Deal Me In -- Devilfish Ulliot

In its pages are never-before-revealed details of the lives of some of the biggest names in poker. Phil Hellmuth’s new book profiles 20 of the biggest poker players in the world, giving the reader an intimate look at the game’s biggest celebrities.

Deal Me In, a collection of autobiographical accounts from many of poker’s elite, is now available to order online exclusively at www.pokerbrat.com. The book highlights the struggles, obstacles, and tragedies that 20 of the greatest poker pros have overcome in their journeys to the top.

CardPlayer.com is providing exclusive excerpts from the book each Sunday. This week’s passage focuses on Dave “Devilfish” Ulliot, the brash English pro who shares with the reader his tumultuous journey from a convict to a professional poker player:

“Prison was no picnic. It was a tough place. I was about 10 stone 6 (that’s 146 lbs to you Americans) in those days, but I had lightning-fast fists to go with my lightning-fast temper. Not many guys messed with me. One day I was lifting weights and got teamed up with a spotter who was an absolute lunatic. Just like one of those crazy guys you see in the movies. He was big, mean, and ugly, and he sported a shaved head. I wasn’t going to back down from anyone, though.

“So when he began running his mouth I decided to sort this guy out. I gave him a shot on the side of his head and he fell flat on his face. I was not finished with him; I jumped on him and popped him on the head with a 10-kilo weight. As if that weren’t enough, I got up and headed for a bigger weight. It was at that time the guard grabbed me around the neck and threw me into the showers. To this day I believe that, had the guard not stopped me, I would have had hit that guy again with the bigger weight, and who knows, I’d probably still be in prison today.

“I’ve always had a bit of a temper. At another time in my life, before I was in prison, I got into it with a guy in an establishment, managed to get hold of his head, moved him over to the door, and slammed the door on his head about twelve times.

“On yet another occasion, a guy took exception to me taking money off him in pool games. He was massive. He punched me and my head slammed backwards into a wall. There were hooks on the wall and one of them sank into my neck. I saw stars and felt sick. I managed to grab him though. Holding onto the guy, I started to bite on his ear until I was able to shake the cobwebs. Once my head was clear, I got on top of the guy and started to punch him. The guy had a head like a block of concrete, though, so I grabbed a tea cup by the bottom and banged the rim of it on his face about twelve times, until I was sure he had got the message. I used to be a bit of a bastard.”

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