The Mayfair Club in New York City was famous for the number of WSOP legends and top backgammon players who perfected their skills there.

Harrington, Seidel, Appleman, Lederer, Heimowitz, and Zolotow were among the poker greats. Magriel and GDG were famous backgammon stars. When the police closed the club in 2000, its fame had spread far and wide.

Meanwhile, in Ireland, The Eccentric Club was quietly punching above its weight, providing SIX WSOP Main Event final tableists from a couple of rooms above a shop on Hanlon’s Corner on Dublin’s North Side. Terry Rogers, bookmaker, visionary, and gambler, had visited Vegas in 1979, saw the WSOP in action in Binion’s Horseshoe Casino, befriended another visionary, Benny Binion, and returned to Ireland with a plan to open a poker club and bring No Limit Holdem Poker tournaments to Europe. He named the club The Eccentric Club. He saw the future and was so right! The Club held NLH tournaments on Tuesday nights with three tables in play. How this little club in Dublin produced more Main Event final tableists than most huge countries is a mystery. Unless you’re Irish.

First up, as usual, was Donnacha ODea. He made the Main Event final table in 1983. He finished sixth. Ireland’s Jimmy Langan had played too. Jimmy, along with Don Fagan, was quick to figure out tournament strategy, but on this occasion had stopped taking his tablets, which was poor strategy but usually great fun. On this occasion, Jimmy, who was hanging about, persuaded Tom McEvoy that a shoulder massage from him during the short break would be a good idea. It might well have been if you like suds everywhere, as Jimmy used shampoo instead of massage oil. A bit of Irish improvisation. Of course, Tom won.

In ’91 Brad Daugherty won, but Donnacha joined an exclusive club of players who’d final tabled the Main Event more than once. He finished ninth this time. No Jimmy. No suds.

In 1989 Noel Furlong made the final on his visit to the WSOP. He caused havoc with his swashbuckling Two Card Chicken style. Noel told me laughingly several times over the years about his clashes with Phil Helmuth, the ’89 champion, with the highlight being Phil running out of the room during a hand! Noel eventually got knocked out with 66 against Johnny Chan’s QQ. I only learnt from Don ODea recently that the money went in on a king-high flop. Helmuth told me earlier that year in Taho that he was going to win that WSOP. In fairness, he told everyone else too. And he did!

Next time the Irish made the final table was ’99, and we did it in style. Furlong was there again, as was the true gentleman of Irish poker, George McKeever. I was there too. Three Irishmen who had been used to playing in The Eccentric Club together made it to the last seven of WSOP!! What a buzz. Furlong knocked out George, Bigler, and US former Champ Huck Seed. Then I knocked out superstar Seidel, Furlong took out me and Goehring, and Noel was champion of the world. Before dinner!

TV was involved, so everyone had an opinion. The consensus was Noel was a luckbox. Helmuth disagreed. He “won” my Irish Open and “my” WSOP title, but he played an unorthodox game, was super-aggressive, judged people well, and made his own luck. Throw in two Irish Opens, so if he was lucky, he was very lucky!

Next Eccentric Club member up was Scott Gray in 2002. As well as having been a professional and a WSOP regular visitor for years, he had been my roommate and wingman in 1999. He was the only person I spoke to away from the table for four days, so had a great insight into what was going on and was a big help. He had a poor first day in 2002, but went up a gear and, after playing aggressively, including some scary clashes with Ivey, made the Final. He was winning small amounts every round of the table, leading Barny Boatman to observe that if the game lasted a month Scott would win! He was unlucky and got knocked out in fourth after getting his chips in good against eventual champ Varkoni, who fluked his win. But that’s why there’s a game.

Next Eccentric Club member to make the final was Andy Black in 2005. Andy was, and still is, one of Ireland’s finest. He was happy as a pig in shit in the middle of the Main Event. I walked by his table on Day 3. Andy had raised preflop. Ivey had reraised. Andy went all in. Ivey folded. Andy showed me Ace-five. With twelve players remaining, I thought Andy might win the lot, but he did great anyway to finish fifth. Great for him, his shareholders, and Ireland.