Comparing poker tournament books Part 7: Standalones

This is the final installment in this series and will cover tournament poker books that were single, standalone, volumes. I’ve left off some of the older entries like Tom McEvoy’s and TJ Cloutier’s work.

Here is a look at each of the entries I will cover in this series:

• Harrington on Hold’ Em, by Dan Harrington Volumes 1-3
• Secrets of Professional Tournament Poker, by Jonathan Little (Volumes 1 and 2 have been released and Volume 3 is in the works)
• Kill Phil, Kill Everyone, and The Raisers Edge, by Lee Nelson, Blair Rodman, Bertrand Grospellier et al.
• Winning Poker Tournaments One Hand at a Time, by Jon Turner, Eric Lynch, and John Van Fleet (Volumes 1-3)
• The Poker Tournament Formula, by Arnold Snyder (Volumes 1 and 2)
• Standalones: Every Hand Revealed, by Gus Hansen: Tournament Poker for Advanced Players, by David Sklansky: The Full Tilt Strategy Guide (tournament edition)

Standalone titles

This is the final installment in this series and will also be the first to diverge from the usual grading system. With multiple titles to discuss I will give a brief explanation of each book and then an overall grade.

Every Hand Revealed, by Gus Hansen (Overall Grade 3.5)

Gus Hansen’s, Every Hand Revealed is an innovative undertaking where Gus describes a tournament he won (the Aussie Millions) from start to finish, going over each hand and his thought processes throughout. The book offers a unique insight into the mind of a top-level poker player as Gus explains some of the more outlandish plays he makes at the poker tables.

This book isn’t really going to turn you into a better player, but it will give you some serious food for thought, and layout the mindset you should be trying to attain.

Tournament Poker for Advanced Players, by David Sklansky (Overall Grade 2.5)

Originally this book reignited the tournament poker strategy guide market, but Sklansky’s efforts were quickly supplanted by other authors. TPFAP is little better than an initiation into tournament poker as there are far better titles to choose from.

The Full Tilt Strategy Guide, tournament edition (Overall Grade 3)

I wasn’t expecting much from this book, considering that it was a mass-produced book for Full Tilt Poker, but to be honest it has some very good content not found elsewhere. One of the best sections is the by Andy Bloch who talks about using the Gap Concept in real world ways, making the mathematical case for how light you should be calling.

Part 1: Introduction

Part 2: Harrington on Holdem

Part 3: Secrets of Professional Tournament Poker

Part 4: Kill Phil/Raisers Edge

Part 5: Winning Poker Tournaments One Hand at a Time

Part 6: Tournament Poker Formula

Part 7: Standalones

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