Every Hand Revealed
Every Hand Revealed
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Product Description
What If You Were Able To Get Right Inside The Mind Of World-Famous Poker Pro Gus Hansen--And Learn His Winning Secrets?
Now You Can.
One of professional poker's most intriguing and fascinating players, Gus Hansen has often been called "The Madman" for his crazy, fearless, aggressive style. But you can't dispute the fact that this poker superstar knows how to win--and win big. The holder of the inaugural Poker Superstars Invitational title as well as the only player to win three World Poker Tour tournaments, Gus won his fifth major international title when he became the 2007 Aussie Millions Champion, outlasting 747 players and nabbing $1.2 million. Now, for the first time ever, Gus analyzes the hands that he played during the tournament and reveals his secrets for winning in Every Hand Revealed.
You'll learn:
- An extensive, easy-to-follow analysis of the more than 300 hands he played during the Aussie Millions...
- The radical, yet coolly logical, methods behind Gus's "madness" that have helped him to win consistently...
- Each and every bluff, precise calculation, educated guess, and read of his opponents ...
- How to call large bets with seemingly unplayable hands...
- When to raise out of position with garbage holdings...
- How the prize structure should influence your play...
- And much more!
Offering unlimited access to one of the most successful, popular poker players out there, Every Hand Revealed will help you understand some of poker's most coveted secrets--and simply shows you the right way to play the game whether you're a beginner or a poker pro. Now with Gus Hansen by your side, you too can turbo-charge your game and watch it take off!
Superstar poker pro Gus Hansen has shaken up the poker world with his loose, aggressive style. Called "The Great Dane" as well as "The Madman," the five-time international title-holder transforms his hands with cool logic ...and flattens his opponents. Voted one of the world's sexiest men by People Magazine, Gus is an avid athlete, backgammon player, and poker commentator for both Danish and American T.V.
Details
- ISBN13: 9780818407277
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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Rating
This is a great book. I learned alot from the three Harrington on Hold ‘em tournament books, and I play ok, but I think this book suggests the next level of play. Hansen offers you information on making objective decisions with hands that I have always been confused on how to play, and he does it with math. Hansen also shows how he deals with the subjective perceptions of his oppents, and gives his opinion on hands where he considers losing the pot would not just cost him chips but also his momentum and his position as “table captain.” Something I was considering while reading this book was how tough it would be to play against Hansen. Worth the money for sure.
Rating
You’ll learn from this one. Reading it is as close as we’ll ever get to actually tapping into one of the great minds of the game. As Gus himself says in the final sentence of the Preface: “Welcome to my mind ….”
If you watched the 2007 Aussie Millions Tournament on TV you may remember that Gus Hanson stepped away from the table after practically every hand to speak into a digital recorder. Now we know what he was doing – he was recording his thought process for each hand. His thoughts have since been transcribed and this book is the result.
When I saw what Gus was doing I felt vindicated. I began playing online tournaments a few months ago and quickly found that one of the most valuable things I could do was to think carefully through each situation and to record my thoughts. After the tournament was over I’d review my actions in light of my recorded thoughts. It has proved to be an invaluable tool in improving my game. Now we have the benefit of Gus Hanson’s thoughts along with the outcome of each hand.
In the non-stop Internet Age where the objective sometimes seems to be maximizing the number of hands played we’ve seen poker become somewhat of a lottery. However, it is thought and analysis – deep analysis – that leads to insight and expertise. And playing hands at breakneck speed is the very antithesis of thought and analysis. Gus has done us all a huge favor by sharing his hand-by-hand analysis of the 2007 Aussie Millions Tournament. This book reveals the thought processes of one of todays outstanding poker professionals and careful, thoughtful reading of this transcript can only improve your game.
Rating
This is my favorite poker book of the many I’ve read. Poker, especially tournament No Limit Hold’em, is not mechanical like Blackjack. You cannot simply memorize a list of hands to play. Every play is situational. There is an art to playing great tournament poker. Gus Hansen is a Da Vinci.
