Archie Karas: The Poker Legend

Article by: Kevin Morales - Casino Еxpert

Date Published: 10/07/23

In the following write-up, we will discuss the fascinating life and career of Archie Karas – one of the most famous poker high-rollers in the history of the game. Learn everything about his life and the many now infamous poker games that he’s played.

Who is Archie Karas?

If you’re an avid poker player who knows a lot about the history of poker and its most famous players, then you’re probably already awfully familiar with the name Archie Karas. Archie Karas is a Greek-born player known for a chaotic series of poker games, now famously called “The Run”.

We will tell you all about The Run and about other just as spectacular poker feats by Archie “The Greek” Karas in this article, so keep reading to discover everything about this extraordinary poker player.

Early Life

Archie Karas (real name: Anargyros Nicholas Karabourniotis) was born on 1st November 1950 in Antypata, Cephalonia, Greece. Unlike his countryman and fellow poker player, Nick the Greek, Archie wasn’t born wealthy. His family was in fact impoverished, and arguably, that’s what gave him the ambition to succeed and become one of the top Greek gamblers. There were not safe online casinos in Greece back at the time, so he had to improvise.

Archie Karas’ gambling story actually started when he was a child. In order to feed himself, Karas would often shoot marbles for money and he was quite good at that. After an especially messy argument with his father that ended with the father throwing a shovel at his son, Archie left his family at the age of 15.

He began taking odd jobs to make ends meet until he ended up being a waiter on a cruise ship whose last stop was Portland, Oregon. Archie Karas then migrated to the United States and soon moved to Los Angeles.

Poker Beginnings

Unlike most people moving to the City of Angels, Archie didn’t have plans to make it in the film or music business. He didn’t speak English very well and couldn’t find a well-paying job because of it. Karas waited tables yet again, but this time fate had grander plans for him.

The restaurant where Archie waited tables was next to a bowling and pool alley. Karas soon exhibited an impressive talent at pool and would play for money to help support himself. He couldn’t find someone to match him at the pool table, and soon people stopped playing with him altogether.

Archie then turned his head to another part of the venue – the card games hall. He quickly realised that he was as good at poker as he was at pool, despite never having played the game previously. Not unlike Nick the Greek, Archie Karas became a risk-taker, placing massive bets on a single hand.

Archie shot up to the stratosphere of poker gaming in the manner of months. He began frequenting the top Los Angeles poker rooms and by the early 1990’s, he had a considerable wealth behind him, amounting to $2 million. His risk-taking behaviour, however, led to him losing everything he had.

The Run

In December of 1992, the Archie Karas net worth was practically non-existent because he was peniless. Rather than look for a stable job, he took yet another risk. Karas drove to Las Vegas with only $50 in his pocket and the ambition to turn his bad luck around. Karas went to The Mirage with a dream, and that dream came true.

He found a friend and a fellow poker player in the casino who agreed to lend him $10,000 with a 100% interest. As an Archie Karas documentary indicates, he started playing Razz (a form of poker) with the money and he managed to quickly turn the $10,000 into $40,000, giving back his friend $20,000.

Convinced that luck was on his side, Archie challenged a well-known poker and pool player to a game of pool. At first, the bet was $5,000 a game, but as Archie was winning more and more thousands of dollars, the bet rose to $40,000 a game and they just kept playing.

Archie ended up winning $1.2 million by playing pool with this mysterious player who he only calls Mr. X. Apparently, Mr X hadn’t learnt his lesson because he then agreed to go the Horseshoe Casino and play poker with Karas. Karas ended up costing him an additional $3 million on the poker table.

Archie, now also nicknamed the Greek, remained in Las Vegas, usually playing at the Horseshoe with millions in chips on his table, waiting for a worthy challenger. Stu Ungar, a three-time World Series of Poker champion, accepted the challenge and so the games began.

Karas beat Ungar twice, first in games of Razz for $500,000 and then in 7-stud poker for $700,000. Karas then went on to beat Chip Reese, who was regarded as one of the best poker players. Reese lost more than $2 million to Karas, which is thought to have been more than all of his previous losses combined.

