Joanne 'JJ' Liu - Clearing Up Rumors, 2007 WSOP

Update #12: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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Event 33 - Pot-Limit Omaha, $1500 buy-in, Chau Giang in 5th earning $96,005 and 435 Player of the Year points [COMPLETE]

In Event 34 - Limit Hold'em, $3000 buy-in, Brandon Wong gets his 4th cash in this year's WSOP earning him $135,615 and 900 points in the Player of the Year race. In the The Milwaukee's Best Light Player of the Year Standings, he brings his total to 120 points and total winnings of $163,738. Only less than a handful of players have more cashes than him thus far (albeit many have 4 cashes as well). David Pham finished 4th with $62,906 in winnings. [COMPLETE]

Name Le took down $239,230 and 3rd place in Event 35 - No-Limit Hold'em, $1500 buy-in. Two thousand five hundred and fourty one players entered. Paul Cheung took 6th and a little less than $80k home with him. Edward Im placed just outside the top 10 in 11th. [COMPLETE]

Unfortunately, not a single Asian placed in the top 20 in Event 36 - World Championship Omaha High-Low 8/OB, $5000 buy. It's only the 2nd or 3rd event we couldn't get someone in the top 10. [COMPLETE]

Gioi Luong placed 7th in Event 37 - Pot-Limit Hold'em, $2000 buy-in, earning him $31,070 and 240 Player of the Year points. [COMPLETE]

Robert Cheung takes down another bracelet for the Asian diaspora in Event 38 - No-Limit Hold'em, $1500 buy-in. He takes home $673,628 for one of the bigger 1st place pots this year on top of 1,200 Player of the year points in the 2778 player strong field. Cheung is 3rd in total cash winnings only behind Burt Boutin and Phill Hellmuth. Andrew Lee took 5th and Suey Wong placed 7th cashing in $119,447 and $68,255 respectively. [COMPLETE]

Event 40 - Mixed Hold'em (Limit / No-Limit), $1500 buy-in, had 620 enter, but not a single Asian made the final table. J.C. Tran took 14th and $7,320 home. This was literally pocket change compared the $5,156,284 he's made so far in tournament winnings. [COMPLETE]

IN PROGRESS: In the $50,000 buy-in Event 39 - World Championship H.O.R.S.E. event, Kenny Tran sits on top of the 3rd largest pile of chips going into the final round. First place is set to be $2,276,832, the largest prize thus far in the tournament.

Event 41 - World Championship Seniors No-Limit Hold'em, $1000 buy-in - We like 'em young and use our older age for retirement it seems not many Asians even took part in this. As a result, no one really to note.

Unfortunately, another event and no Asians to speak of in the top 20. Event 42 - Pot-Limit Omaha High-Low 8/OB, $1500 buy-in had a few cashes in the 21st through 30th finishes, but nothing towards the top.

Either the Asians are getting weaker or they're taking a break because another event and not a signle Asian made the final table.

Event 43 - Limit Hold'em, $2000 buy-in Philip Nguyen finish in 18th though. 543 players entered Event 44 - Omaha High-Low 8/OB, $2000 buy-in and 79 players remain.

Update #11: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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Event 26 - H.O.R.S.E, $5000 buy-in is now COMPLETE. Repeating from the last update since it was "heads up" the last time we wrote & Yuebin Guo had already won 3rd place for $99,264 in winnings just ahead of Phil Ivey in 4th and Alexander Jung in 6th taking home $37,901. [COMPLETE]

Having 4 players on the final table in Event 27 - No-Limit Hold'em, $1500 buy-in, we had a really good chance of getting another bracelet. Young Cho did get heads up, but got edged out by a non-Asian to take home $382,357 and runner up. David Woo took 5th ($115,339), Thai Ton 9th ($36,340) and Benjamin Kang took 10th ($28,124). Nevertheless, Young Cho did beat 2314 other players to receive that honor. [COMPLETE]

My friend Jason Song finally hit the big time. He taught me Baccarat last year & I lost touch with him wondering if he was still on the trail for a big win. Well, I was right, but didn't realize he honed his skills well enough to take 3rd. He took home $212,274.00 for his first big win of his life and I'm sure many more. He did it against 826 other players in Event 28 - No-Limit Hold'em, $3000 buy-in. Phil Hellmuth tried to get his 12th WSOP bracelet, but Jason and others prevented that from happening . By the way Jason, if you ever read this, comment below your latest contact info. I'd love to reconnect. [COMPLETE]

Phi Nguyen took 7th in the 341 player full Event 29 - Seven Card Razz, $1500 buy-in. [COMPLETE]

Another final table was chalked full of Asians. Event 30 - No-Limit Hold'em - Six Handed, $2500 buy-in, had 847 entries and 3 of the final table were Asians. Terrance Chan took 3rd ($287,345), William Lin took 3rd ($196,758) and Steve Wong took 7th ($47,339). [COMPLETE]

Heads up play is a unique brand of poker and in Event 31 - World Championship Heads-Up No-Limit Hold'em, $5000 buy-in with 392 people testing their metal, Kevin Song took 9th and his 2nd cash of the series. [COMPLETE]

Asians don't seem to be fans of 7 Card Stud and in Event 32 - Seven Card Stud, $2000 buy-in only 213 players entered showing that maybe most people aren't as interested in the game. It showed with us only getting 12th with David cashing for the 3rd time this series. [COMPLETE]

Still in Progress: Even 33, Pot Limit Omaha with Chau Giang in 4th (in chips) and the final table set. David Pham and Brandon Wong (seeking his 4th cash of the 2007 WSOP) made the final table of the Limit Holdem event #34. Pat Cheung and Nam Le made the final table in the 2541 player deep Event #35 NL Holdem event. Down to 57 players in the PL event #37.

