Jun 13, 2007
It all started back in 1970 when Benny Binion invited the world’s seven best poker players to his Horseshoe casino in Las Vegas to determine which of them should be considered the greatest living poker player. The strange thing about the first WSOP championship was that it was awarded without a single hand of poker being played.

The story goes that all of the seven assembled players were asked by Benny to cast a vote on who was the best poker player. The initial ballot proved inconclusive as each and every man voted for himself. After some head scratching Benny decided the players should cast a new ballot. This time each of the players was asked to vote for the world’s second best poker player. All but one of the votes was cast for...

The Grand Old Man of Poker - Johnny Moss (1970, 1971 & 1974)

Even back in the 70’s when he held court at Binion’s Horseshoe Casino Johnny was known as the Grand Old man of Poker. Born in 1907, Johnny was introduced to poker as a teenager when he got a job observing poker games in a saloon. It was Johnny\\\'s job to spot the cheats but he used his time well to develop his own skills as a player. Shortly after Johnny took to the road becoming a rounder. Much of Johnny’s reputation prior to the advent of the WSOP is staked on a legendary high stakes poker game that he played with Nick ‘The Greek’ Dandalos in 1949. The marathon game lasted around five months during which time Johnny and \\\'The Greek\\\' played their way through a wide range of poker games. Johnny liberated an estimated $4 million before the ‘The Greek’ uttered the famous phrase, \\\"Mr. Moss, I have to let you go.\\\"

If anyone doubted Johnny\\\'s abilities after the first WSOP title was awarded by ballot, those doubts were laid to rest a year later when in 1971 Johnny won the first competitive WSOP Main Event beating \\\'Puggy\\\' Pearson heads up. Johnny then won again in 1974 to become one of only two people to have won the Main Event three times. In total Johnny won eight WSOP titles including three Main Event wins and cashed in a total of fifteen events. Johnny was also made a charter member of the Binion\\\'s Poker Hall of Fame in 1979. Johnny played his last hand in 1997.

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