With his winning ways restored, Brunson went on to add his 10th WSOP bracelet in 2005 and still plays in some of the biggest cash games in the world at age 86. But at this crossroads in my life, whatever doubts I had disappeared like the whirling dust devils that blew through my old west Texas prairie.” “If I hadn’t done well in that tournament, I might have quit right then and there. “It was even more important to me than the $1.2 million first prize, though I didn’t mind that at all, because I replenished my bankroll and shored up my formerly sagging confidence.” “It was my most satisfying win in a long time, probably since my World Series Main Event victories several decades earlier,” he wrote. He became the oldest player to ever win a WPT title – a record that still stands 15 years later. It was fitting to finish for an event labeled as “Legends” and a WPT highlight. He went on to take down the event for his only tour title. Each decision seemed to be the right one as he adopted a less aggressive method of play.Įven facing a hefty chip disadvantage at the final table to Lee Watkinson, nothing seemed to derail Brunson’s shot at yet another major poker title. The old magic seemed to come back, however, and Brunson quickly shook off some nervousness. In its third season, the WPT continued to grow and the event would feature the biggest field so far with 667 players. With plenty of self-doubts, Brunson arrived at the Bicycle Casino in August 2004 for the WPT Legends of Poker.

“It seemed like I couldn’t win no matter what I did.”

“I started losing and the losses kept coming,” he noted in his autobiography, The Godfather of Poker. He’d always believed a player loses many of his skills after age 50. After a few months, he’d lost $6 million and considered retirement. On top of some bad luck, Brunson didn’t feel he was playing well.

With the game’s popularity exploding around the country, the 71-year-old Texan worried his skills might be eroding at a time when his chances of major financial scores were real possibilities. He’d been on a streak of bad luck and believed it might be his first losing year after 50 years of playing poker for a living. In August 2004, Doyle Brunson viewed himself as anything but a legend.

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