WSOP 1972
What a memorable year 1972 was, in a wide range of arenas. President Richard Nixon made a historic eight-day visit to communist China. In a different part of the globe, Britain brutally took command of Northern Ireland, sparking a long and bloody war which would claim many innocent lives over a number of ensuing decades.
And the bombing continued in Vietnam. For many of us out there on the front lines of social change, it was a depressing time. Skinny-dipping with Jane Fonda, for example, wasn't nearly as much fun as it had been back in '68. But we all had to grit our teeth and just keep on keepin' on.However, there were some good things happening in 1972, especially for lovers of poker. Once again, Benny Binion had grand plans for the World Series of Poker. This would be the third such competition held at Binion's Horseshoe casino on Fremont Street in glorious downtown Las Vegas. And, once again, Binion was determined to assemble the greatest players in all of America for some wild rounds of poker which would culminate in a do-or-die match of no-limit Texas Hold'em.
The usual suspects assembled, just as Binion knew they would. This year, there was more at stake than ever before. In the first WSOP, Johnny Moss had to satisfy himself with taking home a silver cup for winning the championship (along with the satisfaction of beating his peers, of course.) The following year, Moss won again and was able to collect $30,000 for his shrewd poker play. But in the year of 1972, Binion knew he had to add to the pot and he did. The grand prize was a whopping $80,000.
As was befitting a year in which there was a new grand prize, the 1972 WSOP had a new champion, as well. He was no stranger to winning huge pots, in fact he had been relieving people of their chip stacks in private games all across the country for many, many years. His name was Thomas Austin "Amarillo Slim" Preston and he pulled some fancy moves to walk away will all that dough.
The reigning champion from the previous two years, Johnny Moss, had to content himself with coming in second. The rest of the tournament was filled out by the following players: Brian "Sailor" Roberts, Doyle "Texas Dolly" Brunson, Walter "Puggy" Pearson and Crandall Addington. Talk about a rogue's gallery and they would all be back in a year's time.
by Arthur Crowson
