20 people • Their lives • The stories behind the results
Meet the people who shaped blackjack, poker and casino history. Start with a biography, then explore a classic hand, a defining event or the method behind the reputation.
Three stories to start with
Mathematician • Card counting
Edward Thorp
The mathematician who made blackjack a problem of changing probabilities.
Method study: Finite decks
High stakes • Negotiated conditions
Don Johnson
His Atlantic City wins put the casino contract at the center of the story.
Contract case: 2011
Poker • Baccarat controversy
Phil Ivey
A multi-format poker career and a baccarat dispute that should be understood separately.
Reported match: 2006
Blackjack: methods, rules & conditions
5 biographies
Five different ways to examine the game: card information, negotiated terms, access, selection and analytical skill.
Mathematician • Card counting
Edward Thorp
The mathematician who made blackjack a problem of changing probabilities.
Method study: Finite decks
High stakes • Negotiated conditions
Don Johnson
His Atlantic City wins put the casino contract at the center of the story.
Contract case: 2011
Team play • Casino access
Ken Uston
A team-play author whose dispute with Resorts reached New Jersey’s highest court.
Court case: 1979–1982
Author • Game selection
Stanford Wong
Professional Blackjack made choosing when to play part of the conversation.
Method study: Selective entry
Analyst • Advantage play
James Grosjean
An author and analyst whose three Blackjack Ball wins inspired the Grosjean Cup.
Event recap: 2004, 2007 & 2008
Poker: champions, classic hands & formats
10 biographies
Ten careers, with recorded championship hands where available and event studies where a complete hand log is not.
Poker • Baccarat controversy
Phil Ivey
A multi-format poker career and a baccarat dispute that should be understood separately.
Reported match: 2006
Poker pioneer • 10–2
Doyle Brunson
From Texas road games to two consecutive Main Event titles and Super/System.
Documented hands: 1976–1977
Back-to-back champion • The trap
Johnny Chan
His 1988 final hand against Erik Seidel remains a classic example of concealed strength.
Documented hand: 1988
Gin rummy • Three Main Events
Stu Ungar
An extraordinary card-game career whose achievements cannot be separated from its difficult ending.
Documented hand: 1997
1989 champion • Multi-format career
Phil Hellmuth
The 24-year-old who stopped Johnny Chan’s Main Event streak.
Documented hand: 1989
Mixed games • Player adaptation
Daniel Negreanu
A Toronto-born poker career illustrated by the 2024 Poker Players Championship.
Event recap: 2024
Online qualifier • 2003 champion
Chris Moneymaker
An online qualifier whose Main Event win changed poker’s public imagination.
Documented hand: 2003
Computer science • 2000 champion
Chris Ferguson
A mathematically oriented poker career with a championship and a serious controversy.
Documented hand: 2000
Mixed formats • Pressure and position
Vanessa Selbst
A three-bracelet career highlighted by the 2014 mixed-max championship.
Event recap: 2014
Cash games • Hold’em and lowball
Jennifer Harman
A Hall of Fame career that crosses very different poker hand-ranking systems.
Format study: 2000
Casino history: roulette, fortunes & controversies
5 biographies
Explore roulette history, bankroll swings and the adjacent field of sports betting, with each setting clearly labeled.
Monte Carlo • Victorian history
Charles Wells
The real person behind “The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo.”
Historical account: 1891
Bradford • Roulette wheel bias
Joseph Jagger
A textile-world figure whose Monte Carlo story turns on the wheel, not the streak.
Historical method study: Wheel observation
Roulette • Contemporary reporting
William Darnborough
A 1910 newspaper interview reveals a more complicated story than its winning headline.
Historical report: 1910
The Run • Bankroll swings
Archie Karas
A legendary rise and loss whose starting-capital story is often oversimplified.
Reported historical case: The Run
Sports betting • Adjacent field
Billy Walters
A sports-betting memoir helps explain why price matters as much as picking a winner.
Method study • Sports betting: Price comparison
What makes these stories different?
| Story | What to look for | A good starting point |
|---|---|---|
| Card counting | Information changes as cards leave a finite deck. | Thorp and the shuffle |
| Negotiated blackjack | The session contract can change the settlement. | Johnson’s rebate conditions |
| Poker hands | Decisions depend on opponents, ranges and the price. | Chan vs. Seidel |
| Historical roulette | A reported win is different from a measured wheel bias. | Jagger and physical bias |