Gus Hansen amazingly took notes on every single hand he played when he won the Aussie Millions tournament. The useful thing about this book is not just the hand by hand analysis, but being able to see how Gus actually THINKS about poker. This is profoundly useful to the intermediate level tournament poker player.
Some of his play is not directly transferable to a “typical” tournament situation for two reasons: 1. Much of the play was 6-handed, which is not typical for most tournaments, and 2. Gus had a big stack for most of the tournament, which certainly affected the number of folds he got when he raised pre-flop and made continuation bets. Finally, there is the factor of his incredible reputation, which surely affected his poor opponents at the poker table.
I have read and re-read this book, and I hope you don’t buy it, because it has helped me bring my poker game to a new level. After reading it for third time, my tournament poker game really started to “click,” with noticeable results and high-level cashes.
Rating
Have you seen Gus Hansen playing poker on TV? If so, you’ve probably seen him stand up from the table and talk into a gizmo that is a tape recorder. I always assumed he did it to review the hands later. Well, maybe, but there was another reason. Hansen won the Aussie Millions in January, 2008. There were 746 runners, and it lasted five days. In his new book, Every Hand Revealed, he recounts all 329 hands he played. He doesn’t pull any punches. By that I mean that occasionally he’d make a dumb play. but wasn’t afraid to admit it in the book.
Each of days one through four is a separate chapter. He divided the fifth day into three chapters: one for the final table, one for when the play was three-handed and one chapter for when the play was heads-up. The book is not for the beginning poker player, but can be enjoyed by the advancing player on up to the poker expert.
Would you enter a pot from middle position with Q-7 offsuit? Would you enter with a raise three times the big blind? Hansen makes moves like this. He isn’t afraid to put his chips out there, because he feels he can outplay the others after the flop. I’ve heard him say on TV that you can win with any two cards. Now there’s something that can’t be denied.
Even though I’m not comfortable playing like that, I see his reasoning. If you wait for the nuts, you will eventually bleed to death. Even if you wait and catch pocket aces, you may get no action or get them cracked. With the way Hansen plays, he wins so many small pots that he can afford an occasional suck-out by the villain. Also, because he plays so loose (as defined by others), when he catches a huge hand, he often gets action and wins big pots with those hands.
As I read the book, I noticed that Hansen made several good/winning bets based on his reads from the villain’s demeanor. But, he is basically math oriented. Here’s what he says:
“Don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to diminish the conventional over-the-table reading ability. I actually believe it played a big part of my success Down Under. I am just stating the obvious: ‘Reads are imperfect and numbers don’t lie.’
So, go ahead and buy the book; it’s entertaining as well as instructional. But be warned: For it to help your game, you’re going to have to keep a very open mind!
Rating
Once in a while a book comes on a subject which revolutionizes all previous thinking. This is one of those books. It’s not a book for beginners. It is for those who want to take their game to a different level. If you really want to be at the top level in any game, probably the best way is to get into the mind of the real experts and understand why they do what they do. This book reveals what went into Gus’ mind when he did what he did during the Aussie Millions and the thinking that went into doing what he did. It’s magnanimous of Gus to share all these strategies….yes, everything….but then like he rightly says, ” The most important skill of a succcessful poker player is to change gears and thereby always keep the opponents guessing!”
Buy this book. I assure you, you won’t be able to put it down once you start it. I DIDN’T!!
Rating
When I got back into poker Hansen was the player that fascinated me the most from the TV pros because nothing he did seemed to make any sense. But it had to make sense because it obviously worked. To finally get a chance to get inside his head, hand by hand, is fascinating.
I couldn’t recommend this book high enough. The most critical hands in poker are often the dullest. The hard slog. The patient grinding of people’s souls. You miss that on TV. It creates a fun house mirror image of the players. No one more so that Gus Hansen. This book removes that. He explains his actions behind every hand he plays. If I have any criticism, it is that he doesn’t show the hands he folds. I’d like to have heard him talk about that too.
