[DarthIgnurnt]

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Would it be possuible for you guys to give me some details on your own, so I don't have to order, wait for and read a book about it?

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Lazy like me. I like that.

I read the aforementioned book (an interesting, and rather quick read btw.) not really knowing anything about this story.

Beal was (is) a Texas banker that had made tons of money through various ventures, and had always shown a 100% committment to those things he got involved with.

When one of those things became poker, he was interested in nothing less than competing with the best players in the world at stakes higher than had ever been played.

He was interested only in Limit Holdem, headsup. During his several (maybe 3 or 4) trips to Vegas, the limits in these games went consistently up. I believe they started in the 10/20K or 20/40K range and went as high at one point to 50/100K or 100/200K.

Beal's thought was that he could take the advantage away from the pros by playing at limits that were so high that a loss would be potentially devastating to them (i.e. it would deplete their entire bankroll). He dedicated himself completely to learning the game, disguising his tells, adapting to the styles of different pros, and fully understanding the implications of pot odds in a HU Limit situation.

The pros countered by forming "the corporation", which included a single bankroll funded by a number of players, many of whom would play Beal heads up in 6+ hour sessions. I believe this bankroll got as high as $10 or $20MM for each side.

The players include Doyle Brunson, Todd Brunson, Jennifer Harman, Chau Giang, Howard Lederer, Barry Greenstein, Ted Forrest, and a few others. Beal had his share of success against the group, at one point beating them for several million dollars in a 2-3 day period. Overall, however, he was a loser against this group. I recall that Todd Brunson had throttled him fairly soundly, and Lederer (I think?) beat him so consistently that Beal refused to play with him anymore.

There have been a number of "open letter challenges" in Card Player, etc. for a rematch between the corporation (Doyle as spokesman) and Andy Beal. Not sure what the current status is, but I believe they were trying to put together a game where each side had $80MM and they would play limits escalating even beyond the 100/200K that had been already played.