Karas defeated another two poker legends, namely Johnny Moss and Puggy Pearson, but he finally met his match in the face of Johnny Chan, who managed to win $900,000 from Karas. Doyle Brunson also managed to defeat Karas, but that didn’t stop the Greek from amassing more poker winnings.

At one point, Jack Binion, the owner of the Horseshoe, started capping Karas because he cost the casino too much money, even drying them out completely of their $5000 chips. One condition Binion set was to raise Archie’s 4 and 10 buy bet limit to $200,000 in craps; Karas used that in his advantage and won $920,000. Binion lowered the limit as a result.

Overall, this amazing winning streak that we now call The Run managed to turn Karas from a penniless player to a mythical hero. The Run, lasting for two and a half years, eventually ended with Archie Karas bagging $40 million.

The Eventual Fall

Unfortunately, not all things are meant to last, especially when you’re a poker player who doesn’t know limits and takes risks for a living. Karas might have made $40 million in the manner of two and a half years, but he managed to lose almost everything in three weeks in 1995.

First, Archie Karas lost $11 million while playing craps, but that didn’t stop him. He lost another $2 million to Chip Reese in poker, essentially returning the money he got from him two years earlier. Karas switched to another game yet again, this time baccarat, and lost an additional $17 million.

He managed to stop himself before he spent the remaining money he had ($12 million). Karas went to Greece to recover from his losses, but he didn’t learn. He went straight back to Vegas and lost another $11 million playing baccarat.

In an example of poetic justice, Karas faced the first person who defeated him during the Run – Johnny Chan. They played a game for a million dollars (Karas’ remaining money) whereas Chan was backed by Lyle Berman, and Karas essentially played both of them. Archie Karas doubled his money, but then naturally, lost it all soon later in games of baccarat and dice.

Since this unlucky streak, Karas left the high-rollers table and moved on to smaller bets. He repeated the win big, lose big scenario many times in the following two decades.

The Black Book

Archie Karas became a legend in the poker world, both for The Run and for the devastating aftermath. He took part in various World Series of Poker events, where he has six cashes and the combined earnings of $139,174, which isn’t very impressive for a man used to winning millions in a single hand.

While it seemed that Karas had learnt his lesson and chose to stay away from trouble, he became infamous once again. Karas was arrested in 2013 under suspicion that he marked blackjack cards in a San Diego casino. He was found guilty and sentenced to three years of probation, along with a hefty fine.

This disgraceful incident put Karas in Nevada’s Black Book – banning him from every single casino in the state for life. Although the restriction only applies to Nevada, it’s likely that other casinos took the same measures. This is perhaps the only thing that could have stopped Karas from playing.

Popular Questions

If you have questions about the life of Archie Kansas, you’ve come to the right place. Just below are the most popular questions asked about Karas, answered by us but if you have any others, don’t hesitate to contact us.

1️⃣ Where was Archie Karas born?

If we trust what's known about the early life of Archie Karas, (real name Anargyros Nicholas Karabourniotis), he was born on 1st November 1950. Archie Karas came from an impoverished family and had to shoot marbles for money in order to make ends meet, which must have helped him in his later career.

2️⃣ What games did Archie Karas play?

Archie Karas has played many gambling games over the years. Starting simply by shooting marbles in Greece, Karas graduated to playing pool for money. That was in the beginning of Archie Karas' gambling career. However, he became a legend by playing poker. He's also famous for playing craps, baccarat, and blackjack.

3️⃣ What is 'The Run'?

The Run is the name given to the two-and-a-half-year period during which Archie Karas managed to turn $50 into $40 million. The story of The Run is as crazy as it gets - with many ups and downs, twists and turns.

4️⃣ When did Archie Karas stop winning?

After such a successful winning period, The Run, Archie Karas was bound to start losing at some point, and boy, did he lose a lot. The historical Archie Karas fall led to him losing $40 million in 1995 in the manner of a month or two.   

5️⃣ Does Archie Karas still play?

No, Archie Karas does not play any casino games anymore, but this wasn't his choice. He was caught marking cards in a California casino, which led to his arrest and subsequent inclusion in the Black Book, which is a list of players banned from Nevada casinos.