Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/14045
Doyle Brunson- The guy, with his own trademark hand, isn't really a surprise on this list! Doyle "Texas Dolly" Brunson was born in 1933 in Longhorn, Texas, and began playing poker when his dreams of becoming a professional athlete were dashed due to a knee injury. Brunson started by traveling around Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana, in order to play in bigger and bigger games and he was the first player to earn $1 million in poker tournaments. Brunson also won ten World Series of Poker bracelets throughout his 40-years career, tied with Johnny Chan and Phil Hellmuth and also is one of only four players to have won consecutive main events at the WSOP, in 1976 and 1977. Amazingly, he won both years with the exact same poker hand, a full house of tens- full of deuces. He continues to play in the biggest poker games in the world, playing $4000/$8000 minimum bets and also at the World Series of Poker. Stu Ungar- Although his name is less recognizable to some, Stu "The Kid" Ungar is no slouch in the poker circuit. He was born in New York in 1953 and was only 10 years old when he won a local gin tournament. By 1974, he was considered to be one of the best players in New York, which he eventually had to flee due to gambling debts at the local racetracks. He fled to Vegas, where he played in the 1980 World Series of Poker and won the main event, defeating poker legend Doyle Brunson, and became the youngest WSOP champion ever (where he would later be surpassed by our next entry below in 1989). After his early success Ungar wasted all of his winnings on drugs, sports betting and horse racing. He went from broke to a millionaire a staggering four times. In 1997, after years of battling drug addiction, Ungar was deeply in debt but managed to get the $10,000 to enter the WSOP main event from a friend. Ungar, clearly suffering physical damage from addiction most notably to his nasal membranes, still showed his mental abilities were intact as he went on to win his third WSOP. Sadly Ungar was found dead in his room at the Oasis Motel in Las Vegas in November 1998, but he is still regarded by many poker pros as the greatest pure talent ever to play the game. In his life, he is estimated to have won over $30 million playing poker and he is the only player to have won 3 WSOP main event tournaments. LIVEMAGS.NET AUGUST>>10 9