The WSOP: 1982-1991

In 1982 Jack Straus pulled off what is still regarded as the most improbable victory in the WSOP main event when he was reduced to a single $500 chip on the second day of play and then went on to win the tournament. Straus was a very likable professional, so his victory seemed like a breath of fresh air after back-to-back wins by the self-destructive Stu Unger and the 1979 win by Hal Fowler, an unknown amateur who won despite popping Valium and making horrible calls. Straus's dramatic victory seemed to many people to put the WSOP back on its proper track. 1982 also marked the first time over one hundred players entered the tournament, and was the first time the winner received more than half a million in prize money.

In 1987 Johnny Chan won his first main event. Although American, Chan had been born in China, and his success was a harbinger that poker's popularity was now reaching far beyond the United States. In 1988 Chan repeated as champion; previously only Doyle Brunson and Stu Unger had managed to win the title back-to-back, and no one has done it again since Chan. A clip from Chan's 1988 victory over Erik Seidel is featured in the movie Rounders.

Amazingly the following year Chan nearly did it again, coming in second place to a young man named Phil Hellmuth. Only 24 years old at the time, Hellmuth was the youngest player ever to win the main event (a distinction now held by Joe Cada, who was only 21 when he won in 2009). Hellmuth's youth and caustic jabbering earned him the nickname "Poker Brat" and he quickly became one of poker's most well known personalities.

In 1990 the growing international interest in poker was once again made evident when Iranian Mansour Matloubi took the main event title.

In 1991 more than 200 players entered the main event, and for the first time the winner took home more than a million dollars. Poker's growth though the 'eighties had been slow and steady.

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Year - Winner- Prize Money (USD)-Entrants

1982-Jack Sraus-$520,000-104

1983-Tom McEvoy-$540,000-108

1984-Jack Keller-$660,000-132

1985-Bill Smith-$700,000-140

1986-Barry Johnston-$570,000-141

1987-Johnny Chan-$625,000-152

1988-Johnny Chan-$700,000-167

1989-Phil Hellmuth, Jr.-$755,000-178

1990-Mansour Matloubi-$895,000-194

1991-Brad Daugherty-$1,000,000-215