Amarillo Slim’s reputation as a cowboy gambler rivals the reputations of Wild Bill Hickock, Doc Holliday and Bat Masterson a century earlier. Like the legendary gamblers of the Old West, Amarillo Slim seemed larger than life—tall, slim (of course), wearing fancy handmade boots, a Stetson hat and packing a pistol—complete with a Texas drawl bursting with bravado. And like his Old West gambling counterparts, he left a legacy of highs and lows.
Thomas Austin Preston Jr. was born in Johnson, Arkansas in 1928, but his family soon moved to Turkey, Texas. After his parents divorced, his mother returned to Arkansas. His father moved to Amarillo, which the youngster always called home. He said, “It’s a good thing he did, because Amarillo Slim sounds a heck of a lot better than Turkey Tom or Arkansas Austin.”
As a teenager, Thomas skipped school to play snooker, becoming proficient, and learning to hustle pool. Shortly after World War II, he joined the US Army…