BRINGING DOWN THE HOUSE

I love to watch poker tournaments on television. Texas Hold'em tournaments bring great drama. Watching the players try to bluff or mathematically break down their opponent is intriguing to observe. Maybe I should not admit that I enjoy watching poker or blackjack tournaments on television, but...

The lifestyle of the card player is vastly different than mine. To take that much risk with that amount of money is not anything I could ever do. Maybe that is why I enjoy watching someone else bluff on a $500,000 bet.

I have read a couple of books recently about the lives of those that are consumed in the world of card playing. The one I finished yesterday was BRINGING DOWN THE HOUSE by Ben Mezrich. This was quite an interesting story about the world of blackjack. A group of six students from M.I.T. learned to count cards and could tell through their counting when a run of high cards would come and then could bet heavy. Usually casinos have a shoe that holds six decks of cards and this group could keep a count of all the cards played from that shoe. They made millions. Were they cheating or had they just figured out how to beat a system that seems to always win? The book chronicles their journey of success. From Vegas to Atlantic City, you learn of their success and risk. Eventually their strategy is discovered. It is an interesting book to read. Read it and you can join me as a fan of the dark world of card playing and gambling.