WSOP 1982: Jack Straus, a Chip and a Chair

Dominance of Billy Baxter

The game began on May 9 with Event #1: $2,500 No-Limit A-5 Draw Lowball. In this type of poker, the already well-known Billy Baxter dominated. Baxter had won bracelets in Lowball at the 1975 and 1978 WSOP. Over his career, he won 7 WSOP bracelets, if we consider that in 1982 he received watches instead. Of these 7 “bracelets,” 6 were in Lowball, and one more Billy won in Limit Razz. It is worth noting that Baxter continues to play poker, and his largest prize to date was won in 2023, where he received $473,212 for second place in the Seniors No-Limit Hold’em tournament. In 2024, Baxter took 14th place in another Lowball tournament. It is quite possible that Baxter will conquer a few more bracelets?

Returning to 1982, it is worth noting that at the final table of Event #1, Baxter defeated Bobby Baldwin (second place), Doyle Brunson (third place), and the reigning Lowball champion Michael Perry (fifth place).

By coincidence, the second tournament of the series was also in Lowball, Event #2: $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball. In this tournament, Baxter achieved his second consecutive victory, winning his fourth bracelet or second gold watch. By the way, Bobby Baldwin again appeared at the final table, finishing in fifth place.

Continuing the Series

By the third day of play, it was already clear to everyone that in Lowball, all the gold watches would go to Baxter. The participants of the series were saved only by the fact that on the third day, Seven-Card Stud was on the schedule—Event #3: $1,000 Limit Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo. This tournament gathered 88 players, highlighting the popularity of this format in the early stages of poker development. By 2024, we can say that Stud has given way in popularity to the simpler Hold’em and the more dynamic Omaha.

In the third tournament, the winner was Tom Cress from Nevada. He received $44,000 in prize money. Over his career, he cashed three times at the WSOP, and each time these were Seven-Card Stud tournaments.

Event #4: $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em was held on May 12 and set a new record for the current history of the WSOP. 192 players registered for the Hold’em tournament, making it the largest in the 13-year history of the series.

The winner of this “megafield” was Jim Doman, who received $96,000 in prize money.

The Ladies’ Event

The now-traditional $500 ladies’ tournament was held on May 13—Event #5: $500 Ladies Limit Seven Card Stud. Sixty-four participants registered for the tournament, and the victory went to June Field. At the final table, Starla Brodie (a WSOP bracelet holder in a mixed doubles tournament where Starla played with Doyle Brunson) as well as Linda Johnson (a Hall of Fame inductee in 2011) made appearances.

Where Is the Old Guards?

By the middle of the series, the prize lists traditionally feature the professionals we know who dominated the previous decade of the WSOP. In Event #6: $1,000 Limit Razz, Puggy Pearson (WSOP 1973 Champion), whose results were deteriorating, appeared at the final table. But this remark applies only to the WSOP series, as at the parallel Amarillo Slim’s Super Bowl of Poker 1982, he won Event 10: $1,000 Hold’em—Follow the Stars, where Puggy received $75,000 in prize money.

Let’s take a brief detour from the WSOP and talk about the Super Bowl of Poker. This series was organized by Amarillo Slim and was held in Las Vegas. The series’ tournaments attracted a large number of players; for example, in the $500 Limit Hold’em tournament, there were 197 players—more than at the WSOP at that time. And the tournament winners often received more prize money than the WSOP winners.

In the same 1982, Puggy Pearson received $75,000 because, in the Follow the Stars tournament, the winner received 50% of the entire prize pool. By the way, he was also given a new car, which is a pleasant contrast to the WSOP’s gold watches.

But we return to Event #6: $1,000 Limit Razz, where the winner was Nick Helm. This was his only bracelet, and on the way to it, Nick defeated Mickey Appleman (third place), Dewey Tomko (fourth place), and Tom McEvoy (sixth place).

First Bracelet for David Sklansky

David Sklansky is one of the most respected authors among poker enthusiasts. His father was a professor at Columbia University, and David skillfully transferred his understanding of mathematics to poker experience and book pages.

In 1982, David won his first bracelet in Event #7: $800 Mixed Doubles Limit Seven Card Stud, playing with Dani Kelly from Maryland. In heads-up, they defeated the strong pair of Gary Berland and Lanette Rocheleau. Also noteworthy is the pair that took third place—Stu Ungar and Jackie Jean.

“Foreigners” in the Money

The game continued on May 16 with Event #8: $1,500 No-Limit Hold’em Non-Pro. In this tournament, 164 players participated, highlighting the growing popularity of the WSOP. The winner was Ralph Morton from Washington, but here we note the first appearance in WSOP history of a player from another country in the prize zone. This historical place was taken by Hugh Todd, who came to Las Vegas from Cape Town, South Africa; he finished in fifth place.

The next day, Event #9: $1,000 Limit Hold’em was held, and a player who came from afar also made a mark. The winner was John Paquette from Nevada, and Dennis Zervos from Greece took third place. Event had 202 entries and it was new record!

