was shown on the table as the story is being told. This is the greatest aspect of the book - being able to see the cards and take it all in. The hole cards as well as the flop, turn, and river are shown almost all the 40 or so hold em hands; there are a few times where he goes on to tell the story without the pictures of the cards. A minor inconveinence.
Doyle is a poker legend, and it's neat to hear his memories of these hands. A great book, and I know he can come up with 50 more someday!