Part 13 – August 1st, 2019 through March 31st, 2020

Originally posted: August 15th, 2019

Dead Man’s Hand in Poker

The Macabre Tale of the Dead Man’s Hand, or How to Play Eights & Aces When You’re Dead

With wits as oxygen tanks and imagination our sole anchor to the now, we’re back for another deepdive into history’s dirty mirror. This time, we’re taking the scenic route via Deadwood Territory, Dakota, where we’ll investigate the origins of the Dead Man’s Hand, a combo familiar to card players and Motorhead fans.

The Dead Man’s living exploits

Shot dead in his prime, when the surface area of Wild Bill’s cranium was rudely expanded by an unseen bullet he was already a figure of repute along the frontier; wild and daring to those inclined towards adventurous pursuits, roguish and dangerous to the silk-sheet masses migrating inward from established coastal cities. A complex figure, Wild Bill wore many guises; calculated card player, keen shooter, chivalric hero and treacherous brigand simultaneously.

Wild Bill is a famous historical personage even outside poker. I’ll leave biographies to historians but a quick recap before attending the grizzly kernel at our tale’s heart should be sufficient to colour his character. Wild Bill Hickok was born May 27 1837 in Illinois, fourth of six children born to Polly Butler and husband Alonzo Hicock, a fervent abolitionist who offered his family abode as a stop on the underground railroad, a network of safehouses offering amnesty to runaway slaves in transit to free states or further north to Canada. Like Hercules’ cribside snake-strangling, Hickok’s proficiency with firearms was evident from an early age, although his fearsome reputation and apt nickname came later.

All extant photographs of the fearsome frontiersman depict a sorrowful figure, slouched of shoulder and bemused of countenance with a mantle of dark hair, despite contemporary reports indicating his hair bore the hereditary promethean hue of the Irish, fiery of hair and spirit. Although Hickok wasn’t Irish by blood, it was an Irish gang member’s lemniscate gunbarrel that put a cap on his exploits and a stone on his grave. In life Hickok was a jack of all trades; he spent time as a marshall in Hays, Kansas, where he was praised for his work apprehending Civil War deserters, served in the army during the civil war and, inimitably, duelled every gun-toter worth his bandolier either side of the Rio Grande.

How Bill came to be so-named.

However he came by the moniker Wild Bill, soon nobody dared argue it wasn’t a fitting name. Although the Revenant movie was based on true events which Hugh Glass survived, Wild Bill found himself in similar ursine umbridge between New Mexico and Missouri when he found his train halted for a she-bear and cubs on the tracks. In an age where man still fought for his primacy of the food chain, these hardened rangers had not the same empathy for animal conservation we do today; Bill alighted with his shooter cocked and eased toward the bear with the measured step of a man who knew danger’s myriad forms. Unlike Timothy Treadwall, whose passion for bears and humanisation of his observations of their behaviour ultimately blinded him to their wilder nature, Wild Bill didn’t hesitate executing his duty.

As he stared at this incarnate constellation through iron sights, the she-bear rose to the zenith of her immense stature and raked claws like spear points across his breast, cleaving his cloths in twain and leaving in their place scarlet rags. Hickok with trademark speed fired a clean shot in the chaos, which ricocheted off the incensed bear’s skull. Twice as furious and now reeling in white agony, the she-bear sprinted and pinned Hickok, where it attempted to devour him. 100 years before Jiu Jitsu existed in the western mainstream meta, Hickok managed to create space for his knees by shifting his hips beneath the she-bear’s vengeful bulk, just enough to maneuver past his wounded front to the knife hanging at his belt. A man laureled for his skill with firearms moved his knife with a butcher’s precision across the bear’s throat, killing it instantly.

Win A WSOP Bracelet!

Cards to play in Dakota when you’re dead

The Dead Man’s hand was a living man’s hand before the shot heard around the frontier was fired on the evening of August 1, 1876. It seems the bullet that entered the soft of Bill’s head did more to ensure his immortality in posterity than any bullet ever discharged from his own big iron, including the bear botherer. Like James Dean, Kurt Cobain and countless others, it seems living forever is a matter of dying young.

