The life of Doyle Brunson – nicknamed the Godfather of Poker – has been an extra ordinary one. From the basketball court – yes, really – to the poker felt, the man who became known as ‘Texas Dolly’ changed the game of poker forever when he became known as ‘the man in the hat’.  

Humble Beginnings and Hoop Dreams  

Doyle Brunson was born in 1933, six years before the start of the second World War, and would grow up as an extremely sporty individual. Running a 4:43 mile and starring at basketball, there was a real chance Brunson would have ended up in the NBA were it not for a broken leg that ruined his chances of a sporting career.  

Instead of sports, Brunson took to the poker felt and immediately found an affinity with the challenging environment he would go on to dominate. He gambled on everything from golf to poker, and traveled around areas such as Louisiana, Fort Worth and Oklahoma playing the game he loved and loved winning at. When the World Series of Poker came along in 1970, Brunson was already a huge part of the poker community and became one of the world’s best.