Gambling Books

Okay, I had played craps before but I was not an expert by any means. I understood certain basics but wanted to learn more, and even a system or strategy. I picked this book and it provided everything I needed. The background is well described and most importantly points out the bets that a standard user should stay away from (i.e., the bets in which the odds are not in the players favor). The strategy presented (for playing with the dice) is very comprehensive but easily described. Personally, I wanted something simple that I could remember in any state of mind. :) Regardless, this system single-handedly paid for my trip to Vegas for a buddy's wedding. I never played high-roller tables, nor did I make extreme bets (in my case). The system allowed me to maximize my profits and minimize my losses while the table was "hot". If you are interested in learning craps and using an easy system, this is the book for you.

It has really helped me understand the game. I was playing it all wrong. Haven't tried the "Come" stragedy, but will try it soon.

One of the best overall reference books on craps, as worthwhile for the more advanced player as it is for the beginner. No serious craps library should be without it.

I became acquainted with Silberstang's writing way back in the 1980s and his basic ideas do hold up. You will not really learn an advantage method in this book, but a betting system that does cut the house edge to its minimum. Silberstang's writing is crisp and clear, his experiences show that he is a player, and his knowledge of the game for random players is top notch.

This is a good book to start your craps playing career.

Frank Scoblete: Author of Golden Touch Dice Control Revolution!

If you have no idea how to play craps then i will say as all other books it explains the basic bets etc. The problem this book had, along with many other craps books i have bought is that 70% of the book is basic craps primer, 10% are about stories of big rolls, 10% is about comps and casino management and about 5 pages are about actual strategy to use while playing the game.

Drumroll please, the big strategy that will make you tons of money can be summarized in 3 sentences.

bet the pass line with double odds. After each Pass win without a loss, press the bet up. At the end it has you betting something like $500 on the pass and 1000 on the odds bet. here is the problem:

In order to get to that level the shooter, get this, has to make something liek 11 points. I have seen some shooters make 5 or 6 points but 11 is very very rare.

This book in a sentence:

After each pass with double odds win press your pass and odds bet. if you lose on 3 shooters go home.

And many thanks to the man who was responsible for many hours of my youth spent in some of the most fabulous and perilous worlds imaginable.

When I first saw the Amber RPG, my eye dropped to the "Diceless" part and I immediately walked on. "How," I wondered to myself, "...can a GameMaster keep the players honest and under control without an infallibly impartial element of randomness?" (What can I say, I never thought that one could 'load' d10s or d20s...) Later, as I read more and more in-depth essays discussing the nature of role-playing and role-players, I realized that there was a way to play without dice... it involved a couple of strange concepts called 'mutual trust' and 'maturity'. If the players are more interested in having fun and telling a story with each other and the GameMaster, then the dice aren't necessary.
Anyway, about the product itself: I'm fascinated by the ideas discussed here, especially the multiple versions of the major NPCs depending on the needs of individual campaigns. With the original author's input (Roger Zelazny, regarless of what Prince Corwin the Mad may have to say on the issue), several key points were expanded into genuinely playable elements in the game.
My minor concerns are with the layout: it was first released in 1986 and Phage Press apparently hasn't been able to put together a revised edition since then.
Still, it's a great resource for fans of the original novels, for gamers who aren't afraid to tell stories without worrying about getting dice-screwed, and the like. Buy it!

Zelazny collectors, you must buy this book to complete your collection, but you don't have to like it. You'll find a little too much liscence has been taken in the creation of characters for this role-playing game. Understandably, some of the characters died in the books and need to be resurrected in some fashion for those wanting to play them, but some are over-embellished.

Most notable is Corwin, a tarnished hero, who needs no improvement. A variation of Corwin's game character is that of a wizard, supported by bits of Ganelon's description of Corwin's "sorcerous" abilities. Any paranormal ability may be considered sorcery by the uninitiated; Ganelon also called Corwin a demon. His claims are based only on witnessing a hellride, which any Amberite has the ability to perform. Corwin is too pragmatic to ever seriously study sorcery; he depends on his sword, strength, and animal cunning.

(His sword's name, by the way, is spelled GrAyswandir, which has a beautiful visual and aural flow to it. Wujcik spells it grEy- which is just plain wrong.)

Of course, forget about the clashes with the original and this is a great place to start a great character-based role-playing game!