Nuttal and Mann’s Saloon, mainstay of the later-famous Deadwood main drag. Softness ye will not find here among gamblers, soldiers, prospectors and fortune-seekers but unmistakably there is a latent something; a sense of possibility, of divergent forks. From the bar one spies Wild Bill playing poker. He faces the doorway and scoffs at claims of growing paranoia. Across sits the drunkest man in the room, an honour hard-earned in a town famed for licentiousness and bacchanalia. Jack McCall is embittered. The price of his labours are lost in gambling, a fact drink exacerbates. Contrary to the duplicitous nature one assumes of Gomorrah’s denizens,

Wild Bill takes pity and advises McCall to retire without regrets, even sparing a coin to cover the breakfast he’d need for his impending hangover.

Next night Hickok arrives to Nuttal and Mann’s; five card stud’s the game. His usual seat, again facing the door, is taken and its occupant refuses a switch. The game is set, in every sense. Betting begins. Coins seek and find glad new masters. Luck-forsaken participants loose strings of invective. Jack McCall arrives still reeking of last night, his sourness untamed by Bill’s parting kindness. Bill never knows. McCall cocks his pistol and glides ghostlike across the tavern, weaving between whispers toward his mark. The bullet he discharges point-blank. Wild Bill Hickok dies instantly. He slumps, cards still held vice-like in his paling fist, the famous two-pair black aces and black eights – the Dead Man’s Hand. He is 36 years old, although like Alexander has lived a thousand lives worth of grand pageantry. Later folklore dicates Bill Hickok privately indicated he was supernaturally aware his life would end in the town of Deadwood. Bill himself was buried in Deadwood. His friend Charlie Utter delivered a tearful eulogy to a large crowd.

McCall showed no remorse across two subsequent trials, one conducted by an informal ‘miner’s’ jury immediately preceding the murder and another in Yankton’s official law courts, capital of the Dakota territory, where he was sentenced to hang for murder. Jack McCall was hanged on March 1, 1877. Years later, the cemetery moved to another site and McCall’s exhumed corpse was uninterred with the fetid rope still tight around his neck.

Superstitious as sailors, it’s strange that cards found clasped in the cold dead hands of a man murdered haven’t developed a reputation as ill omens among the poker massive, but of course we see aces and eights played easily as any other set in modern play.

So there you have it, we’ve managed to cover Wild Bill, a bear sideplot and the infamous Dead Man’s Hand in a thousand less words than usual. If old Shoeface’s astute observation that the soul of wit lies in brevity, let the record show this was our wittiest written endeavour yet. Did we miss anything about Wild Bill? What’s your favourite way to play the Dead Man’s Hand? What’s your favourite Motorhead song? Leave a comment below as we love to hear your opinions on just about anything poker-related.

Until the next one,

Mike at GGPoker

Originally posted: December 20th, 2019

$8M Winter Holiday Series

We’ve got 8 Million reasons to celebrate the New Year with a BANG!

Here at GGPoker we’re thrilled to announce the launch of our Winter Holiday Series, where you can win your share of cold hard cash. Perfect timing right? Pay off those credit card bills after holiday shopping, take a vacation somewhere warm, build your poker bankroll – it’s up to you what to do with your winnings!

With event buy-ins starting from just $25 we’ve got something for everyone!

Want to play in GGPoker’s Winter Holiday Series Main Event for less?

We’re all about giving GGPoker players a shot to claim the title “Main Event Champion!” With satellites running throughout the Winter Holiday Series, you can qualify for any of our huge guarantees for as little as $1.00. You can’t even get a cup of hot cocoa for a dollar, but you can win your share of 8 Million Dollars – only at GGPoker!

Check out this SMOKIN’ HOT prize pool ….

Two-Day Phased Events:

Winter Holidays Series Mini Championship $25 Buy-in, $100,000 Guaranteed.

