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Rating: 
Summary: First-Rate Tutorial/Reference *****
Review: "Video Poker-Optimum Play" by Dan Paymar is a first-rate tutorial/reference on how to play most of the common varieties of video poker. This book along with "Professional Video Poker" by Stanford Wong and the venerable "Winning Strategies for Video Poker" by Lenny Frome are the standard references on how to play video poker.
These solid video poker books make the points:
1) Some video poker games can be beaten.
2) Some video poker games are sucker bait.
3) Winning consistently requires informed play.
4) For every hand, there is only one "best play".
5) The best play is often different for different games.
Video poker has been called the crack cocaine of gambling simply because it is almost mesmerizing - fortune seems to be just one click away. The combination of frequent small payoffs, occasional medium size payoffs and the possibility of a big win - a Royal Flush - keeps most players riveted to the machines, feeding them more and more money in the hope of hitting that big one.
The interesting thing about video poker games is that you really can make money playing them... IF you know what you are doing and have a big enough bankroll to do it. Any of the standard video poker books can show you how. If you can, you should buy and read all three of them. They will all give you essentially the same information but sometimes it helps to see it in slightly different ways.
If you can only afford the time and money for one book, you might want consider "How to Gamble at The Casinos Without Getting Plucked Like a Chicken" by James Harrison Ford. In addition to telling you which video poker games to play and how to play them, it covers a variety of other casino games. Another possibility is to get one of the better video poker computer programs.
Just make sure that you do your homework before you start stuffing money into the video poker machines. It will save you money in the long run and make playing a lot more fun.
Rating:
Summary: Probably the best video poker book
Review: As an avid and successful Video Poker player, and author of "Mastering Video Poker - a professional player's secrets revealed", I always like to take a look at the current state of video poker strategy guides. This book will teach you the basic whys and why nots of various plays. Lacking is any attention to the more advanced psychological aspects of training and playing, as well as how to truly take the casinos for all their worth in player perks, treatment, bonuses and general high-roller benefits.
Rating: 
Summary: Useful if you want to play video poker.
Review: I purchased this book because I saw a TV show that said "Video poker can be beat". I found this hard to believe but it is apparently true on some machines with perfect play. Ah, there is the rub. Along with the book I bought a computer program that teaches you how to play and shows you each error you make. It isn't real hard to learn how to play perfectly but requires a person that can really keep focused for hours on end. Most folks with the intellect to learn this could make much more money doing something (anything ?) else but if you have to gamble this is your best shot. This book with Frugal Gambler and some real effort will make your Vegas trips more fun. I don't think Vegas casinos enjoy losing so I wonder how long this will last ?
Rating:
Summary: Simply indispensable
Review: My dog-eared copy is the first book I ever bought on Video Poker and it remains the most comprehensive guide available.
Rating: 
Summary: Book has good info but tough read.
Review: The book has really good information. The problem is that is painfully boring to slog through. I have noticed an improvement in my VP playing. I am playing longer and not losing as much still in search of that magical royal.It took me over 2 weeks to get through this book and it is only 200 pages.
Rating:
Summary: Book has good info but tough read.
Review: The book has really good information. The problem is that is painfully boring to slog through. I have noticed an improvement in my VP playing. I am playing longer and not losing as much still in search of that magical royal. It took me over 2 weeks to get through this book and it is only 200 pages.
Rating:
Summary: Great Video Poker Guide for Beginners and Serious Players
Review: Video Poker - Optimum Play covers everything you need to know about the best game to play in a casino. Dan Paymar covers basic strategy for Jacks-or-Better, Deuces Wild and Joker Poker, and includes quizes for each of these games that will test your knowledge. If you think that you know Video Poker (VP), try taking these quizes before reading the book. You may be very surprised by your score! The book also contains several tables which give the expected value (EV) for each pre-draw hand for the three games listed above, as well other tables that provide the probability of hitting a royal flush in the different games (or the four deuce mini-jackpot in Deuces Wild) before your bankroll runs out. If you want to count on luck alone, don't look at these tables. However, if you want to use all the knoweldge available to the pros in your recreational play then this book is for you. The only shortcoming of this book is that it does not cover optimal play rules for Double Bonus Poker, even though this is one of the games the book recommends because of the over 100% possible payback. Given that full-pay Joker Poker machines are becoming scarce, it would be better to spend more of the book on this widely available alternative. If you are going to use the strategy outlined in the book, it would be worthwhile to invest in the pocket sized strategy cards that Dan Paymar has developed. Good luck, and draw a Royal for me!
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