Rodney H. Pardey
Encyclopedia
Rodney Herm Pardey (born May 5, 1945 in Vincennes, Indiana
) is an American
professional poker
player, currently residing in Seattle, WA. Pardey is the father of professional poker player and singer/songwriter Rodney E. Pardey
and Ryan J. Pardey.
Pardey began playing poker professionally in his early twenties in and around the Seattle/Tacoma area in Washington state
. In 1969, while still in the reserves for The United States Coast Guard
, Pardey began making regular money in a low-limit poker game featuring a host of local professionals that even included a local judge. At the advice of another player, Pardey embarked on a trip to Las Vegas to try his luck there.
. Pardey sharpened his skills against some of the toughest competition then playing: Doyle "Texas Dolly" Brunson
, David "Chip" Reese
, Danny Robison, Eric Drache
, Roger Moore
, Stu Ungar
, Tommy Cress, Johnny Moss
, Puggy Pearson
and Sarge Ferris
. Many allege these games involved rampant cheating.
In the late 1970s, famed author of poker-playing guidebooks, David Sklansky
, ranked Pardey the number one seven-card stud player in the world. In a time well before the rise of Texas hold 'em
, this allowed Pardey a very comfortable living. By the end of the 1970s, Pardey was regularly playing as high as $1,000-$2,000.
The 1980s saw many changes in the poker industry, and these changes took their effect on Pardey as well. With the onset of the popularity of hold 'em, Pardey found himself shut out of the ensuing poker boom that was so crucially associated with "flops" and big tournament scores.
The early 80's brought on the rise of The Golden Nugget cardroom, run by Eric Drache. Pardey and Drache were good friends who had similar ideas on how a cardroom should be run. Pardey was thrilled to play in Drache's honest well-run cardroom. After years of training his eyes to watch for crooked players and crooked dealers, Pardey was able to focus on just cards. Since May 1995, Pardey has been playing regularly in Los Angeles, California
.
World Series of Poker
), with whom he had three children: Rodney Erin Pardey (born September 14, 1976 in Las Vegas), Ryan Joseph Pardey (born February 25, 1979 in Las Vegas), and Lucynda Laurynne Campbell (born September 13, 1980 in Las Vegas). His second marriage, to Carmen Guffey (born September 29, 1946 in Dallas, Texas
), was childless.
Before poker, Pardey was a professional bowler and bowled briefly on the PBA tour. In 1977, Pardey used his poker proceedings to purchase a run-down bowling alley in south Seattle called Skyway Park Bowl. Pardey is currently co-proprietor of the business with younger brother, David Pardey. Skyway Park Bowl expanded to include a casino in the late 1990s and has hosted a number of PBA tour events, including three visits from ABC.
Vincennes, Indiana
Vincennes is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Indiana, United States. It is located on the Wabash River in the southwestern part of the state. The population was 18,701 at the 2000 census...
) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
player, currently residing in Seattle, WA. Pardey is the father of professional poker player and singer/songwriter Rodney E. Pardey
Rodney E. Pardey
Rodney Erin Pardey AKA Michael Valentine is a singer-songwriter for the alt-country group Romance Fantasy and a part-time professional poker player. Pardey is the eldest son of two-time WSOP bracelet holder and world-class seven-card stud player Rodney H. Pardey...
and Ryan J. Pardey.
Pardey began playing poker professionally in his early twenties in and around the Seattle/Tacoma area in Washington state
Washington State
Washington State may refer to:* Washington , often referred to as "Washington state" to differentiate it from Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States* Washington State University, a land-grant college in that state- See also :...
. In 1969, while still in the reserves for The United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
, Pardey began making regular money in a low-limit poker game featuring a host of local professionals that even included a local judge. At the advice of another player, Pardey embarked on a trip to Las Vegas to try his luck there.
Career
In Las Vegas in the 1970s, Pardey rose through the ranks playing his signature game: seven-card studSeven-card stud
Seven-card stud is a variant of stud poker. Until the recent increase in popularity of Texas hold 'em, seven-card stud was the most popular poker variant in home games across the United States, and in casinos in the eastern part of the country. Two to eight players is common, though eight may...
. Pardey sharpened his skills against some of the toughest competition then playing: Doyle "Texas Dolly" Brunson
Doyle Brunson
Doyle F. Brunson is an American professional poker player who has played professionally for over 50 years. He is the first two-time World Series of Poker main event champion to win consecutively, a Poker Hall of Fame inductee, and the author of several books on poker.Brunson is the first player to...
, David "Chip" Reese
Chip Reese
David Edward Reese , more commonly known as Chip Reese, was an American professional poker player and gambler from Centerville, Ohio...
