Category Archives: Personalities

Accomplished Gambler and Nobleman

John Montagu was not your usual professional gambler. He accomplished many great things as the 4^th Earl of Sandwich. He negotiated treaties, sponsored a voyage through the Pacific and served as a captain of a regiment.

This extraordinary man was born in Cheswick in November 1718 and lost his father at the early age of 4. His mother got remarried, leaving him to be raised by his Grandmother and rarely seeing his mother. As a way to deal with the stress of his duties, he turned to gambling for comfort. His love for cards saw him spend endless hours around card tables, winning and losing thousands of pounds regularly.

The Impact of Gambling

Montagu first started gambling when in College. He was encouraged by his friends to join them at Horse Races, and when it came to this form of gambling, Montagu was too cautious.

As the years passed, he stopped betting on horses and started focusing on card games instead. He would spend hour’s playing cards, and his longest stint lasted 24 hours. He enjoyed convenience when eating during card games and would often ask his servants for pieces of meat between two slices of bread. He wanted this so he could hold the sandwich in one hand while holding cards in the other. Hence the birth of the sandwich because those who played against him started asking for “the same as sandwich.”

Know when to Quit

Once Montagu started playing cards, he did not know when to quit and would often lose thousands of pounds in one night. He, however, did enjoy a winning streak that paid for Captain Cook’s voyage through the Pacific Ocean where he discovered Australia and small islands, which he named The Sandwich Islands which are today known as the islands of Hawaii.

Montagu eventually depleted his savings due to his gambling habits, and when he passed away in April 1792 he was broke.

About Chris Moneymaker

Chris Moneymaker is a professional Poker player and probably best known for winning the 2003 World Series of Poker Main Event. He qualified for the WSOP in a satellite tournament and not seen as a significant contender, yet his victory proved to the world that perseverance and hard work could take you places.

He was the middle child born in Atlanta, Georgia to a middle-class family. His father worked for a travel agency which provided the family with free vacations, and it was on one of their free trips. Chris experienced the thrill of gambling. They managed to sneak into the cruise ships casino and made it to a slot machine but were escorted out penniless.

His Life

Moneymaker graduated from the University of Tennessee with both a bachelors and his masters in accounting. He enjoyed playing poker once a week with friends or online at PokerStars but at that stage never thought of pursuing it as a career. However, as time passed bills piled up and he started playing poker online and luckily for him his $39 buy-in satellite tournament at PokerStars paid off.

At the start of the game, Moneymaker played to lose as he wanted to finish in fourth place for the cash prize however a friend of his convinced him to go for first as it would be a once in a lifetime experience, how right he was. The World Series of Poker began in 2003 and Moneymaker was competing against 838 of the best poker players globally, and each one started the game with 10000 chips. That day he finished with 60 000 chips and placed him 11^th. The second day of the competition saw only 111 players left including Moneymaker who sat in 26^th position with 10000 chips. Moneymaker just kept winning, and in the fifth day, Moneymaker beat Farha with a great bluff and walking away with 2.5 million and a gold signature bracelet.

Conclusion

Today he is PokerStars primary spokesperson and has attracted many new players. The sudden attention poker stared receiving was known as the “Moneymaker effect” This man is a true inspiration and shows people anything is possible if you set your heart and mind to it!

Eric Seidel the Gambler

This professional Poker player is a rarity. He is today still a formidable and successful player after being in the game for 30+ years. Seidel was born on November 6, 1959, In New York. He was known for his work on movies such as Lucky You, All in and the 2007 World Series of Poker film.

Seidel is a well-mannered and polite man and has never been seen berating other players. However, on the inside, he is a shark, hence the nickname Sly. He has done exceptionally well over the years establishing himself as one of the most consistent winners of Poker.

Entering the Poker Scene

Seidel first came onto the Poker scene over 30 years ago when he took second place in the 1988 World Series of Poker main event. The final hand between Seidel and Johnny Chan was immortalised in the movie Rounders. His resume is astounding, and Seidel won his first WSOP bracelet in 1992 and the most recent one in 2007 giving him a total of 8 WSOP bracelet wins.

His other notable achievements were when he won the WPT Foxwoods Poker Classic in 2008, came 2^nd in the 2008 Aussie Millions Main Event (winning $1 million), NBC National Heads Up Championship and 2011 PCA. He is a versatile player who enjoys playing variants of poker, which is why he has been able to amass 8 WSOP bracelets.

Eric Seidel was also elected to the Poker Hall of Fame in 2010 along with Dan Harrington. This quiet assassin leaves a trail of bodies in his winning wake, unlike many of his competitors who scream and yell when they take a bad beat. He is a true gentleman and a winner all round, and is liked by many people in poker circles.

Harry Kakavas, a known problem gambler was once one of Australia’s top real estate agents. He made a fortune selling houses on the Gold Coast and was one of the biggest Australian gamblers. Kakavas lost in the region of 1.5 billion on the Baccarat Tables at Crown Casino in Melbourne, betting as much as $300 000 a hand.

His Downfall

His compulsion left him owing friends, lawyers and banks millions of dollars. His friends believed they were investing in his property ventures when, in actual fact, they were unknowingly feeding his gambling habit.

The Crown lured him away from Las Vegas by offering him free accommodation, food and drink as well as a free private jet to ferry him from his home on the Gold Coast. They even flew him to the Philippines and back for a free holiday. Further to this, the Crown Casino also gave him $50 000 in lucky money which was handed to him personally when he boarded the plane totalling over $10 million in treats to ensure this high rolling problem gambler kept going back.

Kakavas eventually lost everything and laid a multi-million damages claim against the Crown stating they knew he was a compulsive gambler and they exploited his weakness and acted unconscionably.

His case was subsequently thrown out by the Victorian Supreme Court sending a clear message to all Australian gambling addicts which was that Australian Courts would not give gamblers their money back.

In 1998 Kakavas spent four months in jail for defrauding Esanda Finance Corp of $2 860 000 and that same year he faced charges of armed robbery. However, due to insufficient evidence, the charges were dropped. The Esanda Fraud is a landmark in the Kakavas story as he claims to have committed this crime to feed his gambling habit.

Today you will find Harry Kasavas back on the Gold Coast selling properties focusing on Hedges Avenue working for Prestige Property Sales.