Public resources for Colorado poker players

I’ve found that the Denver Public Libraries have some amazing resources for card players. Some of the following are out of print and only available used or from the library, others can be bought directly from the publishers or via Amazon.com. Either way, you can save a buck and hone your skills on the following DVDs and books. Star ratings are based on five-star potential.

DVD: “Annie Duke’s Beginner’s Guide to Texas Hold’em”
Annie Duke is a great poker player. Her first instructional DVD suffers in a number of ways.
The production quality is terrible and she would have benefited from a more experienced producer and director. The setting is an empty poker table where Annie explains the game. Because it’s not well rehearsed and there are no other players at the table, her explanations take too long and aren’t very clear. There’s also the problem that most of the time she’s not talking directly to the camera, and since there’s no live audience, you can’t figure out who she’s talking to. The DVD
is out of print but available from the Denver Public Library system.
★★ For Beginning Players
★ For Advanced Players

DVD: “Annie Duke’s Advanced Texas Hold’em Secrets”
This is a much stronger release than her Beginner’s Guide. The production quality is still terrible (one shouldn’t film redheads in front of red drapery, and live players at the table would make things easier to understand). That said, the sections on explaining implied odds, maniacs, money management and semi-bluffing are good for intermediate and advance Hold’em players. The DVD is out of print but available from the Denver Public
Library system.
★ For Beginning Players
★★★ For Advanced Players

Book: “The Keys to Position
and Calculating Odds in Poker”
An interesting concept: Poker stories for kids. You’ll either love or hate this concept, but the stories, intended for young adults, capture the essence of what poker players love about the game while preserving some of the innocence as well. If your kids just don’t get it and you need a way to show them why you’re so into poker, this book could be a great vehicle. It’s available new or can be found at Denver Public Libraries.
★★★★★ For Beginning Players
★ For Advanced Players

DVD: “Texas Hold’Em
with Mike Caro”
This out-of-print DVD offers one of the stranger Hold’em lessons. Granted, Mike “Mad Genius” Caro is a bit of an odd character. For those unfamiliar with Caro, he’s most famous for his book on poker tells. The DVD offers a pretty straightforward explanation of Hold’em rules with Caro sometimes talking directly to the camera and sometimes talking in a weird side view. After explaining the rules of the game he has a marginally useful segment on figuring out bluffs. The DVD is available used or from the Denver Public Library system.
★★★ For Beginning Players
★ For Advanced Players

DVD: “Fun-To-Know Poker Made Simple”
This is an extremely rudimentary lesson in poker. If you already know that a King is higher in value than a Queen, you probably don’t need to watch this DVD. Seriously, if you’ve played a few hands of poker when you were a kid and watched poker on TV even once, you’ve mastered everything in this disc. The DVD is available new or from the Denver Public Library system.
★★ For Beginning Players
★ For Advanced Players

DVD: “The Keys to Position
and Calculating Odds in Poker”
John Caldwell starts out by citing the wrong odds to land pocket aces. Ouch. Hard to recommend this after that. If you really want to see it, used copies can be found for under $2 or get it from Denver Public Libraries.
★ For Beginning Players
★ For Advanced Players

~ Mark B. Lasser is Denver writer and international poker player. He regularly plays in Colorado, Arizona, California, Missouri and Nevada. His work has appeared in Bikini Magazine, Blue Travel and Warp. Readers can send questions And comments to him
at ColoradoPokerMark@comcast.net.