As crazy as his style seems, it is still rooted in the fundamentals: good reads, solid math, brutal self awareness, and a good understanding of tournament psychology.
If nothing else, the book is a great lesson on the power of the all-in move in No Limit Holdem’. Gus’s style in this tournament is that of a cave man. He rarely gets fancy, choosing to instead use his stack as a misshapen club to bonk people over the head with. Mongo, kill!
The book is a powerful testament to the loose-aggressive style of poker.
Rating
I have to agree with others here. This one of the best poker books to come along in a long time.
While pros making videos of their poker tournament victories are common online, this is the first time a serious player has explained an entire tournament in print — a live brick-and-mortar tournament!
The narrative is detailed and honest; it shows that even Hansen nods with some way-off decisions. This frankness only increases the usefulness of the book as other pro poker players tend to gloss over their trouble hands in their writing. Simply put, they often display the Phil Hellmuth attitude: “I’m great and when I needed to, I sucked out.” You just know players like Mr. Hellmuth are getting uncanny reads on opponents’ hands, but they don’t explain the thought process.
Then too, sometimes Mr. Hansen makes the right decision, but the cards don’t cooperate. It’s enlightening to see him handle this and go on to win without getting tilted off his game. (Is it just me or why is it that best online players are unflappable? There’s a Chuck Yeager quality to their voices.)
The book is easy to follow without making you slog through complex math, yet this player is always aware of the numbers involved in crucial decisions.
I hope Mr Hansen and other world-class players do more of this “poker tournament diary” writing, IF they dare. Hansen says he’s not worried that other players will now read him like a book, because he claims he can change gears at will. I hope he didn’t give away the store with this groundbreaking poker book.
Rating
This book is great, a serious page-turner. I’ve read a number of poker books from the highly technical Sklansky to the fluffy books by Negreanu. Overall this book was my favorite. He doesn’t explain the theory of poker, pot odds, percentages or any of that stuff. If you want a technical reference, look elsewhere. If you are looking to get into the mind of a pro, then read this book. Gus has some amazing strategy. You get to see every single hand he played, why he played it and how he won. The best part is that you get to see every read, every bluff (and there are many) and every mistake he made. In many ways this guy plays the players and not his cards. A very interesting perspective into poker. Just be careful. Right after I read this book I thought I could use his techniques and lost a bunch of money, lol. Well worth the price of admission. If you are into poker, buy this book.
Rating
Very good book. This is basically a recap of every hand Gus played on his way to winning the Aussie Millions main event.
Great look into the mind of a dangerous and tricky player…
Tons of hand analysis, obviously. Very interesting to see the good hands, the bad hands, the steals, the bluffs that worked, the bluffs that didn’t… You can sense his mood swings up and down, sense the changes in momentum… a very engrossing and stimulating book.
Lots of good insights here.
This book is really for intermediate to advanced players… there’s very little here for beginners, and it would probably be confusing to novices, as you’ll never find another poker book on the planet advising to raise from first position with J-5 offsuit in first position!!! For advance players, though, I think you’ll find the insights to be quite revealing and stimulating to your poker thought process…
Rating
I just got back from an AC trip w/ my buddies over the long weekend. I played 3 tournaments and won 2 of them for a profit of almost $7,000/-
While trying to figure out which poker book to attribute my sucess to from the few I have been reading over the last few months, two books come to mind – 1. Harrington on Hold em Excercise book – shows you lots of examples and what decisions to make on every street. His analysis of gets you thinking about the optimal play. But perhaps even more influential was 2. Gus Hansen’s Every Hand Revealed….When I first put this down, I went WOW! Is there really so much stealing going on in tournaments. But really it is not stealing as much as the right play in certain situations given your position, etc. I became so much more aware of how my chip stack compared w/ the table, with the current and future blind levels, etc. Gus takes it one day at a time in sections, and within each day, he takes it one level at a time. You really need a good strategy for tournaments….I was thinking about so much more over breaks than using the restrooms, or getting something to eat or drink…I was planning on how I want to play till the next break, how I would play each level. How many rounds of antes, and blinds did I have, what about everybody else? How agrresively should I play – in one tournament I was the chip leader in the late levels. In the second I was the short stack at the final table, hung around till there were 4 players and came back to win it. I think this book probably helped me the most. Gus is fantastic!!!!I wish he would right a book on cash games. I really need his help there.