Scotty Nguyen vs. Daniel Negreanu at the WPT Tunica in an entertaining hand

Best of the World Series of Poker Bluffs: Featuring Scotty Nguyen

Scotty Nguyen with K-8 of Clubs 3 hands in a row

Men the Master vs. Tony G

An Asian gets back though in getting lucky on the river (in French)

Great call by an Asian gets beat by a REALLY BAD BEAT

Update #10: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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Event 23 - Pot-Limit Omaha, $1500 buy-in had 576 entries. Dau Ly took 3rd and $78,624 for his efforts. [COMPLETE]

Event 24 - World Championship Seven Card Stud High-Low 8/OB, $3000 buy-in had a small field of 236 players. Scotty Nguyen almost took another bracelet home to build his total to 4, but could only take 2nd and $110,731 home instead. He was beaten by fellow pro Eli Elezra. Micheal Kim took 11th. [COMPLETE]

Event 25 - No-Limit Hold'em, $2000 buy-in, had one short of 1620 entrants. Unfortunately, we couldn't get a single Asian in the top 10, but Kazuki Ikeuchi took close to $21k and 16th place. [COMPLETE]

Event 26 - H.O.R.S.E, $5000 buy-in totaled only 192 entrants, but 3rd place was worth $99,264 for Yuebin Gou playing the likes of Phil Ivey who finished right behind him, Robert Mizrachi and Bill Gazes. Alex Jung took 6th taking home $37,901. The final two are battling it out for the bracelet. [IN PROGRESS]

Event 27 - No-Limit Hold'em, $1500 buy-in had 2315 players at the start and four Asians made the final table battling it out for the bracelet and a $600k+ first place prize. David Woo is 2nd in chips, Young Cho is 4th, Micheal Ium in 6th and Thai Ton in 8th. Can we say "2, 4, 6, 8, who do we appreciate?!" OK, that was stupid. [IN PROGRESS]

Since Event took up most of the players, event 28 - No-Limit Hold'em, $3000 buy-in only had 827 entrants...which isn't bad compared to past numbers in past years, but the over 1 thousand or over 2 thousand numbers limited first place to only be a little over $525k. The final table is set though and Phil Hellmuth is trying to set himself up for a 12th WSOP bracelet and the 2nd one this year. Against him are Feng Chen (1st in chips!) and Tsai Chen who's tied in 5th for chips right behind Hellmuth. Young Phan busted out 11th right before the final 10 were set. [IN PROGRESS]

Update #9: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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John Phan shows us Asians we can almost win another bracelet, but falls just a tad short finishing runner up to the BIGGEST SUCK OUT with pocket 4's against Phan's Pocket Aces on the river of the last hand. GOOD WORK John despite the bad luck. Event 19 - the No-Limit Hold'em, $2500 buy-in had 1013 players and John finished 2nd with a prize of $330k. [COMPLETE]

In Event 20 - Seven Card Stud High-Low 8/OB, $2000 buy-in, a 340 player field, Min Lee gets us back to back 2nd place finishings. He started off a huge underdog, but clawed his way into the final two and settled for a couple thousand under 100 gran. [COMPLETE]

In Event 21 - the No-Limit Hold'em Shootout, $1500 buy-in had 900 players enter. Brandon Lee walked away with a 6th place finish and $22k in his pocket playing the likes of Erick Lindgren, Daniel Negreanu and Thomas Fuller at the final table. [COMPLTE]

Event 22 - No-Limit Hold'em, $5000 buy-in had 640 players enter, but no Asians make the final table. Oh well... [IN PROGRESS]

Event 23 - Pot-Limit Omaha, $1500 buy-in had 576 entries. Still [IN PROGRESS]

Event 24 - World Championship Seven Card Stud High-Low 8/OB, $3000 buy-in had a small field of 236 players and 120 are still left. [IN PROGRESS]

My little experience with online poker free rolls

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So, I'm a little low on funds these days. I literally love to gamble. I've been gambling over the past few years and my losses are in the hundreds of thousands. However, let me tell you firsthand that life is not over. Basically, there are free rolls all over the place & I've played in a bunch of them. I'd argue the best are on Full Tilt Poker, Poker Stars and Ultimatebet.com. Full Tilt has constant free rolls, but you have to be paying attention because they fill up so fast due to the frequent nature of them. They occur as little as a minute from the previous one to 5 to 10 mins after the one before. Anyway, they're mostly "all in" crapshoots for a bit, but they have relatively decent players once you get beyond that. I would say it does tests the skills getting to the end. I've made a few dollars with patience and solid play. Pokerstars is a bit too infrequent and very specialized for the international crowd. If you're in Europe, it's pretty decent since that's what they're targeting to improve their business, I'm thinking. And Ultimatebet isn't too bad, but I haven't experienced as much with them since I've had difficulty entering some of them occasionally.


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Player of the Year Standings: Summer Update

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RANK PLAYER LOCATION POINTS FINAL TABLES WINNINGS

1 J.C. Tran Sacramento, CA 4,368 4 $2,282,613

4 David Pham Cerritos, CA 3,030 7 $606,439

11 Paul Lee Los Angeles, CA 2,578 6 $1,324,802

21 Raj Patel San Jose, CA 1,920 1 $1,298,405

25 Joanne "J.J." Liu Palo Alto, CA 1,752 2 $617,798

30 Tuan "Tommy" Vu Las Vegas, NV 1,600 2 $397,447

33 Gioi Luong Westminster, CA 1,593 3 $339,369

44 Kevin Song Hacienda Heights, CA 1,448 3 $209,482

Update #8: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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Lots and lots of action since the last update for the World Series of Poker!!! Many great Asians have placed in many of the events while also making several of the recent final tables!!!