A book worth having even if you don't spend hours playing it like my friends and I did. I played this game before I ever read the Amber books and it got me interested in them. It does a good job of catching the spirit of the novels. For those who haven't read the novels the story deals with a family of dimension travelling imortals and their kingdom Amber. For Zelazny fans it offers an overview and in depth information about the books. For RPG fans it gives an interesting new take on character creation and conflict resolution. Yes the system does have some bugs but I think the innovation otuweighs some of the tehcnical misteps. As is billed there's no dice. Connflict is resolved by the GM looking at your ranking and assesing the situation. So if you're an Amberite and you're fighting some normal human off in shadow you'll win. If you're fighting another Amberite then, evertyhing else being equal, the guy with the better fighting ability will win every time. This means that you need a good GM who knows how to be fair and keep the story going. But the book has some nice hints on how to run a good session. Character creation is one of the most interesting parts of the game. Instead of simply rolling for, or purchasing attributes the attributes are settled in an auction wiith all players participating. Players are competing for ranks in one of four attributes (Warfare, Strength, Stamina, and Psyche). Whoever bids the most in an attribute is ranked 1st and they can automatically beat the other players in a straight up, contest in that attribute. layers can spend as littlle or as much as they like on these auctions (we had one guy once who spent 90 points out of 100 on the Warfare attribute). But make sure to leave points left over to buy powers (logrus, pattern, sorcery), objects (maical horses or armor, or even demon skateboards, you purchase the qualities you want for them), and extras (allies, family members, personal shadow realities to design to your taste). Any points left over after all this become "good stuff". Any extra points you spend beyond 100 (there's no limit) become "bad stuff". These are this games version of luck and can effect everything from combat, to personal interaction to your own perceptions. Some of this is a bit heady. Your average Amberite (unranked in any attribute) is superhumanly strong and better at combat than the best martial artist on earth. Magic items that you might salivate over in another game can come ridiculously cheap. Sorcery, a versatile if troublesome ability, is one of the cheapest of powers. The only catch is that there's always someone more powerufl than you out there. And the Amber game encourages the GM to through nasty tricks your way. The conflict resolution system leaves a lot of power in the GMs hands and somewhat forces people to think more about story and strategy than about the percentages. Since you don't now how the monster you're fighting compares to you there's a bit more drama. He could be a pushover or he could be able to kill you instantly. This is hardly the perfect game and it won't be to everyones taste. It does take a fairly skilled GM and players who are flexible and interested more in playing through a story than just hacking and slashing their way through stat books of monsters. But I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to try something different in RPGs or even someone who just enjoys a good RPG book.

Well, if you've never heard of this game --- you're not alone.
But look around for it --- because it has never been out of print despite what you might hear (though 2007, it temporarily is, look for pdfs sold online.)

It is a small press game, but the artwork and design of the game is first rate. If you have an interest in Roger Zelazny, you might like to buy the game just to see how wonderful fiction might be transformed into a roleplaying experience.

But this game isn't hard to play.

I've tailored my Amber games for 60+ yr old roleplayers and for 10+ yr old young ladies of quality. They both have had great fun.

What is required is a GM with solid gaming experience, collaborative improvisation, and a small group of players who really just want to have fun and adventure.

You'll be amazed. You won't miss the dice...

Very entertaining book. Just reading it, I could feel my adrenaline level rise. It felt like I was there in the casinos, trying to avoid the watchful eye of the security cameras. If you liked Bringing Down the House, I think you'll like this book too.

I can see how this book got five stars across the board. I could not pout this book down. It was a fast paced read. I never heard of past posting until this book came out. It is interested to read the authors progression into the cheating schemes and how the schemes are improved over time. I highly recommend this book, especially for those who don't like to read or don't know how to read.

While I am not sure how much of the book is poetic license, the author does a great job of describing his career as a casino cheat - down to the exact moves. What makes the book great is that you begin to really get a feel for what this life was like. While on the surface his life appeared glamorous, the work seemed to be constant stress. (you'll have to read the book to see why)
This book was almost as good as "Bringing Down the House" - just as well written, but the schemes themselves were slightly less interesting. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that has an interest in gambling and/or casinos. For those that don't, I would not suggest this book.

As a big fan of caper movies and con stories (Ocean's 11, The Thomas Crown Affair, Catch Me if You Can), I can enthusiastically recommend American Roulette.

Richard Marcus (most likely not his real name, in fact, the name is the same as that of the actor in a TV series called The Pretender) tells of his successful career as a casino cheat. He started as a garden-variety gambler, lost all his money, found himself homeless in Las Vegas, and became a blackjack dealer.