Rating
To me this is like a pokerized version of an analyzed chess game. That’s what I really liked about it. There are 329 hands presented and commented on and what made the book special is the insight you can derive from the mind of a hyper-agressive player. To me that is extremely beneficial as I am more of a conservative player and frankly there really are no good books out there examining how such a “crazy” style of poker should be played. This book gives you that.
I commend Hansen on an extremely well written book with excellent hand analysis. A true classic if you ask me and I highly recommend it.
Rating
This book is tha shiz nit!!! Gus Hansen isn’t only a great gambler but is also a great writer. This book puts you literally into the mind of The Great Dane as he gives you his insight to the complex game that is POKER! He gives you the good, the bad, the ugly, the suckouts, & the advanced thought that it takes to win a Major Tournament as he did at the Aussie Millions!!!
Great read Mr. Gus Hansen and thanks for the introspective madness that you unleash in your book!
-Full “gott” Tilt
Rating
Hansen has told us every secret, every though-process, every musing that he experiences throughout a tournament, a tournament in which he won $1.5 million. I was amazed at how frank he was during EVERY SINGLE HAND. Yes, every hand he didn’t fold, he analyzes. And its not just, bet, get check-raised, fold…kind of analysis. He explains, in minute detail, why he makes EVERY decision. What amazed me is the extraordinary amount of work it must have been to write out and record, every flop, every suit, every turn and river, every decision the other person makes, right down to the opponent squirming in their seat. It is obvious, this man has an incredible memory to provide such details. All this information simply could not be recorded or written in the time frame it takes to deal one hand to the next.
I used to think this man sold his soul to the devil when I saw him on the World Poker Tour. The enlightening thing is, he actually plays the quality hands for the huge pots, and simply limps or puts in a light raise, in position, with the rags you see him play on TV. Really gives you the confidence to pull the trigger yourself with such poor holding, given the detailed instruction.
The final point, and the best one, is that you actually feel like you are at the table in the seat next to him. The book works like a well-scripted movie, from opening scene of him receiving his chips to the final act of winning it all. The best thing is, it’s not scripted one bit. The book is not dry in the least, and in many parts, quite humorous.
A ***** poker book. Thumbs way up!
Rating
I can’t praise this book highly enough. It is a spectacular description of Hansen’s playing style and a great descripton of tournament strategy and and the mathematics involved in poker. The depth of the descriptions isn’t overly detailed, and the analysis isn’t comprehensive. I’d say it’s just about perfect for someone who has watched some poker on TV, played a little, and has a grasp of the basic vocabulary.
Even so, if you’re already an expert you may like this as an interesting window into the mind of what is unarguably one of the most well known poker players alive today. If you know a little and are just above a rank beginner like me, you’ll be fascinated to watch someone apply poker concepts in an easy to understand conversational style. Hansen really reviews why he does what he does, and even berates himself occasionally when he thinks he screws up.
Will this book revolutionize poker? No, but it is “I can’t put it down” material if you’re a poker nut like me.
It would make a great counterpart to reading
1) Harrington on Hold ‘em Expert Strategy for No Limit Tournaments, Vol. 1: Strategic Play
– and either –
2) Caro’s Book of Poker Tells or Phil Hellmuth Presents Read ‘Em and Reap: A Career FBI Agent’s Guide to Decoding Poker Tells.
