Amarillo Slim Trivia: Prop Bets and Poker Pranks
Thomas Austin “Amarillo Slim” Preston Jr. transformed poker from backroom hustle to mainstream entertainment through outrageous proposition bets, theatrical showmanship, and storytelling that blurred the line between fact and fiction. His victory at the 1972 World Series of Poker launched poker’s first celebrity ambassador, though his complex legacy reminds us that in poker, as in life, the biggest bluff might be the legend itself.
Key Takeaways
- Master of Proposition Bets: Defeated Bobby Riggs with frying pans, Minnesota Fats with a broomstick, and Evel Knievel with a hammer
- 1972 WSOP Champion: Won poker’s most famous tournament in an allegedly orchestrated victory worth only $15,000-20,000
- 11 Tonight Show Appearances: Became poker’s first mainstream celebrity through Johnny Carson’s platform
- Texas Rounders Member: Introduced Texas Hold’em to Las Vegas with Doyle Brunson and Sailor Roberts in 1967
- Complex Legacy: 2003 legal troubles destroyed his reputation despite maintaining innocence
- Four WSOP Bracelets: Tournament success spanned from 1972 Main Event through 1990 Pot Limit Omaha victory
The Legendary Prop Bets That Built a Myth
Amarillo Slim’s reputation rested on seemingly impossible proposition bets that followed a carefully orchestrated pattern. His most famous wager came at Bel Air Country Club, where he defeated tennis champion Bobby Riggs at ping-pong using iron skillets as paddles for a $10,000 bet (source). What Riggs didn’t know was that Preston had practiced with the unconventional equipment for months, perfecting his technique with the heavy, awkward paddles.
When a table tennis champion later challenged him in Knoxville after hearing about the Riggs match and practicing extensively with skillets, Preston switched tactics. He proposed using Coca-Cola bottles as paddles instead, having secretly mastered that technique as well. The pattern repeated with other sports legends: he beat pool icon Minnesota Fats using a broomstick instead of a cue stick and golf daredevil Evel Knievel using a carpenter’s hammer instead of golf clubs.
Preston’s Proposition Bet Philosophy
“You see, friend, when I make a wager, the bet has already been won.”
Each hustle involved months of secret practice, psychological manipulation, and precise stipulations creating hidden advantages. Preston targeted wealthy marks with inflated egos, knowing they’d underestimate the folksy Texan in his ten-gallon hat.
The Texas Rounders Revolutionize Vegas Poker
Preston’s most significant contribution to poker came through his partnership with Doyle Brunson and Bryan “Sailor” Roberts as the Texas Rounders. Operating from Odessa, Texas from the late 1950s to mid-1960s, the trio shared bankrolls and provided mutual protection while hunting high-stakes games across the dangerous Southern poker circuit.
They introduced Texas Hold’em to Las Vegas in 1967, convincing the Golden Nugget to deal the game that would eventually dominate modern poker. As Brunson described their arrangement: “We watched out after each other. There was a lot of danger on the road; and with the three of us, we were more protected than if we went solo” (source).
The partnership dissolved by the mid-1960s as each player pursued individual success, but their influence on No-Limit Texas Hold’em strategy shaped poker’s future. Their road gambling experiences, dealing with cheats and violence, prepared them for the psychological warfare of tournament poker.
The 1972 WSOP Victory That Changed Everything
The 1972 WSOP Main Event on May 11-16 marked Preston’s coronation as poker’s public face, though the victory itself was allegedly orchestrated. With only eight players competing for an $80,000 prize pool, multiple sources suggest casino owner Benny Binion arranged for Preston to win while other players took cash payments (source).
| Place | Player | Official Prize | Actual Amount (Alleged) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Amarillo Slim | $80,000 | $15,000-20,000 |
| 2nd | Puggy Pearson | – | Cash payment |
| 3rd | Jack Straus | – | Cash payment |
Neither Brunson nor Pearson wanted the title—Brunson feared tax audits affecting his Christian family, while Pearson avoided IRS attention. The final hand saw Preston’s A-8 defeat Pearson’s pocket sixes when the board ran K-8-8-2-8, giving Preston a full house in what many believe was soft-played for publicity purposes.
Celebrity Conquests and Million-Dollar Stories
Preston’s celebrity proposition bets became legendary, though their veracity remains questionable. He claimed to have won $300,000 from Willie Nelson playing dominoes in a televised match on Fremont Street and $2 million from Larry Flynt in high-stakes seven-card stud.
His political connections included poker games with Presidents Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon. More dangerous associates included drug lord Pablo Escobar, who once kidnapped Preston in Colombia suspecting him of being a government agent. After proving his innocence through a Colombian associate’s vouching, Preston received a country tour and exchanged his gold buttons for Escobar’s emerald ones—buttons he wore on his famous suits for decades afterward.