Marcus was recruited by a well-to-do casino rip-off gang and rose to the top over the years. He tells great stories about which casinos the gang hit, how they engineered the con, the trouble they ran into, and how they were nearly caught several times. The gang even made their way to casinos in Europe and Australia, although their base was in Las Vegas. The opening of casinos in Atlantic City and across the U.S. made for some easy pickings as well.

American Roulette is not an instructional manual on how to scam the casinos. In fact, as Marcus points out, even if you were to learn the mechanics and technicalities of the scam, there is something more basic to the success of the con game and that is being cool under pressure. These characters are glaciers.

American Roulette is a terrific read, and would make a fantastic movie.

This book tells the author's story of how he lost everything he had gambling, took a crappy job as shill--promoted to baccarat dealer--at the Four Queens in Las Vegas, and then had the opportunity to join a group of gambling cheaters and thieves. The cheating moves described in the book are mostly "pastposting"--placing high bets after the outcome is known by swapping in a new stack of chips for the ones previously bet. The trick is that high-value chips are concealed underneath low-value chips, and the cheater often has to issue a "claim" by pointing out to the dealer that he's been underpaid for the bet. The book begins and ends with a move he calls the "Savannah" which is an opposite maneuver--a high bet is placed, with the high-value chips concealed by lower-value chips, and if the bet loses, the high-value chips are pulled off. With that move, the winning bets are legitimate and surveillance tapes show that the high-value chips were there all along.

The group also would occasionally make money with other scams, like "railing"--stealing directly out of the chip racks of their fellow players. They also narrowly avoid getting involved in a card-marking scheme, violating their own rules of not using any specialized equipment that could be incriminating.

The book is most interesting for the characters involved and how they dealt with "steam" from the casinos when they caught on to what was happening.

The author appears to have no guilt or remorse for his actions on the grounds that casinos are regularly "stealing" from people every day (though that certainly doesn't justify the thefts directly from other gamblers, and ignores that gamblers are willing participants who know the odds are stacked against them).

I read _Bringing Down the House_ about the MIT Blackjack Team about a year and a half ago, and the comparison between the teams is interesting--the MIT team's methodology was far more sophisticated (and wasn't technically cheating), but both had to use similar psychological techniques.

It's surprising that the casinos didn't come up with better countermeasures quickly (a rule that there are no payouts for high-value chips not announced in advance, for example), but I find Marcus' overall tale quite plausible, in part because of the factors he points out in the last few pages of the book--"practically all casino jobs are monotonous" (p. 369). The boredom results in lack of attention and the jobs' high turnover results in inexperienced people up against very experienced cheaters.

I bought this book at the same time I bought "winning low limit" by lee jones. Had previously read ITH by mathew hilgger, but lee jones's text is so great in the way it presents strategic information, I now prefer it to ITH.
As for this book, I have no idea what the people who say this is a great introduction for hold'em are talking about.
The presentation is confusing, the book contains a lot of fillers with little valuable information. Rules of hold'em aren't that complicated that requires the extensive chapters on reading the board as this necessarly comes with experience and doesn't take that long.
As for strategy, I admit Miller is a bit more agressive than lee jones(which depends on the stakes you play in) and does present very valuable ideas, but I think the presentation is less than functional for complete begginers, for whom this book is intended.

It is a cheap book...in all ways possible.

I have played poker for years, but Hold'Em is a very different game and Ed Miller's book Getting Started in Hold'Em is an excellent introduction. Other books I've bought seem to assume the reader already has some experience at Hold'em, but I was looking for information before sitting down to a game. Without condescending, Miller explains the game in detail and shows the differences in analysis and strategy from other poker games.

I agree with the reviewer that said that this book has replaced Lee Jones' book as the best introductory text for beginning players. Where I differ from most reviewers is in the idea that this is only a "beginners" book. I disagree. This book is great for anyone who plays poker including advanced players in that it acts as reinforcement for concepts we know but sometimes forget or ignore. It basically explains advanced concepts in a simple way and for that reason it is valuable to anyone. I remember that even though I was already a winning player when I read this book, it still improved and strengthened my understanding of concepts such as pot equity, the danger of hand domination, importance of aggression and so on. If I had a close friend just starting out in hold 'em, this would be the first book I would recommend to him, followed by Millers other classic, "Small stakes hold 'em- Winning big with expert play."