Victory of Chip Reese

David ‘Chip’ Reese was one of the best cash players of his time. This fact would become universally recognized after Reese was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 1991. It is worth noting that Chip became the youngest player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, and later the organizers even established a rule that a candidate for induction must be older than Chip Reese.

A feature of Reese was that he became acquainted with card games back in elementary school. Due to health problems, he spent almost a year at home, where his mother was in charge of his education. She showed him several board and card games so that the child wouldn’t be bored. At six years old, David was already beating high schoolers in poker, and upon entering high school, he became a football player and a member of the debate team, which won the Ohio State Championship.

Growing older, David Reese turned down an invitation to attend Harvard and chose Dartmouth College, where he continued to participate in debates and play poker.

One day, he came to Las Vegas and quickly won $60,000 playing high/low games. He liked Vegas so much that, according to legend, he hired someone to pick up his things from his apartment in Arizona, and he stayed in Vegas and continued playing.

David won his first WSOP bracelet in 1978, and in 1982 he won his second bracelet in Event #10: $5,000 Limit Seven Card Stud.

First Woman’s Bracelet in an Open Tournament

We continue to follow the tournaments of the 1982 WSOP. On May 19, Event #11: $1,000 Limit A-5 Draw Lowball was held, in which the winner was not Billy Baxter. Instead, at the top of the results was Vera Richmond. Defeating 76 participants, she became the first woman in WSOP history to win an open tournament. For her victory, Vera received $38,500 in prize money and a gold watch (equated to a bracelet!).

The next woman to win an open tournament was Barbara Enright, but this event would have to wait another 14 years.

Second Bracelet for David Sklansky

Thanks to Event #12: $1,000 Limit Draw High, David Sklansky received his second WSOP gold watch. The tournament attracted 31 players, and for the victory, Sklansky received $15,500 in prize money. Runner-up was Michael Conti from Illinois.

The penultimate tournament, Event #13: $1,000 Limit Seven Card Stud, attracted 112 players; the winner was Don Williams from Ohio.

Final Table

A big stack in Straus’s hands turned out to be a dangerous weapon. He consecutively knocked out Carl Cannon in ninth place, Brian ‘Sailor’ Roberts (WSOP 1975 Chamion) in eighth place, Buster Jackson in seventh place, Dody Doach in sixth place, A.J. Meyers in fifth place, Doyle Brunson (WSOP 1976 and 1977 Champion) in fourth place, and Berry Johnston (WSOP 1986 Champion) in third place.

Literally, the entire final table was demolished by the two-meter giant with a lion’s paw talisman.

Heads-Up

And against this giant in the decisive heads-up was Dewey Tomko—a former kindergarten teacher from Florida.

It is worth noting that Tomko was not a newcomer to the WSOP. He won his first bracelet at the 1979 WSOP. Tomko played all the WSOP Main Events starting from 1974 and set a record in 2008. In 2008, he was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame, and his poker career earnings amounted to $4.9 million.

But in 1982, Tomko could not stop Straus. The entire heads-up lasted 10 minutes. By the decisive hand, Jack had a two-to-one chip advantage.

The players went all-in. Jack Straus with A 10 had a 60% chance against Tomko’s A 10 .

We open the Poker Odds Calculator and see how the odds change when the dealer reveals 7 5 4 on the flop.

Now Tomko has a 77% chance of winning thanks to a possible higher runner-runner flush.

The turn Q increases Tomko’s chances to 93%. Now only 3 outs help Jack.

Everything was leading to Dewey Tomko doubling his stack, but on the river comes 10 , and Jack Straus becomes the tournament winner.

The former kindergarten teacher Dewey Tomko receives $208,000 for second place.

Jack Straus receives the largest prize in WSOP history to date—$520,000 in prize money! And gold watches.

The Winner – Jack Straus

Jack Straus, the 6’6″ giant, was a classic Texas poker player. He traveled across the country in search of big games. In 1971, he first played the WSOP ME, then appeared at the final table in 1972 and 1973. In that same 1973, he won his first bracelet in a $3,000 tournament.

He was an extremely gambling and aggressive player. Once in a cash game, Jack aggressively played pocket 7-2 (the worst hand in poker) and hit a flop of 7-3-3, having a relatively weak two pair. Jack bet and saw a reraise from an opponent who obviously had a higher pocket pair. Straus called and saw a 2 on the turn. This card didn’t change much for him, as the threes on the flop were higher. Jack bet, and the opponent thought. Straus offered to show any of his cards for $25. The opponent took advantage of the opportunity and gave him $25. Jack showed a card—a 2. Surely Jack wouldn’t be acting this way with weak two pair? The opponent folded.

This case was shown in the film “High Roller: The Stu Ungar Story,” but the real story of Jack Straus was attributed to another player by the screenwriters.

Jack “Treetop” Straus quote:

“I think Texans just got a lot more guts has a lot to do with it, most other folks just don’t take the heat when you start playin’ real poker. In Texas, you grow up playin’ poker; it’s a Texas game.”

Jack died on August 17, 1988, when he suffered an aortic aneurysm while playing poker at the Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles. In the same year, he was included in the Poker Hall of Fame.

WSOP 1982 Main Event Results