In 1949, Nicholas "Nick the Greek" Dandolos challenged Benny Binion to a competition to decide who was the best player in a high-stakes poker marathon. A match between between Nick the Greek and Johnny Moss then followed. The game was played for everyone to see where the men played for 5 months straight, breaking only to sleep. Playing all forms of poker, Moss showed his superiority and won almost 2 Million US dollars. It was here that Nick the Greek lost his last pot, got up out of his chair, bowed humbly and spoke the now famous words, "Mr. Moss, I have to let you go". The Game was finished, and he went to bed.

The poker marathon inspired Benny Binion to create the World Series of Poker. He saw the crowds gathering constantly outside the casino to watch his marathon game with Nick the Greek. The first World Series of Poker was held in 1970 and Johnny Moss prevailed again, however he was crowned the champion only when voted as the best player by his opponents and peers. The following year, the winner was established in the same way it is today, competitors play until 1 player remains and has all the chips. Moss won the WSOP again that year (1971), making it 2 from 2. Amarillo Slim won the year after (1972) and the WSOP gained some added publicity when Slim appeared on talk shows, including Johnny Carson's Tonight Show.

In the 80's the WSOP's popularity gained more momentum. Although the buy in was quite high and the fields were quite small in comparison to today's standards, the introduction of smaller buy in satellites were a hit and proved very successful.

In 1972, the Main Event had 8 entrants. 10 years later in 1982, there were roughly 100 entrants and by 2005, the Main Event attracted 7,595 entries. Australian player, Joe Hachem took the title and over 7.5 Million US dollars! Not bad, considering the winner of the 1972, 8 entrant Main event pocketed only $80,000.

Today the WSOP consists of multiple events, held over many weeks in the middle of the year in Las Vegas. Not only does the World Series of Poker have the Championships once a year, but it now boasts its own circuit tour very similar to the  WPT . Each event has smaller events which any poker player has access to. From smaller buy ins to high stakes buy ins, its all there.

The massive increase in popularity in the WSOP surely has to be attributed to its relationship with TV. In recent years the WSOP has continued to grow to unprecedented levels, who knows when the craze (if we can call it that) will ever die down.

Keep updated with all the  World Series of Poker events and news , as it undoubtedly continues to grow, right here at All Aussie Poker.