Jack "Treetop" Straus was an American poker player who won the 1982 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event.
Nicknamed "Treetop" as a result of him being 6'6", Straus died of an aortic aneurysm on August 17, 1988 while playing high-stakes poker at the Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles.
Later that year, Straus was posthumously inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 1988. He holds the dubious honour of being one of three Poker Hall of Famers to die whilst playing cards, joining Tom Abdo and Wild Bill Hickok.
Biography
Straus was born in Travis, Texas in on June 16, 1930. He attended Texas A&M before embarking on a career as a Texas road gambler, traveling across Texas and Oklahoma to play in the biggest games around.
"I think Texans just got a lot more guts has a lot to do with it, most other folks just don’t take the heat when you start playin’ real poker. In Texas you grow up playin’ poker, it’s a Texas game." —Jack "Treetop" Straus
He played in his first WSOP Main Event in 1971, the first year the tournament adopted its usual freezeout format. He final-tabled the Main Event in 1972 and 1973, finishing fifth and third respectively.
In 1973, he won his first bracelet in the $3,000 Deuce to Seven Draw event.
1982 WSOP Main Event
1982 was the first time the WSOP Main Event surpassed 100 entries. Straus was the first player to take away more than half a million dollars, earning $520,000 for his win.
He defeated Dewey Tomko heads-up.
"A Chip and a Chair"
In one of poker's most famous stories, during the 1982 WSOP Main Event Straus lost a pot and was left with one chip left. According to legend, Straus pushed all in, got called and lost the pot. Thinking he was eliminated from the tounrmanet, he got to his feet only to discover a single chip under a napkin.
"If they had wanted you to hold onto money they would have made it with handles on." —Jack "Treetop" Straus
Because he did not declare himself all-in when pushing in his chips, Straus was not eliminated. He would recover to win the tournament, spawning the poker phrase: "All you need is a chip and a chair."
Jack Straus WSOP Bracelets
| Year | Event | Payout (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Event #4: $3,000 No-Limit 2-7 Draw | $16,500 |
| 1982 | Event #14: $10,000 NLHE WSOP Main Event | $520,000 |
WSOP Main Event Winners 1973-82
| YEAR | ENTRIES | CHAMPION | COUNTRY | PRIZE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 104 | Jack Straus | United States | $520,000 |
| 1981 | 75 | Stu Ungar | United States | $375,000 |
| 1980 | 73 | Stu Ungar | United States | $385,000 |
| 1979 | 54 | Hal Fowler | United States | $270,000 |
| 1978 | 42 | Bobby Baldwin | United States | $210,000 |
| 1977 | 34 | Doyle Brunson | United States | $340,000 |
| 1976 | 22 | Doyle Brunson | United States | $220,000 |
| 1975 | 21 | Brian Roberts | United States | $210,000 |
| 1974 | 16 | Johnny Moss | United States | $160,000 |
| 1973 | 13 | Walter Pearson | United States | $130,000 |