Chip Reese - 1951-2007
December 5, 2007
I didn’t know much about Chip Reese but what I did know, I liked.
In a game not short on yappers and narcissists, he played with a quiet style and dignity and a mellow smile that played across his features whenever the deck revealed its quirks.
Together, those qualities formed the facade that hid a gambling titan.
Even those of us yet to set foot in Vegas have had long enough to grow accustomed to poker’s ‘names’ by now to feel genuine sadness at his passing.
Chip Reese - a life in fragments:
“He suffered from rheumatic fever during his elementary years at school and had to stay at home for almost a year. During this time, his mother taught him how to play several board and card games and Reese later described himself as ‘a product of that year’.” - 72os
“He was admitted to Stanford Business School, but decided instead to play poker professionally after winning $40,000 in a tournament in Las Vegas…calling several days later to quit his day job in Arizona and later hiring someone to fly to Arizona to clean out his apartment and drive his car to Las Vegas.” - ibid.
“Turning the $400 he had in his pocket into $60,000, Reese concluded, ‘Law doesn’t have the same monetary incentive as poker.’ It was a full year before David Reese told his parents that he was no longer going to be a lawyer.” - Poker Pages
“He just accidentally stumbled into Las Vegas and never left.” - Nolan Dalla
“I knew him for 35 years, I never saw him get mad or raise his voice. He had the most even disposition of anyone I’ve ever met.” - Doyle Brunson
Who is Chip Reese and How Has He Become Poker’s Most Unheard About Player? - Associated Content headline
“If my family’s lives were threatened and I had to win a poker match in order to save them, Chip is the player I would definitely choose.” - Doyle Brunson
‘Reese died in his sleep and was found by his son early Tuesday morning at his Las Vegas home after suffering from symptoms of pneumonia…’ - Associated Press report
“When asked when he might consider quitting poker…Reese has been quoted as replying, ‘I’ll stop playing at my funeral, and only God knows what I’ll do after that.’” - Poker Pages
“He’s certainly the best poker player that ever lived.” - Doyle Brunson
Chip Reese (1951 - 2007)
December 5, 2007
This morning I was shocked to read that poker legend David “Chip” Reese had passed away in his sleep from complications of pneumonia Tuesday morning. I am so saddened by this news. He was a brilliant player and a great role model for the younger generation on how to act at the tables.
I’m a bit in disbelief right now. Especially when I read that he went to the hospital Monday night and was sent home only to die in his sleep hours later. Sent home. How did the doctor not notice that the man needed to be admitted and given immediate attention? Of course, I don’t know both sides of the story, only what I’ve read, maybe they wanted to admit him and he refused. I just don’t know, but it is a very sad day for the poker community and such a great, great loss.
Rest in peace, Mr. Reese. You will be missed.
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