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 enlarge | Author: Anthony Holden
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Category: Book
List Price: $15.00
Buy New: $7.90
You Save: $7.10 (47%)
New (24) Used (4) from $5.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 597042
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 304
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.9
ISBN: 0743294831
Dewey Decimal Number: 795
EAN: 9780743294836
ASIN: 0743294831
Publication Date: April 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 6-8 of 8 | | « PREV | | |
 Not a BIGGER Deal June 29, 2007
A good read, but a little disappointing as it didn't live up the 'greatness' of BIG DEAL.
Proof that sequels are rarely better than the original May 19, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
When Big Deal: A Year as a Professional Poker Player was released in 1990,it caused quite a stir around my house, my Dad is a recreational player and lifelong poker enthusiast, and he would entertain us by reading passages from the book featuring mysterious characters with colorful nicknames like "Texas Dolly" "Amarillo Slim" "Stuey the Kid", and "The Orient Express" This book played a major role in igniting my life-long love of poker, so needless to say I awaited the release of it's sequel Bigger Deal with great excitement.
Sadly, this book is proof that the Hollywood maxim about sequels never being greater than the original is true. I found that most of the magic that infused the original book had vanished. Thankfully this is not due to diminishing skills on Mr. Holden's part (He's still one of the best writers working today) but rather to the overexposure of poker these days, a theme which Holden expounds upon at length in this book. Back when Big Deal was published, poker gave the impression of inhabiting a somewhat seedy, secretive world that only those with sizeable bankrolls were able to break into. Thanks to the explosion of online poker in the last 5 years, and the Moneymaker effect, even an average Joe with a modest bankroll can dream of winning "The Big One" When you combine this with the profusion of poker coverage available today on TV, in print media, and online, this has greatly reduced the mystique that people had attached to the game, as a result, Holden's writing no longer seems "magical" but merely very good. The plot is similar to the last book, Holden tries to survive a year on the pro poker circuit. The book begins with him getting knocked out of the WSOP in 05, his stated goal is to win his way into WSOP 06 via a satellite, which he eventually does, along the way he chronicles poker's rise to respectability and writes insightfully and humorously about the changing landscape of the game. The strongest portion of the book is the last chapter which deals with how the poker community will adapt to the UIGEA, will it continue to thrive? Only time will tell, but rest assured Tony Holden will be there to chronicle it all! I recommend this book, particularly to new players who want to get a feel for the post-WPT poker culture.
 Sequel to a classic May 19, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Anthony Holden and A. Alvarez (The Biggest Game in Town) have invented the modern poker memoir, years before such players as Chris Moneymaker and Annie Duke gained their fame.
In reading Mr. Holden's first book (Big Deal) and other memoirs like it, I never got it: every UK poker writer is a crony of every other one -- David Spanier,Richard Sparks, Dave Ulliott, Des Wilson. Mr. Holden pals around with all of them, eating, drinking and playing poker.
The book is well-written, as you would expect from so prolific an author. He's written books about everyone from Princess Diana to Tchaikovsky and is the the music critic for the Observer (UK). In this memoir, he applies himself to lots of big games -- both cash and tournament. He frankly gallivants around the world playing poker -- Barcelona, London, Las Vegas, even a Caribbean poker cruise. To cap it off, he plays in two WSOP Main Events as well as big-money European tourneys.
He has both wins and losses at the poker table, but he studiously tries to improve. He not only studies Dan Harrington's books (along with every other player on the planet) but takes a poker camp in Austria taught by Howard Lederer and his sister Annie Duke. He absorbs lots of poker technique.
Unfortunately, in one big tournament, he has setbacks of the sort that seem like bad luck. (He makes a mistake -- if it is one -- that I personally have made often, but with a lot less money at stake. ) Oh, well, poker just ain't chess. Because of this, the book ends on a down note, as he recounts the US government's attacks on online poker as well as his own difficulties with the game.
He is a very committed player who been playing since before Doyle Brunson learned the game. Not really, but it feels like it.
A serious book, it's tinged with sadness, both in his personal life and in the poker room.
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