Some things in "According to Hoyle"

are wild as the wind in Oregon, such as:

The Rule of Hoyle

"According to Hoyle" is well-known for its announcement to the television audience at the beginning of the episode that "The Rule of Hoyle quoted in this story is authentic, and is from 'Hoyle's Book of Games, 1876'."[1]

The quote, read aloud from "Hoyle's Games" by Samantha Crawford after just playing a pair of nines against Bret Maverick's straight, is:

"In five-card stud poker, straights are not played unless it's determined at the commencement of the game that they be admitted."[1]

Samantha handed the book to Bret to read for himself. Having done so and always cautious where his money is concerned, he immediately asked to see the bar's copy of Hoyle to verify what he's just read. The bar's copy confirmed the rule.[1]

However, the 1876 edition of "Hoyle's Games" does not have any such passage. Nor does it have any reference at all to either stud poker — much less five-card stud, establishing table rules at the beginning of a game — nor surprisingly, even to straights.[2]

The entire subject of poker, which Hoyle refers to primarily as "Bluff,'" is only two pages long. It does not describe variations of the game, such as draw, stud, hold 'em, etc., other than Twenty Deck Poker which is "played with the Aces, Kings, Queens, Knaves and Tens, only."[2]

However, playing strictly according to the 1876 edition of Hoyle, Samantha would still have won the hand (provided the non-Hoyle variation of five-card stud was overlooked). The order of rank of the Value of Hands lists only "one pair," "two pairs," "three" (of a kind), "Flush," "Full" (full house) and "four." Straights are not acknowledged in any way, so should not have been recognized.[2]

The territory

After losing to Samantha "according to Hoyle," Bret discussed plans with Samantha on how they could partner together and the raise money they both needed to go their separate ways. He knew the Hoyle trick wouldn't work again. As they were traveling up the Mississippi, he remarked, "By the time we dock in St. Louis, the story will be all over the river. In a week, everybody in the territory will know it."[1]

What territory was Bret referring to? Even in 1876, the entire length of the Mississippi River was bordered from source to delta by states of the Union. The closest territory would have been Indian Territory, which seems an odd reference in this context. Perhaps Bret was speaking very informally.

The shipment

In St. Louis, Bret ordered $9,000 of gambling equipment to be shipped to Wagon Wheel, Wyoming Territory, and to be held there by Big Mike McComb until he and Samantha could arrive. He arranged for it to be sent by freight that afternoon.[1]

However, Bret and Samantha were taking the train out of St. Louis the next morning. It seems odd that a large freight shipment could travel as fast from St. Louis to Wagon Wheel as two passengers traveling light. Even today, a shipment that size would likely take several days or weeks to be assembled, packed and booked for such a passage.

Unless the shipment was not sent from St. Louis. Perhaps Bret ordered and paid for the gambling equipment in town, which was then wired to a source much closer to Wagon Wheel. Denver, for instance. Otherwise, Bret and Samantha might as well have taken the same trains and coaches as their equipment.

ABOVE: Blackjack table at the Golden Bucket Saloon and Casino, Wagon Wheel, Wyoming Territory, 1876.

The Golden Nugget

Bret Maverick exposed Joe Riggs as a crook at the Golden Bucket's blackjack table. But rather than seeing the saloon's own logo imprinted on the board, we see that of the 20th century's famous mark of Las Vegas' Golden Nugget Gambling Hall, first established in 1946.

​ABOVE: The Golden Nugget Gambling Hall, Las Vegas, Nevada, c1980.