Marlin Berland looked the same.
Well, he might have appeared a bit older and paunchier. Running two daily poker tournaments, seven days a week at The Orleans Casino and Resort in Las Vegas would tend to age a person.
But Marlin handles it well. He seemed glad to see me. We first met well over 30 years ago when I played in a tournament at The Orleans.
He has been in the casino business for the past half-century. Berland has worked the World Series of Poker as a shift boss and he was an assistant tournament director in the 1970s. His brother was 'Bones' Berland, a highly respected poker player who won five gold bracelets and two seconds in the $10,000 final event of the WSOP.
'What are you in Las Vegas for?' he asked, although we both knew the answer. I told him I was there to play two tournaments -- the Sunday night H.O.R.S.E event the Monday noon Omaha High-Low tournament.
The Orleans is famous for two things: retaining its dealers over the years and starting its tournaments on time. The tournaments usually attract anywhere from 60 to 120 players, depending on the event.
While most of Marlin's tournaments are no-limit Texas Hold'em, he is noticing a growing interest in the mixed and high-low games. I told him I had taken a couple of tournament trophies home from The Orleans in the past. He nodded.
'I know,' he said. 'I gave them to you.'
Well, there was no danger in his offering me another tournament. I piled up a stack of chips in the H.O.R.S.E. tournament which drew nearly 70 players. The dealer deals a round of Hold'em followed by a round of Omaha, then razz (seven-card stud lowball), seven-card stud high, and back to Texas Hold'em. The dealers really work for their pay in a H.O.R.S.E. event.
I lasted through about half the players before being knocked out. As I passed Marlin, he smiled and said, 'Better luck next time.'
The buy-in for the H.O.R.S.E tournament was $105 and it cost me $80 to enter the Monday morning action. The cards didn't come to me and I found myself back in a cash game less than two hours after the first hand was dealt.
Bones Berland's first name was Gary. He and Marlin were born in Gardena, CA., known for years as the poker capital of the world. He dropped out of college after two years to become a professional poker player.
He finished second to Doyle Brunson in the 1977 WSOP but failed to collect any money since it was a winner take all event in those days. Bones was a good player whether the game was stud, razz or Texas Hold'em. He served as a poker dealer to supplement his income and died at the age of 37.
Author: Geno Lawrenzi Jr.
(Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is an international journalist, magazine author and ghostwriter and poker player who lives in Phoenx, AZ. He has published 2,000 articles in 50 magazines and 125 newspapers. If you want to share a gambling story or book idea with him, send an email to glawrenzi@gmail.com ).
