Johnny Chan

VITALS:

Name: Johnny Chan
Date of Birth: 1957
Nationality: Chinese-American
Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada
WSOP Bracelets: 10
WSOP Cashes: 42
WPT Titles: 0
WPT Cashes: 4
Online Poker Room: ChanPoker (formerly)

PROFILE:

Johnny Chan, who’s known as The Orient Express, made it as a professional poker player after deciding to make some massive changes in his life. It was 1982 and over the past four years he had developed a reputation in Vegas as a promising but inconsistent player. Poker legend Doyle Brunson thought that the young man certainly showed some smarts and skill at the felt table but that his excessive playing and ill temper was sinking him. Chan was also out of shape, smoking four packs of cigarettes a day and drinking.

It was in 1982 that he stopped smoking and drinking, started eating healthier and exercising and cooled his hot head, becoming a more disciplined player. Guess what? He started winning with consistency, becoming one of the best players in Las Vegas and earning his nickname. It was in that year that the revitalized Chan played in Bob Stupak’s America’s Cup Tournament, which is a $10,000 No Limit Hold ‘em contest. Chan made it to the final table and then he did the improbable, vanquishing 13 of the remaining 16 players in one-half hour. It was then that Stupak christened him The Orient Express. Chan, who was 25 years old, took the tournament, and he’s been winning ever since.

It was a long road for a kid who was born in Canton, China, and moved with his family when he was a boy to Arizona and then to Texas. His family proved to be successful in the restaurant business, and they expected him to follow in their footsteps. In fact, he attended the University of Houston, where he was majoring in hotel and restaurant management. But at the age of 21, he left his major and the school and ventured to Vegas to pursue professional poker.

Chan now plays in the moment, varying his style and analyzing each and every possible opportunity. He treats poker like a business and has become a believer in projecting a positive image at the table—one that will make people want to engage him in a game and come back and play again.

He’s written numerous books and articles on poker, serves as a consultant to an array of casinos and game designers and is the proprietor of a fast-food restaurant in the Stratosphere Hotel in Vegas. Over the years, Chan has proven to be one of the most consistent players in the game.