Great book, you can't go wrong with this one.

I have read four books on holdem poker and this has the best and most understandable format of any of them. I would recommend it to all beginners and to most intermediate players also, that are interested in improving their game.

I've got this book in my bag right now. And I've bought over 20+ poker books; a half-dozen DVDs; and plenty of poker magazines.

I'm rereading it to review some of the NL cash concepts...which one reviewer ridiculed...but I thought it made alot of sense...essentially its NL short stack cash strategy...play tight and put your stack in the middle with premium or very good hands. I like that he admitts...this probably won't make you the most popular guy at the table.

In other parts of the book...he goes over the concept of pot equity in an easy to understand fashion...which I still appreciate. After you read this book you're either aware of....or refreshed on...some very solid poker concepts/principles.

The NL tournament section is short...true. Nothing remarkable. But still useful for a beginner. I looked at it more as an add-on than anything else.

good luck

Arrived quickly. Excellent book for understanding how to recognize tells with yourself and others and what to do about it. Helps you get over the 'bad beat' and prepares you for long sessions and keys to success. Recommended for advanced players who care about getting over the emotional aspects of the game and having good mindset to continue making good decisions.

Reading this book makes a lot of sense. Good advice on bankroll management, and most importantly tells you what you need to do to help you avoid tilt. Tilt is probably the main cause of a downswing, avoiding tilt is important. After reading this book I feel cool and calm about playing poker knowing that it will all even out in the long run. I also like how it stresses that poker is just a game and that there are other things in life.

I mostly play online. Saw myself, my relationship to the game and other players differently as I read the book over a 3 week period. My results have improved. Check out the Table of Contents. Book is put together well. I'm considering purchasing their Statistics and probability book but I've got a stack of Harrington books waiting to be read.

You can't be a PPP without having read this book.
Seriously, poker it's a game of man played with cards, and this book will teach you how to master your attitude to that.
Great.

So you may as well buy it. I'm an online pro poker player and have been for about 2 years now and I can say with 100% certainty that this book has increased my profits. I've read it about 3.5 times. If you have already mastered your tilt you may not need this, but it has lots of good information about different types of tilt you may not be familiar with. It also gives convincing points about BR management. Give it to your always busto friends.

But most likely you need it. When people ask me which book helped my poker game most out of my collection this is currently the one I point to.

I'm sure I'll see Las Vegas in a different light after reading this book. You can't help but be fascinated by these larger-than-life characters. Steve Wynn is without a doubt the most interesting character in the book, but viewing the city as a competition between titans is something I've never really comprehended on trips to the Strip before. It's a great easy read, with lots of interesting facts. I agree with some reviewers who had problems following the (hazy) timeline, but it didn't diminish from the overall enjoyment.

I just visited Las Vegas and loved it, it was much better than I expected it to be after having toured all around Europe! I bought this book at the airport book store in Vegas as the assistant said that was the book everyone had been asking after. It was a fascinating and entertaining read, with particularly inside information on how Steve Wynn approaches business and also how it contrasts with that of Kirk Kerkorian and Gary Loveman at Harrahs.

I couldn't put it down and recommend it to anyone who has visited Las Vegas and is wondering how it go to be the town that it is today.

Binkley presents an insightful and lively account of some of the players who operate in a world where nothing succeeds like excess. It is a world that the author knows well from her years of having covered the industry as a Wall Street Journal reporter, but, despite being granted unprecedented access to Las Vegas' movers and shakers, she remains a detached observer. From backroom deal-making to outsized egos to glitzy spectaculars, Binkley covers it all with a sprightly writing style, providing insights into what makes men like Steve Wynn, Kirk Kerkorian, and Gary Loveman tick.

It was a world I knew nothing about other than a few business trips to Las Vegas, but I found the book highly entertaining and learned a lot about how about how three very different visionaries plotted a path to success. I will enjoy my next business trip to Sin City much more having read this book. I recommend it highly.

A great summation of the last 15 years of Las Vegas, the influences that made it what it is, and the big personalities that rule the land. One negative comment I have is the movie is really two stories in one, Wynn/Kerkorian their deal and influence, and how Loveman/Harrahs elbowed its way from a smalltime operator to major player.

The majority of the book is about Wynn and his influence in Las Vegas and how it developed from the Mirage to the Bellagio to the Wynn. And of course the big occurrence is the buyout of Wynn's operation by Kerkorian when he senses the stock weakness caused by Wynn's lack of management skills. A very fascinating story!

