Amarillo Slim | Pro Poker Player

Amarillo Slim Thomas Austin Preston Biography of the most cheerful poker player. His path was full of interesting situations, hard difficulties, uncertain obstacles. But he was able to pass that and became world famous professional poker gambler.


Amarillo Slim, whose real name is Thomas Austin Preston Jr., was born on the 31st of December, 1928 in Johnson, Arkansas, and has become a legend due to his favors. Preston not only proclaimed himself “the greatest gambler who ever lived,” but he was also very popular outside of his passion. Amarillo Slim became famous because of his inconceivable bets. He played: one-pocket pool with Minnesota Fats using a handle of a broom, golf with Evel Knievel using a carpenter’s hammer, poker with United States presidents; he played poker with Larry Flynt and managed to win $2,000,000, also he won $300,000 playing dominoes with Willie Nelson.

Some people, of course, do not like Amarillo Slimis very much, particularly a multi-millionaire publisher Larry Flynt’s. He angrily stated that the whole Amarillo Slim’s reputation was “build on lies.” There is a movie with Nicolas Cage about Preston’s life, which is planned to be shown for public on Christmas Day, 2006. And it is directed by Milos Forman, the very man who shot the famous movie “The People vs. Larry Flynt”.

Preston is supposed to be an absolute showman. He participates in almost every tournament wearing a cowboy hat and ostrich skin boots. Preston could not be seen in many TV shows, but he got a big role in the “California Split” movie, in his best years. Preston considers poker as a sport, and this is the very thing he is known for. He proved to be very dangerous as a poker player. He has won four WSOP bracelets and gained over $500,000 in tournaments by 2004.

He also was appointed to a position in the Poker Hall of Fame. But since 70 years, he does not consider poker so seriously. He says that he feels “all pokered out” playing at a tournament table. He prefers now spending his time anywhere else, usually he plays golf or hunts. There is a golf field in his own backyard. Slim is also famous all over the world for having taken a part in building casinos very actively.

The Preston’s autobiography, which was written in “Amarillo Slim in a World Full of Fat People”, describes his tricks and contain many his utterances, for example: “Look around the table. If you don’t see a sucker, get up, because you’re the sucker.” Preston is reported to make anti-feminist and anti-Semitist comments, which has affected his reputation and the book. His alias, “Amarillo Slime”, Preston received by the people who hated him.

But there was a thing that mostly impaired his reputation, when a Randall County grand jury blamed him for child molestation. And then many poker commentators have said that it was awful that he will be memorized mostly for this allegation than for his deals in a good cause of this sport. Now Amarillo Slim is living in Amarillo, Texas with his wife Helen, who is over 50 years. Preston has three children and even seven grandchildren.