WSOP 1990: Mansour Matloubi Became the First Foreign Winner of Main Event

Start of the Series

The series kicked off on Monday, April 30. Event #1: $1,500 Limit Hold’em immediately set a high bar with 420 participants. It wasn’t enough to beat last year’s record of 449 players, but it was still an outstanding start to the series. The winner was Mike Harthcock from California, for whom this victory became the 2nd of 3 in his entire career, and also brought him his biggest prize of $252,000. He defeated Mel Judah from the UK heads-up, who had won his first WSOP bracelet the previous year. Another foreigner, Hugh Todd from South Africa, finished 9th.

Event #2: $1,500 Limit Razz attracted 186 players, which is large for a Razz tournament. Artie Cobb made the money, while the winner was Ray Rumler from Nevada, claiming the biggest prize of his career, $111,600.

Event #3: $1,500 Limit Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo was the first tournament for the future champion and Poker Hall of Fame member Huckleberry Seed. He finished in 4th place, outlasting two other Poker Hall of Fame members: Mike Sexton (6th place) and Johnny Moss (7th place).

It’s worth mentioning that the 1990 series was fairly successful for Johnny Moss. He played at three final tables but did not win a bracelet, stopping at 9 total. By the start of the Main Event, Moss had turned 83!

The winner of this tournament was Norman Boulus from Georgia. This was his only bracelet in his career, and the largest prize of $108,600.

On May 3, Event #4: $1,500 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo took place. Again, a tournament with a moderate buy-in in a fairly specific poker format gathered a large field of 189 players, though still far from a record. The winner was Monte Kouz, and it was his only career bracelet. The fact that the average number of participants in all tournaments was growing, yet the winners were often newcomers who never repeated their success in subsequent years, suggests that many amateurs attended the 1990 series.

Event #5: $1,500 Limit Omaha, arguably a more popular form of the game with the same buy-in, drew fewer players—178. Huck Seed appeared once again (4th place), as did former Main Event champion Tom McEvoy (8th place). This tournament featured the first cash for Per Hildebrand from Sweden and Greek player Vasili Lazarou. The winner was Tony Stormsand, for whom it was his only bracelet and largest prize.

Mid-Series

Event #6: $1,500 Limit A-5 Draw Lowball attracted 207 players. At that time, Lowball was more popular than Omaha, which had only recently appeared in American casinos. Phil Reher from California won this tournament—his only career cash.

Event #7: $1,500 Limit Seven Card Stud drew even more players (264). Here, history was made when Vasili Lazarou from Greece won the first bracelet for his country. Notably, Vasili moved to Las Vegas and continues to play poker, even cashing in the 2024 WSOP Super Seniors event 34 years later!

The next day, Event #8: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha drew 189 players. Vasili Lazarou cashed again, but this time he finished 16th. Dewey Tomko finished in 4th place, and the victory went to Shawqi Shunnarah from Nevada.

Event #9: $5,000 No-Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball, a high buy-in tournament, was held on May 8 with 37 players. There were just 5 spots paid, and legendary Johnny Moss from Texas took the fifth place. Another Texan, John Bonetti from Houston, claimed the win. Later, John Bonetti would take third place in the WSOP Main Event twice, so remember his name!

The Last Move for the Old Guard

Hugh Todd from South Africa was close to victory many times between 1981 and 1990. Over his career, he made 7 WSOP final tables, but only won once. It happened at Event #10: $5,000 Limit Seven Card Stud in 1990. Having won the coveted bracelet, Hugh stopped playing in the series and only reappeared in 2010, when the WSOP Circuit came to South Africa. He once again made the final table, finishing 7th.

Event #11: $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha was won by Amarillo Slim Preston. He was one of the legendary players who helped establish the WSOP and even hosted his own competing series in the early years. He had previously won the 1972 Main Event and claimed 4 WSOP bracelets over his career. This 1990 bracelet would be his last. Nevertheless, Amarillo Slim continued playing in the WSOP until 2008 and even reached a final table in 2000.

