Background

 

After being fully engaged in the hobby of gambling sleight of hand for several years, my understanding of gambling moves suddenly changed due to influences around me, which consisted of many experts in cheating (all twice my age).  I learned that there was a huge gap between the way cheaters and cardmen did the same moves, which forced me to stop just doing moves and start thinking about moves. Whether it was a basic move like the jog-shuffle or off-the-table center-strip to the most sophisticated brief or stack, the differences were profound and ubiquitous. After sharing some of these ideas with cardmen, the response was so positive that a seed was planted for a possible book that would detail these differences that I believe are improvements.  In this regard, Gambling Sleight of Hand was specifically written for sleight-of-hand hobbyists . . . not hustlers, gamblers, or casinos/cardrooms.

While writing the foreword to the Italian edition of The Expert at the Card Table, I discovered several conflicts. More research ensued until it was clear to me that something was dramatically wrong with this classic treatise. Combining these findings with my research on authentic gambling moves was the original idea for a one-volume format.

The idea of ending the book with a chapter on pseudo stunts was suggested by several cardmen, but after adding 300 pages, the book expanded into a two-volume set . . . with the possibility of including a third volume down the road.

Being around cardmen my entire career, in respect to gambling sleight of hand, I’ve found that they have three basic interests: authentic gambling moves, Erdnase, and gambling demonstrations and pseudo gambling stunts—the three primary topics that comprise what Gambling Sleight of Hand is all about.

I sincerely hope that all gambling sleight-of-hand enthusiasts who desire to expand their knowledge and improve their skill will find the research to be different, interesting, and helpful.