Amarillo Slim in a World Full of Fat People

Thomas Austin Preston. Six foot four, skinny as a rake, wears a snakeskin Stetson. He's played poker with three US presidents - and Pablo Escobar; made a million dollars by the age of nineteen; and driven a golf ball a mile. Thomas Austin Preston - who is he? The world knows him better as the greatest gambler of all time: Amarillo Slim. Born and raised in Amarillo, Texas, Amarillo Slim has lived the most daring, extraordinary, exciting and profitable life of any man alive. Sent overseas just after World War II, he ended up running the biggest black-market operation in Europe. He went back to his first love, cards, and was one of the very first winners of the World Series of Poker. He's had songs written about him and appeared in movies, and his picture hangs in City Hall, Las Vegas. Because, most of all, Slim's a man who loves to gamble. He'll bet on anything - if the price is right. He's ridden a camel through the fanciest casino in Marrakesh and beaten Evel Knievel at golf, but that was just small stuff. In his finest hour, he took on the Chinese table tennis champion at his own game. Slim, of course, got to choose the bats. The choice? Coke bottles. The result? 21-0, 21-0, 21-0. Slim was a very happy man. In what will be the most entertaining book this year, Amarillo Slim will tell you the story of his extraordinary life - and the secrets of his even more extraordinary success. From Vegas to Colombia, Texas to London, welcome to the wonderful world of Amarillo Slim!