Legendary Texas road gambler and Poker Hall of Famer Crandell Addington has passed at the age of 85. Addington, a Graham, Texas native, was one of the central figures in no-limit hold'em in the early years of the World Series of Poker, and he set an unmatchable record by making the final table of what is today known as the WSOP's Main Event in seven consecutive years during the '70s.
Crandell was honored for his contributions to the WSOP and to the growth and popularity of no-limit hold'em by being inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2005. Pictured above at far right, at the 2012 PHOF induction ceremony of Eric Drache and Sailor Roberts, Addington was, as always, stylishly attired in the way that earned him the nickname "Dandy". (Addington accepted the PHOF award on behalf of Roberts.)
Addington never won the Main Event nor any other WSOP bracelet, though he did finish as the runner-up three times, in 1974, 1976, and 1978. His largest known tournament win came at the 1969 Texas Gamblers Reunion in Reno, Nevada, which served as the blueprint for the launch of the WSOP the following year. Addington was one of the seven participants in that original 1970 WSOP, where the winner (Johnny Moss) was decided by vote among the seven players.
Addington returned to Texas to pursue business interests
Though Addington was among numerous Texas road gamblers who relocated to Nevada to take part in the no-limit hold'em boom, he turned out not to be a poker lifer. Instead, the Southwestern University grad returned to the San Antonio area and launched his own oil-industry startup, Addington Enterprises, the first of several entrepreneurial endeavors. He returned occasionally to the WSOP, however, and he logged his final recorded WSOP cash in the 1989 Main Event where Phil Hellmuth ended Johnny Chan's dreams of a three-peat.
He also remained life-long friends with other famed pros from no-limit hold'em's earliest days, including Doyle Brunson, and Addington also holds a place in poker lore, offering one of the early game's most memorable quotes: “Limit poker is a science, but no-limit is an art. In limit, you’re shooting at a target. In no-limit, the target comes alive and shoots back at you.”
Addington also recalled the truly dangerous nature of the early Texas road-game scene. At a 2007 speaking engagement at Harvard, he told the audience, "We did have weapons. It was not really to use on each other. What we really wanted to be able to do was, if we won, we wanted to be able to get back to the car with the money. And so, not only did we have to beat a lot of really good players, but we had to dodge the hijackers and often times the sheriff of the county.”
Addington was also a lover of dogs and of the global ecology, which came to the fore when he branched out from his earlier oil-industry roots into biotechnology. His obituary on Legacy offers a number of animal- and wildlife-related funds as welcome avenues for monetary remembrances in lieu of flowers.
The Poker Hall of Famer is survived by his wife Judy, two children, and other family and close friends. A day of remembrance ceremony in his honor will be held in San Antonio on April 26.
Featured image source: World Series of Poker