After completing the acquisition the book slows down somewhat as it tells the tale of middle market Harrah's and how it busts into the big time by acquiring Ceasar's. This book explores the mathematical focus at Harrah's and how it increases profitablity. While it's interesting reading how a glorified math professor rises to casino president while retaining his old lifestyle, this section is the least interesting at least for me.

In summary this is a fascinating read of a fascinating city. Just a walk down the strip let's anyone see every part of American culture good and bad as Las Vegas is the mecca of most Americans at some point in their lives.

The Wall Street Journal reporter Christina Binkley was that paper's lead reporter in Las Vegas for 10 years. In "Winner Takes All" she pulls together that experience - both the knowledge and her contacts - and delivers a compelling, enthralling narrative of Vegas' transformation over that period.

The book's sub-title says "Steve Wynn, Kirk Kerkorian, Gary Loveman and the Race to Own Las Vegas." Binkley posits that a series of mega-deals have apportioned Vegas into three controlling companies: MGM Mirage (headed by Kirkorian); Wynn (Steve Wynn's eponymous new post-Mirage venture); and Harrah's (helmed by ex-Harvard prof Loveman). Binkley appears to have had little access to Kerkorian, (no one does, but read Bill Vlasic's classic Taken for a Ride: How Daimler-Benz Drove Off With Chrysler for a better peek at him) but ample access to his lieutenants. She obviously had developed a cordial relationship with Loveman. What stands out is her relationship with Wynn and wife Elaine. It's extensive, to say the least. She's clearly enchanted with the guy.

In fact, that relationship leads me to my major problem with the book - it simply lacks credibility to leave Sheldon Adelson - Chairman and CEO of Las Vegas Sand Corporation (Venetian, Sands Convention Center, Palazzo) - out of the story. He, as much as anyone, set the pace for Vegas during Binkley's years of coverage. And, he made the leap to Macao ahead of any of his Vegas peers. It's blatantly obvious from the text that Ms. Binkley has a history with Adelson. Yes, he's famously dyspeptic and probably has little use for her. But Adelson has also feuded publicly and nastily with Steve Wynn. Wynn uses Binkley here quite transparently to take a number of gratuitous slams at Adelson. She's little more than a water-carrier in that regard. That's sad because it detracts from the overall excellence of the book in a very distracting way.

A tale of the tape:

p. 89 - Adelson described as a "would-be mogul" who "irked Wynn"

p. 93 - Adelson is "warring with Wynn"

p. 209 - Adelson described as Wynn's "nemesis and neighbor"

p. 250 - The "eccentric" Adelson takes Sands public and is "catapulted from obscurity to number 19 on the Forbes 400" (Hello?? COMDEX, anyone? This guy was hardly obscure pre-Sands; his success was far from the luck and accident implied here).

p. 271 - 272 - Wynn takes a moment to "pity" Adelson...'It's too bad he's not in better health and able to enjoy it more. He's in a wheelchair.' That's cold, man.

p. 276 - "Loveman lost the Singapore bid to Sheldon Adelson." Adelson didn't win it, right? Loveman lost it. It's like Adelson and team had no role and won by default. Hardly.

I've not cherry-picked the negative references - those are the ONLY references! Juvenile stuff. What a shame.

The author could not decide what his subject was: a) the corrupting effects of contemporary gambling in Louisiana; b) how gambling licenses were won there; or c) Edwards' corrupt activities. Although I enjoyed many of its anecdotes, the book is structurally flawed and does not hang together. It also suffers from annoyingly redundant quotes.

Bridges undoubtedly could have written excellent 50-100 pp. pieces on each of the three subjects above, or he could have shortened them into very readable magazine pieces. But he has failed to turn these related topics into a cohesive whole.

If you were asked to make up a Grisham type tale about politics and corruption I do not think it would rival the true story this book takes you through.

