PRO POKER SCHOOL Learn Before You Earn

Poker Review

Review by Jon Eaton

One Of A Kind - The Rise and Fall of Stuey 'The Kid Ungar,' The World's Greatest Poker Player by Nolan Dalla and Peter Alson was actually a complete surprise to me. Not surprising in the fact that I loved it, but surprising in the fact that I had no idea it was coming out! I had heard in the past about a book Nolan Dalla was working on about Ungar, but hadn't heard anymore about it. It seemed to be on the backburner, as Dalla is a very busy man as is.

Finally it hit bookshelves just recently. I was in the media room of the Rio when I heard Nolan discussing it. He had just run out of advanced copies but got me one in his next batch a few days later. I immediately started reading it, despite that I had a few other readings I needed to finish first.

The interesting thing here is that suddenly, with the explosion of poker, there's an insurgence of material about 'The Kid.' The movie High Roller touched on some of Ungar's past, but was not a real official biography of his life. Now that I have read this book, I'd be hard pressed to recommend that movie to anyone who isn't a die-hard poker fanatic. I feel it lacks a bit in the gory details and the real grit of Ungar, which is what this book really brings out.

The one thing that Alson and Dalla didn't do in this book is hold back. With the help of friends and family, they have brought us the first official biographical look at the most amazing poker player of all time.

The book starts out from the very beginning, giving the reader a candid look at his home life and his childhood years. He is quickly thrust into the world of cards, and with the help of the mob, books some big wins in the gin world. His rise to fame in gin quickly eliminated his competition, as no one wanted to play the man!

Ungar moves along through life with little direction or authority and learns on his own. As he enters Vegas, he is shown a lifestyle he had no idea existed. With no one to tell him right from wrong, Ungar enters the poker world and becomes a complete wreck in the process, ruining his life through drugs.

The story of Stuey's life is no secret, and is a story that most poker players are familiar with. What most don't know is the good that existed in one of the most confused men to ever play the game. Ungar was a great father for his children, dealing with some of the hardest things a father can deal with (separation, divorce, suicide, etc.).

The rise to the top in the poker world was a rocky ride at best for Stuey, as he gambled away most of his winnings. The fall was ten times harder, as he slowly become completely dependent on cocaine and eventually began smoking it in the crack form. Ungar's life spiraled out of control until his untimely death in 1998.

Dalla and Alson give by far the best look into Ungar's life ever recorded. If you have any interest in Ungar at all, this is definitely the route to take to learn more about this amazing player. My only hope is that this book will maybe deter someone else from taking the same destructive path that he chose.