Texas Hold'em For Dummies (For Dummies (Sports & Hobbies))

• #26 in Best Gambling Books
• #29 in Best Poker Books

14 Reviews

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Unlike most poker books, this one is a joy to read beyond the information, which is priceless. Harlan writes as if he's one of your best friends, teaching you the game, what to watch out for, the differences between home games and on-line games, and he lays it out in an easy to understand but never dumbed-down way. And he's not afraid to get into theory and more advanced methods for play. This is recommended far and above some of the "big" names in poker books because Harlan can write and explain much better than the pros and it's both entertaining and informative. A must.

I picked this book up at my local bookstore; I actually almost didn't. The shelf was covered with lots of books written by these great names I had seen on t.v. However, upon cracking open their covers I found a dialect I still wasn't ready to handle. I was a young player just tryiing to get a feel how to beat friends in the neighborhood and had no idea how deep the game of Hold 'em actually was. I chose this book because of the trusted Dummies name and I was not dissapointed me.

The book is the best approach for a beginner. The book starts with an explanation of the rules of the different variants of poker before dipping into any really deep strategy. He did what he should to any novice, presented the "correct" way to play Hold 'em and then told me about the deeper strategies of Hold 'em, but he only scratched the surface, leaving those strategies to other Hold 'em books.

All I can really say is that it is the necessary stepping stone for the true novice. Without reading this book, you won't have the foundation necessary to progress to more advanced books authored by such geniouses as David Sklansky and Mike Caro. These advanced books start off assuming the reader knows the rules of Texas Hold 'em and throw poker jargon at you from start to finish. Without this introductory text, anything else you read will be useless.

I started playing poker a long, long time ago, back when Texas Hold'em wasn't the only game that got any attention, poker wasn't televised, and guys that look like Jesus weren't winning big and getting famous. But I never learned -- I always played for fun, not profit.

Reading this book changed all that for me. While I've always resented the implied insult in the "...for Dummies" series titles, I was indeed a dummy at Hold'em before picking up this volume.

And now? I am stunned, astonished at (a) what I didn't know, and (b) that I could learn it from (c) a book. I've long admired Mark Harlan's legendary writing prowess, but only for enjoyment -- I didn't realize that the man could teach, as well as entertain. And he's got real chops, as the founder of an online poker company and frequent tourney player.

This book has given me, an occasional poker player, the skills and confidence to move forward in the world of Hold'em. If it can happen to me, it can work for anyone.

As a reference that covers all aspects of the game, this book cannot be beat. It is easy to read, yet packed with information, and everything is here, including pre-flop, flop, turn, and river play, the importance of position, pot odds, raising, check-raising, bluffing, semi-bluffing, starting hand values, analyzing and playing to your opponents, the different types of players (tight vs. loose, passive vs. aggressive), bankroll management, internet vs. casino play, and more.

There are other books that cover some of these aspects of play, but I have found no other book that describes them in a manner that is this easy to understand while having plenty of detail at the same time.

This is definitely one of the first poker books that you should read, and I am certain that you will find this to be a useful reference. I can see this as being a resource that I will refer to often as I continue to learn the game and build my experience.

Texas Hold 'em for Dummies is packed with game play information, strategy and tons of useful tips. Mr. Harlan starts with a bird's eye view of Hold 'em and then moves into play by play mode. In addition to discussing the basics of the game, he also talks about the importance of managing your bankroll and table position. From there he goes into advanced strategies of reading players, bluffing and trapping. There's also chapters on mathematics as it relates to the game and an overview of game theory.

If that weren't enough, he then gives a complete overview of where to play Hold 'em whether on-line, with friends or in a card room. Here there are useful tips like how to handle hotheads, the difference between good skimming and bad skimming, what kind of food to eat during a poker game (no potato chips which can grease up the cards!) and a friendly reminder to get your car validated at the card room.

Written with an authoritative, friendly style, Mr. Harlan makes this complex and fascinating game accessible and fun. Also included is a great glossary because Hold 'em and poker in general have their own slang which can get confusing. Overall, this book is a great value for the money because you will continue to go back to it as a reference and it works as a springboard to more advanced information.

Oh, and he's funny too. I was also impressed that he knows the names of all five Marx Brothers.

That Godzilla comment was a kick too.

great resource for those who want to improve their game. Easy to read format, excellent tips

So, I know Mark "the Red" Harlan, or I wouldn't be writing this review. Before I met him, the world of poker seemed kind of messy and not just a little dangerous for someone like me; it seemed about as intimidating as venturing into the mosh pit at a Nine-Inch-Nails concert. As he talked to me about poker over time, however, the glimpses of his world seemed clear and interesting to me, not so scary or obscure. He's a natural teacher, and I found myself listening raptly while he explained table position or pot odds to me. Go figure! So I got this book, to see if he'd been able to transfer some of that information and skill into text. Whoa! Opening this book for me was like Dorothy opening the door into Oz. All had been black and white and mundane before, and now not only is it all in color, it's in Glorious Widescreen Technicolor. Even if I were already a tattooed, pierced, mosh-pit sort of person, this book clearly would have opened up doors and windows for me; it's great.

