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History's Most Memorable Poker Players
Throughout the ages, poker has been a very popular game. It has been played for thousands of years and by some of history's most famous people. From Abraham Lincoln to Winston Churchill and everyone in between, poker has been a common link.
The night before Christopher Columbus set out on the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria he was involved in a high stakes poker games. With there a lot of uncertainty as to whether or not Columbus and his crew would return from the New Land, he played with a certain abandon. He didn't mind incurring significant losses as he wasn't sure that he would be back to repay them. Suffice to say that on his return, he wasn't as happy as his creditors to be back.
Everyone knows the story of William Tell where he shot an arrow at an apple sitting on his son's head. What many people don't know is that the story has a prologue to it. Tell was quite the poker player and won big at the expense of the Austrian sheriff. Hence the Sheriff had an axe to grind with Tell. Tell was an expert poker player who was the best bluffer of his day, hence shooting the apple was no big deal.
Abraham Lincoln formulated most of his strategy for the Civil War during poker games. He played games with his advisers, cabinet members and generals. They bounced ideas off each other and in this relaxed state he tended to make better decision. In one game he won $87 and after he was asked how he had done that night he answered, "I won four score and seven dollars." This inspired him for the opening of the Gettysburg Address.
John Kennedy was another American President who loved to play poker. He needed all of his poker skills in real life during the Bay of Pigs crisis. The world was taken to the brink when World War Three very nearly started. Kennedy held firm and all was saved.
Adolf Hitler was a horrible poker player. He couldn't bluff to save himself and often his opponents would lose on purpose to prevent his anger was being set off. In this regard Hitler was similar as a strategist and commander in chief. He made mistake after mistake and was said to badly be affected by poker tilt.
A smooth poker player was Marco Polo who introduced the game to the court of Kublai Khan. Polo played the game while traveling from Venice to Asia. His hosts were fascinated by the game. He taught the game there and was responsible for introducing it to the region. The Marco Polo poker club is a legacy to this.
Going back to ancient times, Alexander the Great was said to be an incredible poker player. His reading of tells and bluffs made him very difficult to play against. He was shrewd and typically hit the cards he was looking for. Like his military career his poker career burned brightly and then burned out.
Over the year, many of the world's most famous people have played poker. Poker has even played its part in some of history's most famous stories.
About the Author Laura Saunders is a freelance journalist who enjoys writing about the world of online gaming and poker. She can often be found frequenting the Internets top online poker rooms. |
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