Hold'Em Poker for Advanced Players

"No, but the next book is. This is a technical strategy book from a while ago. Now there are millions of these but most of them are boring and just have sexy new terms for things poker players have been doing for 200 years. If you were going to study the game now you’d need to go to university and have a syllabus and a reading list. I don’t read them any more. I’ve done school and I figure it out at the table. But I used to think it was all human and about narrowing your eyes, and, of course, a lot of it is. The idea of grouping hands into when you play and when you fold was so exciting when I read this. I was just moving on from being a poker hobbyist to a professional and it was the first one of the type that I read. I thought: “Look at me! I’m studying poker mathematically!” Get the weekly Five Books newsletter Winning the European Championship. I won half a million pounds but it wasn’t about the money. It was about winning the big tournament. It was the first match I’d played for PokerStars and it was in London and not only in London but at my local casino, the Victoria in Marble Arch. It was just so magical that my big moment was there. If I had a time machine that’s the moment I’d go back to because everyone there was genuinely happy for me. You have to understand that poker players are bitter, grudging, struggling people who are on the live circuit and are solitary and ruthless. Schadenfreude is the biggest thing in poker. But that night I was basically the only girl, I was local and I was no threat to anyone and they were genuinely delighted. Everyone was drinking champagne and hugging me and the Vic was this warm cocoon of happiness. The Vic is never like that. I didn’t even collect the money. I just left it there and went home. I came back for it the next day. I mean, obviously, with money like that you can pay off a mortgage, but at the time it was the mood. These people I’d once been scared of were suddenly like a family. It felt like a very special night."