The most epic card losses

Gambling entertainment today, just as it was many years ago, was incredibly popular and sought after. And they could bring both huge winnings and monstrous losses. And history knows quite a few such examples with online casinos that are worth talking about.

Barefoot Joe and his 15 minutes of fame

At the Treasure Island Casino in Las Vegas, an old man appeared, barefoot and in his old clothes. This was back in 1995. The story said he had been kicked out of the house by his wife. He had a small amount of money with him. The establishment surprised him, but let him in nonetheless.

He started playing blackjack, and without considering all the strategies and laws of the game he almost always won. And so it lasted for a few days, drinking whiskey he won almost €1 million with just 400 quid. Of course, the casino security couldn’t get past this, he was dressed and shoeed, groomed and provided with security and a hotel room. It was important to the owners that he play only in this casino, so the old man got his limousine.

As time passed, Joe’s luck turned away and eventually the casino got the winnings. The old man lost all his money. But those days of his incredible luck were the most vivid and memorable of his life. He sold the rights to his own story for €10,000.

Wild Bill Hickok

This is a Wild West hero who made a lot of enemies before he started playing poker. He worked as a sheriff for a long time, so this is not surprising. In 1876 one of his enemies caught up with him, Bill was playing poker and was sitting with his back to the entrance.

The thug, having been drinking heavily, approached the former sheriff from behind and shot him almost at point-blank range. The bullet went through, and Hickock died instantly. A combination of two eights and three aces of black fell out of his hands. That was not the end of his game, but it was the end of his life.

Since that day the combination was nicknamed “Dead Man’s Hand”.

Pushkin lost Onegin at cards

Alexander Sergeyevich, the great poet, is known to everyone. But to the police he was known as a gambler, and more than once he was threatened with trial and expulsion for playing cards, which was illegal. He was indeed a gambling man, but bad luck befell him very often. Out of 5 games he lost 4, and when he ran out of money, he bet manuscripts.

In Pskov he loses chapter four of Onegin, and already in Moscow he loses chapter five. He lost all his money, as usual, and the manuscripts came out of the blue. But then he gambled on his dueling pistols and luck smiled on him.