Stu Ungar was a gambling prodigy: breaking records, defeating champions, and becoming the best at every card game he ever played. However, his private life was in shambles. His father died when he was a young boy, he grew up mean and tough on the streets, and in 1986, even his marriage to long-time love Madeline crumbled. It was not the end of a string of personal losses and debilitating mistakes. His adopted son committed suicide after a high school prom. His drug problem escalated from “social” drugs to celebrate a big win, to an almost fatal overdose during the...

He was called “Stuey the Kid”, and was one of the best poker and gin rummy players in history. Unfortunately, his skill at the tables was matched only by a string of poor personal decisions that left him in debt. When he was found dead in 1998, at just 45 years old, he had lost all of the $33 million he had accumulated over the years. Stuart Errol Ungar was born on September 8, 1953. His father, Ido Ungar, was a bookie, and the young Stu learned the game at an age when most boys were playing baseball in their...