Gallery of WSOP Champions – Walter “Puggy” Pearson (1973)
Posted by James on September 19, 2008
Walter “Puggy” Pearson was known as one of the all time greats of the poker world. He picked up poker and other forms of gambling while serving in the United States Navy. In the early days of poker, most every poker game was a cash game. Pearson would change that in 1949 when he shared the idea of a freezeout tournament with a fellow player known as “Nick the Greek” Dandalos. Dandalos eventually approached Benny Binion of Binion’s Horseshoe and the freezeout tournament was born.
Pearson won one of the first WSOP preliminary events in 1971 when he won the Limit Seven Card Stud event. This win won him $10,000. His greatest achievement happened in the 1973 World Series of Poker Main Event. The Main Event that year drew 13 players who put up $10,000 each to try and capture the world championship. The final table of six came down to Puggy Pearson, Johnny Moss, Jack Straus, Bobby Brazil, Bob Hooks, and Sailor Roberts. The final table worked its way down until Pearson and Moss was heads up for the title. The final hand of the event put Johnny Moss all in with Kh-Js against Pearson’s As-7s. Pearson’s hand held up and the 1973 World Title and $130,000 in cash went his way.
Puggy Pearson won four WSOP bracelets. Three of his bracelets came in 1973. Besides his main event win, Pearson won the $1,000 no limit holdem event and the $4,000 Limit Seven Card Stud titles. He took home $17,000 for the nl holdem win and $32,000 for the stud win. After 1973, Pearson made three other final tables. Two were in 1981 and one in 1982. Two of the final tables were in razz and the other in seven card stud. Stud was considered Pearson’s best game. In addition to his final tables, Pearson cashed in the 1987 and 1989 Main Event.
Pearson is the only player to play in every World Series of Poker from 1970 to 2005. One reason is that for a few years, several of the top poker players considered tournament poker a waste of their time and focused on cash games. Later in life, Pearson bought a tour bus with “Puggy Pearson – Roving Gambler” painted on the side. Up until the time of his death in 2006, Pearson traveled around the country playing poker. Pearson was also remembered by many people to be a man that gave a lot back to people. It was said that if someone was ill or had a death in the family, Pearson would be one of the first people to help them.
Puggy Pearson started out as a high stakes gambler, but over time became a legend of the game. His idea of the freezeout tournament was a contribution to poker that will likely be remembered as long as tournament poker is played. While his heyday in poker may have been in the early years of the World Series of Poker, his legend will continue for many years to come.
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