Jack Straus
| Jack Straus | |
|---|---|
Jack "Treetop" Straus
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| Nickname(s) | Treetop |
| Born | June 16, 1930 |
| Died | August 17, 1988 (age 58) Los Angeles, California |
| World Series of Poker | |
| Bracelet(s) | 2 |
| Money finish(es) | 4 |
| Highest ITM Main Event finish |
Winner, 1982 |
Jack "Treetop" Straus (June 16, 1930 - August 17, 1988) was an American professional poker player.
He is best known for winning the 1982 World Series of Poker Main Event, where he was able to come back from being down to one chip earlier in the tournament, which gave meaning to the poker phrase "a chip and a chair". In addition, Straus is known for successfully pulling off one of the best bluffs in the history of poker.
Straus began playing in World Series of Poker events in the early 1970s. He finished in fourth place in the 1972 Main Event. He won his first bracelet in 1973 in the $3,000 Deuce to Seven Draw event and also finished in third place in the Main Event that year.
He won the 1982 World Series of Poker Main Event, earning $520,000 and a second WSOP bracelet. His appearances at the final table of the Main Event in 1972, 1973, and 1982 put him in a small elite group players to have made the final table three or more times. Other players to have done this include Main Event champions like Johnny Moss, Doyle Brunson, Stu Ungar, Johnny Chan, and Dan Harrington.
Famously, Straus's 1982 win was a comeback after being down to a single $25 chip, supposedly the origin of the common tournament poker aphorism: "a chip and a chair." Although accounts vary, the most common story is that he pushed his chips into the pot, was called and lost the hand. Straus had thought he was eliminated from the tournament, but when he got up, he discovered he had one chip left under a napkin on the table.
Because he didn't declare himself all-in, the tournament directors allowed him to continue playing. Modern lore says that this feat occurred at the final table, but the 2005 book All In, which documents the history of the WSOP, confirms that it occurred early in the second day, and did leave him with a $500 chip before his comeback.
Straus is credited with one of the most celebrated bluffs of all time. While playing in a high-stakes no limit Texas Hold'em cash game, Straus had won several large pots in a row and so decided that he would raise the next hand pre-flop with any two cards. When he looked down he found that he had been dealt 7-2 offsuit, the worst starting hand in Texas Hold'em, but, playing a 'rush', he raised anyway. Straus' raise was called by a single opponent and the flop came 7-3-3. This was a good flop for a 7-2, so Straus bet out. However his tight opponent made a large raise, indicating a likely overpair to the board.
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