Event 13 - World Championship Pot-Limit Hold'em, $5000 buy-in - Allen Cunningham won his 5th bracelet beating out Jeffrey Lisanro and Humberto Brenes in 2nd and 3rd respectively in the 398 player event. His share of the $1,870,600 prize pool was a bit over $485k. No Asians in the top 35. [COMPLETE]

Event 14 - Seven Card Stud, $1500 buy-in - as identified earlier, Steve Sung took a bit over $51k & 3rd place in this 385 player event. [COMPLETE]

Event 15, the No-Limit Hold'em, $1500 buy-in event had a prize pool of over $3.5 million due to the 2628 entries. Phil Hellmuth Jr. took his record breaking 11th World Series bracelet in the event, but Ut Nguyen and Kiet Tran also beat out over 2500 competitors to take 8th and 10th respectively earning them $48k+ and $31k+ each. [COMPLETE]

Only 382 people entered Event 16 - the H.O.R.S.E, $2500 buy-in event. However, Alexandra "Alex" Vuong took 9th and a little over $12k home, while Tim Fu took 11th and John Hoang took 14th. [COMLETE]

Julie Dang showed the ladies in Event 17 - the Ladies World Championship No-Limit Hold'em, $1000 buy-in event that she was a serious player taking home 9th and a bit over $14.5k. There were 1286 entries in this ladies only event. [COMPLETE]

A measly 257 (these days this is a low number due to the HUGE numbers for all the other events) people entered Event 18 - the World Championship Limit Hold'em, $5000 buy-in event. It shows a slight lack of interest in the limit version of the game or maybe just some exhaustion in all the events that are being played in this year's World Series of Poker. David Gee though took 5th place and a little short of $69k. Brandon Wong finished in the money again taking 16th and Liz Lieu finished 19th. [COMPLETE]

However, Event 19 - the No-Limit Hold'em, $2500 buy-in had a resurgence in the number of players showing up at 1013. John Pham made the final table, 5th in chips. [IN PROGRESS]

Event 20 - Seven Card Stud High-Low 8/OB, $2000 buy-in, 340 player field, down to 19 players. Notable pros still in: Greg Raymer [IN PROGRESS]

In Event 21 - the No-Limit Hold'em Shootout, $1500 buy-in had 900 players enter. The final table is now set with Brendon Lee respresenting the Asian diaspora. Erick Lindgren and Daniel Negreanu and Thomas Fuller join him at this table. [IN PROGRESS]

Update #7: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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Event 10 - No-Limit Hold'em, $2000 buy-in, 1531 entries, $566,916 1st place prize had no Asians in the top 10 - best Asian to finish was Hiroshi Shimamura in 22nd place taking home $16.5k [COMPLETE]

Event 11 - World Championship Seven Card Stud, $5000 buy-in, Johnny Chan was our best Asian finisher at 18th taking home $8460 [COMPLETE]

Event 12 - No-Limit Hold'em 6-Handed, $1500 buy-in, 1427 players entered and J.C. Tran was our best placement at 15th and taking home slightly less than $15k. [COMPLETE]

Event 13 - World Championship Pot-Limit Hold'em, $5000 buy-in - final table set, but No Asians on it. [IN PROGRESS]

Event 14 - Seven Card Stud, $1500 buy-in had 385 players enter it including names like Greg Raymer and Barry Greenstein who placed 6th and 4th respectively, but in one place better, Steve Sung took home over $51 gran in 3rd place. Way to go Steve!

Event 15 - No-Limit Hold'em, $1500 buy-in, had a 2628 player field. 161 players remain and are in the money. Moving onto day 2. [IN PROGRESS]

Event 16 - H.O.R.S.E, $2500 buy-in [IN PROGRESS]

Event 17 - Ladies World Championship No-Limit Hold'em, $1000 buy-in just started. [IN PROGRESS]

Update #6: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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Event 8 - OUR FIRST ASIAN BRACELET OF 2007 IS CLAIMED BY Micheal Chu in the No-Limit Hold'em, $1000 buy-in, Multiple rebuys with 814 Players Entered earning him $585,774 for First Place. Tommy Vu also got our first 2nd placing challenging Micheal Chu heads up. Congrats Micheal! Job well done!!! [COMPLETE]

Event 9 - Omaha High-Low 8/OB, $1500 buy-in (690 entrants) with a first place prize of $228,446. Yueqi "Rich" Zhu takes 6th place and $33,907 for his efforts. [COMPLETE]

Event 10 - No-Limit Hold'em, $2000 buy-in (1531 players entered) has $566,916 up for grabs for first place, but unfortunately, all the Asians who were "in the hunt" for the bracelet failed to make it to the final table. [IN PROGRESS]

Event 11 - World Championship Seven Card Stud, $5000 buy-in (180 players) failed to produce an Asian in the final table. Johnny Chan took home $8460 for his 18th place finish, but the 2nd event without an Asian. [IN PROGRESS]

Event 12 - No-Limit Hold'em 6-Handed, $1500 buy-in is underway. 1427 players entered this event for a first place prize $481,698.

Update #5: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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Event #6, the $1500 Limit Hold-em was graced with 910 players & the sole Asian who was 3rd in chips whent the final table started finished in 3rd Place: Hansu Chu, 3rd place winning him $114,278 and showing us Asians can compete in Limit as well! [COMPLETE]


Event 8 - No-Limit Hold'em, $1000 buy-in, Multiple rebuys, 814 Players Entered, $585,774 First Place up for grabs. The final table is set with two Asians in 4th & 6th positions: Micheal Chu & Tommy Vu respectively. [IN PROGRESS]


Event 9 - Omaha High-Low 8/OB, $1500 buy-in (690 entrants) with a first place prize of $228,446. The final table is also set with 8 players. Yueqi "Rich" Zhu is in the middle of the pack, in terms of chips in 4th place & 248,000 chips with the first place John Varner with 589,000 chips. [IN PROGRESS]


Event 10 - No-Limit Hold'em, $2000 buy-in (1531 players entered) ended day 1 with 125 players. In 22nd place, John holds firm with David Chiu behind him in 31st place and a handful of other Asians behind by a little less: Jason Su, Charlie Ng, David Dong, Can Kim Hu, Ken Hua, Mike Wong, Steve Sung, Mimi Tran, and Tracey Nguyen. [IN PROGRESS]


Event 11 - World Championship Seven Card Stud, $5000 buy-in (180 players) [IN PROGRESS]

Most popular Asian Poker Players on the web - criteria: number of webpages with references to them

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Good looks and history are probably the biggest reasons why the top Asian players on this list of top Professional Asian Poker Players appear on the Internet so much. For example, professional Evelyn Ng has only made $222k on the Poker Tournament circuit along with a very new face in Maria Ho who's barely made a dent earning $26k have tens of thousands of mentions on the Internet. At the same time poker professional Can Kim Hua has made over $2.5 million in only 6 years cashing 106 times and winning over 15 events while fellow poker pro Kevin Song has made over $2.75 million so far on the professional poker tournament circuit and even has a World Series of Poker bracelet in the 1997 Limit Hold'em event. While Kevin has history, perhaps if he looked good in a one piece bathing suit, he would have a few more pages on the Internet dedicated to him. Maybe at the same time, he may like the "under the radar" situation he has going on for him now.