A great book.
Rating
Gus has flopped quads with this one. After reading all the “how-to” books I could get my hands on I finally found a book that puts it all together. What a novel and fresh approach to tournament poker. In “Every Hand Revealed” I was able to better understand the concepts that so many authors have tried to teach me. To watch Gus play each hand, to see him push the winners, fold the losers, and not quit when the right play failed has really made me re-look my game. I do believe that had I read this book one month ago I would have finished higher that the top 15% of the Senior’s tournament at the WSOP.
Rating
This is a very refreshing and fun read. You do have to know the basics of no-limit Texas hold-em, and have some basic understanding of the theory behind the game, but you don’t need to be an expert to enjoy this book and get something out of it. It is NOT a book on how to play. It is a deep examination of how Gus thinks about each and every hand at the table, including many that would be ignored as inconsequential by others, but always with a reason. For examply, he will include a hand where everyone folds to his big blind and gives him a walk. Not very interesting in itself, but it’s included because in this case Gus is a stubborn blind defender, and an occasional walk is the benefit he reaps for his stubborn defense earlier in the game.
In analyzing every hand he plays (and he plays a lot of hands), he also lets you in on the key skills that are required to play loose-aggressive, namely putting people on hand ranges and playing accordingly and relentless pressure in the right spots, plus when to just let it go. I found his analysis insightful.
In addition, the book is just damn well written and fun to read. This is one of the books I carry around just to crack open occasionally to a random page. Gus can be quite funny, and this book is a great relief from the dryness that afflicts so much of poker literature.
In terms of what kind of poker book this is, I’d put it in a category with Greenstein’s Ace on the River, with the following differences: Ace is more accessible to the layman, and Every Hand Revealed is more deeply engrossing from a theory standpoint.
Rating
The best poker book I have ever read. Gus Hansen walks you through his thought process on every hand he played on his way to winning the aussie millions tournament. I could not put the book down once I picked it up. Gus almost never bluffs, but he plays aggressively always. He shows the math behind his decision making, and writes in a style that isn’t boring for a second. I can’t recommend this one enough!
Rating
My pattern for learning and reading about poker goes something like this: read a book by Sklanksky, Harrington, Chen, et al…play, LOSE, keep playing, something eventually clicks…WIN. Immediately during and after reading Gus’ book, something in my playing just clicked, and I started WINNING right away. The loose aggressive style is described theoretically in other books, but it’s handled expertly in this one. If you learned the tight aggressive style from the conventional poker literature, read this and add another gear to your engine.
The innovative form, witty narration, and thoughtful hand analysis make this a thoroughly enjoyable read. It’s packaged in soft paperback, at a bargain price. I couldn’t put it down.
Rating
I have read quite a few poker books and for me, the sample (and real) hands are what I found most useful. So naturally, this book intrigued me. It reinforced some of the things I was doing, showed me some things NOT to do, and gave me some other good tips on how people think at different stages of the tournament. I am about 2/3′s through the book and played in a 90 person tourney last night and won it. DISCLAIMER: Admittedly, it required some breaks and good luck (just like Gus mentions countless times in his book). However, by relating some of the situations I found myself in last night with the book, I think it definely helped. Much of what Gus shares I have read in other books as theory, but seeing it applied really solidified it for me. This book is so good that my recommendation is DO NOT BUY IT!!! I might find you at the same table someday. Enjoy.
Rating
I’ve read at least 20 books on poker. David Sklansky’s books give you vital, fundamental poker basics and even advanced theory — but they aren’t a lot of fun to read and make poker seem less than fun to play. Dan Harrington’s books are better than Sklansky’s because they are more informative, conversational, and easier to read. But make no mistake, Harrington’s books are work. Gus Hansen’s book was almost as informative, giving the reader an amazing insight into the thinking of a poker genuis as he makes his way, hand by hand, to heads up play. Like a great teacher, Hansen makes poker fun. He puts the reader in his head as he debates his next move. It’s so witty, sometimes deadpan, and funny I couldn’t put it down. At times, he goes into great detail regarding his mathematical analysis of his card strength and the pot odds and eventually the “correct” decision; then, he slyly concedes that he did just the opposite and can give no rational explanation for his action. Sometimes he says that simple curiosity got the best of him. When he misplays a hand, he’s comically honest, “I played this hand like a novice, a fish, an idiot!”
