Stu Ungar

by Emelia on February 17th, 2010

[ English ]

The primary basis for why Mr. Ungar switched from gin to poker was that he was a tiny bit too good at it. So skilled was he, that no player was able stand up to him. Even the commonly called champions who were supposed to be the best at gin rummy were devoured when they faced Stu. One such gin professionals was Harry Stein, nicknamed, "Yonkie". Mr. Stein was handed such a crushing blow at the hands of mr. ungar that he apparently stopped playing it professionally and never showed up at a gin rummy tournament.

Certainly, with a image like that it was not long before players became afraid of betting against mr. ungar. He couldn’t find any matches and in his desperation he began doing something no one had attempted prior. Stu presented starting handicaps to likely competitors in the wish that they might play opposed to him if they thought they held an edge. He deliberately started from a negative position and one story has it that he even competed against a consistent cheater. Amid the contest, he get a few words of wisdom that the bad egg was at it again but mr. ungar stated that he knew of the fraudulent activity and he would still come away with a win, which of course, he did.

The same problem followed Stu Ungar into sin city. He won so often that the poker rooms began asking him not to wager on their poker rooms anymore. The reason was that other poker room clients would not sit at the poker table if he were playing.

Stu Ungar is recalled more for his accomplishments in texas holdem poker but he himself always said that he was far better at gin rummy.

He beat Doyle Brunson in the World Series of Poker in Nineteen Eighty to become the youngest world champion. Because of his features that made him appear far younger than he actually was, he was nicknamed, "The Kid".

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