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.
Thomas “Amarillo Slim” Preston is known as much for his gambling and prop betting as he is for his prowess in poker. Throughout the years, Slim has bet on everything from playing pool with a broom to betting on presidential elections. In fact, this year at the 2008 WSOP, I personally witnessed him prop bet one of my coworkers as to who could make more free throws in basketball. My coworker is over 6’4” tall and Slim is 79.
Amarillo Slim was one of the first seven original players that started the World Series of Poker in 1970. However, it wasn’t until 1972 that Slim took down his first title. The 1972 World Series of Poker Main Even had eight entrants that year. $5,000 per player was added to the prize pool. This was done as a publicity stunt to try and draw spectators into the Horseshoe.
Puggy Pearson, Doyle Brunson, Crandall Addington, Jack Straus, Johnny Moss, Roger Van Ausdall, Jimmy Casella, and Preston battled it out for the $80,000 top prize. Doyle Brunson, Puggy Pearson, and Slim were the last three remaining in the event when Brunson struck a deal to “cash out” his chips for $20,000. Then Puggy Pearson and Amarillo Slim battled it out for the adjusted top prize of $60,000. Pearson held a 2 to 1 chip lead, but Slim was able to battle back and win his first Main Event title.
According to Barry Greenstein, the Main Event went down slightly differently than history portrays it. Apparently Doyle Brunson, Puggy Pearson, and Amarillo Slim struck a deal to where they would throw the event and let Slim have the win. In exchange for the win, Slim agreed to let them have the prize money. After winning the Main Event, Amarillo Slim went on various talk shows to talk about his win at the World Series of Poker. He garnered a lot of fame and even picked up a part in a Robert Altman movie entitled California Split. If Greenstein’s story about the 1972 Series being thrown is true, then Slim made a very wise business decision. Giving up $80,000 was well worth the publicity he received as a result of his win.
In all, Amarillo Slim won 4 bracelets at the World Series of Poker. Two were in Pot Limit Omaha and two were in No Limit Holdem. Even at 79, Slim is still playing at a high level. He has cashed in the Seniors event at the 2007 and 2008 World Series of Poker. He also plays in a few selected events. Whenever he is at the table, players take note. It is still a big thrill for a player to be able to say that they took a pot of Amarillo Slim.
Amarillo Slim is a classic example of an old school gambler. He bets on anything that you can wager on and likes the thrill of chasing the dollar. If the story of how he won the 1972 World Series of Poker is true, than that just adds one more legend to the man that has so many legendary tales. Play online poker on Titan Poker.
The “Grand old man of poker” was the first ever World Series of Poker Champion. The first World Series of Poker champion was determined in 1970 by a vote. Benny Binion gathered the seven best poker players in the world and held a series of cash games. At the end of the event, he put the vote to the players to determine who the best player was. The players in attendance were Johnny Moss, Carl Cannon, Doyle Brunson, “Amarillo Slim” Preston, Sailor Roberts, and Puggy Pearson.
According to legend, there were two votes conducted to determine the world champion. The first time they voted, each player cast a vote for themselves, which naturally resulted in a 7 way tie. Players were then asked to cast a vote for the second best player and the results of the voting placed Johnny Moss as the World Champion of poker. The prize for being elected the World Champion of Poker was a silver cup. Bracelets were not awarded as the top prize until 1976.
The following year, the World Series of Poker was expanded to a set of tournaments and the World Champion was decided by a freeze out tournament. Six players entered the Main Event in 1971. Each player put up $5,000 of their own money. The top prize was $30,000 and was a winner takes all prize. Head up saw Johnny Moss face Walter “Puggy” Pearson. In the end, Moss emerged the victor and took the $30,000 prize and his second straight world title.
By the time 1974 came around, the World Series of Poker was not at 5 preliminary events and the Main Event. The Main Event saw 16 people put up $10,000 to take a shot at the world title. The top prize for this event was $160,000 and was again a winner take all prize. Johnny Moss and Crandell Addington faced each other heads up for the title. Addington put up a fight but in the end Johnny Moss took his third World Series of Poker World Championship.
Johnny Moss would make three more final tables in the Main Event after his win in 1974 but the best he would finish is 4th in 1980. Moss finished his career with 9 bracelets in all and is still only one of two players to win the Main Event three times.
For the first 25 years of the World Series of Poker’s existence, Johnny Moss was a staple of the games. He played all the games well and was a respected man at the poker tables. In addition, Moss’ nickname of the “Grand Old Man of Poker” was not just a term of endearment, but also a fact. Moss was 63 years old when he won his first main event title and was 81 years of age when he won his last bracelet in 1988. The ace-ten is typically referred to as the Johnny Moss. Moss was one of the original members of the Poker Hall of Fame. He was inducted in 1979.