Winter Holidays Series Championship $100 Buy-in, $200,000 Guaranteed.

Main Events:

Winter Holidays Series Main Event PKO $210 Buy-in, $100,000 Guaranteed on Sundays (22nd, 29th, 5th).

The weekday version of this tournament will boast $40,000 Guaranteed.

Winter Holidays Series Daily Main Event $150 Buy-in, $100,000 Guaranteed on Sundays (22nd, 29th, 5th).

The weekday version of this tournament will boast $50,000 Guaranteed.

To find a full list of all events running, head over to our 8M Winter Holiday Series event promotion page here .

Have you downloaded GGPoker on mobile yet?

GGPoker’s mobile software has revolutionized the way the world plays poker! No more irritating side held devices, fast and easy navigation through our huge selection of cash games and tournaments and of course, our trademark GGPoker emoji characters make the game fun for everyone!

Originally posted: January 17th, 2020

Daniel Negreanu GGMasters Reaction

What does Daniel Negreanu think about the changes to GGMasters?

Originally posted: January 30th, 2020

Staking With Felipe “Mojave” Ramos

How To Stake Players On GGPoker

Got a favourite GGPoker player and you really wish you could back them? GGPoker has got YOUR back with our exclusive in-game staking feature.

Can’t play your favourite tournament this week but you want to get in on the action and sick value right now? No worries! You can buy shares in GGPoker players who offer staking in the events they play.

Our staking feature is easy to use and track your player’s finishes.

Check out this video with our Brazilian Ambassador Felipe “Mojave” Ramos where he takes you step by step through the process.

Originally posted: February 6th, 2020

GGPoker Streamer Scrimitzu’s BIG GGMasters Finish!

Twitch poker fans were in for a treat when they watched GGPoker streamer Scrimitzu battle through hours of play in Sunday’s GGMasters #5. He was in good company when the final table bubble burst and fellow GGPoker streamer Karlencho also put up an impressive fight down to the final nine players.

Karlencho, who brawled through hours of competition for both prize and POY race rankings, finished in 9th place with an impressive $2,996 payout.

Scrimitzu played hard for over a gruelling NINE HOURS, all the way to heads up play against player Reptar. Finishing 2nd with a huge payout of over $32k, Scrimitzu now sits in 6th place for the GGMaster Player Of The Year Race with 548.80 points.

After the 5th GGMasters tournament finished, you might say Scrimitzu was pretty happy with his incredible finish.

Just how happy was he? Take a look at his celebratory image here……

Congratulations Scrimitzu for a well-deserved finish!

Want to watch the full Twitch video? Head over to our YouTube channel where you can watch and subscribe for more of our featured videos.

Don’t forget! We have added more ways to get into the GGMasters running each and every Sunday throughout the year, at 16:00 (UTC+O) Satellites start at just $1.50 and run throughout the week. You can see the full list of tournaments in the GGPoker lobby.

Part 12 – July 1st, 2019 to July 31st, 2019 Part 14 – Apr. 1st, 2020 to May 10th, 2020

Whether you’re a fan of high-stakes cash games or the excitement of multi-table poker tournaments, GGPoker is the premier destination for poker enthusiasts. For those aiming to compete for a prestigious WSOP bracelet, push through the ranks for a WSOP Circuit ring, or simply hone their strategies in classic games or poker formats, GGPoker has something for everyone. The platform offers a seamless online poker experience, with innovative features like Smart HUD, PokerCraft, and integrated staking, designed to elevate your game. Whether you’re grinding your way up in daily cash games or competing for life-changing prizes in major online series, GGPoker provides the best environment to play, improve your poker skills, and succeed in the world of online poker. And if you are not sure where to start, you can always play free poker games and learn at the GGPoker School.

GGPOKER

Blog

The Legend of Wild Bill Hickok in the Media

PLAYER PROFILE: “Wild Bill” Hickok

The Archives Of The GGPoker Blog – Part 13