1970 World Series of Poker

{{Short description|Poker cash game session and ballot}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}

{{Infobox sports competition event

| competition = 1970 World Series of Poker

| location = Binion's Horseshoe, Las Vegas, Nevada

| dates = May 8

| champion = {{flagicon|USA}} Johnny Moss

| prev = {{Colored link|grey|1969 Texas Gamblers Reunion|1969}}

| next = 1971

}}

The 1970 World Series of Poker (WSOP) was first held on May 8, 1970.{{Cite web |date=October 22, 2007 |title=World Series of Poker: A Retrospective: 1970 Summary |url=https://gaming.unlv.edu/WSOP/annual/1970.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181130030505/https://gaming.unlv.edu/WSOP/annual/1970.html |archive-date=November 30, 2018 |access-date=September 28, 2021 |website=University of Nevada, Las Vegas}} Unlike the WSOP events that followed it, which are decided using a freeze-out tournament, the 1970 champion was decided from a vote by the players. Jack Binion invited the best seven poker players in America to his Binion's Horseshoe casino in Las Vegas, Nevada to decide who was America's best poker player.{{Cite web |last=Harris |first=Martin |date=2017-07-03 |title=History of the World Series of Poker Main Event: 1970-1979 |url=https://www.pokernews.com/news/2017/07/history-world-series-of-poker-main-event-1970-1979-28376.htm |access-date=2024-09-16 |website=PokerNews |archive-date=November 12, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241112225552/https://www.pokernews.com/news/2017/07/history-world-series-of-poker-main-event-1970-1979-28376.htm |url-status=live }}

After a cash game session, Johnny Moss was voted the best in the world by "Amarillo Slim" Preston, Sailor Roberts, Doyle Brunson, Puggy Pearson, Crandell Addington, and Carl Cannon.{{Cite web |last=Streltcoff |first=Max |date=2024-04-15 |title=Where It All Began |url=https://www.pokerlistings.com/blog/wsop-1970-where-it-all-began |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240916023541/https://www.pokerlistings.com/blog/wsop-1970-where-it-all-began |archive-date=September 16, 2024 |access-date=2024-09-16 |website=PokerListings}} Moss was awarded a silver cup rather than a bracelet, which was not established as the prize until 1976.{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Shane |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M3uqJMAB-qsC&dq=johnny+moss+silver+cup&pg=RA1-PA1974-IA2 |title=Championship Table |publisher=Cardoza Publishing |isbn=978-1-58042-469-1 |language=en |access-date=2024-09-16 |via=Google Books}}{{Cite web |last=Montero |first=David |date=2019-06-07 |title=At 50, the World Series of Poker has come a long way |url=https://www.pjstar.com/story/sports/2019/06/07/at-50-world-series-poker/4965499007/ |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=Journal Star}}

According to an apocryphal legend, two votes were taken to determine the best player in the world. In the first, the players were asked to vote for the best player, and, the story goes, each voted for himself. In the second vote, they were asked to vote for the second-best player, and Moss won the vote and was awarded the title.{{Cite book |last=Rogers |first=Mark |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KdMMJTytBs4C |title=52 Greatest Moments World Series of Poker |publisher=Amalgam Studio |year=2006 |isbn=0-9787446-9-1 |pages=19 |via=Google Books}}{{Cite book |last=Grotenstein |first=J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=evfshFCaxFgC&pg=PA11 |title=All In: The (Almost) Entirely True Story of the World Series of Poker |last2=Reback |first2=S. |publisher=St. Martin's Publishing Group |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-4668-3284-8 |page=11 |access-date=2024-11-11 |via=Google Books |archive-date=November 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241111164739/https://books.google.com/books?id=evfshFCaxFgC&pg=PA11 |url-status=live }}