Poker Legends: Stu Ungar Trivia Quiz

Answer: Tournament Poker and Gin Rummy.

Stu was winning Gin Rummy tournaments and playing professionally, long before he took up Poker as a profession.

Answer: True

To get any kind of one-on-one action he would offer handicaps, rebates, and act out of position the entire game.

Legend has it, he once knew a player was cheating and didn't call him on the carpet because he knew he was going to win anyway.

Answer: Sports betting

Mr. Ungar was also an expert Black Jack player. His memory was so perfect, that he could keep track of every card in a six deck shoe. Needless to say, he was not allowed to play Black Jack in almost every casino in Vegas or Atlantic City because the odds were decidedly in his favor.

Stuey probably lost millions on horse and sports betting, but no one is certain.

Answer: False

Poker legend Barry Greenstein has actually stated that Stuey may have lost more money than he won in side games. As a tournament player, however, Stuey was truly phenomenal.

Answer: Not only was it his first time playing Tournament No Limit Hold 'Em, it was the first time he had ever Played No Limit Hold 'Em, period.

Stuey had played Hold 'Em before, just never No Limit.

Answer: "Some day, I suppose it's possible for someone to be a better No Limit Hold 'Em player than me. I doubt it, but it could happen. But, I swear to you, I don't see how anyone could ever play Gin better than me."

The main reason Stuey turned to Poker was that he was so skilled at Gin, no one would play him.

Ungar reportedly sent Harry Stein into retirement, he beat him at Gin so badly.

Who's Harry Stein? Most regarded him as the best professional Gin player of Ungar's time. That is, until Stuey beat him. Apparently he was beaten so badly that one of Stein's friends said, "He was never the same after that night".

Answer: The Kid

Many believe he got this name when he won the Main Event in 1980 because of his young age. He was actually winning Gin Rummy Tournaments before then, and picked up the nickname in that arena. Besides being very young, he looked even younger. (He appeared to be about 16 or 17 years old when he won the main event in 1980.)

Answer: True

If you are saying, "Wait a minute, Phil Hellmuth was the youngest", you are right. Stuey won nine years prior to Hellmuth replacing him as the youngest ever.

Answer: Stuey was the first to win the WSOP Main Event as a freezout tournament three times.

Johnny Moss was the first to win the big one thrice. But the first time Moss won the winner was elected, and not decided by freeze out, or elimination.

Answer: 1980, 1981, 1997.

When Stuey won in 1997 his nickname ceased to be simply "The Kid", and became "The Comeback Kid". The comeback was short-lived however, as he failed to defend his title in 1998. Stuey did not even play because of his drug use leading up to the tournament. He later stated it would have been more embarrassing to play in his condition, than not to show up at all.

Stuey was found dead in his motel room at the Las Vegas Oasis Motel on November 22, 1998 at the age of 45. While he did have trace amounts of drugs in his system, there were not enough present for his death to have been an overdose. It was concluded that he most likely died of a heart condition, brought on by years of drug addiction.

It is estimated that Stuey played in 30 poker tournaments with a buy-in of $5,000 or more. He won 10 of them. This feat is so phenomenal, that most would consider it impossible had it not been done.

Stu was inducted into the Poker Hall Of Fame in 2001. He was only the 25th person to recieve this honor since its inception in 1979. At the time this quiz was written, only 33 players had ever been inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame. Stu is among the likes of Johnny Moss, Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan, Amarillo Slim, and Wild Bill Hickok, to name but a few. There's no telling what his true potential was.