The Smoking Petition: How Tom McEvoy Helped the WSOP Become Smoke Free

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Jul 03, 2023 7 min read

The 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) has been a record affair drawing tens of thousands of players. Now, imagine those players were allowed to smoke at the table? That used to be the case at the WSOP, but thanks to the efforts of 1983 Main Event champ and Poker Hall of Famer Tom McEvoy and associates Casey Kastle and Paul Ladanyi, that all changed.

Not only did the WSOP at Binion’s Horseshoe become smoke free – the second-hand smoke there was often called the “Horseshoe Crud” – but for the most part the entire poker tournament industry did.

That was thanks to the “Non-Smoking Tournament Petition,” which McEvoy and company circulated in 2001 and ultimately collected 522 signatures, including from some of the biggest names of the game.

McEvoy actually still has the originally petition, which he recently shared with PokerNews. It read:

We, the undersigned poker tournament players, feel the time has come for casinos to provide a pleasant, healthy and smoke-free environment for tournaments. We are no longer willing to endure the annoyance, irritation and health risks brought about by being forced to inhale second-hand smoke. California has led the way and we have learned how much more pleasant it is to play and be able to breathe clean air, and we applaud the Tournament of Champions and Sam’s Town for going smoke-free. So strongly do we feel about this issue that we declare our intention to patronize only non-smoking tournaments and to boycott those that continue to condone this unhealthy habit.

Here's a look at just a small sample of big-name poker players who signed the petition.

How Smoke-Free Came to Be

While a smoke-free tournament experience is something most players take for granted these days, it wasn’t always that way. In fact, if you watch old broadcasts of the WSOP Main Event from the 1990s on PokerGO, you’ll likely see more players smoking at the table than not.

“I had a strong friendship with Casey Kastle and I knew and respected Paul Ladanyi. All three of us were very much anti-smoking,” McEvoy told PokerNews. “We discussed the situation with others as well as ourselves and finally decided to do something about it, not just talk about it. The answer was the petition, which we used to approach tournament directors and casino management.”

"When questioned about what was going on, players would often be in a game and suggest everyone sign it."

He continued: “The signatures were the easiest part of the entire process. The players would line up to sign it – more than one of us were circulating it. When questioned about what was going on, players would often be in a game and suggest everyone sign it. They very often did exactly that.”

While the petition contained a laundry list of poker superstars, one name was noticeably missing.

“The one major name that was unable to be there when the petition was circulated was Phil Hellmuth,” McEvoy shared. “Phil would have gladly signed it, but somehow was not around when we were collecting signatures. Phil was completely in favor of non-smoking tournaments as you can well imagine.”

A four-time bracelet winner, including 1983 WSOP Main Event champ, as well as co-author of over a dozen poker books, it wasn’t surprising to see McEvoy inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame alongside Scotty Nguyen. Even so, getting poker tournaments to become smoke free is among his greatest accomplishments.

“That was my greatest contribution to the poker world,” he said. “On a personal basis, nothing can ever top winning the Main Event, followed by getting inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame. Of course, many other people also were instrumental in getting poker tournaments smoke free. Without the help of so many other prominent people in the poker world, it would not have happened when it did.”

Poker Players Who Loved to Smoke

Going back in poker history, there is no shortage of poker players who loved to smoke. McEvoy knew them all.

“Hamid Dastmalchi, the 1992 Main Event champion, was a very heavy smoker. He used to play marathon poker sessions and at least once that I know of he collapsed and had to go to the hospital. His chain-smoking was the main cause. Several other past champions were often photographed with a cigarette or cigar in their mouth. Slim and Sailor with cigarettes and Puggy with his cigar were familiar faces in many of the old black and white photos.”

Likewise, McEvoy’s good friend and co-author of four books, T.J. Cloutier, was also a heavy smoker.

“T.J., however, was very considerate of non-smokers that had a problem being around the smoke,” said McEvoy. “T.J. was developing health issues because of his smoking and took the pledge in 2001. That was the same year the petition started circulating and he hasn’t smoked since.”

Another chain smoker was Chris Tsiprailidis.

“I actually counted 29 cigarettes that he smoked while I was at the same table as him during a WSOP event,” McEvoy explained. “I was starting to get sick because it was coming straight at me. He started to get mad when I spoke up and cursed at me. He continued to berate me and said he had been smoking since he was 14 years old and he didn’t have to quit for anyone … I have never had a single penalty in my entire life, this argument was the closest I ever came.”

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Getting the WSOP on Board

The first smoke-free tournament in Nevada occurred at Sam’s Town in 1999, which McEvoy hosted.

“It was so successful it helped the smoke-free cause immensely … the bottom line is that the approval was overwhelming and the demand started to grow for more of the same,” said McEvoy.

So, how did the WSOP become smoke-free for the first time in 2002?

As McEvoy told it: “Most of my conversations were with Benny Binion Behan. He was a Horseshoe Casino executive in his twenties at the time and the grandson of the founder Benny Binion. The young Benny liked to play poker and I got to know him when I went to work at the Horseshoe in 2001. He often played in the poker room and wasn’t a bad player, but could definitely use some coaching.

“I asked him if he would help me get his parents to agree to go non-smoking at the 2002 WSOP in exchange for free poker lessons. He was a smoker himself but agreed to help. So, his mother, who was in charge, agreed after talking to both of us.”

While getting that year’s WSOP, and all subsequent editions, to go smoke-free was a success, McEvoy’s time as an employee at Binion’s Horseshoe didn’t have such a happy ending.

“As to what the whole experience was like working there – not pleasant. I used to say I was the Poker Room Manager at Binion’s for the worst 53 days of my life,” McEvoy explained. “I was then given another title Director of Poker Operations at that point and worked on the scheduling of the 2002 WSOP.”

He continued: “I got my tournament schedule approved, hired Matt Savage and Steve Morrow to be Tournament Directors, got the tournament to go non-smoking for the first time, and then was rewarded by getting fired one day before the WSOP started. This, of course, cost me my share of the tokes. They graciously allowed me to be a player during the WSOP though.”

Not only has McEvoy continued to play the WSOP each and every, he’s held onto that original petition for more than two decades.

“To this day I don’t know if any copies are in existence or not,” he said of the petition that helped change poker history.

Is Smoking an Issue at 2023 WSOP?

Interestingly, the topic of smoking recently made the rounds on Poker Twitter. While smoking is prohibited in tournament areas, the casino area still permits it and Felipe Ramos took to Twitter to express his discontent.

Others were quick to weigh in including Johnny “Vibes” Moreno, who said: “I’ve noticed that when you exit the ballroom at Paris there’s a visible cloud of smoke in the hallways. I thought people were only allowed to smoke in the casino and not in the hallways near ballroom.”

Likewise, Andrew Neeme, who was recently a guest on The Chad & Jesse Poker Show, said: “The smoke levels at Horseshoe are thick. It also just generally kinda baffles me that people smoke indoors. The other day there was a line in the restroom (as always during tourney break) and dude was puffing away at a cigar in there. Wild stuff.”

Veronica Brill offered: “I agree, I think I'm allergic to it and end up being stuffed up every time I walk through there. I also hate how I smell every time I have to walk through there I smell terrible and I hate it so much.”

Others to express their dissatisfaction with the smoking situation were Dan Zack, Taylor Howard, Brian Hastings, Brian “The Golden Blazer” Frenzel, and Nick Palma.

PR & Media Manager for PokerNews, Podcast host & 2013 WSOP Bracelet Winner.

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