, Danny Robison, Eric Drache
Eric Drache
Eric Drache is a professional poker player, former cardroom manager and consultant for NBC. Drache is best known for his management contributions to the poker world, but he is also a notable seven-card stud player...
, Roger Moore
Roger Moore (poker player)
Roger Moore was a professional poker player.Moore grew up the son of sharecroppers. He quit school in the eighth grade and soon afterwards entered into military service. After the military he worked as a civil servant and for fun he would play poker...
, Stu Ungar
Stu Ungar
Stuart Errol "Stu" Ungar was a professional poker and gin rummy player, widely regarded to have been the greatest Texas hold 'em and gin rummy player of all time....
, Tommy Cress, Johnny Moss
Johnny Moss
Johnny Moss was a gambler and professional poker player. He was the first winner of the World Series of Poker Main Event, at the time a cash game event in which he was awarded the title by the vote of his peers in 1970, He also twice won the current tournament format of the WSOP Main Event in...
, Puggy Pearson
Puggy Pearson
Walter Clyde Pearson was an American professional poker player. He is best known as the 1973 World Series of Poker World Champion.-Early years:...
and Sarge Ferris
Sarge Ferris
Fred Bernard "Sarge" Ferris was an American professional poker player who won a World Series of Poker bracelet in deuce-to-seven draw.Ferris won his bracelet at the 1980 World Series of Poker, winning $150,000...
. Many allege these games involved rampant cheating.
In the late 1970s, famed author of poker-playing guidebooks, David Sklansky
David Sklansky
-Life and career:Sklansky was born and raised in Teaneck, New Jersey, where he graduated from Teaneck High School in 1966. He attended the University of Pennsylvania, but left before graduation. He returned to Teaneck and passed multiple Society of Actuaries exams by the time he was 20, and worked...
, ranked Pardey the number one seven-card stud player in the world. In a time well before the rise of Texas hold 'em
Texas hold 'em
Texas Hold 'em is a variation of the standard card game of poker. The game consists of two cards being dealt face down to each player and then five community cards being placed face-up by the dealer—a series of three then two additional single cards , with...
, this allowed Pardey a very comfortable living. By the end of the 1970s, Pardey was regularly playing as high as $1,000-$2,000.
The 1980s saw many changes in the poker industry, and these changes took their effect on Pardey as well. With the onset of the popularity of hold 'em, Pardey found himself shut out of the ensuing poker boom that was so crucially associated with "flops" and big tournament scores.
The early 80's brought on the rise of The Golden Nugget cardroom, run by Eric Drache. Pardey and Drache were good friends who had similar ideas on how a cardroom should be run. Pardey was thrilled to play in Drache's honest well-run cardroom. After years of training his eyes to watch for crooked players and crooked dealers, Pardey was able to focus on just cards. Since May 1995, Pardey has been playing regularly in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
.
World Series of PokerWorld Series of PokerThe World Series of Poker is a world-renowned series of poker tournaments held annually in Las Vegas and, since 2005, sponsored by Harrah's Entertainment...
Bracelets
| Year | Tournament | Prize (US$) |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 1991 World Series of Poker -Preliminary events:-Main Event:There were 215 entrants to the main event. Each paid $10,000 to enter the tournament. This was the first Main Event to offer a top prize of 1 million dollars.-Final table:-Other High Finishes:... |
$2,500 Seven Card Stud Seven-card stud Seven-card stud is a variant of stud poker. Until the recent increase in popularity of Texas hold 'em, seven-card stud was the most popular poker variant in home games across the United States, and in casinos in the eastern part of the country. Two to eight players is common, though eight may... |
$133,600 |
| 1994 1994 World Series of Poker -Preliminary events:-Main Event:There were 268 entrants to the main event. Each paid $10,000 to enter the tournament. Since this was the 25th Anniversary of the event, the winner received $1,000,000, plus his/her weight in silver, in celebration of the WSOP's silver anniversary.-Final table:-Other... |
$2,500 Seven Card Stud | $132,000 |
Outside of Poker
Pardey has been married twice. His first marriage was to Sandra Marie (born January 8, 1950 in Spokane, WashingtonSpokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
), with whom he had three children: Rodney Erin Pardey (born September 14, 1976 in Las Vegas), Ryan Joseph Pardey (born February 25, 1979 in Las Vegas), and Lucynda Laurynne Campbell (born September 13, 1980 in Las Vegas). His second marriage, to Carmen Guffey (born September 29, 1946 in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
), was childless.
Before poker, Pardey was a professional bowler and bowled briefly on the PBA tour. In 1977, Pardey used his poker proceedings to purchase a run-down bowling alley in south Seattle called Skyway Park Bowl. Pardey is currently co-proprietor of the business with younger brother, David Pardey. Skyway Park Bowl expanded to include a casino in the late 1990s and has hosted a number of PBA tour events, including three visits from ABC.