The stories grew more elaborate with each telling. Preston claimed to have beaten a champion horseshoe pitcher by tossing ringers from 40 feet while the champion threw from the standard 30 feet. He allegedly won a bet that he could drive a golf ball over a mile by hitting it onto a frozen lake. Each tale followed the same pattern: identify a mark’s weakness, create seemingly impossible conditions, then reveal months of secret preparation.
Poker’s First Media Superstar
Binion’s gamble on Preston as spokesperson paid immediate dividends. Within a month of his WSOP victory, Preston appeared on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show—the first of 11 appearances that established the template for poker celebrities (source). By 1973, over 7,000 newspaper and magazine articles covered the WSOP, while Preston graced programs from 60 Minutes to Good Morning America.
His theatrical persona, complete with emerald-buttoned suits, custom boots, and colorful language, transformed poker’s image from seedy underground game to legitimate competition. Carson grew so comfortable with Preston that he scheduled him whenever Bob Hope appeared, using the gambler to ease his nervousness around the comedy legend.
Preston’s 2003 autobiography “Amarillo Slim in a World Full of Fat People,” published by HarperCollins with co-author Greg Dinkin, chronicled these exploits with characteristic bravado. However, Dinkin later raised troubling questions about the stories’ authenticity, admitting: “Slim’s truth doesn’t necessarily reveal the truth” (source).
The Scandal That Destroyed Everything
March 2003 brought accusations that shattered Preston’s ascending trajectory. His 12-year-old granddaughter accused him of child molestation, leading to an August 2003 indictment on three counts of indecency with a child. Though felony charges were dropped and Preston maintained his innocence—passing a lie detector test the grand jury never heard—he pleaded no contest to misdemeanor assault charges on February 10, 2004.
The plea deal brought a $4,000 fine, two years probation, and court-ordered counseling but cost him infinitely more. The timing proved catastrophic as Chris Moneymaker’s 2003 WSOP victory launched poker’s mainstream explosion just as Preston faced criminal charges. Nicolas Cage’s planned biopic evaporated along with millions in potential endorsement deals during poker’s golden age.
Preston’s final years brought violence and isolation. Home invasions in 2006 and 2007 left him robbed at gunpoint. Most brutally, a January 2009 attack while collecting a gambling debt left him with a broken jaw, hand, and thumb, losing $8,000 cash and an $85,000 diamond ring.
A Complex Legacy in Poker History
Preston died at 12:07 AM on April 29, 2012, succumbing to colon cancer after a week in Amarillo hospice care (source). Even facing death, he remained a gambler—his final conversation with Dinkin on April 17 included basketball bets on the Miami Heat.
Preston’s poker accomplishments remain substantial despite the controversies. His four WSOP bracelets spanned nearly two decades, from the 1972 Main Event through a 1990 Pot Limit Omaha victory worth $142,000. He founded the Super Bowl of Poker tournament series that ran from 1979-1991, providing the era’s second-most prestigious competition.
The proposition bets that built Preston’s legend follow patterns suggesting careful construction rather than spontaneous wagering. Whether he actually defeated champions with frying pans and broomsticks matters less than how these stories shaped poker’s mythology, demonstrating that the game rewarded preparation, psychology, and showmanship over pure chance.
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The Enduring Mystery of Amarillo Slim
Preston pioneered the model of poker celebrity that remains dominant today—the colorful personality whose table talk and media appearances matter as much as tournament results. His transformation from Texas road gambler to Tonight Show regular established poker as entertainment rather than vice. Yet his fall illuminated the fragility of that celebrity, showing how quickly America’s gambling darling could become its pariah.
In death as in life, Amarillo Slim remains poker’s most complex figure: pioneer and self-promoter, ambassador and alleged predator, the man who brought poker into American living rooms before being banished from the game he helped legitimize. His legacy lives on in every modern online poker room and tournament that owes its existence to the publicity he generated.
Whether his famous proposition bets actually happened or were elaborate constructions matters less than their impact on poker culture. Amarillo Slim taught the world that poker was about more than cards—it was about psychology, preparation, and above all, the ability to sell a story. In that regard, his greatest bluff may have been convincing the world that the legend of Amarillo Slim was entirely true.
About the Author
Mixed Game Masters Editorial
Published: May 12, 2025 | Categories: Poker History, Legends & Personalities
Mixed Game Masters is the premier resource for non-Hold’em poker strategy, tournament coverage, and mixed game education. Our editorial team consists of experienced players and poker historians dedicated to preserving and sharing the rich history of poker’s most challenging variants.
We provide comprehensive coverage of draw games, lowball variants, and mixed game formats, helping players of all levels improve their skills beyond traditional No-Limit Hold’em.
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