I wanted to be more than entertained, I wanted to learn how a top poker pro analyzes his way through a tournament. Watching WPT six person final tables, while good, reveal very little about the players bobbed and weaved their way to the final table. Worse, WPT airs only the most entertaining hands, leaving on the cutting floor most of the final table action. With Every Hand Revealed, you get to see how play developed over the course of days, rather than minutes. Not only do you get the insights into Hansen’s thinking, but you get to see what counter strategies his opponents adopt. Hansen provides a real education into applying pot odds to a variety of hands (329 hands to be exact), singular insight into winning strategy (I know of not one player that plays quite like Hansen), and how to interpret, and take advantage of, your opponents’ playing style. Given the many terrible poker books released recently (like Daniel Negreanu’s “Hold’em Wisdom for All Players” and anything by Phil Helmuth), I was skeptical that this book would be worth my time or money. I cannot recommend it more highly!
Rating
Here’s the sequence of the books I’ve read about NLHE Tournaments:
Step 1: T.J. Cloutier/McEvoy – Survive, survive, survive… Maybe you get a lot of chips somewhere and win a tournament.
Step 2: Dan Harrington – Survive, but if all conditions are right, play a hand like J-T suited or 9-8 suited if you have three callers, tight players in the blinds, and then proceed from there.
Step 3: Gus Hansen – Survival sucks. Accumulate chips. Get the blinds. Know BEP. GO FOR IT.
For years I was in Step 1 mode: Play your coin flips with 99 vs. AK and pray they hold up. Double up a few times, don’t play the “chip burners” like J-T suited or K-Q suited. Waaaaaaaaay too tight to consistently win let alone confuse my opponents with my play.
Now, Step 2 was nice, but how often do you really get 3 or 4 callers in front of you AND tight players in the blinds? Basically, you’re always in Step 1/Survivor mode unless all the stars and planets align at the poker table and we know that doesn’t happen very often.
Step 3. Go for it. Raise with a K-T suited in middle position 3 x the BB and see what happens. If you get raised and can make the call and get a great flop then go for it.
Yeah, it sounds crazy to “go for it” but you know what I’ve discovered?
Sitting around getting blinded to death watching people get chips and win millions of dollars while I hope my caveman coin-flip strategy holds up doesn’t work. You have to get in there with a Q-J suited in late position for some of your chips. You don’t get the AA or KK often enough, and if you do get those hands do you really accumulate enough chips to win the tournament? No.
I liked Gus Hansen’s book. I think people TALK about shifting gears, but don’t do it enough. I know I don’t. But I’ve gone further in tournaments and actually been the chip leader or in the top 10 more often during the tournament since I read this book and used his advice.
You can still incorporate the wisdom from Step 1 and Step 2. Just make sure that you have Step 3 in the tool box or you’re never going to win unless EVERYTHING goes your way in a tournament. It can happen, but don’t hold your breath. Get this book if you want to win NLHE tournaments.
Rating
I learn a lot with this book. Is the first time that I have the real ideas behind the play of a superplayer. I wish this would be a video! Also the prize is right.
Rating
Wow, I sure wouldn’t want to be at a poker table with this guy. It seems there’s no way of putting him on a hand. But it’s great to get an idea of how he analyzes hands. Caution: Don’t try this at low limits. Like most poker authors, Gus shows you how to tackle good players, and allows you to adapt the methods yourself for low limit play.
