1972 World Series of Poker - Recap

At the 1972 World Series of Poker only eight of the twelve players who were supposed to compete for the world championship showed up at the table. This was due to the lucrative cash games being played on the side that had become as big a draw as the main event. This was also the year that Benny Binion doubled the entry fee to $10,000 in order to draw more players and more importantly, more publicity to the Horseshoe. It is also rumored that he personally paid $5,000 of each player’s entry fee.

Johnny Moss jumped out to an early lead at the final table, but that quickly changed when Doyle Brunson hit a one-outer on a board of 9-7-2-10 to make three aces over Mosses three deuces. Rumor has it that Doyle was already leaving the casino with his jacket on when the fateful card fell. Moss was all but crippled by the hand, and busted out of the tournament shortly afterward.

With Moss out, the final four competitors included Puggy Pearson, Jack Straus, Brunson, and Amarillo Slim Preston. Puggy was the chip leader at this point with half the chips in play, and Preston the underdog with just under T2,000. This all changed though when Preston made trip fives on a flop of 5-5-3 to beat Brunson’s pocket tens. That hand moved Preston up to T5,000 and put him back in the game. Jack Straus was the fourth place finisher then something happened that would never be allowed during the current WSOP rules.

Slim, Puggy, and Doyle met in the Sombrero room at Binions to have a discussion. Doyle claimed he had an upset stomach and requested to cash out. There is some debate over whether Doyle was ill or if he wanted to avoid scrutiny from the IRS. The fame that the title of world champion would bestow on him might also be a reason for his upset stomach. A gambler in those days thrived in a mask of anonymity. Doyle might have been worried that he could not find lucrative cash games with the title of world champion. Whatever the reason, Doyle cashed out for $20,000, and then Puggy and Slim happily headed back to the table to play head’s-up for the championship. Puggy held a 2-to-1 chip advantage but Slim was able to even up the chip count during the first hour with an aggressive playing style; he stole many pots by coming over the top of Puggy with large raises.

The final hand:

Puggy bet T700 and Slim called. The flop was dealt K-8-8 and Slim moved all-in. Puggy, sensing the overbet was a bluff called, but Slim flipped over KhJd for top pair. Puggy turned over pocket sixes and the turn and river cards were dealt 2-8.

Slim became the first person not named Moss to win the title of world champion. Slim used that glory to become the first poker ambassador to the general public. The charismatic Slim would make appearances on the Tonight Show and 60 Minutes, write a book entitled Play Poker to Win, and appear in the movie California Split. Slim even brought Binion with him on the Tomorrow Show to promote the WSOP and the Horseshoe. Due to the exploits of Slim, Kenny Rogers was inspired to write the famous song The Gambler, and the WSOP made its first impression on mainstream America.