Well,  after bit of net surfing pushed me onto this gem of a find, I thought I’d share it with you guys, a 106 year old poker player who can do one mean stroller dance. Ruben Hopper figures time has treated him well.

There’s also quite an entertaining commercial to check out before watching the old man getting his poker on.

Gambling is illegal in Texas. The state from which Texas Hold’em Poker originated does not legally allow its people to gamble. During the running for Texas Governor earlier this year several of the candidates highlighted the legalization of gambling as the primary focus of their campaigns.

In Texas law, gambling is defined as “an agreement to win or lose something of value solely or partially by chance”,” betting on any game played with cards, dice, balls, or any other  gambling device” is considered illegal. The only time that these games are allowed is when there is no entry fee and no other way of losing money. The ‘chance’ factor is where the trouble starts. Advocates of poker are arguing that poker is in fact a game of skill, not chance.

Noted humorist author and musician, Kinky Friedman, who was running for Texas governor, argued that by legalizing casino gaming many of the state’s financial problems could be solved. With the money received from the taxing of casinos teachers could get raises, tolls could be removed to make roads free and the infrastructure could be improved. Added to this is his argument that Texans are still gambling anyway- they just drive to others states to do so.

Despite all the pro-gambling lobbying, the game still remains illegal in Texas. Arguments for and against gambling are strong but it seems the bottom line is that people will gamble whether it’s illegal or not and if this aspect was capitalized upon Texas could stand to benefit greatly from it.

The former home of the World Series of Poker, Binions is closing their 365 room hotel this month.

Just for those not in the know, here is a little bit of history about the hotel and the poker side of it:

In 1970, the World Series of Poker began. Originally conceptualized as a get together for poker greats who would determine among themselves who was the best, the main event Texas hold’em freezeout, begun in 1971, became the standard way to determine poker’s world champion. The event, which started with just a handful of players, has grown and evolved incredibly over the years to become a massive televised event in the modern era.”

“We plan to reopen it, but we can’t speculate when that will happen. Las Vegas has been hit so hard with the dramatic drop in visitor spending and the average daily room rate has plummeted. Our hotel rooms were no longer competitive in the market. We had to make cuts where our biggest drains were, the hotel and coffee shop.” Lisa Robinson, owner of TLC Enterprises the operators of the hotel said earlier this week.

However, on the good news front the casino, and poker room are remaining open alongside the Binions Steakhouse on the 24th floor.