We note Johnny Moss (8th place) and Surindar Sunar from the UK (3rd place) in the Event #11 payouts.

Event #12: $2,500 Limit Hold’em was won by former Main Event champion Berry Johnston. He earned $254,000 in this tournament, the second-largest prize of his career after the $570,000 he got for winning the 1986 WSOP Main Event. Despite his 5 WSOP bracelets and 72 cashes, Johnston never topped those two results. The Oklahoma native kept playing and even cashed during the WSOP Online 2020, at which point Berry was 85!

Event #13: $2,500 No-Limit Hold’em served as a warm-up before the Main Event, featuring the same NL Hold’em format, a moderate buy-in, and a serious field. The winner, Allen Baker, earned a solid $260,000. In heads-up, he outlasted Freddy Deeb, an American of Lebanese origin, whom you’ll hear more about in subsequent articles. Mansour Matloubi from London, though listed as a player from Wales, finished in 3rd place. This was Mansour’s first WSOP cash, immediately netting him $65,000.

The defending WSOP Main Event champion Phil Hellmuth also cashed in this event, finishing 5th. Other notables in the money were T.J. Cloutier (7th place), David Sklansky (8th place), the legendary Stu Ungar (15th place), and competing casino owner Bob Stupak (16th place).

The last event on the overall schedule was held on May 13 and essentially served as a rest day for most of the main field, since it was a special Ladies Event. These tournaments had been held since 1977, and for the first time, the number of entrants exceeded a hundred—110. The winner was Marie Gabert, while we also note Alma McClelland—wife of the tournament director—who had won a similar event in 1990. This time, Alma finished in 6th place, which was her last WSOP cash.

Now we’re ready to move on to the 1990 Main Event.

WSOP 1990 Results

In the Money

Once again, 36 places were paid, and among the cashers were foreign players already known to our readers: Thor Hansen from Norway (34th place), Donnacha O’Dea from Ireland (32nd), Humberto Brenes from Costa Rica (26th), and Mel Judah from the UK (17th). We see their names in the money year after year, so it’s no surprise that they were the ones who brought the first WSOP bracelets to their homelands and helped popularize the game. Their success brought new players to Las Vegas, whose triumphs we can see in 1990.

Among the more traditional U.S. contingent in the money were Artie Cobb (28th place), Tom ‘Captain’ Franklin (24th place), Mickey Appleman (20th place), and Bobby Hoff (13th place).

The Stu Ungar Incident

Stu Ungar, a two-time WSOP Main Event champion, was arguably the brightest star in poker at the time. By 1990, Stu was dealing with a severe drug addiction, but even that couldn’t fully stop his talent. Ungar played brilliantly in the 1990 WSOP Main Event, amassing a massive chip lead among the remaining 20 players. During Day 3, however, he was found in his hotel room with a drug overdose and could not continue. The tournament director kept Stu’s chips in play, and with each round of blinds, his stack dwindled at an empty seat. Yet he had so many chips that his absent stack still made the final table, finishing in 9th place for $25,050.

After the tournament ended, his friends tried to persuade Stu to go to rehab, but he declined, saying that some of his friends told him it was easier to get drugs in rehab than outside. Stu’s life spiraled downward from there, but he survived and would return in later historical articles.