I really like the structure of the book too: it doesn’t seem to be over-edited and polished. There are a few grammatical errors and typos, but they add to the charm of the book. This guy is a professional poker player, after all, not a Rhodes Scholar. (I assume that this book had an editor, although one is not listed anywhere inside. If so, he or she dropped the ball). It’s OK though. In fact, this book reminds me of the first Super/System book by Doyle Brunson, flaws and all. “Every Hand Revealed” has to be the best tournament Hold’em book you can buy, for the money.
Rating
Everybody who rates this book highly is right. It’s one of the better poker books around, especially at this price. Like they all say, it’s excellent because Gus Hansen recorded his fresh thoughts into a voice recorder during a tournament (which he won!) and later compiled those thoughts (very honest and not self-serving) into this book.
But it’s a great book for another reason: if you’ve seen Hansen play on TV (and I have, a lot), it might seem that he’s a little nuts at times. He often has played very aggressively, even recklessly, but other times he’ll seemingly be the tightest player at the table. I always wondered why this was. Well, apparently it’s all part of a well-constructed master plan. He’s not making it up as he goes. He has perhaps thought deeper in certain areas than some of his peers or at least come to contrarian conclusions. Most amazingly, he explains much of this deeper planning and thinking in the book. It’s not just 300+ hands explained individually; there’s a good dose of deeply-considered strategy, too.
Another of the book’s strengths: the degree of math is just right — not an inhumanly large amount like some books, but not zero, either.
The only negatives are very minor: the paper used is thin and rough (highlighting shows through the page), but that’s why it’s so affordable; and Gus’s prose is a little awkward at times, but English is his second language and he more than makes up for any awkwardness with the cheery, honest attitude that shines through the writing.
Add another positive review to the pile! 4.5 stars out of 5 (5 out of 5 when the book’s low price is taken into consideration).
Rating
I was waiting for a book like this! Extremely entertaining and gives a lot of insight to Gus’s mind. If you have the tourney recorded, you can actually see the hands, and look for tells that Gus is talking about. It really gives you an idea what a “maniac” is thinking about raising with T9o when “under the gun”.
DO NOT TRY TO USE HIS STRATEGY AT HOME, unless you are above intermediate level poker player. Even if you think you understand why what he does at the table at home, you HAVE to be Gus Hansen to make it work. You are not. I hear people saying “a very aggressive player, like Gus Hansen, D.Negreanu, Micheal Mizrachi, etc”. The truth is, you cannot put players in the same “aggressive” category. For example, D.Negreanu and G. Hansen are TOTALLY different players with different styles. Negreanu plays “small ball, check-call poker” preferring to make post flop decisions himself using his insane reading ability, while Gus likes to play bigger pots, and put his opponents to the test. Gus does not mind going all in when he thinks the situation is favorable, while Daniel hates to be all-in unless it is the best play. It is just not his style.
With that said, the most important thing why Gus’s plays work is the table image (that he does not have to establish every time he comes to a new table, his image follows him everywhere). Thats his advantage, and thats why his plays work. Everyone knows that Gus Hansen is Gus “I-can-have-any-two-cards-in-any-position” Hansen. Thats why if you raised early position with two red aces, and Gus called you on the button, it is extremely difficult to proceed on the flop of 3-6-7 with two clubs on the board when Gus puts you to the test for all your chips. After all he is Gus, what makes you think he is not holding 4-5 in his hand, and you are drawing slim to dead.
Get this book! Read it! Enjoy it! Learn from it! DO NOT DO IT AT HOME!
Rating
Here’s the deal: too many “smart guy’s/gal’s” have written books on the “right way” to play tournament hold’em. I’ve read many of them, (Harrington obviously, the best poker book (EV-wise for me) all time) and I’ve got to say right off the bat that Gus iterates what I’ve been thinking all too long; namely that too many of the so called “smart people” rely on math/reads/theory that in the real world, (when it’s your $300 to $10,000 buy-in), ring very…uh…how should I put this… hollow/way too drawn out? Books that are just not practical for at the table usage, but great for after-the-fact analysis. This book is practical in Gus’s hand analysis and thought process, and I appreciate that he calls out when he’s made an error in his analysis or his move. One of my favorite hands is (I think) midway through day 2- he lost a decent size pot by playing rather timid in position and lost a winnable pot, or at least put too much into an unwinnable pot, and then points out in detail the errors he made.
