John "Bono" Bonetti, one of poker's most colorful and memorable figures, passed away June 28 at the age of 80 at his home in Houston after a long battle with cancer.
Although Bonetti did not start playing until he was 55, an age when many players are over the hill, he piled up some 200 tournament cashes totaling more than $4 million over the next 20 years.
A hard-driving, competitive player, Bonetti won two bracelets in deuce-to-seven lowball and a third in pot-limit hold 'em, along with two third-place finishes in the WSOP championship event.
Numbers, however, don't begin to tell the story. Bonetti, an original and one-of-a-kind character, was an unmistakable presence because of his New York speech, his well-publicized ongoing war with dealers, and his liberal use of expletives-which earned him what was believed to be the world's record for penalties.
Although Bonetti had a tough-guy reputation, people who were close to him said that he had a soft heart and was always ready to help out anybody needing a break, staking, loaning money, and tutoring numerous players. While his speech and touchy relationship with dealers brought him a degree of notoriety, what bound people to him was his integrity, his sense of decency, and his utter lack of pretense. He spoke his mind, he meant what he said, and everyone knew it.
Born to parents of Italian descent, Bonetti was born and grew up in Brooklyn. He served in the Air Force, then worked as a presser for Manhattan couture houses and became a property manager after moving to Houston, where he first learned poker playing in home games.
In 2006 he was honored with a roast at the WSOP presented by PokerStars, which also presented him with a seat in the $10,000 main event when it seemed he had only a short time left. He proved his toughness by surviving well into the following year, and for a time his illness was in remission. But it eventually returned, and 2007 was the first year he would miss a World Series.
John Bonetti, who lived for his family, is survived by his wife Jeanie, three sons, a daughter, 10 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