Most popular on the Internet - Study #2
1. Johnny Chan 220,000 results
2. John Juanda 124,000 results
3. Scotty Nguyen 108,000 results
4. J.C. Tran 52,300 results
5. Evelyn Ng 53,600 results
6. David Pham 41,200 results
7. Liz Lieu 36,000 results
8. J.J. Liu ("JJ Liu" + "Joanne Liu") 31,050 results
9. Chau Giang 30,800 results
10. David Chiu 25,900 results

Honorable mention: Men Nguyen 27,400 results, Nam Le 23,500 results , "Mimi" Tran 18,400 results, Maria Ho 17,600 results, William Chen 16,100 results, Tuan Le 15,700 results, Hieu Ngoc "Tony" Ma 14,890 results ("Tony Ma" + "Hieu Ngoc"), Minh Nguyen 11,000 results, Minh Ly 10,800 results, Bernard Lee (poker) 10,600 results, Paul Lee 10,500 results

Other notables: Tim Phan 9210 results, Connie Kim 8760 results, Gioi Luong 5770 results, Hung La 3260 results, Yoshio Nakano 2580 results, Theo Tran 2560 results, Thang "Kido" Pham 1719 results ("Thang Pham" + "Kido Pham" + "Thang 'Kido' Pham"), Kenny Tran 1260 results, Anh Van Nguyen 940 results, Can Kim Hua 866 results, Sang Pham 831 results, Steve Sung 609 results, Kevin Song 606 results, John Hoang 578 results, Danny Wong (poker) 543 results

*Results based on the most used search engine on the Internet as of 6.5.07 through 6.6.07. Searches were conducted in a relatively unscientific manner, but were the number of results returned when conducting each search based on the names the players most commonly use in public.

Update #4: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

Event #6, the $1500 Limit Hold-em was graced with 910 players & only one appears to be
Asian decent: Hansu Chu, 3rd in chips. [IN PROGRESS]


The final table is set in Event #7, the $5000 buy-in with multiple rebuys buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha which had 145 people enter. Minh Ly took the highest placing for an Asian taking down 5th place and $183,579 while John Juanda cashed $112,749 in 7th place. [COMPLETED]

In the 814 player deep Event #8 - No-Limit Hold'em, $1000 buy-in, Multiple rebuys, we couldn't get one Asian into the final 10 in standings in the early stages, but when the final table was finally set, we have 2 Asians Micheal Chu and Tommy Vu with 4th and 6th in chips going up against the likes of Amir Vahedi and "Micheal" Gracz. [IN PROGRESS]


For Event 9 - Omaha High-Low 8/OB, $1500 buy-in Event, we have temporarily an Asian at the top of the chip standings with Yueqi "Rich" Zu and a stack of 205,000 chips in front of him. Thirty-six players are remaining at this point. [IN PROGRESS]



The No-Limit Hold'em, $2000 buy-in, Event #10 is under way with 250 players remaining out of the original 1531 players who entered. [IN PROGRESS]

Event 11 - World Championship Seven Card Stud, with a $5000 buy-in had only 180 players entered in it, but famous players like Cyndy Violette, Sam Grizzle, Jen Harman, Barry Greenstein, Josh Arieh, and Darrell Dicken entered and are still hanging in there. [IN PROGRESS]

Update #3: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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In the 327 player $2500 buy-in Omaha/Seven Card Stud/Low 8/OB event (Event #5), John Phan placed 8th earning him $14,422 more than his $2500 buy-in. It was an incredibly tough field to beat out...so making the final table was an accomplishment in itself. He competed on the final table with the infamous Annie Duke, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Chris Bell and David Benyamine. Scotty Nguyen finished in 10th place. [COMPLETE]

In a huge turn of events, Brandon Wong was eliminated before the final table of 9. Brandon was the chip leader with 16 players to go in Event #6, the $1500 Limit Hold-em event. In the initial stages, Wong was in 2nd place, then ended the 2nd day in 7th with 90 players. Hansu Chu though is keeping our hopes alive for the first Asian WSOP bracelet being in 3rd place in chips. Dariush Imani is also on the final table, 8th in chips. Tommy Hang failed to keep his 1st place in chips moving into the final day and placed 42nd (not bad) earning him $5714. In the same position, Nhu Muynh earned the same amount. Micheal Sun (#14 in chips after day #2) and David Chiu (#17 in chips after day #2) unfortunately didn't cash despite their great efforts. [IN PROGRESS]

The above event was updated, but the following will be updated in #4 later today.
In Event #7, $5000 with multiple rebuys buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha, John Juanda (900,000 chips) was overtaken by David "Devil Fish" Ulliot barely (only 47,000 chips) to hold onto a 2nd place standing with 11 people to go. Minh Ly is also on the final table in 9th with 235,000 chips. Chau Giang finished 18th earning him $31,801. Johnny Chan placed 36th failing to cash. Joining these Poker Pros are David "Chip" Reese (7th) and Andrew Black (10th). [IN PROGRESS]

Update #2: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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In the 327 player $2500 buy-in Omaha/Seven Card Stud/Low 8/OB event (Event #5), John Phan has made the final table. He's #7 out of 8 players. Again, it was an incredibly tough field to beat out...so making the final table was an accomplishment in itself and sharing the table with John are the infamous Annie Duke, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Chris Bell and David Benyamine. Scotty Nguyen finished in 10th place. [COMPLETE] Click here for details.

