Willie Nelson and High Stakes Poker Home Games

A lifetime of getting stoned and playing country music has included a zest for high stakes poker action for the legendary Willie Nelson.

The 85-year-old Country Music Hall of Famer, who has penned such classics as "Hello Walls" and "On the Road Again," apparently could have perhaps made a name for himself in the world of poker if music hadn't been his true calling. At least that's what some opponents of Willie's at his poker home games have said.

Those opponents have told stories of Nelson showing absolutely no mercy at the poker table, despite a somewhat relaxed and mellow mood that accompanies the haze of marijuana smoke for which Willie is famous. An ambassador for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), Nelson has long advocated for responsible use of weed.

It was that combination of pot and poker that led to Jack Johnson writing a song entitled "Willie Got Me Stoned and Took All My Money," according to the Taste of Country blog. The blog does a weekly expose called "The Secret History of Country Music" and some secrets of Willie's poker home game were revealed - but not many.

What Happens at Willie's House ....

Johnson was apparently a bit anxious about telling too many secrets but did mention that Nelson's poker home game includes "a very specific game they play." Johnson didn't want to divulge the name, but did admit that the game has "like weird little rules."

Those not invited to play poker at Willie's house will likely never know the name of the game, and that may be for the better. Actor Woody Harrelson apparently knows, but it cost him a reported $40,000 to find out, having dumped that much cash in one night, so the story goes.

While Nelson is taking players' money at the poker table, music is apparently always on his mind. Legend has it that some key lyrics to the song “Good Hearted Woman” were born at a poker table.

Waylon Jennings and Willie had a hit with the song, which led to the Country Music Association bestowing the award of Single of the Year in 1976 to the country crooners.

Getting high, writing songs, and playing high stakes poker all at the same time. That's multitasking at its finest.