Miami John in Hospice Care
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Had dinner on a tagalong with him and another player at an all you can eat sushi restaurant in Reno in 2002. Nice guy, gravelly voice "Hey, uh, Bill, I got the cab, you get the tip, OK, Bill?"
Air traffic controller fired by Reagan. Maybe the greatest HiLo player ever, especially tournaments. When California legalized non-draw games in the late 80s, he moved to Vegas and commuted M-F to LA on Southwest. First name basis with those stewardesses & pilots who couldn't believe what he was doing. He said it was cheaper than moving there.
Definitely hope he’s pain-free and resting peacefully.
Had dinner on a tagalong with him and another player at an all you can eat sushi restaurant in Reno in 2002. Nice guy, gravelly voice "Hey, uh, Bill, I got the cab, you get the tip, OK, Bill?"
Air traffic controller fired by Reagan. Maybe the greatest HiLo player ever, especially tournaments. When California legalized non-draw games in the late 80s, he moved to Vegas and commuted M-F to LA on Southwest. First name basis with those stewardesses & pilots who couldn't believe what he was doing. He
What a life. Thank you for sharing.
Was always nice to me as i butchered hands in omaha , he would get a little upset some times, but def loved by his mixed games peer group..
hopefully he isnt suffering much longer, 81 is a good age, until recently , (2023 and below), he could have passed as a 65-70 year old easily
Ridiculous that he's not in the HOF.
I first met Miami John in 1987. Being from Miami myself (actually Coral Gables) we had something in common. I had just moved to Las Vegas and would often play in the Las Vegas Hilton Poker Room where he was a regular.
A few months ago I ran into him at a Starbucks close to where I live. We talked for a while and he was very complimentary towards our recent small stakes no-limit book. But he also told me he was struggling with cancer, so I'm not surprised to see that he's now in hospice,
All in all, though a tough competitor, he's one of the nicest people who played poker and perhaps in this coming year, after he's gone, he'll be elected to the Poker Hall of Fame. He certainly deserves it.
sad that he won't get to be in the induction .
Sad to hear. He has always struck me as being a decent guy, the times I have played with him.
When I started playing a lot of poker back in the post-Moneymaker years, my dad told me he could connect me to a friend of his, a guy he used to work with in the Miami tower who was something of a poker player. I was like, yeah, dad, I'm sure. It wasn't until much later when I was watching a rerun of an old WTP final table that I connected the dots and realized my dad's friend was Miami John. Sad to hear this.
I hope they giving him enough stuff to make him feel comfortable. My worst fear
My aunt just passed away after being in hospice care, and they give them enough morphine to feel OK for a while. I think they get so high off the stuff they kind of slip in and out of consciousness, which is probably for the best
RIP to the man..
Respect
Rest In Peace.
