The Crazy Story of Nathan Gamble: From Being Kidnapped to Playing Poker
Nathan Gamble remembers that scorching Texas afternoon about a decade ago pretty well. High temperatures in the Dallas area top out over 100°F (37.7°C), and mowing the yard in the humid, sweltering heat makes for a sweaty afternoon. But Gamble had a goal in mind with this mow. After watching his dad and his buddies play poker for years, Gamble – a fitting name – was hoping to use the $20 dad was going to pay him to fund an online poker account.
That sweat equity certainly paid off and continues years later. Gamble has been on a big run since last summer. In 2017, Gamble won the $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha Hi/Lo event for $223,339. Just Friday, Gamble gave it a big effort in accomplishing back-to-back wins, finishing 10th for $13,429. And now he's on to Day 3 of the $10,000 PLO-8.
After a massive couple years, Gamble looks back with a great fondness of how he got that early start in poker. A decade later, the 28-year-old continues to mow down many fellow players and looking for his second bracelet.
PLO Piranha
When it comes to PLO formats, Gamble brings plenty of skill. In the last two years, he has five cashes in events featuring an Omaha format. He also finished eighth in the $1,500 Mixed Pot Limit Omaha/Hi-Lo/Big O for $17,279.
Gamble thought this might be where he’d be murdered and his body dumped.
As the $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo played out in the Rio on Saturday, Gamble led the field after the first day of play and stayed among the leaders throughout the afternoon.
Even from a young age, Gamble was drawn to Omaha and other games other than Texas Hold’em. He played mixed games online often, even before he turned 18 and developed a nice understanding for many of the games.
“I think I see the game [Omaha] from a different perspective,” he says.
Making back-to-back final tables in the $1,500 event on Friday was a dream come true – not so much for the accomplishment, but because he was mixing it up among well-known players like Mike Matusow, Daniel Negreanu, and Eli Elezra. There were plenty of laughs and chatter as the unofficial final table played out like a scene from an episode of “High Stakes Poker” he grew up watching as a kid.
“It's just fun with them,” he said after busting out. “It's three of the old school greats of the game and I respect them.”
Kidnapping the Kid
Originally from North Richland Hills, Texas, just between Dallas and Fort Worth, life has occasionally been a bit of a gamble for Gamble.
At age 18 during his senior year in high school, Gamble left school to go get his braces off. He added a haircut afterward and was ready to head back to school a new man – feeling confident about his new smile with straight teeth and fresh cut. As he left the mall after getting his haircut, a stranger approached.
“Hey, can you give me a ride,” the man asked. “Just right down the street.”
At first, Gamble said no because he had to get back to school, but changed his mind and tried to be a good Samaritan.
“Sure, why not?” he said.
As the two got in Gamble’s car, the man then pulled out a gun.
“Now we’re going to the bank,” he said.
With the gun pointed at the teenager, the man had him withdraw cash and then told him to head toward downtown Dallas. Scared for his life, Gamble obliged.
All the while, he thought about his options. Should he wreck the car and try to flee? Unfortunately, he’d forgotten to buckle his seat belt and couldn’t see a way to surreptitiously buckle up then wreck the vehicle. Could he slow down and try to jump out? Maybe he could talk his way out of the situation?
“You're really lucky because I stopped killing people. I’m reforming and going to God now.”
“It was like a poker scenario where you’re to figure out exactly what to do,” he says. “Everything popped into my head. And then I think I just kept a level head overall and just continually evaluated it.”
The car came to a stop at a house in a pretty rough neighborhood. The gunman grabbed the keys and told Gamble to stay put as he went inside a minute.
Should he bolt? Gamble weighed the risks versus rewards. He really didn’t know where he was and feared the man may have other accomplices watching him. He stayed put.
Two more stops would follow with the final house on a dead end adjacent to some railroad tracks. Like a story on "Dateline" or "48 Hours," Gamble thought this might be where he’d be murdered and his body dumped. A couple minutes later, the gunman exited the house with two other men.
“In my head, I thought, 'If they continue past this line I have to get out and run as fast as possible into the woods and just go,'” Gamble says. “Thankfully they stopped and shook hands. He came back, and they got in a separate car and we drove.”
The man turned to Gamble and said: “You're really lucky because I stopped killing people. I’m reforming and going to God now.”
He began smoking crystal meth as Gamble continued driving with the two other men following behind.
“We went to a downtown street and he got out and jumped in their car and let me go,” he says.
The experience was over. What seemed like hours only lasted about an hour and a half, and Gamble was thankful to be alive. He and his parents went to the police and he was questioned for hours. He felt police didn’t believe him and thought he had just been skipping school. In the end, none of the men were captured, but that incident along with his time in the Army gave him some unique perspective on life.
“So playing poker at a final table,” he says, “I’m just able to sit and smile and have fun.”
Army Days & Action in Korea
The action of a final table might be nerve-racking for many. For Gamble, poker pales in comparison to surviving a kidnapping and dealing with a possible confrontation with North Korea while serving in the U.S. Army.
“Last year when I won, I had just gotten out of the military,” he says. “And I actually went to flight school, and had been flying helicopters for the last year.”
"North Korea responded by shooting one of the speakers down with a rocket. South Korea then launched 72 rockets back into North Korea."
The poker didn’t seem quite as much of a thrill but is a real competitive passion nonetheless. While he now sees plenty of action on the poker felt, for the last few years, Gamble saw plenty of action in Korea while in the Army.
As a field artillery officer, Gamble saw first-hand some heated exchanges between North and South Korea during several confrontations.
“I was in Korea during stand downs [meaning to prepare for an attack] with North Korea,” he says. “Right before I left, we actually stood down with launchers ready to go to war.”
One particular event stands out for Gamble. In 2015, North Korean soldiers crossed the demilitarized zone and planted mines near a guard post. The explosives maimed two South Korean soldiers.
“So South Korea put up speakers again and they started blasting propaganda into North Korea,” he says. “North Korea responded by shooting one of the speakers down with a rocket. South Korea then launched 72 rockets back into North Korea. And so we were on stand down because we were on the brink of war. We literally pulled weapons out of the armory. We were on our launchers with missiles pointed at North Korea.”
The Army not only led him to some big adventure in Korea, but he also met his wife Christina there. She is still in the military and stationed in Hawaii, but serving in Texas currently for two months before heading back. Right now, their marriage is a bit long distance.
“We really don’t even know where we live anymore.”
“We really don’t even know where we live anymore,” he says. “She goes back for two months to Hawaii to basically transition out of the military.”
Gamble was looking to get back to see Christina soon now that she’s in Texas, but poker has interceded.
“I have a flight booked on Saturday, so I'm going to play the $10K PLO Hi-Lo,” he said on Friday. “If I make Day 2, I’ll cancel the flight. If not, then I'll head back for a week or so and then come back out for the rest of the Omaha stuff.”
The flight was canceled and he was looking for Day 3. With his success in poker, Gamble has set helicopter school to the side for a bit and he's focusing on his game more. As the $10,000 Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Lo resumed for Day 2, the former soldier was ready and smiling as usual.
“This is my Main Event,” he says. “I’m ready.”
Nathan Gamble is deep in another event, having made Day 3 of the $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship. Follow along as PokerNews brings you all the updates in Gamble's quest for his second bracelet.
Sean Chaffin is a freelance writer in Crandall, Texas. His work appears in numerous websites and publications. Follow him on Twitter @PokerTraditions. He is also the host of the True Gambling Stories podcast, available on iTunes, Google Play, TuneIn Radio, Spotify, Stitcher, PokerNews.com, HoldemRadio.com, and TrueGamblingStories.com.
