wallet, and he regularly called her with updates on his progress. Following an up-and-down first day, Ungar showed up for each subsequent day well rested and mentally sharp. He would go on to amass a large chip lead and carry the lead into the final table. Ungar was so highly regarded at this point that local bookies made him the favorite to win the tournament over the entire field, an extreme rarity. Ungar went on to win the Main Event, joining Johnny Moss as the only three-time winners. After his victory, which was taped for broadcast by ESPN, Ungar was interviewed by Gabe Kaplan, and he showed the picture of his daughter to the camera and dedicated his win to her. He and Baxter split the $1,000,000 first prize evenly. Ungar was dubbed "The Comeback Kid" by the Las Vegas media because of the span (sixteen years) between his main event wins as well as his past drug abuse. During the 1997 WSOP, Ungar wore a pair of round, cobalt blue–tinted sunglasses to, according to co-biographer Peter Alson, "hide the fact that his nostrils had collapsed from cocaine abuse." Final years Ungar spent all of his 1997 WSOP prize money over the course of the next few months, mainly on drugs and sports betting. He attempted to give up drugs several times at the behest of Stefanie but stayed clean for only weeks at a time before relapsing. As the 1998 WSOP approached, Baxter again offered to pay his entry fee to the main event. However, ten minutes before play started, Ungar told Baxter he was tired and did not feel like playing. Ungar later said the real reason he chose not to play in the event was due to his drug abuse in the weeks prior to the tournament. He noted that he felt showing up in his current condition would be more embarrassing than not showing up at all. In November 1998, Ungar was looking to clean up his life. His friend Bob Stupak made an arrangement to stake Ungar over a period of time as a fresh start for Ungar. Baxter noted in Ungar's biography that he also backed him in a high stakes game at the Bellagio around this time. Death On November 20, 1998, Ungar checked into room No. 6 at the Oasis Motel, a budget motel located at the end of the Las Vegas