Poker Legend: Doyle Brunson

Poker legend Doyle Brunson has spent the last couple of months mentoring swimming champion Michael Phelps, but his long career in the game is proof that it is possible to translate success on the sporting field to success on the card tables.

Basketball career
Born in 1933 in Longworth, Texas (population 100), Brunson was a state champion runner over one mile and a member of the All-State Texas basketball team. The Minneapolis Lakers (later Los Angeles Lakers) expressed interest in the then Hardin-Simmons University college basketball star, but he turned to a career in teaching after a knee injury ended his promising career.

Looking for a job with better pay, Brunson turned to poker. After starting off in illegal pick-up games in his home state of Texas, Brunson teamed up with two others who would later become poker professionals - Amarillo Slim and Sailor Roberts - and traveled around the country looking for competition. They eventually arrived in Las Vegas, where he would of course become a household name.

Poker records
Brunson was the first player to win a $1 million tournament, and has 10 World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets to his credit, including two main event titles in 1976 and 1977.

However he is probably better known as the author of the book Super/System, considered the bible of poker by his fans. Self-published in 1978, Super/System gave an insight into the methods of professional players. An updated edition, Super/System 2, was published in 2004, with contributions from other top poker players.

Nicknamed "Dolly", after an opponent mistakenly pronounced his name, Brunson still plays on the world tour today, and most recently won the Legends of Poker World Poker Tour in 2004.

Legendary
Two Texas holdem hands are named for Brunson. One, a ten and two of any suit (see video on this page), was the hand with which he won both the 1976 and 1977 WSOP events, in both cases with a full house. Another hand named after him is the ace and queen of any suit, because he wrote in Super/System that he "never plays this hand." He later revised the statement in Super/System 2 to "tries to never play this hand."

Apart from continuing to add to his tally of over $5.3 million in prize money, Brunson is also making a name for himself as one of the poker world's authoritative figures, including his relationship with Phelps.