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The Professional Poker Dealer's Handbook

Rating: 5/10

Cost: $19.95

The Nuts: A must-read for anyone pursuing a career (or hobby) in dealing cards or for players wanting to feel more comfortable at a live game.

The Muck: Heavily geared toward dealing in Vegas casinos and doesn’t teach you anything about improving your poker skills.

Recommended For: Intermediate players

This book gets a “middle of the road” rating because it’s useful for some and useless to others, so it really depends on what side of the fence you fall on as to whether or not you will appreciate it. Even if you think that you want to be a poker dealer you should read this book because it gives great insight into a dealer’s life. I would even go further and add that you should read this book if you want to host a respectable home game.

This book teaches you the poker “lingo,” which can make you feel more comfortable at a poker table, and it may even intimidate some of your opponents.

Overall, this book is geared toward Texas Hold ‘em, but it also covers rules and procedures for dealing Omaha, Five-Card Stud, Seven-Card Stud (including the High-Low Split version).

The authors, Dan Paymar, Donna Harris and Mason Malmuth, come from three different backgrounds and give the book its fullness and attention to detail. Harris and Paymar are the two experienced poker dealers, and Malmuth adds the perspective of a seasoned poker player.

After reading this book you will be able to spot the good dealers from the poor dealers at any casino or tournament. Good dealers move the game along, deal more hands per hour, and they can be trusted to resolve any playing or betting disputes.

In this book, there are three very valuable sections that make this book worthwhile to players and dealers alike. The first section is a listing of 37 “Rules of Casino Poker,” which boils down the experience one should expect when sitting at a poker table in any casino. The next valuable section covers reading hands and hand-reading exercises.

As a dealer, reading hands should be second nature, but as a poker player this section can keep you from misreading flops. The last section that adds value to this book is the extensive glossary of poker terms in the back. Spouting off a few real poker words now and again could help your table image.

This book has its niche, and should at least be considered for your poker bookshelf, especially if you can find a good used copy.  

(This review is written by a former dealer)

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