This book is excellent because it is supported by hard evidence of Louisian-style corruption.. For example, the author reports that former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Eddie Jordan, had a videotape of Gov. Edwards delivering a $20,000 bribe to former U.S. Representative Cleo Fields (D LA). Over the objection of his staff, Jordan declined to prosecute Fields or Edwards because , in his opinion, the evidence was insufficient. The Clinton Justice Department did not overrule Jordan's decision. How much more evidence did Jordan need? The real reason that Jordan decl;ined prosecution is that Fields and U.S. Representative William Jefferson (D LA) were both members of the Congressional Black Caucus, and Jefferson and Jordan worked together in the same law office. Jordan could not prosecute his enemy, Edwards. without prosecuting his friend, Fields. The bitter irony of Edwards' criminal activity is that the U.S. Court of Appeals will probably reverse his conviction on legitimate grounds. Both the prosecutors and the trial judge overreached by dismissing during jury deliberations the only juror who was voting for acquittal and by ministrepreting the RICO statute. In any event, the question remains: why did "60 Minutes", "20/20", and "Prime Time" fail to cover the Fields bribery case? Dan , Tom and Sam, "What's the answer?"

"Vote for the crook. It's important." This was a bumper sticker seen around Louisiana at the time of the Edwards-Duke Election. It implores the electorate to vote for the three-time governor whose definition of an honest politician was one who stayed bought in order to beat the former Ku Klux Klan wizard.
Like this bumper sticker, the book is funny--the thievery was so inept and outrageous, yet sad because this stuff was really going on.
The author knows his stuff, and the subject area, Edwin Edwards and the rise of gambling in Louisiana is a great story. This book reads like a thriller.

I got this book for my husband, as he's the non-fiction reader in our family. I was out of something to read, so I picked it up and could NOT put it down.

Bridges does a great job of putting a lot of convoluted information into readable form. Edwin Edwards and his Crazy Cajun Cronies didn't really do anything new...they just continued a long tradition of crooked Louisiana Politics!

I enjoyed almost all of this book...the only parts that made my eyes glaze over were the details regarding the financing. My mind just can't wrap around deals where the broker stands to make 27 MILLION dollars....and then one million a year after that!

If you ever wanted a peek into the world of slick politicians, oily gangsters and brash billionaires, this is your book. BAD BET ON THE BAYOU should be required reading for anyone who votes!

Enjoy!

Beyer is nothing short of a genius in my opinion, but the book is a little outdated but for $10.95 how picky can you really be?

Andrew Beyer has been a godsend to horseplayers. He has made it easy to understand and gave us an edge when making selections. Understanding horse race betting and the past performances of horses has opened doors to novice and expert handicappers alike!

I've never been a huge fan, but I LOVED the anecdotes. I've always had the opinion that Mr. Andrew Beyer is a very stereotypical Harvard Grad. Pompous, arrogant, and most of all very Howard Cossell-esque in his vernacular. I also believe that a lot of what he writes is pure "fluff". I'm much more direct and to the point in my writing style. In my first two public offerings (The Ultimate Guide To Handicapping The Horses:From and Horseman and a Gambler and in "The Tuttle Way" on sale here @ Amazon.com), I let my feelings be known for my utter disdain for how "subjective" I believe the "Beyer Speed Figures" to be, toward the horse racing community and to the general betting public. But, I did give this 33 yr-old relic (this book has a copywrite date of 1975) 3-stars on the basis of the anecdotes, alone!

Signed,
Joseph J Tuttle
Signed

It was hard for me to give three stars for this book, because the author revolutionized handicapping. But I didn't think any of the information in the book was useful to me. However, I did enjoy the book as there were a lot of funny stories that I could relate too.

Nothing against Beyer or any other handicapping writer, but devoting significant time to the study of handicapping is a fool's errand. The mathematics of beating the game are so prohibitively against the bettor that anyone with the ability to even approach break-even would be better served dedicating his/her time to more lucrative pursuits. Regardless of the race, the only thing that is certain is that the track will take about 20% for straight bets and 25% or more for so-called "exotic" wagers. In order to just break-even, you need the ability to identify errors made by the betting public of at least 20%. For any reasonable series of races in which the market is "efficient" (i.e. the betting populace has done a reasonable job of setting pay-outs) you have zero possibilty of making a profit. Studies have consistently shown that the betting public does a remarkable job in setting an efficient price. Obviously, in order to overcome the 20% "tax", you need superior information to that which is available to the general public. Given that "Beyer" speed figures are now common currency, the advantage clearly doesn't lie here. The racing form and video of previous races are common currency as well. You could take a walk down to the paddock and try to infer something there, good luck! Unless you have the ability to somehow communicate with the horse, this isn't going to really be that fruitful. Some horses look like garbage before a race and spring to life when the gate opens. Others look like Secretariat in the paddock and like a candidate for the glue factory once they hook up at full speed w/ other nags. Another point to consider is that your betting competition includes owners, trainers, stable boys, etc. who are around the horse all the time and certainly have superior information about the horses physical and mental state. Additionally, you can only speculate as to what the owner and trainer are intending from a given race. I'm not talking "fix" here, but it's not always the case that the horse's connections have entered this race with the main objective of actually winning it. Beyer is one of the leading thoroughbred writers in America and revolutionized handicapping with his speed figures, but the difficulty in beating this game should be clearly understood before you find yourself on the proverbial boulevard of broken dreams.

