The Professor, the Banker, and the Suicide King: Inside the Richest Poker Game of All Time by Michael Craig

The Professor, the Banker, and the Suicide King: Inside the Richest Poker Game of All Time by Michael Craig is a story that chronicles Andy Beal's journey's to Vegas to challenge the greatest poker players in history to test his mettle and determine if the highest levels of poker can be beaten with the use of slight edges and lack thereof.

This book takes the reader through the thought processes and decisions made by both the billionaire Andy Beal and 'the corporation', a group of high stakes poker players who pooled their resources to challenge him. Overall the book if well written and tells a good story. The author doesn't bog the reader down with hand history or too much poker lingo, so even those unfamiliar with the game might enjoy a good read, assuming the topic interested them. His writing style wasn't exactly the best in my opinion but he did a remarkable job of keeping the reader involved and interested.

I won't go too much into the story, as I believe it is a good one worth reading, however the book shows, in a very detailed manner, what goes on inside the head of some of the highest stakes poker players when their entire bankroll is on the line, and that of several other players. This book also details some of the methods Andy went through to try and negate the skill advantage the pro's had over him including playing at hours they were not accustomed to and stakes that made even them feel uncomfortable.

Overall a very good read that I would recommend to any poker enthusiast. The book, though short by poker book standards, is quite the page turner and will keep the reader hooked from page 1.