SUCCESS UPDATE!!! Last January I bought a version of Hold'em for my cell phone and started reading this book and playing whenever I had a chance. I got confident enough with just that cell phone and this book(and some reading in Harlan's other book-Winning at Internet Poker For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))-it has great hints for Heads-up play) to enter two live tournaments and play creditably (most recently: 8th of more than 50 players in Vegas--I almost moneyed), and I've started playing online for "free money". I've played in seven tournaments and won "money" in six--and I was purposefully experimenting in the seventh. The book is not only fun to read, it works.

NEW UPDATE: Still winning (and I still haven't read any other poker books!) I won $2 USD in a free tournament online and have continued to win play money time after time...

Harlan's first book Winning at Internet Poker For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech)) is the book that turned me from a losing player to a winning player. I bought this book as soon as it hit the shelves and I was not disappointed. Since his first book I have bought and studied over a dozen texas hold'em books and like the one reviewer said "nothing new". Well duh it is a for dummies book, but Harlan brings it all together in a unique fashion and he covers the basics to some advanced concepts that I have only seen in one or two other books.

Harlan has a point he drives home repeatedly: know your enemy. "If you can identify the traits of your opponents, and interpret the way those traits are presented to you at the table, you've found the master key to the game. Make no mistake about it, understanding your opponents at the table is THE most important aspect of poker."

I have found a couple holes in the way I present MYSELF at the table, and I am more able to see things in others.

Don't let the title sway you. This book's a winner, and for the low price the best bang for your buck in any poker book I've seen. I can honestly say that Harlan's books have been worth thousands of dollars in profit to me at the tables. If you are serious about winning you should add Harlan's books to your library.

Very easy to read and a lot of tips.
Even if you know nothing of Texas Hold'em (like I did) you understand it within the first few pages.
And he slowly but surely further and deeper into the subject to a point where real advanced strategies come in to place.

Also his sense of humor helps a lot. I really stopped reading a few times cause I couldn't stop laughing. When someone can make me laugh because of what he wrote, for me you are a very good writer then.

After I read this one I also bought the another book of Mark Harlan, called Winning at Internet Poker For Dummies®. It was written in the same way as this book but with (as the titlte suggest) internet poker as its subject. It shows the differences with poker in the Real World.

After I read his books I started playing tournaments online and started with the real low tournaments. It is amazing how his tips work. I allmost won back his book in chips.

To conclude the review: I hope no-one buy this book as they will clearly become better players and cost me money ;-)

Richard Wensing.

Prefacing these remarks with the fact that I know very little about any type of card game (except Crazy Eights, Old Maid and Gin Rummy) I found this book both informative and entertaining. Mr. Harlan has a way with words that educates us Dummies in a manner that is not condescending in the least. His stated assumptions that we understand the basis of a normal deck of playing cards, plus simple but detailed descriptions of how play advances at the table, make this volume an enjoyable read. The sidebar stories and trivia tidbits are classic Harlan; in fact, the reader could ignore the main text and just read the anecdotal information to learn a LOT about the game. I received the book as a gift; it is a welcome addition to my library.

This book was a nice read and I really enjoyed some of the information that was presented in this one. Some information was new that other books, including ones that claim to teach you the secrets of the pros, decided to leave out. My only complaint is, that it being a For Dummies books makes a lot of references to "We'll cover this later" or "Head back to Chapter 7 for a review on this "

A great boof for beginners! I have just started plating poker and this book has really helped me understand the game!

Also, provides some neat strategies.

It is a book with all the basics you need to start playing Texas holdem. But nothing new, so i give it 3 stars.

Harlan's text is light and fun to read, yet very useful, concise and to the point. Differently than other poker books that scare you away by starting off with a lot of math and statistics and pot odds, Harlan goes through many other important and interesting poker stuff such as optimal starting hands, betting strategy for each round and table position, reading your opponents, different sorts of game - home, online, casino - before spaeking abouth the math (which, byt he way, he does in a very agreeable way, keeping it simple and straightforward - maybe because he knows his stuff - he is an applied math degree). the book also has easy to follow examples and real life anecdotes, keeping all that poker theory closer to what the average player will encounter at next Saturday's $10 poker night over his friends. It's definitely the first book on Texas Holdem you should buy, and you'll learn an awful lot from it.