Zen and the Art of Poker: Timeless Secrets to Transform Your Game

by Larry Phillips

Book Overview

Inside the intriguing world of poker lies a fascinating exercise in strategy and extreme concentration--many of the same principles that underpin the one-thousand-year-old philosophy of Zen spirituality.

Zen and the Art of Poker is the first book to apply Zen theories to America's most popular card game, presenting tips that readers can use to enhance their game. Among the more than one hundred rules that comprise this book, readers...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0452281261
• ISBN13: 9780452281264
• Release Date: November 1999
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.3" x 8.0"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Fluidity is Life.

Well, this certainly is not the first book you should buy concerning poker, but it is definitely an illuminating read. The concepts will be appreciated by the intermediate to advanced player but their clarity is so pronounced that practically anyone can get something out of its pages. Phillips has an original and creative approach to the game which can best be compared to David Apostolico's poker tributes to The Art of War and The Prince. However, Zen and the Art of Poker is superior to both of these works due to its directness and focus. Some of the observations made by Apostolico I found contrived and their effect was that he was "trying too hard." Here, you find that the connection between the practices of Zen and those of an outstanding poker player are fairly obvious. Phillips' advice regarding folding and the need for patience is very practical and of great benefit. Without patience, one is on the road to living in the gutter. His take on the need to avoiding feeling like a martyr when you don't get good cards for an entire night was valuable along with the notion that losing is a part of everyone's game. Yes, unlike Michael Jordan's habit of finding the zone, in poker, you lack a great deal of control regarding outcome. One's will and the discrepancy between talent levels only goes so far as the randomicity of the cards has much to do with how successful you'll be. His "two steps forward one back" for the pros is great, but is undoubtedly an understatement of how much even they lose. Barry Greenstein, in his book, stated that he wins only 58 percent of the time in ring games which means that one of our most affluent and skilled practitioners appears quite human 42 percent of the time. Phillips explanation for the importance of being aggressive, deceptive, and betting out your best hands I found to be inspirational. A pleasant side effect of reading this book is that, while learning more about poker you also get to learn plenty about Zen, which, for me at least, made the purchase well worth it.

Amazing poker instructional book

Ever wonder how people like Howard Lederer win so much cash over the long haul in poker? It isn't that line he and other pros like Phil Hellmuth always give ("I see into the soul of the other player"). Poker pros say that as a standard defense just in case they ever run into you at the table, so they can intimidate you (hey, these pros aren't stupid, they realize psychology is a huge factor to Texas Hold-em)... The real key is patience (a simple, yet very difficult concept in poker). It is pretty well known that Lederer has gotten into Zen over the last year or so (and his game has soared to even higher levels then before). Don't worry, there is no chanting or other mystical weirdness in this book, just 100+ quality concepts of fundamental, intermediate and advanced poker techniques and tactics. The key is being able to implement them into your game. I would guess only 20% or so of you reading this have what it takes to do that (just human nature)... If you can implement these techniques, there is no doubt you will win consistantly, whether you play on the internet or in traditional card rooms. I would imagine those who wrote bad reviews for this book are the aggresive type players who are unable to play a quality "thinking man's" or "woman's" game. The bottom line is, do you want to win cash or do you want to be a maverick who may hit a lucky big pot here and there, but ultimately give all their chips away to guys like Lederer, Dan Harrington, Erik Seidel and Andy Bloch. Yeah, I know, those are not the most flashy players around, but they are guys who probably have the most cash in their bank accounts. The truth is, grinders win. And this book should be part of any personal poker instructional library (the format of it is also great as it lends itself to not only cover-to-cover analysis, but quick reference as well).

Become a poker warrior

"Zen and the Art of Poker" teaches lessons essential for anyone who wants to better understand the emotional element of the poker game. I consider this text to be the most useful thing I have ever read on poker (and card playing in general). Any success I have had since reading this book is the direct result of the lessons contained in its pages, as I have transformed myself from a sloppy gunslinger to a cold-blooded pot-dragger. Success at the tables can be owed to three things. The first is luck, which can't be taught. Next is a player's mathematical understanding of the statistics of the game, which is the subject of almost every other poker book written. Finally, the overlooked element of successful poker play concerns self discipline at the table. This book outlines Buddhist philosophies that can be applied in a poker game, helping a player better understand how their mental approach to the game is as important as the cards they are dealt. This book is not for the average poker player. A person needs to be prepared to do some serious self analysis and abandon old tricks, habits and superstitions that have no real practical purpose in the game. If an open-minded player does "buy-in" to the lessons of this book, they will learn to focus, remain calm and dominate weaker-minded opponents.

A poker must

The focus of this book is keeping your cool while playing poker using a zen buddhist mindset. As a poker player who dabbles in buddhism I found this approach fascinating, as well as very, very useful. This is book is clearly on my top 10 list of poker books. No advice on play, rather, it tells you how to keep from getting emotional over inevitable bad runs of cards. A must buy (and I hope all my opponants don't buy it).

You can't master the game until you've mastered yourself!

Kudos to Larry Phillips! I am a person who is very technical in approach. I was frustrated with why I understood how to play poker, yet was not winning consistently. Then I read Zen and the Art of Poker. I realised that I had mastered the rules of the game, but not myself. Having watched the emotions of many poker players, I can tell you that what is missing in their game, can be found in this book. I was amazed at what a difference it made. This book teaches you how to make peace with poker. When it comes to a bad day at poker (and we all have them), this book will be the difference between going home angry and going home wiser. Usually when you buy a book, you take money out of your pocket; this book is responsible for much money going into mine. So buy this book and next time we meet at the poker table, just remember who you have to thank for pointing you in the right direction.