After a fast start, Brandon Wong is in 7th place currently in the 910 person deep Event #6 $1500 Limit Hold-em event. Just a few hours ago, he was in 2nd place, but taking his place, one position higher, Tommy Hang is in 1st place after the bubble burst and 90 players remained. Micheal Sun (#14 in chips) and David Chiu (#17 in chips) remain in the in the top players who survived. [IN PROGRESS]

In Event #7, $5000 with multiple rebuys buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha, John Juanda has taken a commanding lead with 310,000 chips with Johnny Chan moving down slightly down to #18 in chips. Rafi Amit is in 19th position. [IN PROGRESS]

Update #1: Asian Winners & Leaders in the 2007 38th Annual World Series of Poker

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Event 1 - World Championship $5000 buy-in Mixed Hold'em (Limit/No-Limit) 06/03/2007
10th place - Phuong Tran OF SAN GABRIEL, CA - out of 451 players raking in $22,257 [COMPLETE]

Event #2 was a $500 buy-in Casino Employees only tourney, but the limitation didn't limit Asians from shining. Eugene Lang took the highest placing for an Asian @ 3rd taking home $42k, Chris Chau immediately after in 4th earning him $28k and the next highest Asian Loc Hoang in 11th raking him $43-hundred bucks. [COMPLETE]

Edward Lee placed 19th in the 2998 player deep $1500 buy-in Event #3 No-Limit Holdem earning him $23,735 & the highest Asian to place. David Pham was in 6th place yesterday, but couldn't hold on and placed 64th only taking home $9412. Other notables: Sanjeer "Bobby" Bais in (33rd), Scott Ya (42nd), Long Nguyen (45th), Gevin Diep (57th), David Pham (64th), Benny Cho (67th), Nan Wang (68th), Richie Wong (77th), and Maria Ho (97th). [COMPLETE] Click here for more.

Event #4 was a 780 player $1500 Pot Limit Hold-em event where Asians could only reach the 22nd placing with Tommy Le busting out before the final table. Good work Tommy! [COMPLETE] Click here for more.

In the 327 player $2500 buy-in Omaha/Seven Card Stud/Low 8/OB event (Event #5), John Phan has a chance to take the title having 120,000 chips to his name with only 13 players left. Scotty Nguyen is also in the mix with a smaller stack of 35k chips. Tianxiong Fu also has a chance at 55k chips. John, Scotty, and Tianxiong will be going against very popular and well known players Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Chris Bell, Josh Arieh, David Benyamine and Annie Duke. Gary Do placed #14, a $9401 cash, Lua Tran #19 for a $7145 cash and Yueqi "Rich" Zu placed 27th. Tough, rough, tough field...included famous pros & veterans: Mickey Seagle, Cyndy Violette, Shahram "Shawn" Sheikhan, Robert Mizrachi, Greg Raymer, Andrew Black, Chau Giang, Hasan Habib, Jennifer Harman, Mike Matusow, "Miami" John Cernuto, Jason Strasser, Jeffrey Lisandro, Jeffrey Lisandro, Paul Darden Jr., Amir Vahedi, Can Kim Hua, Sam Grizzle, Alfredo "Toto" Leonidas, Brett Jungblut, ,Kathy Liebert,,Erick Lindgren, Barry Greenstein, Kristy Gazes, David Levi,John Juanda,,Andy Bloch, ,Men Nguyen,Daniel Negreanu,,Max Pescatori, Blair Rodman,Ted Forrest,,Layne Flack, Todd Brunson,Steve Zolotow, Doyle Brunson, Ted Lawson, David Chiu, Johnny Chan, David Sklansky, Phil Ivey, Perry Friedman, Alexandra "Alex" Vuong, James Van Alstyne, Dutch Boyd, and Joanne "J.J." Liu among many other great players. [COMPLETE] CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS.

In a fast start, Brandon Wong is in 2nd place currently in the 910 person deep Event #6 $1500 Limit Hold-em event. Tam "Tommy" Hang represents in a tie for 8th place. John Phan may be potentially playing two tournaments at the same time being in 25th place here as well. [IN PROGRESS]

Johnny Chan is the highest ranking Asian in Event #7, $5000 with multiple rebuys buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha, currently in 17th place in chips. [IN PROGRESS]

The series will be running until mid July (17th) climaxing to the Internationally reknown final $10,000 buy-in World Championship No-Limit Hold-em event televised on ESPN.

"Dumpy Asians" in Poker

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Asian Poker Players

(AAJA President, Esther Wu and Media Watch Co-Chair, Abe Kwok sent the following letter to Jacob Weisberg Editor of Slate Magazine, in response to the use of the phrase "dumpy Asians" in Seth Stevenson's piece on the ESPN series, Tilt.)

Mr. Jacob Weisberg
Editor
Slate
1 Microsoft Way
Redmond, WA 98052

Dear Mr. Weisberg:

As representatives of the Asian American Journalists Association, we write to complain about the phrase "dumpy Asians" in Seth Stevenson's piece on the ESPN series, Tilt.

While the writer's intended criticism of the ESPN show may be that the characters don't reflect the quirkiness of real gamblers or their ethnic diversity, we object to an image that serves only to mock or ridicule -- an image that Slate chose to repeat, both in the kicker of the article and the headline.

We'd love to hear an explanation, or to have a dialogue.

Sincerely,

Esther Wu National President

Abe Kwok
Media Watch Co-Chair

A response by Slate

January 28, 2005

The following column originally appeared Feb. 25 on Richard Prince's Journal-isms.

Slate Says No Offense Intended by "Dumpy Asians"


Slate magazine says "there was no offense intended toward the Asian community" when a writer used the phrase "dumpy Asians" in a review of "Tilt," a series about poker on ESPN. "Granted, I've only seen the first episode-perhaps in time these boring central-casting toughs will show some hidden depth," Seth Stevenson wrote in his Jan. 12 piece.

