Doyle Brunson Super System Book Review

About Doyle Brunson

Doyle Brunson Quick Facts

Nickname: Texas Dolly
Current Residence: Las Vegas, Nevada
Date of Birth: 10 August 1933
Place of Birth: Longworth, Texas

Doyle Brunson Achievements

Has won close to $5 million in poker tournaments
Holds 10 gold World Series of Poker bracelets (record is shared with Johnny Chan)
Won two WSOP events with a 10-2 hand (now called a ‘Doyle Brunson’) to make a full house
The main event of the Five Diamond World Poker Classic at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, The Doyle Brunson North American Championship is named after him.
At over 70 years old, Doyle Brunson is still the undisputed king of No-Limit poker, ranking among the top five professionals in the world.

Super System Review

In the industry, Doyle Brunson’s Super System is widely regarded as the poker bible. The book caused a stir when it was initially released in 1978 with the sub-title ’How I Made Over $1,000,000 Playing Poker’. Nonetheless, it also created some irritation among the poker professionals of the time who felt that Doyle Brunson had betrayed their secret strategies, allowing amateur players to catch up.

Super System focuses extensively on Doyle Brunson’s speciality – No Limit Texas Hold’Em cash games. However, the book also features sections on many other varieties of poker, contributed by the proven champions of the day, including World Champion Bobby Baldwin, David “Chip” Reese, Joey Hawthorne, David Sklansky (author of Theory of Poker) and Mike Caro.

What are the strong points of the Doyle Brunson’s Super System?

Particularly good No Limit Texas Hold’em section
Reliable odds and statistics section

Where does Doyle Brunson’s Super System fall short?

Concepts are somewhat old
Topics are rather haphazardly organized

Who will benefit from Doyle Brunson’s Super System?

Seven Card Stud, Low-Ball, Hi-Low and Texas Hold’Em cash and tournament players of any level will all profit greatly from the poker tactics explained in Super System.

Poker strategies have naturally evolved since the release of Doyle Brunson’s Super System causing some of the material to be slightly outdated. However, Super System is still essential literature for any serious poker player, regardless of their skill level, poker variant or playing style.