STU "THE KID" UNGAR PLAYED HIS LAST HAND

Stu "the Kid" Ungar, whose astronomical wagers and fearless play at high stakes poker, became the stuff which gamling legends are made of, was found dead Sunday morning in a cheap Las Vegas strip adult motel room at age 45.

Stu Ungar was a three time Binion's World Series of Poker winner in '80,'81,and'97 and two time Amarillo Slim Super Bowl of Poker winner. In April, 1997 Stu made, what today is still considered the greatest comeback in poker history to win the World Series and $1.1 million (less than a month later, Stu was broke having made bad horse and sports bets), which was handed to him in bundles in a plain cardboard box by Ted Binion, who himself died of mysterious causes last month. It was well known to us in Vegas that both Stu and Ted were notorious drug users, and often sat in Ted's office during poker sessions doing cocaine and were often seen disappearing into Ted's office. By the end of May, Stu was broke and owed Binion's Horseshoe $250,000 in bad horse and football bets.

Stu was also an incredible gin rummy player. At age 10 in '63, he won his first gin rummy tournament in a Catskill Mountain Resort while vacationing with his parents. At age 14, he was regularly playing and beating the best players in New York. He had an incredible memory and his reputation skyrocketed and by 15, he dropped out of school when a well known bookie staked Stu to the $500 buy-in in a big gin rummy tournament, when the smoke cleared, Stu took the $10,000 home without ever loosing a hand, a record still held in the card rooms of New York City. But a week later, after giving his parents $1,000, he lost the rest on 2nd place horses at Aqueduct which foreshadowed a roller coaster gambling career.

Stu landed in Vegas in the late '70's, one step ahead of a New York mob bookmaker who he owed 5 figures. He scraped together $1,500 and entered a downtown Vegas gin rummy tournament worth $50,000. On the last 2 hands he told the losing player every card that was in his hand and in the deck correctly. When the other players and observers saw this brash move, Stu couldn't find a game outside the tourmaments. Stu had an incredible reputation in Vegas. Feared at every poker table in Nevada, California and New Jersey, in 1986, decided to try his luck at Blackjack. Stu's ability to memorize the cards was known by the casino owners. The fact that Stu could run down everyone's hand, as well as the cards left in the face-dowm deck at the end of a gin rummy game was well known, an incredible feat in itself, now, he decided to do the same thing at 21 and was even more fearsome to the casino owners. At the end of one weekend in 1987, at Caesars Palace, he picked up the last bet in a $83,000 night, when the casino manager said he had enough and called a halt to his play, he told Stu to enjoy the money, it would be the last win at a blackjack table at a major resort in the state of Nevada and New Jersey. His picture was sent to every casino manager in the state with the memo that Stu Ungar, after being barred at Caesars, took the last 18 cards of the single deck and correctly told the manager every card left in the deck. When the manager took the cards and saw Stu was exactly correct, he had every single deck taken out of Caesar's Palace in Vegas, Tahoe and Altantic City, there hasn't been one at any Caesar's since. When the memo was received by the other casinos, Stu was barred for life and the other casinos followed suit and removed all the single decks and went to the shoe. (Now, when you go to a casino and can't find a single deck table, HE'S the reason.)

Stu then bet any takers $10,000 that he could count down the last two decks in a six deck shoe and give the correct value of the remaining cards, the bet was never taken until 1997, when in January, Bob Stupak, one time owner of Vegas World and the designer of the Stratosphere Tower, offered Stu $100,000 if he could do it with three decks, half way through a six deck shoe. Stu would pay Bob $10,000 if he couldn't. After 1 deck, Stupak turned green, at 2 decks, Stupak turned white, before Ungar finished, Stupak had signed and was tearing out the $100,000 check from his checkbook. Stu hadn't missed one card (156). The only feat ever performed before Stupak that he admitted absolutely astonished him "I can tell you how Siegfried and Roy make the tiger disappear, I can tell you how Lance Burton pulls those birds out of thin air, I even know how Copperfield managed the Statue of Liberty, but I can't tell you how the hell Ungar, or any living human being for that matter, can run down a six deck shoe. It can't be done, but he just done it" said Stupak, while handing the check over.

When Stu was found dead, it was Bob Stupak who had just closed a deal with Stu to pay off his gambling debts and stake him to the up-coming poker tournaments. He was the greatest pot-limit and no-limit Texas hold'em player we had ever seen.It was the only game that could satisfy his gambling hunger. In his first big tournament, the $10,000 buy-in no limit Hold'em tournament at Binion's Horseshoe in 1980, at 27, he was the youngest player to win the $1.1 million first prize, he repeated the feat by winning the next year also. He was unstoppable, he won the Amarillo Slim Super Bowl of Poker in '83 and '88 and Stupak's Americas Cup no limit title in '87 as well as the first Four Queen's Poker Classic in '91 which he played with an abscess tooth and a 102 degree fever. In all he won 10 major No limit Hold-'em tournaments. His comeback in the "97 World Series of Poker was the most incredible, legendary comeback win ever seen. With only $30,000 left, he came back to win $1.1 million which was captured on ESPN and still replayed and often talked about in the poker rooms of Vegas.

He was easily recognizable with his black mop hair and blue tinted granny glasses. With his crass attitude and his high I.Q. often made him treat his lesser opponents with rudeness and brashness, often telling them what cards they were playing and was met with respect and disdane, except that he was usually right and we couldn't argue with talent like that.

Saturday night he checked into the Oasis adult motel, a sleezy $10 an hour, $50 a night motel near downtown Las Vegas. He called the manager to ask for the room for another night. At 10:30, the manager came into his rooom to pick up the money for Sunday. Stu told him to take the $50 and please close the window because he was cold. When the manager went to the window it was already closed, so he turned on the heat for Stu and locked the door behind him. The next morning he came to bring his change and Stu was still under the blankets dead. $800 in his pocket, no change of clothes or underwear. Only his daughter's phone number in his wallet to call in case of emergencies.

As people come and go in Las Vegas, few will ever be remembered and last night at the Horseshoe's poker room a moment of silence was observed, the first time in poker history, a wreath was placed around the Kid's picture on the World Series Wall of Fame, a deck of cards was torn up and the pieces thrown on the floor, a chair was pshed forward at the big Hold-'em table, as if to be saved for a player waiting for his return and we all spilled a little of our drinks, a last tribute to the brother who isn't with us anymore.

So-long Kid, say hello to Teddy for all of us and save us a seat at the big game, we'll see ya when we see ya. You were the best, God don't make no junk.

---Ken Pearlman