Poker Author Anthony Holden Passes Away At Age 76His ‘Big Deal’ Was An Acclaimed Part Of Poker Literature |
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The poker world lost a celebrated author with the death of British journalist Anthony Holden on Oct. 7 at age 76. The author and poker player pursued many interests as a writer with topics ranging from opera to biographies about the royal family, Tchaikovsky, Lawrence Olivier, and Shakespeare.
His life included working as a reporter, columnist, and editor for several British newspapers as well including The Times, The Observer, Today, and others. Holden was also a regular card player and poker fans might be more familiar with his 1990 book Big Deal A Year as a Professional Poker Player.
“Sad day in the poker world, especially for folks who appreciate great poker journalism,” James McManus, author of Positively Fifth Street, noted on Twitter.
McManus also told Card Player: “With Big Deal and Bigger Deal, Tony inspired me and dozens of other poker journalists. One of the kindest, smartest humans I’ve met.”
A Life In Letters And Poker
Born in Southport, Lancashire, England, on May 22, 1947, Holden attended Merton College at Oxford where he studied English literature. After graduation, he began a career in newspapers before releasing his first nonfiction book in 1974 about an English serial killer who poisoned his victims. He received several awards for his articles and news coverage including for his work in Northern Ireland in the 1970s.
Away from pen and paper, Holden may have been most comfortable at the poker table. He spent much of life at the table and Big Deal follows his journey trying to become a poker pro and playing in events at the World Series of Poker from 1988-89.
The book was received well by many fellow players including playwright David Mamet, author Salman Rushdie, and actor Walter Matthau. The work was his most successful book, a fact he apparently enjoyed.
“Although Holden’s dozen or so volumes on the royal family were scrupulously researched, he admitted to grinding them out purely for the money, and was proud that the most successful of all his books was about his true passion: poker,” The Telegraph reports. “_Big Deal_ was Holden’s account of a year spent playing in poker tournaments around the world; his final profit of $12,300 was dwarfed by the royalties from a book that sold close to a million copies.”
More Works About Poker
Beyond Big Deal, Holden became a part of the game’s first efforts at televised poker in which viewers could see players’ hole cards. He appeared in a celebrity version of the UK’s Late Night Poker in 2000, coming out on top in a game that included fellow poker author Al Alvarez, comedian Ricky Gervais, novelist Martin Amis, and TV presenter-turned-poker pro Victoria Coren.
The success of his first poker book and the boom of the 2000s also inspired some other Holden works. He released Bigger Deal: A Year Inside The Poker Boom in 2007 that once again saw the author attempt life as a poker pro.
In 2017, Holden served as editor and also contributed to He Played for His Life and Other Stories: Short Stories of Long Nights at the Poker Table. The book featured authors ranging from McManus and Michael Craig to Barny Boatman and Jennifer Tilly.
After years of other forms of gambling, Holden left those behind when he ultimately discovered poker. This had a major effect on his life as he began covering and playing in the WSOP beginning in the 1970s and ‘80s.
“The difference between a gambler and a poker player is a crucially simple one,” he writes in Big Deal about heading to the WSOP in 1978. “A gambler, be he one who bets on horses or sports events, on casino games or raindrops running down window panes, is someone who wagers unfavorable odds. A poker player, if he knows what he is doing, is someone who wagers with favorable odds. The one is a romantic, the other is a realist. It is a distinction, a truth worthy or inscription upon a Grecian urn. It was certainly all I knew at the moment, and all I needed to know, as I zipped $1,000 into a secret pocket deep inside my favorite pair of blue jeans.”
*Photo credits: PokerStars and Anthony Holden
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