"But they still won't look the part. Poker players come in every age, shape, and nationality. That's part of why I love televised poker: It's the one place on the dial to see dumpy Asians. Yet Tilt centers on a trio of stylish, slim, attractive young Americans. Haven't these writers watched World Poker Tour? Don't they know that real poker players have awkward facial hair? That they wear satin jackets with casino logos and chew on unlit cigarettes for hours at a time? That they are frequently Vietnamese?"

In a letter posted on the Asian American Journalists Association web site, Esther Wu, association president, and Abe Kwok, its media watch co-chair, wrote that, "While the writer's intended criticism of the ESPN show may be that the characters don't reflect the quirkiness of real gamblers or their ethnic diversity, we object to an image that serves only to mock or ridicule -- an image that Slate chose to repeat, both in the kicker of the article and the headline."

Asked by Journal-isms to reply, Eric Easter, senior manager, communication for Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive, the new publisher of Slate, said: "The writer was making the general point that dramatic television tends to traffic in an inflexible and predictable standard of beauty for all ethnicities, and that if the show in question ('Tilt') were more authentic to the poker world in particular (and to the real world in general) it would veer from that 'Hollywood' standard.

"Clearly the story must be read in context.

"It was a metaphor for any image of real people with real bodies as opposed to Hollywood images. You could have replaced it with any ethnic group or frankly, any person in general not slender or 'beautiful' in the popular cultural thinking. The writer used Asians simply because they make up a large component of the real poker world, as he referenced in the story. There was no offense intended toward the Asian community."

The original article (http://www.slate.com/id/2112210/):

FoldESPN's new poker series: Too much shouting, not enough dumpy Asians.By Seth StevensonPosted Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2005, at 12:59 PM ET
Tilting toward unwatchable When Rounders came out in 1998, professional poker players loved it. For one thing, it stirred up new interest in the game … which meant a fresh batch of suckers. But even more gratifying for the pros was this: Hollywood had finally done its research.
The poker hands in Rounders are supremely realistic. We never see four aces losing out to a straight flush (I'm looking at you, every other poker movie). And it isn't just the cards that the film gets right—the betting amounts and the table talk are also dead-on. When I covered the World Series of Poker in 1999 (yes, before it was cool, waaaaaay before; James McManus didn't go until 2000!) all the pro players there agreed that Rounders was the first time a movie got poker right.
Tilt—a new dramatic series on ESPN (debuting Thursday, 9 p.m. ET)—gets poker right, too. Tilt was created by the guys who wrote Rounders, and just like Rounders it features lots of realistic poker play. Sadly, it does not feature Matt Damon, Edward Norton, sharp dialogue, or compelling plots.

The poker hands in Tilt are like the songs in a Broadway musical: All else comes to a screeching halt so we can focus on what we've really come here to see. The problem is, these days we're not all that starved for realistic poker action on television. There's World Poker Tour on the Travel Channel; ESPN's own nonstop coverage of the World Series of Poker; and, to a lesser extent, Bravo's Celebrity Poker Showdown (which attracts much better actors than the ones in Tilt). It's not enough anymore to nail the basic details of poker. By now, anyone who cares is already schooled in the strategy and lingo. Do we congratulate baseball movies for getting the dugout chatter right and showing guys running around the bases counterclockwise?
When the action doesn't pause for a poker hand, Tilt is just an episode of Las Vegas (or maybe Dr. Vegas, rest its soul). It's all cheesy dialogue and lame scenarios. My favorite moment: In a back-room game, one guy says (with a carefully scripted blend of anger and accurate poker terminology), "No string bets here, bitch." When his opponent pulls out a small pistol, the guy draws a much bigger gun and shouts, "This time I raise!" (If only the second guy had then rolled in a massive cannon. "Reraise, bitch!")
But the big disappointment here is the characters. Anyone who's watched professional poker knows it's filled with nothing but fascinating, superintelligent weirdos. These folks are blessed with the sort of mind that could calculate Wall Street futures, but are cursed with the sort of soul that longs for late-night Las Vegas card rooms. None of this contradiction is captured in Tilt.
Granted, I've only seen the first episode—perhaps in time these boring central-casting toughs will show some hidden depth. But they still won't look the part. Poker players come in every age, shape, and nationality. That's part of why I love televised poker: It's the one place on the dial to see dumpy Asians. Yet Tilt centers on a trio of stylish, slim, attractive young Americans. Haven't these writers watched World Poker Tour? Don't they know that real poker players have awkward facial hair? That they wear satin jackets with casino logos and chew on unlit cigarettes for hours at a time? That they are frequently Vietnamese?
The truth is, most poker players are nerds—now more than ever, at a time when many winners build their skills in Internet card rooms. Tilt seems stuck in the past—its heroes are freewheeling cowboys who rely on their instincts and hunches. The new generation of pros tends to bank a bit more on math and game theory. And while cheating (the focus of Tilt's central plot) is certainly still an issue, it feels so divorced from the aura of modern poker. After all, it's tough to cheat in a televised event. And why bother when it might sully your new book deal?
I asked Paul Phillips, a top pro player (and a former computer programmer), what sort of real-life drama goes on in poker now and what might make for a great, true-to-life poker series. He mentioned all the money and drugs that flow around and the sudden influx of fame, but to me the most fascinating notion he raised was this: "In what other line of work do people spend every day trying to take their friends' money? Except for the real lowlifes who have no friends, it's inevitable that you make friends with people you play with a lot. There are so many ways it can impact a relationship."
I'd love to see a subtle, gripping portrayal of the dysfunctional relationships that form within a crew of pro poker players. I bet HBO could have pulled this off (the constant distrust that haunts the crew of The Sopranos might serve as an excellent model). But this is ESPN—the network that brought you Playmakers. Just as it did with that series about a fictionalized NFL, ESPN takes the easy route here by ramping up the external conflicts: arguments, shouting, fistfights. Don't get me started—it's the same subtlety-stomping path ESPN's been on with all its recent programming (PTI, Around the Horn, etc.). What once was the thinking man's outlet for sports is now just the network of screaming matches.
By the way, Michael Madsen—as always—is excellent in Tilt. As poker legend Don "The Matador" Everest, Madsen hauls out his usual shtick: shiny eyes, gravelly voice, sudden and violent eruptions. He points at someone every time he speaks a line, just to kick up the intimidation factor. If only he were pointing at dumpy Asians in satin jackets, we might have a show here.