I’m extremely surprised no one has thought of this format before. To be honest, if you’re even a light to moderate poker fan or player, this book reads like a thrilling novel. Hand after hand, you get to step inside the brain of how you SHOULD be thinking when it’s YOUR chips.
For the player looking for an edge: Gus reiterates subtly why image and aggression have made him such a powerhouse at big buy-in tournaments.
I also appreciate some decent nerd humor when he’s commenting on his own or his opponents play.
To enhance your reading experience: Youtube the ’07 Aussie Millions to see what Gus is talking about.
Overall- I think this book is a bargain at its price, (considering so many less helpful and entertaining titles go for double the price) and I’d put it right up there with Harrington as far as thought process and situational analysis.
Rating
Agree w/ other reviewers here. This is an engaging & informative diary of the author’s winning tourney run. I read it cover-to-cover almost immediately, then turned around and re-read it again!
But I can’t stress this enough — this book is superior entertainment for poker nuts (no pun intended, sort of). It absolutely is **NOT** an instruction manual on how to play in this style. There is way, way, way too little information to truely grasp the fine details of this style of play.
Did you love the movie Rounders? Me too. Did you learn to play poker by watching it? Same here.
Rating
I waited an awful long time for my Harrington on Cash books, and am totally happy with them. That being said, I put down Harrington as soon as I got Every Hand Revealed and didn’t pick them up again until I read it cover to cover.
Less of a strategy book and more of a diary of his 2007 Aussie Millions win, Gus goes into his thoughts during each hand he played from day one to the final hand. Each day is given it’s own chapter with an intro from Gus about how he had planned to play each day.
This book may not be a great tutorial for the average player, but there are still some things to be learned. Overall, a great book I would recommend to anyone that enjoys playing or watching tournament poker.
Rating
My opinion of Gus Hansen’s
Every Hand Revealed
First of all let me say it took me seven to eight hours to read that should tell you it is a page-turner, I liked it very much. What I would like to have read; is more of what Gus meant by terms like “it seem to me that ” this and that what tells did he see what patterns were there for his feelings, what does he look at there eyes, there chip handling etc. There was one mention of how fast the chips went into the pot if he thought there was bluffing going on, from this book it seems that numbers is his main concern. May be he didn’t want to tell the world about other players tells but this is a book after all for prosperity, and who knows it would help the other players to know they have those tells. Like in hand 306 the phrase sensing his opponent’s feelings, what clues were given or was it just projecting, or wishful thinking on his part.
I would have liked to have had this book written just as it was but with the TV results given showing the actual results, and if his thinking was correct. If possible the tape or CD could have been sold along with the book, after reading this book I would be willing to pay a little more for the next one.
One more observation the picture holding the wining hand AA, made Gus look like Nusferatu not a good look.
Rating
If you’ve ever read the Harrington series, then read Every Hand Revealed, you will instantly realize the two contrasting styles. Harrington obvisously has the more conservative tight approach, while Hansen’s only approach is to play as many pots as possible…no matter what he’s holding. The man loves to bluff. Who else is brave enough to raise with 94o in mid position??
I give this book 5 stars, because it shows you what type of players you will envitably play against at the tables. K7o, Q8o, Hansen played them all. This book definitely gets you inside the head of a maniac player.
You should definitely pick this book up.It’s an easy read, and quite enjoyable. Even though you know that Hansen wins it all, you still find yourself cheering for him to pick up a pot.
And the best part is that you’re looking at actual hands. Not made up scenarios.