Sailor Roberts And The Infamous Texas Road Gamblers
‘Sailor’ Roberts And The Poker Hall Of Fame
If you’re a poker player then you’re probably well aware that the game of poker contains many legends. What’s interesting is that they all have nicknames such as “Texas Dolly” and “Moore Amarillo.” One of the most famous poker legends was Brian “sailor” Roberts. He was to travel with the two aforementioned players. They were, actually Texas Dolly Brunson and Amarillo Slim Preston. Together they would go on to form the “Texas Road Gamblers” who were a legendary trio of players who took the poker world by storm
Sailor Roberts: The Early Years
Brian Roberts was born on March 7th, 1931 in the tiny town of San Angelo, in Texas. It was a small and lonely dusty town in the middle of nowhere. His life began just as the Great Depression was ending and times were still hard. So, at the age of 12, Roberts got his first job as a golf caddy in order to help his family put food on the table. There was a lot of downtime for golf caddies and they would often spend it shooting craps. And it’s here, where he learnt how to win the jackpot, that the future seeds of his career as a professional gambler were planted. Many remarked that it was only a matter of time before he would become a legendary poker player.
At high school, Roberts had the potential to be a football star. But in the end decided he would prefer to join the navy rather than go to college. In the 1950s, the Korean War was in full effect. But being in the Navy, Roberts had a lot of time spent waiting. Many servicemen pass the time by shooting craps or playing cards. It wasn’t long before Roberts became quite an expert at gambling and by the time he left the navy, he had acquired money, gambling skills and jackpot winning strategies. Along with a decent amount of cash. He also acquired the nickname of “sailor.”
Brian Sailor Roberts Hits The Road
After Roberts finished his time in the Navy he returned to the small dusty Texas hometown where he was born. But it just wasn’t the same for him. Now it was far too small for a person who travels the world, as well as someone who had become successful with gambling. He didn’t want to go back to being an underpaid golf caddy. So he packed his bags and set off in search of bigger fish to fry. One thing he quickly learnt was that craps wasn’t going to be a source of a stable income. It was better to stick to poker as a means of finding his fortune. If you want to find your fortune playing poker, then we suggest that you check out 32Red Poker. They have many variations. And even better, they offer all new players a bonkers welcome bonus of 200% Up to €1000!
Travelling Alone And Making Friends
Roberts spent the next few years travelling around small towns alone. Once in a while he would hit up the low stakes poker games. Of course, being a more advanced player than others in these out of the way little towns, he would clean up financially. Sailor Roberts was saving his money diligently and over time gradually increased his bankroll. Sometimes he would find action in a higher stakes poker game. As he travelled, he began to meet up with the same players who were living the same on the road life as him.
These included Texas Dolly Doyle Brunson and Thomas Amarillo Slim Preston. Once, when they were involved in a game playing against each other, Slim busted both of his new friends, cleaning out their bankrolls completely. But as the mark of a real gentleman, Slim gave both Doyle and Sailor some cash back so they would be able to move onto the next game.
The Famous Texas Road Gamblers
And thus began the close friendship between the three poker players. Whilst travelling together, on many occasions they pooled their bankrolls. And if any one of them came up short, then the others would step in to help out. They all travelled together on the Southern Poker Circuit for many years. In the end, they decided that in order to up the winnings, they needed to hit the real high stake poker games that were taking place in Las Vegas.
Bad Luck And A Break Up
When they arrived in Sin City, looking for casinos to win the jackpot, the bright young Texan trio were feeling very confident. After all, they had previously taken most of the South by storm and they had certainly built up a legendary status. But when they started gambling in Las Vegas, Lady Luck seemed to have turned the other way. In just a few days their combined bankroll was down to almost zero. Such was the stress on the three friends that they decided to part ways. And though they agreed to this, they remained good friends.
Then in the early 1960s Brunson was diagnosed with throat cancer and was immediately hospitalised. Sailor Roberts immediately dropped what he was doing and went to his friend’s side where he remained for two weeks. After Branson recovered, the two friends decided to join forces and go back to gambling together. Although all the three Texans have been involved in sports betting across State lines, the Federal Wire Act of 1961 made it illegal to use phones across State lines in order for sports gambling. Whilst Doyle and Slim Preston dropped sports betting, Sailor Roberts continued and soon found himself serving a year in a minimum security prison for sports betting across State lines. On his release he decided to never bet on sports again.
The World Series Of Poker
Long before the mega resorts and casinos that are now commonplace on the Las Vegas strip, jackpot poker was a much different scene altogether. This was long before the days when the city of Las Vegas would begin to attract high rollers. Essentially poker games took place in bars, gaming halls and saloons which had sawdust on the floor. But for the Texas Road Gamblers this was poker heaven. Nevertheless, soon a gambling den called Binion’s Horseshoe gradually rose to fame as the poker epicentre of Las Vegas.
It’s owner was the larger than life character, Benny Binion. In 1970 he created the World Series of Poker (WSOP) in order to highlight the best poker players at that time. And also to attract them to his casino. Although their original trip to Las Vegas had proved a horrible experience for the Trio, now the Texas Road Gamblers sensed that their time had come.
Benny Binion Invites The World’s Best Poker Players
WSOP contestants are by personal invitation only from Benny Binion. The games consisted of the 7 greatest players at that time. These included Puggy Pearson, Doyle Brunson, Sailor Roberts, Johnny Moss and Crandell Addington. In the first competition, Johnny Moss was rated the best poker player in the world and took home a silvercup. Later, in proceeding WSOP events, the winners would receive both high cash prizes as well as the coveted WSOP golden bracelet.
Then in 1970, Sailor Roberts won his first WSOP bracelet in a $5,000 Deuce to Seven draw event. Five years later he was to win his second WSOP bracelet. He also managed to rack in $210,000 in cash. Though he was playing against his old Texas poker partners as rivals for the first prize in this competition, when he won, they all celebrated with him in good humour. If you want some poker winning celebrations in your life, then head over to 32Red Poker. They have fantastic live dealer games with a huge variety of poker variants.
Sailor Roberts And The Poker Hall Of Fame
In 1979, Benny Binion created the Poker Hall of Fame. The idea was to honour the very best poker players, who both played the game, and acted as gaming ambassadors. To be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame there were certain prerequisites. These included that you need to play high stakes against top competition, you must be at least 40 years of age, and you must have earned the respect of your poker playing peers. In 1988, Doyle Brunson was inducted after managing to win a massive ten WSOP bracelets. Then in 1990, Slim Preston saw his own induction. Unfortunately their friend and poker playing comrade, Sailor Roberts, was to die before he made the grade.
After his death on June 23rd 1995, many of the world’s greatest poker players, including Doyle Brunson, requested Sailor’s induction into the Poker Hall of Fame. And finally in 2012, Sailor Roberts was posthumously inducted as one of the greatest poker players to have ever played the game.