I was looking for a book on video poker that covered most of the recent games and optimal strategy for those games. The book does just that, and more....

This is a very well written book for beginners. Other authors on this subject introduce their books as suitable for a beginner in the first few chapters but the following chapters are difficult for the novice to read and understand. Linda Boyd, perhaps because she is an educator, writes clearly and fully introduces new vocabulary before using new terms in her explanations.

Excellent, understandable and I'd rec. to any one looking for a 'how to' on video poker

An excellent treatment on Video Poker. Gives, as all these guides do, a quick overview of what is involved in playing Video Poker. Then she delves into the deeper aspects of choice of game which is based on the printed paytable and its implied "expected return" and volatility level. You see some games while having very attractive payoffs for those very rare hands, require a substantially higher bankroll to play with a reasonable expectation of achieving the theoretical long-term payoff while others with lower payoffs (but more frequent) require less bankroll. Lots of tables are included containing all the really essential stuff sought after by the serious Video Poker player. Now if you are NOT a serious player, this book can still be a valuable investment because there are removable strategy cards at the end of the book covering all the most common machines. Those alone were worth the price of admission.

This book doesn't provide much in strategy that you can't find on the net or elsewhere. I was looking for some well formated strategy charts for non-full pay games, and this book was not good for that need.

One positive section was the discussion of VLTs in many racinos and bars in several states (e.g. bars in Louisiana). VLTs are not VP machines based on random number generators.

The strategy cards are terrible and I think my copy was missing a page (there was a tear showing a previous perforation). If you play VP in large casinos on the strip, you won't be playing full pay games.

An excellent, thoroughgoing work. The best and most honest book on thoroughbred racing published this year.

This book has taught me alot about horse racing, and had definitely aided in my enjoyment of the sport and helped me win some money! There are some chapters that are a little boring with unnecessary info.

I gave this as a gift to my mother before several trips to the races, and after completing it, I was pleased to find she was doing basic handicapping correctly. This book doesn't get deep into hard-core handicapping, but for most people who enjoy the races as an occasional fun day out, it puts all those numbers in the program or the racing form into perspective... making for a more enjoyable experience! Well done.

With the Kentucky Derby about one week away, it will be like NCAA March Madness where even the casual of sports fans is going to have an opinion on the outcome.

But maybe you will want to take that opinion one step further and place a bet at the local race track or OTB that's simulcasting the race. This book will help you learn the nomenclature associated with wagering on the races and the nuances to betting.

Author Richard Eng guides the reader through the basic bets like win, place and show, but really earns high marks by delving into the exotic bets - like exactas, trifectas and superfectas - where betting the same money as you would on the traditional trio may yield much higher payouts.

The book is not how to handicap races, which is the art or reading a racing form or researching with other material to select runners for your various bets. It purely focuses on understanding what bets are possibly available for the races at your local tracks or on the simulcasts.

And with confidence, you'll be able to march up to the teller and state - for the record - "In race five I'd like an exacta box with with 2 and the 6," just like a pro. And through the help of Eng you will certainly understand it just as well or better than that "expert" who's next in line.

I got this book after going to the racetrack one day and poring over the racing form in confusion. I didn't even bet because I didn't know what I was looking at. I thought this book, being of the "Dummies" variety, would be a good introduction to betting. Wrong!

I found this book very difficult to understand, and one almost certainly must have prior knowledge of betting to understand some of the concepts in this book. The author gives a lot of examples, but they are in such fine print that I couldn't read them! I would need a magnifying glass to see what he was talking about in many, many examples. He progresses very quickly from beginner definitions to advanced betting concepts, and it wasn't organized in a logical, straightforward fashion. This book is not geared toward the casual bettor like me, but more towards someone who already has some knowledge of betting and is looking to set up a money-making system.

After getting about 3/4 of the way through this book, I threw my hands up in despair and gave up. I guess I won't be betting on the horses anytime soon, because I still don't have a clue after reading this.