Book Review: Killer Poker by the Numbers

Author: Simon Dexter

Killer Poker by the Numbers
The Mathematical Edge for Winning Play
By Tony Guerrera

This book’s title suggests it offers comprehensive advice on poker arithmetic, on how to calculate the probability of hitting draws and an easy guide to assessing pot odds.
To an extent, this information is here, but it’s provided in an entirely different context to that which many readers might expect. Guerrera takes a unique approach to applying maths to poker. Rather than calculate odds against specific cards making a powerful enough hand to win the pot, he compares the relative likelihood of success in no limit hold ‘em encounters against a selection of hands that your opponents might possess. His approach is complicated, but it provides a unique method of looking at poker situations.
However, although Guerrera maintains that the maths contained within his enjoyable tome are ‘accessible’, in truth, the reader will require a decent understanding of probability law before tackling some of the more complex situations.
This shouldn’t put the determined reader off, for the maths are not particularly difficult and the techniques suggested by the author are extremely persuasive. By sticking with it, probably with occasional cross-reference to a maths textbook, readers will eventually garner a raft of analytical skills far in excess of those possessed by the average poker player.
What are these likely to be? Perhaps the most beneficial will be a more comprehensive appreciation of implied odds and of how to make efficient bets. Gaining prowess in these areas is extremely useful and few authors have covered them as comprehensively as Guerrera. They’re undoubtedly difficult topics, but the focused reader who completes this book will gain a valuable insight which will ensure he approaches future poker duels in a completely different manner.

Tags: Book Review, poker, poker book, Poker book review, Poker Books

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 19th, 2007 at 2:07 pm and is filed under News & Promotions Blog.