Some nice poker stories

Wild Bill and the Dead Man's Hand

On August 2, 1876, in Deadwood, South Dakota, old west legend Wild Bill Hickok was shot to death by Jack McCall during a poker game because McCall believed he was being cheated. The poker hand Wild Bill was holding at that moment was two pair, black aces and black 8s. Since that fateful day, that poker hand has been known as the Dead Man's Hand.

Other memorable poker hand nicknames include American Airlines (a pair of Aces, due to the AA acronym), Motown (two pair -- jacks and 5s -- since it sounds like Jackson Five), and Dolly Parton (a 9 and a 5 -- a reference to the song and the movie 9 to 5).

Richard Nixon's poker career





Former U.S. President Richard Nixon reportedly financed his first political campaign with money he won playing poker in the U.S. Navy during World War II. The winnings helped pay for his successful U.S. Congress run in 1946. Apparently, Nixon decided that his lucrative pastime would not sit well as his political career gained momentum, and he gave up poker in 1952 when he became Dwight Eisenhower's running mate. In his autobiography, Nixon wrote: "I learned that the people who have the cards are usually the ones who talk the least and the softest; those who are bluffing tend to talk loudly and give themselves away."

The legend of Poker Alice

One of the most memorable wild women of the old west, Poker Alice moved to Colorado from England in the 1860s and eventually married a mining engineer who played cards at local gambling parlors. Alice accompanied her husband, learned the games and began playing for a living after her spouse died. She earned the name Poker Alice and quite a reputation to boot. By the end of the gold rush, Alice had made over $5,000 (an enormous amount for those days) and moved to New York to retire. In her lifetime, the wild woman shot two men, killing one, and eventually opened an establishment which was a combination of a card room and a brothel. Despite her wild ways, Alice refused to play or deal cards on Sunday, and chose to teach Sunday school lessons to her fellow ladies.

Origin of the 'nuts'

In poker, "the nuts" refers to an unbeatable poker hand. According to some poker experts, the term originated in the old west, where players often bet their horse and wagon. When a player put up his horse and wagon in a game, he would be required to remove the nuts from his wagon wheels and place them in the pot, so that he could not flee if he lost the bet. Therefore, it was assumed that anyone would bet "the nuts" with only with the best possible poker hand.

Cool fact: Similarly, a "nut" player is one who tends to play only strong hands. A "calling station" is someone who frequently checks and calls, but rarely raises.