Johnny Moss

JohnnyMoss, one of the legends of saloon poker, was born in the small town of Marshall in Texas more than a century ago. Johnny apparently spent most of his youth playing poker in the rough and ready saloons of Dallas. Johnny would never be slow to admit that he developed an ability to cheat at poker that was almost as well developed as playing the game legally.

Eventually, some time in his late teens, Johnny found even Dallas too small for him and taking his Texas hold'em poker skills with him, he toured the saloons and casinos of the mid west of America, testing his nerve as he matched his undoubted skills against playersfrom Tahoe to New Mexico. In the twenties and thirties during the depression era in the United States, there were some rough and ready characters out there and not very honest to boot. Johnny was always ready to use his ability to spot a cheat to good use, and was reputedly not slow in protecting his stake, his credibility and his life by displaying the fact that he was capable and ready to defend all three. All in all, Johnny made himself a very good living during these wandering years, as well as a reputation for being a calculating and fair poker player who usually came out on top,

When word got out that his old friend from Dallas, Benny Binion had set up a casino in the rapidly developing gambling capitol of the USA, Las Vegas, Johnny along a few of the other leading professional poker players set up camp there.

As Las Vegas grew in popularity players would arrive from the east coast to the west coast to taste the action, the color that these characters added to the scene cast a certain glamorous notoriety to the scene.

You can say that what really put Johnny Moss, Texas Hold'em poker and Las Vegas on the world map was the poker marathon organized by Benny Binion to advertise his new Horseshoe Casino . The head to head game between the two unbelievably lasted for no less than five months, through the spring and summer of 1951. Eventually Moss defeated his older and more experienced opponent, a poker legendwho went by the exotic title of 'Nick the Greek.'

Although during the epic course of the game, just about very form of poker invented was played, the variation known as Texas Hold'em really captured the imagination of the crowd who would gather every day and night to watch these two seasoned professionals battle it out for hours on end.Rumour has it that

JohnnyMoss wonbetween $2 to $4 million dollarsfrom Nick the Greek.Whatever the exact figure might have been, it was a huge sum of money.

The general consensus is that from this epic game, the World Series of Poker was born and from it grew the massive industry that is Texas hold'em poker today. Johnny Moss took part in the tournament from its early days in the 1970's till the mid nineties, and is one of only two players every to win the tournament three times, a feat largely expected never to be repeated. During his more than 70 years as a professional gambler, Johnny Moss won and lost millions of dollars.

Johnny Moss passed away at the ripe old age of ninety, still playing the occasional game of poker. His impact on the global poker scene will never be forgotten.