Title: “Ace On The River”
Author: Barry Greenstein
Facts: “Ace On The River” has 328 pages and is available in various different formats (including kindle and paperback). It is one of the most sold poker books in history and can be bought from Amazon.com at really good prices.
About The Author:
Barry Greenstein, born in 1954, is a name that is popular to almost anyone that studied poker, although not known by many beginner online poker players. He started his life on a path of education and eventually turned towards professional poker, leaving a well-paid job with Symantec. His most successful year was 2010 when he won over $7.2 million from tournament poker. Also, Barry is well known for being really good at practically all forms of poker. You can learn more about him here.
Review
Barry Greenstein is known in the poker world as “The Robin Hood Of Poker” because he donates all his poker tournament winnings to charity. He is one of the biggest Big Game winders in Las Vegas and often speaks of things that others do not have the courage to. For instance, at one point in time he was famously quoted as saying that the reason why he and some poker professionals were losing against Andy Beal in a series of games was that they were outplayed. “Ace On The River” is similar to his way in being as the entire book can be described as being an enigma, something you would not expect.
Most of the serious poker students and players eagerly waited for the release of Greenstein’s book, expecting something that would help them win more but the difference in what was offered was a huge impact.
A Twist On Poker Books
Greenstein takes you through poker in a way that is different than most other books that focus on stats and how to properly play in different situations. He takes you through his entire life and you can actually read the book as you would a novel since the prose used is really well-written and comprehensive. You will find mentions of his games with Donald Trump and various stories that will leave you think about the life of a poker player in a different way.
One of the most discussed parts of the book was “Poker And Your Sexuality”, a chapter in which Greenstein says that you need a substitute for your steady partner in order to have an advantage in poker.
Scratching Your Head
“Ace On The River” will give you access to so many moments in which you will be left scratching your head. You will end up thinking about many different things. We can say that this is a book that will be unrivaled among the recent texts that were released when referring to psychological depth. This is where Greenstein’s genius shines through.
The Strong Point Of The Book
For the aspiring poker player, the most important part of the book is basically the entire book. That may seem weird but we say this as the trip into the mind of the professional, successful poker player is perfectly laid out. You will get a strong idea of what you can expect if you follow this path in life.
For the person looking for strategy, the strategy section of “Ace On The River” is really good because it gives access to the mind of the professional poker player. Greenstein talks about different hands he played, many televised so you can watch them on YouTube. He goes further than saying what happened. He tells you who was involved in the hand, what took place, what happened before the hand and offers information that is really important in the thought process of a poker player. Intermediate players can easily improve their poker game thanks to the insights offered.
Conclusions
Greenstein gave away “Ace On The River” for a long time to those that knocked him out of poker tournaments. He no longer does that because he felt that this made players want to go up against him simply because of being able to receive the book with an autograph, risking being knocked out. This change in his game is a good example that showcases what you can find in this book: helpful tips that will aid you to improve your game if you have the necessary patience to go through what is written.
The only problem is that the book is a little hard to read. This is not because of readability. It is because there is so much hidden information included that you will need to re-read various chapters to figure out what Barry shares with the reader. “Ace On The River” and Brunson’s “Super System” are the two books that practically every single poker player out there read. If you did not, do so! You will feel enlightened!