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52 Ways to Cheat at Poker: How to Spot Them, Foil Them, and Defend Yourself Against Them
Price:$4.25
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Product Description
It’s no news that cheating pervades American culture. Americans cheat on taxes, tests, sports and spouses. But the largest arena for cheating may be at the poker table! With an estimated 60-80 million Americans playing poker every week—for the highest stakes ever—you can be sure that not everyone is playing by the rules!
In this fascinating look at the card sharper’s art—from its origins in Renaissance Italy to the high-tech methods of today—sleight-of-hand and deception expert Allan Kronzek reveals 52 of the most diabolical scams ever invented. Codes and signaling systems, hidden cameras and miniature ear pieces, false cuts and shuffles, peeking and flashing, deck switches, instant stacks, marked cards, “location play,” and dozens of other devious devices are all in use today. In fact, cheating at cards may be the most under-reported crime in America.
Each chapter of 52 Ways zeroes in on a single cheating method, along with its variations and provides expert advice on how to spot and foil the scam (when possible!). You’ll learn the secrets of shade, flash, and juice— the subtlest marking systems; why cutting the cards doesn’t guarantee an honest deal, how a crooked dealer can instantly stack the flop in hold ‘em, why casino card rooms are not 100% safe, and how cheating crews crush the opposition without marked cards or sleight of hand.
Thoroughly illustrated and researched, and enlivened with a wealth of historical sidebars, 52 Ways to Cheat at Poker is essential reading for anyone who plays cards for money—or anyone interested in the ingenious ways cheats have dreamed up steal your money while appearing to do nothing at all. |
Customers Reviews
2008-09-17
A terrific book!
This is one of the best books written on poker cheating, and should be in the hands of everyone who plays for money -- from friendly Friday night games, to people who play in card rooms, to tournament pros. The author has done his homework, and gives the reader a superb education in the varied ways that hustlers and cheaters rob you of your money. Do yourself a favor and buy this book. Then read it. You will not be disappointed.
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2008-08-03
Solid, interesting, and well-written!
Allan Kronzek tackles cheating in poker as a magician and treats the subject with a conjurer's dispassion. This is a relief; if there's one thing we don't need, it's another self-congratulatory, non-falsifiable "insider's" story of how to cheat people. Instead, we get a quick but surprisingly serious volume that manages to feed the reader some history amid the tricks.
The title isn't an attempt at misdirection: after a brief introduction, Kronzek runs through 52 short chapters, each detailing one or more methods of cheating. Generally, Kronzek explains the technique involved, offers notes on historical uses, and closes by telling the reader how he can protect himself. Miscellanea scatter throughout the text, such as reproductions of cheating house catalogs and excerpts from landmark books, enliven the story.
52 Ways is written to be accessible to a novice who doesn't know a shiner from a holdout. But even veteran card mechanics could probably learn a thing or two from this book. Whatever your level of experience, reading 52 Ways will at least help you appreciate the ways that you can be cheated.
That's the rub: Kronzek is honest enough to admit that no anti-cheating tactic is absolutely guaranteed. The final proof is in the pudding: if you find yourself losing one suspicious pot too many, you should suspect malfeasance.
If nothing else, incorporating some of Kronzek's anti-cheating suggestions into your "friendly" home game will, at the very least, raise the bar for cheaters and help to keep honest players honest. You'll also gain a deeper appreciation for the ingenuity with which cheaters have approached poker.
There's only one class of person who I'd warn away from 52 Ways: those that combine a tendency towards paranoia with an overactive imagination. If you're the kind of person who can't browse WebMD because you start imagining you have symptoms for every malady you read about, perhaps this book is not for you. By lifting the veil on cheaters and the innumerable deceptions, Kronzek has made sitting at any card table a supreme act of faith-and vigilance.
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2008-05-07
A new approach
This book is a pleasant surprise. The author updates all of the standard cheating methods that have been described in the past, and adds many new ones that can be used in Texas hold 'em and other popular games. He also provides a context for the scams, and shows how many go back several hundred years. I doubt that anyone can learn to deal "seconds" or "bottoms" by reading this book, but that doesn't seem to be the intention. Rather, you learn what these techniques are, what they are used for--and there are several surprising uses--and what to look for during a game. The "protection tips" alone are worth the price of the book. It's also a good bedside read. Two chapters and lights out.
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2008-05-03
Very Entertaining
After hearing the author describe some cheating methods in a radio interview, I decided to check out the book. It turns out to be a really fun read. The chapters are short and packed with information, and there are lots of amusing anecdotes. I also enjoyed the historical approach, which explains cheating methods from the days of Mississippi riverboat con-men up to the present. I have no plans to cheat anyone at poker, but I do like knowing how it's done. Great for anyone who enjoys reading about clever and devious thinking.
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What Everybody Ought to Know About Poker Games?! Gambling. First off, I should familiarize you with gambling in general. This term has much in common with such conceptions like money and excitement. Anyway, gambling means "wagering money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods". Gambling is legal in the US, therefore everybody can try one's luck.
It goes without saying that folks spend huge money in their excitement, loose their heads being growing heated. There are a lot of spielings like gambling machines, houses, casinos, horse races, fisticuffs, cock-fightings, card games, etc. And of course it should be singled out the poker both online game and real one.
Poker History. The history of Poker is thought to have evolved over more than ten centuries from various games, all involving the basic principals of ranked card or domino combinations and the use of 'bluffing' to deceive opponents. One popular belief is that a game similar to poker was first invented by the Chinese sometime before 969 A.D, when The Emperor Mu-tsung is reported to have played "domino cards" with his wife on new years Eve.
Egyptians in the 12th & 13th centuries are known to have used a form of playing cards, and in 16th century Persia "Ganjifa" or "Treasure Cards" were used for a variety of betting games. A Ganjifa deck consisted of 96 elaborate cards, often made of paper thin slices of ivory or precious wood. The Persians played "As Nas" which utilized 25 cards, rounds of betting and hierarchical hand rankings.
A French game named "Poque" and a German game named "Pochen" became very popular in the 17 & 18th centuries, both developed from the 16th century Spanish game called “Primero” which involved three cards being dealt to each player. Bluffing, or betting high stakes whilst holding poor cards to deceive opponents, was an integral part of the game. Primero dates back to 1526 and is often referred to as "poker's mother" as it is the first confirmed version of a game directly related to modern day poker.
What is it? Poker is a popular type of card game in which players gamble on the superior value of the card combination ("hand") in their possession, by placing a bet into a central pot. The winner is the one who holds the hand with the highest value according to an established hand rankings hierarchy, or otherwise the player who remains "in the hand" after all others have folded (the player who makes an un-called bet.).
 By the way, poker as a card game has many available varieties as follows:
Video poker is a single-player computer game that operates like a slot machine. The concept of video poker is very simple. Players usually play one or more hands of 5 card draw poker on a machine and if you draw what is considered a winning hand - you win!
Online poker game is currently around on the web due to various online casinos and poker rooms which gather people from all over the world to play games like poker, blackjack, roulette, slots, etc. Talking about variants, hands may be formed using cards which are concealed from others, or from a combination of concealed cards and community cards. Just take a room and play a game.
poker, games, gambling, houses, casinos, horse races, fisticuffs, cock-fightings, card games, spielings, blackjack, roulette, slots |
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