The primary reason why Stu changed from gin rummy to poker was that Stu was a bit too good at it. So good was he, that no player was able stand up to him. Even the so-called champions who were supposed to be the greatest at gin were crushed when they played against Stu. One such gin player was Harry Stein, called, "Yonkie". Harry suffered such a humiliating beating at the hands of Stu Ungar that he apparently quit participating in it professionally and never showed up at a gin tournament.
Of course, with a notoriety like that it wasn’t very long before gamblers became weary of playing against stu. He could find no games and in his boredom he started doing something no one had done prior. He offered beginning handicaps to potential opposing players in the hope that they might play with him if they thought they had an advantage. He deliberately started from a negative position and one account has it that stu even competed with a constant cheater. Mid match, he received a few words of wisdom that the bad egg was at it again but stu stated that he was aware of the dishonestly and he would still come away with a win, which of course, he did.
The same trend followed Stu Ungar into Las Vegas. He won so frequently that the poker rooms began asking him not to bet on their respective premises anymore. The reasoning behind it was that other casino clientele would not be seated at the table if Stu was playing.
Stu Ungar is recalled more for his accomplishments in hold’em poker but he himself always said that he was considerably more accomplished at gin rummy.
He defeated Doyle Brunson in the WSOP in Nineteen Eighty and became the youngest world champion. Due to his looks that made him seem far younger than he was, he was nicknamed, "The Kid".