Asian Poker Tour to Start in November in Singapore

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http://www.newswiretoday.com/news/10617/

NewswireToday - /newswire/ - Arvika, Sweden, 11/13/2006 - Games climates in North America becomes all harder. But now opens Asia the market in the place. Under Sunday begins Asian Poker Tour - with an price pool on over one million dollars..


Asian Poker Tour starts in the middle of November - in Singapore. With international pro as Gus Hansen, Bengt Sonnert and Mr Grundy among the participants. To arrange a big poker tournament in Singapore have under long time been illegally. That there now becomes possible are according to the arranger "the result of an unique legal ability that Betfair in collaboration with a very respectfully locally company Capital Events got by the Singapores government".

Here in order to stay:

- This project opens for new capabilities, says Betfairs market manager Patrik Landgren.
The Danish poker star Gus Hansen says in a press release that he think that the "poker boom" in Asia now come in order to stay.

- This tournament is a evidence on that the poker indeed have beaten through international. I looking
forward to meet some of the Asians greatest player. I knows that they are very hard to play against since they plays so aggressive, says Gus Hansen

Online Casino Hub to be found in Singapore

During the Asian Casinos Executive Summit, which to place this week, the Singapore News Today remarked that Singapore will optimistically turn into a casino online hub for the region, with two major land-based casinos in the works, and the option of the country issuing online casino gaming licenses as well. At the moment, Philippines is the only Asian country to present legalized online gambling licenses for online casino venues supplying a hub complete with all of the essential equipment to offer great services for online gaming companies.

The publication quotes Tom Hall, president of online casino software supplier Play Tech Asia, as saying: Singapore has fantastic technical support and infrastructure. Given a choice between the Philippines and Singapore, many will probably prefer Singapore.’ But this could only be true if the government will make legal online casino operators and online gaming sites. Extra support for Singapore to create a push to authorize online casinos has to do with the gaming experts’ opinions that online gaming is poised to grow, especially in Asia.

There are many profits, as well as disadvantages, to legalizing online casino spots in Singapore and in other Asian countries. Every government will have to choose if the positive aspects of online casino gambling outweigh the negative ones. Much more research will perhaps be conducted by the government in Singapore regarding this matter; the fact remains, though, that it could one day be a key hub for online gaming if it decides to make this business part of its culture.


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ASIAN POP All In

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by Jeff Yang, special to SF Gate

Thursday, October 27, 2005

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2005/10/27/apop.DTL

If you're a poker buff, you know that some of the biggest names on the money tour are Asians -- like legendary two-time World Series of Poker champ Johnny Chan and refugee-turned-rounder Scotty "The Prince" Nguyen. Meanwhile, a new generation of Asian American card sharks are beginning to deal themselves into the game. Jeff Yang checks in with some of the reigning Asian kings and queens of the pro poker circuit.
Las Vegas

Visit Vegas and the first thing you'll notice is that the city's strange interlude as a wholesome vacation destination is done, over and out. Forget the slightly creepy era of "Bring the Family to Vegas!" (As what -- marker security?) The Gray '90s are over, kids! This is Sin City -- Now With 30 Percent More Sin!

Which isn't to say that the theme-park atmosphere isn't still there: Vegas wouldn't be Vegas without garish lights, flashy simulacra (if you're looking for a 30-foot-tall model of just about anything, it's here) and milling, disoriented crowds gawking at the aforementioned lights and simulacra.

It's just that these days, the themes are a lot more ... mature. The buccaneer-themed resort Treasure Island is now calling itself "TI." As part of its overhaul, its free outdoor come-on show has been renamed "The Sirens of TI" and now features a crew of buxom, underdressed "pirettes" lip-synching to dialogue studded with dopey puns on "chest" and "booty." (As one wag was heard to joke, TI apparently now stands for "Tits Included.")

But of course, T&A are just two of the subsidiary vices available in America's adult wonderland. The big draw here is, and always will be, gambling in all of its many forms. It's a city of gilded mousetraps, designed to funnel you into any of a thousand venues where you can be surgically parted from your cash.

Once you're actually in a casino -- and you will be -- you'll immediately notice a second thing about Vegas: It's neatly divided into two separate and decidedly unequal worlds. One is for everyday tourists, video poker addicts and slots monkeys -- joes who lose a week's paycheck and chalk it up to a learning experience.

The other is for people who are here to play for real. This includes "whales" -- the high rollers who sustain casinos the way buffalo once provided for Native Americans (before casinos did, that is) -- and grinders, cash-game players who methodically crank out a living at the tables while staying carefully anonymous. Finally, there are the gamers. The big names. The rock stars of the gambling world. And the game they play, of course, is the king of games: poker.

This week, the gamers were here in force because the casino with the biggest game in town, the Bellagio, was hosting the Festa al Lago, an 11-day orgy of competitive poker culminating in the main event, the million-dollar World Poker Tour Doyle Brunson North American Championship.

The big news buzzing around the Bellagio was that a tour rookie, a sleepy-eyed Taiwanese American kid from Texas named Weber Kang, had just won the Festa's Event 4, beating out giants like Michael Mizrachi and Cowboy Kenna James to take home $173,085 in winnings and a complimentary invitation to the April 2006 World Poker Tour Finals. Joining him at the final table: fellow circuit newcomers Bryan Kim -- who would later himself win Event 8, pocketing $257,585 -- and Liz Lieu, the only female finalist in any of the tournament's 10 events.

