Introduction to Probability with Texas Hold’em Examples illustrates both standard and advanced probability topics using the popular poker game of Texas Hold’em, rather than the typical balls in urns. The author uses students’ natural interest in poker to teach important concepts in probability. This classroom-tested book covers the main subjects of a standard undergraduate probability course, including basic probability rules, standard models for describing collections of data, and the laws of large numbers. It also discusses several more advanced topics, such as the ballot theorem, the arcsine law, and random walks, as well as some specialized poker issues, such as the quantification of luck and skill in Texas Hold’em. Homework problems are provided at the end of each chapter. The author includes examples of actual hands of Texas Hold’em from the World Series of Poker and other major tournaments and televised games. He also explains how to use R to simulate Texas Hold’em tournaments for student projects. R functions for running the tournaments are freely available from CRAN (in a package called holdem). See Professor Schoenberg discuss the book.

For decades, the highest level of poker have been dominated by players who have learned the game by playing it, road gamblers' who have cultivated intuition for the game and are adept at reading other players' hands from betting patterns and physical tells. Over the last five to ten years, a whole new breed has risen to prominence within the poker community. Applying the tools of computer science and mathematics to poker and sharing the information across the Internet, these players have challenged many of the assumptions that underlay traditional approaches to the game.'

A primer and reference for one of the most useful concepts in poker.

Basic Gambling Mathematics: The Numbers Behind the Neon, Second Edition explains the mathematics involved in analyzing games of chance, including casino games, horse racing and other sports, and lotteries. The book helps readers understand the mathematical reasons why some gambling games are better for the player than others. It is also suitable as a textbook for an introductory course on probability. Along with discussing the mathematics of well-known casino games, the author examines game variations that have been proposed or used in actual casinos. Numerous examples illustrate the mathematical ideas in a range of casino games while end-of-chapter exercises go beyond routine calculations to give readers hands-on experience with casino-related computations. New to the Second Edition Thorough revision of content throughout, including new sections on the birthday problem (for informal gamblers) and the Monty Hall problem, as well as an abundance of fresh material on sports gambling Brand new exercises and problems A more accessible level of mathematical complexity, to appeal to a wider audience.

Odds are part of any gambling strategy and Texas Hold'em Poker is highly predisposed to probability-based decisions. This book presents the mathematics involved in card distributions in Texas Hold'em and provides a precise account of the odds associated with all gaming events. The author is a recognized authority on casino mathematics. He is member of applied mathematics societies and has published numerous articles in leading academic, gaming industry and applied mathematics journals. He is also the author of "Probability Guide of Gambling." No formal background in mathematics is necessary for reading this book, although comfort with some probability and set theory notions is helpful. In most cases, you'll need some college math to follow the formulas here, but this is not a requirement, because the numerical results are collected in tables at the end of each section. The work is packed with formulas, algorithms and tables. Its' primary goal is to allow the reader to quickly find the odds for their hand and for their opponent's hand, in order to improve his/her betting decisions. Every type of card distribution is tabulated in a logical, consistent and comprehensive manner. The complete methodology and all the calculations are shown, so it teaches the player how to calculate probability for any situation for every stage of the game, even for other card games. You will find here the real odds, returned by precise mathematical formulas and not by partial simulations that most software uses. The book contains new and original material that has not been done previously and provides a full coverage of Hold'em odds: - Immediate odds (pre-flop odds, flop odds, turn odds, river odds, odds ofimproving specific hands). - Long-shot odds (odds of achieving specific card formations by river) for own hand, in after-flop and after-turn stages. - Long-shot odds for opponent's hand (odds for one and at least one of your opponents to achieve specific card formations by river), in after-flop, after-turn and after-river stages. - Other odds. Concrete examples of calculations and usage of tables are attached to each section. Also, a special chapter of examples is included for a good understanding of how to count and compare the odds for expected card formations and the odds of possible higher formations of opponents. Such information is a must for any Hold'em player - either beginner or advanced - and this book is a trusted and professional source.

This classroom-tested textbook is an introduction to probability theory, with the right balance between mathematical precision, probabilistic intuition, and concrete applications. Introduction to Probability covers the material precisely, while avoiding excessive technical details. After introducing the basic vocabulary of randomness, including events, probabilities, and random variables, the text offers the reader a first glimpse of the major theorems of the subject: the law of large numbers and the central limit theorem. The important probability distributions are introduced organically as they arise from applications. The discrete and continuous sides of probability are treated together to emphasize their similarities. Intended for students with a calculus background, the text teaches not only the nuts and bolts of probability theory and how to solve specific problems, but also why the methods of solution work.

Poker star Dusty Schmidt presents his first book [¬" one that stands to shake up poker in the same way Moneyball did for baseball. Schmidt offers an inspiring look at how in just five years, he went from not knowing a thing about poker to netting a seven-figure annual income. Far from a mathematical or technological genius, Schmidt says what guides him through is a fundamental understanding of business. Treat Your Poker Like A Business provides a foundation upon which all poker will be evaluated in the future, and will help an entire generation of poker players evolve their games into empires. A consummate "grinder," Dusty Schmidt has played nearly 7 million hands of online poker over more than 10,000 hours during his five-year career. He's won over $3 million during that period, and has never experienced a losing month. In 2007, he achieved Poker Stars' SuperNova Elite status in just eight months while playing high-stakes cash games exclusively. Schmidt posted the world's highest win rate in both 5/10 NL and 10/20 NL in both 2007 and 2008. In a four-month period between Nov. 2007 and Feb. 2008, Schmidt won in excess of $600,000 in high-stakes cash games. He is now a highly respected instructor at Stoxpoker.com, and plays as high as 25/50 NL. As a young man, Schmidt was a top-ranked golfer. He broke two of Tiger Woods' junior records, and was the leading money winner on the Golden States Tour when, at age 23, he suffered a career-ending heart attack. Schmidt returned to golf in 2009, winning medalist honors in qualifying for the Oregon Amateur Championship. Later that year, Schmidt famously represented himself in federal court in his suit against the United States Golf Association, which controversially stripped him of his amateur status, in part due to his poker profession. Schmidt is now a volunteer assistant coach for the University of Oregon's men's golf team, working under his good friend, Head Coach Casey Martin. Schmidt is also a successful entrepreneur. He is part-owner of Stoxpoker.com and Imagine Media, and the creator of 10thGreen.com, the first social network for golfers. His story has been featured in Sports Illustrated, Card Player, Poker News, Golf Magazine, Fairways and Greens, Golf Week, Golf World and the Portland Oregonian, as well as on ESPN, cnn.com, wallstreetjournal.com, forbes.com, fortune.com, espn.com, golfdigest.com and golf.com, among many others. He recently founded the House of Cards Project, a philanthropic effort to provide food and shelter to disadvantaged families. His life story will be told in the book [¬Raise: The Impossibly True Tale of Dusty Schmidt, [¬? to be released later in 2010. He lives in Portland, Ore., with his wife, Nicole, and daughter, Lennon.