Final Table

The official final table consisted of 6 players. Here is who fought for the 1990 Main Event bracelet:

• Al Krux – born in North Carolina, a professional player who had moved to Syracuse, New York by this time. Before his poker career, Krux was a diamond merchant.
• Berry Johnston from Oklahoma – the 1986 Main Event champion. An experienced professional for whom this was his eleventh WSOP final table. He was in top form, having already won a new bracelet in Event #12.
• Jim Ward from Alaska – a poker enthusiast from Anchorage. He has played many tournaments throughout his career until 2018 and earned $491,835 in prize money. This final table was his biggest career success. Thanks to it, Jim still ranks 5th in Alaska’s all-time poker earnings, even 25 years later!
• Dave Crunkleton from North Carolina – another poker enthusiast, for whom this was only his second tournament cash in WSOP history. Dave played well from 1990 to 1996, regularly making WSOP final tables. He earned more than a million in prizes over his career but never won a WSOP bracelet.
• Hans ‘Tuna’ Lund from Nevada – an American professional player who started playing poker in 1977. By 1978, he had won his first WSOP bracelet. He took second place in 1986 and 1988. In other words, every two years, Hans placed second, losing the heads-up match.
• Mansour Matloubi from Wales – Mansour was born in Iran, obtained Welsh citizenship, and lived in London at the time. He was an amateur poker player, lacking a flashy history or charismatic table presence. In 1990, he made his first WSOP cash by finishing 3rd in Event #13, then reached the Main Event final table.

Heads-Up

The heads-up matchup was between the experienced pro from Reno, Nevada, Hans ‘Tuna’ Lund—who already had a WSOP bracelet, plenty of experience, and, importantly, a chip lead of 1.4 million—and the newcomer from London, Mansour Matloubi. Mansour was playing in his first WSOP, had already been on the brink of elimination, and was holding a short stack of 540,000, but luck was on his side.

The biggest hand in the heads-up occurred when Matloubi went all-in on a 9 2 4 flop. Hans called with top pair, top kicker A 9 . Mansour showed pocket tens 10 10 , and Lund put his head in his hands. Then the turn A gave Hans two pair. The audience chanted, “Tuna! Tuna!” Once again, Mansour was on the verge of busting, and only a ten on the river could save him. The dealer showed 10 . Mansour jumped up in excitement near the table.

Four hours of play, which we only see in cut snippets in the broadcast, followed.

By that point, Mansour had taken the chip lead, and Hans Lund moved all-in with his last 300,000 chips holding pocket fours 4 4 , facing Mansour’s higher pair 6 6 . This gave Mansour a 79% edge.

The dealer revealed 8 Q 2 K 2 , and Mansour Matloubi became the 1990 WSOP Main Event champion!

In a post-win interview, Mansour said:

“I never thought I would win it. I’ve been playing Hold’Em only a short time. Although it seemed that luck was on my side, I believe I played all those hands correctly. I had the best opening cards every time I made those big bets.”

The Winner – Mansour Matloubi

Mansour Matloubi was born in 1952 in Iran. In 1972, he moved to Cardiff, where he lived for a long time and obtained citizenship. In 1990, he became the first foreign player to win the WSOP Main Event.

It’s worth noting that Mansour preferred to play Pot-Limit Omaha rather than No-Limit Hold’em.

After his 1990 victory, he actively played poker until 1997, then left the game and has kept his life private. Over his poker career, he won 1 WSOP bracelet and cashed 14 times at the series. High stakes baccarat consumed most of his poker winnings.

In subsequent years, he played in a few low-stakes events in California in 2001, participated in the APT in Singapore in 2006, then the APPT in 2016 in Macau, and cashed in the 2024 APPT Manila. In total, he has 10 tournament cashes since leaving the game in 1997.

In a few small interviews Mansour gave in the 2000s, we learn that he has lived in the Bangkok for a long time, running a business.

Perhaps his move was influenced by the UltimateBet Poker scandal, where Matloubi had an early stake but left before its collapse. He remained friends with Russ Hamilton, who is considered responsible for the scandal.

One way or another, we are studying the chronicles of the early nineties, and Mansour Matloubi is the reigning WSOP Main Event champion.

By 2024, he has made 82 total tournament cashes, with 70 of those at final tables. Such success is more reminiscent of Spin & Go players than long live events.

Matloubi is an outstanding player who claimed his place in history and was unjustly forgotten in the decades following his main triumph.

WSOP 1990 Main Event Results