Stu Unger
Stuey Unger is considered by many to be the greatest No Limit Hold'em player of all time. His success is legendary. He began his meteoric rise through the poker community when he won back-to-back World Series of Poker championships in 1980 and 1981, and then won it again in 1997. In head to head play at the WSOP final tables Stuey defeated Doyle Brunson in 1980, Perry Green in 1981 and John Strzemp in 1997.
In 1980, Stu Ungar first place prize won him $365,000, while in 1981, his championship netted him a $375,000 payout. By 1997, his championship bracelet came with a cool million.
Despite a great career, Ungar struggled with drug addiction. A problem that eventually took his life in 1998 at the age of 42. Stuey won ten major No Limit Hold'em championship events in which the buy-ins were $5,000 or higher. Amazingly, he only entered about 30 of those tournaments.
For many years, the second largest poker tournament in the world was Amarillo Slim's "Super Bowl of Poker." At that time, most great poker players attended Slim's tournaments. Like the WSOP, the main event at the Super Bowl of Poker was a $10,000 buy-in No Limit Hold'em championship. Only one man in history captured titles at both the WSOP and the Super Bowl of Poker: Stu Ungar. Amazingly, he won them each three times.
In 2001, Stu Unger was admitted into the Poker Hall of Fame.
Show me a good loser and I'll show you a loser. --Stu Unger
It's hard work, gambling, playing poker, don't let anyone tell you different. Think about what it's like sitting at a table with people whose only goal is to cut your throat, take your money, and leave you out back talking to yourself about what went wrong inside. --Stu Unger
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