Who is the best poker player in the world?

[Fear-and-Loathing]

Hi everyone, nice place you've got here!

I'd be interested to know who you think is the best poker player in the world? For my money, it's got to be Texas Dolly...

[FreeZey]

I don’t follow the top of the game very closely but the guys I enjoy watching are “Dave ‘Devilfish’ Elliot” and “Phil Helmuth”.

Incidentally I wondered who the bookies thought the best players were so I checked out some odds on the WSOP. The top 3 player were:

Johnny Chan 50:1
Doyle Brunson 130:1
Gabe Kaplan 250:1

And guess who else has entered.

Ben Affleck 500:1
Matt Damon 450:1
Edward Norton 500:1

I doubt it’ll end like Rounds

That’s the great thing about poker, I’m never going to play against Brazil in a world cup or Tiger in the Ryder cup, but with a few grand to spare I (and indeed anyone) can site down and play with the best poker players in the world.

[DoubleBluff]

I would say Phil Hellmuth, although he did got knocked out this WSOP on a bad beat recently. He's recently put his name to a mobile poker game in the US, though typically we won't see it here in the UK.

I wonder when the UK is going to get its act together with the serious mobile gaming market - there must be a ton of people who would have fun playing multiplayer poker on their mobiles!

Any of you played the same table as one of the top players before?

[Fear-and-Loathing]

No, unfortunately not... I don't really play the game like you do. It's just a hobby for me! I'm actually looking at getting some tips on my game, can any of you recommend some decent poker books (intermediate level)? People keep telling me stuff by Texas Dolly / Doyle Brunson is the best, but I've also been looking at a really interesting one by a guy called Frank R Wallace, "Poker: A Guaranteed Income for Life"... has some very interesting reviews on amazon, not sure I am allowed to post the link here or not?

[FreeZey]

Any of you played the same table as one of the top players before?

Duno about top. First casino game I ever played a £50 tourney in Reading, with 1 hour of rebuys. There was some real talent there, quite a few pros even people I’d seen on late night poker which was cool.
I’ll post what happen when I’ve got a minute was a very fun night/morning.

[FreeZey]

...can any of you recommend some decent poker books (intermediate level)? ...

My first book was “The Theory of Poker” by David Sklansky. It’s a good book, teaches solid principles and covers a lot of the game.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/...178068-6160657

Mike Caro also has come great stuff on Tells. Most of which is available free on-line as video tutorials but I don’t have the link any more (although I might have it at home to post)..

[FreeZey]

Found Caro's audio tips:

http://www.cardplayer.com/audio_video/caro/

[Fear-and-Loathing]

Hey thanks Freezey, that audio stuff is really good. The guy sounds a little weird but there's lots of interesting points he makes. Thanks for pointing it out.

[FreeZey]

The guy sounds a little weird

Yea he’s a bit of a character (also know as “The Mad Genius of Poker”).

But it’s nice of him to offer so much of his stuff for free on-line. His video tutorials are around somewhere too.

[paymaster7]

Oddly, I heard that Ben Affleck is a ridiculous poker player who has on several occasions, beaten the top ranked player in the world. Weird, right? Too bad his movies all suck - although at least he has a backup career as a poker player.