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Thinking back...
being new and not yet an accomplished dealer I dealt only the
smaller limit side games in the 1971 WSOP, the year of only one
championship event, the six handed $5,000 buy-in No-Limit event was
held.
In 1972, I was
invited back through a combination of "Juice" and dealing skill
(quite different than the last few years when they have to take any
dealer they can, even (and I bite my tongue) "break-ins". Think
about it, break-ins in the WSOP, that's almost akin to Chris
Moneymaker winning the grand prize in his first live event... but
more on this in later articles!
One incident from
that 1972 WSOP brings a smile to my face when I think about it even
today, I hope it does the same for you...
It was after all
only my second year dealing for Benny and Jack and my first time
ever dealing high stakes. One afternoon while dealing in a $10 & $15
blind No-Limit side game whose participants included Bob Hooks,
Albrie Day, Slim and I believe Doyle along with Sailor Roberts who
was sitting directly across from me. In the course of the round I
noticed two gentlemen in suits standing near Sailor, one of whom was
writing in a small notepad. All of a sudden while I was shuffling up
between hands, the "note pad suit" stepped up behind Sailor, reached
around him and took the wad of C-notes he had pilled under his stack
of green and black chips. Sailor briefly looked at him while the
suit made a quick notation in his pad then handed the slip of paper
to him, in the meantime I stopped shuffling and while I stared in
disbelief, Sailor turned to me and with a concerned look on his face
asked "Dealer... can he do that?". Well I was (as one of my favorite
comics used to say) mortified! This was something I'm sure would not
be covered in dealers school (if I had ever gone to poker
school!) I didn't know weather to call a shift boss, call for
security or ask for a gun that I'm sure one of the players must be
packing! While all I could attempt to do was stutter a response, the
whole table including Sailor started to laugh, I finally snapped and
joined in the laughter, but there was nary a smile from the two IRS
agents.
Next time in
“Thinking back”… MORE Belly laughs from the loose and not so regulated
side action of the 70s.
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