A few days before, another Asian player, Nam Le, had won over $140,000 by taking Event 2. And a week later, the grand shebang at the $1,060,050 Main Event itself eventually went to Minh Ly, a longtime king of the cash-game scene who's recently made big moves on the tournament circuit.

The Festa was hardly an exception. If, as actor/card buff Ben Affleck was famously quoted as saying, "poker is the new golf," Asians are dominating the new golf even more than we dominate the old golf. According to Card Player magazine, 22 of the world's top 100 tournament players are Asian, including the current favorite for 2005 Player of the Year, John Phan. Last year, half of the top 20 PotY finishers were Asian, prompting eventual winner Daniel Negreanu to pen an editorial asking why the staggering ascendancy of Asians on the pro poker scene has been so generally ignored.

"I could provide you a list of Vietnamese players whom you rarely hear much about who play much better than many of the players that ESPN spends a lot of time covering," wrote Negreanu. "Nam Le, Hung La, David Pham, John Phan, J.C. Tran, Can Kim Hua, Minh Nguyen, Vinnie Vinh, Tuan Le, and so many more that I could fill the rest of a page. ... So, why is it that we hear more about Dutch Boyd on ESPN than we do Minh Nguyen?"

He goes on to point to a number of possible reasons, including language barriers, a tendency toward soft-spoken, stoic or other demeanors that play better at the table than on TV and, of course, good old-fashioned racism: "Overall, the Asian man isn't as respected in our society as he should be. ... He is often ridiculed, but rarely taken seriously."

While all of these factors have clearly contributed to the under-the-radar nature of Asian players, the most fundamental may simply be that Asian pros have generally been focused more on raking than repping. Winning tournaments and being profiled on ESPN may be glamorous and fun, but historically, it's what's on the table that has paid the rent.

"I had dinner a while ago with one Asian player who in a one-month period at the Bellagio big-money game won $6.5 million," says Gary Thompson, World Series of Poker director of operations. "This same guy, he was playing in a tournament where the first prize was $350,000, and he busted out after playing for 12 or 14 hours. He told me, laughing, 'I work so hard for a first prize of $350,000, and in the side games, I can win $300,000 in an hour."

Poker Celebrities and Celebrity Poker

So why waste time playing grueling marathons against fields of up to 3,000 players when the real cash is sitting on the sidelines?


One motivation, of course, is ego -- proving you're the best -- the best in the room, maybe the best in the world. Ego is a competitive force that drives some of pro poker's most colorful and beloved characters -- like Johnny "Orient Express" Chan, two-time winner of the World Series of Poker, and Scotty Nguyen, the cheerful assassin whom some have dubbed "The Prince."

"When I first started playing back in 1978, they laughed at me and said, 'Who's this Asian kid? Asians can't play poker,'" says Chan. "Three years later, I was beating 'em all. And I mean all of them. I won two World Series in a row, in 1987 and 1988. Nearly won three, and no one else has even come close to that. That's why I'm the best. That's why everybody wants to be Johnny Chan."

Nguyen, winner of the 1998 World Series of Poker, gently corrects him. "You tell Johnny, 'There's one guy bigger than you, and that's Scotty Nguyen.' Ask him, tell him to walk all around the world, England, Australia, and see who's recognized more, Scotty or you, and see what he says. Nobody's bigger than Scotty Nguyen, baby."

For veterans like Chan, Scotty Nguyen and Men "The Master" Nguyen, the tournaments traditionally weren't about winning money -- they were about keeping track of who's on top. The theory was, you play side games to pay bills. You play tournaments for bragging rights.

But a funny thing has happened in the past five years. Poker, once a blue-collar, backroom pursuit, suddenly rocketed into the stratosphere of the popular imagination -- going from fad, to phenomenon, to obsession in record time.

"Everyone's playing it," says Eric Morris, publisher of the poker lifestyle magazine Bluff. "Doctors. Lawyers. Grandmas are playing poker. Old men who used to play chess. Guys who used to play Dungeons and Dragons."

Not to mention, of course, celebrities -- from Brad Pitt to Matt Damon, Shannon Elizabeth to Tobey Maguire, Mimi Rogers to David Schwimmer. Some of them are even good: Jennifer Tilly, she of the helium voice and voluptuous figure, is actually the current reigning Ladies World Series of Poker Champion. (It bears mentioning that Tilly is half Chinese. Rack up one more for the Asians.)

The latter-day hipness of poker has turned its top pros into celebrities themselves -- pursued by fans and groupies, barraged with requests for interviews and autographs ... not to mention extremely lucrative sponsorships and endorsement and merchandise deals.

"A properly marketed World Series champion can make as much money through endorsements and appearances as he or she can from winning the event itself," says WSoP's Gary Thompson.

With poker riding such an incredible high, media-genic characters -- like Doyle Brunson, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Phil "The Brat" Hellmuth and Dave "Devilfish" Ulliott -- have been able to take their TV-friendly personas straight to the bank. Their popularity has, in turn, inspired a new generation of young players -- many of them introduced to the game via Internet poker sites -- to jump into the pool.

"You see kids in their 20s and 30s winning a few online games and then saying, 'Okay, I'm going to become a professional,'" says Joe "Joe Poker" Sebok, poker blogger/writer, and a rising star himself at just 26 years of age. "When people ask me how you decide to become a pro, I say, 'You don't.' You play, you move up the levels, play more, and suddenly you realize you're doing it for a living."

Sebok has been on the circuit for less than a year and a half but has already turned in two final-table performances, including a fifth-place finish at 2005's World Series of Poker. He does have a few advantages: His stepdad is Barry Greenstein, the Silicon Valley engineer who left the tech world for pro poker in 1991 and is now considered by many as one of the five best all-around players in the world.

Raised Betting

Although Sebok isn't Asian himself, having been raised in San Francisco and then going to UC Berkeley meant growing up around a lot of Asian Americans. His take on the rising tide of young Asians in the poker world reflects what he saw many of his friends go through in childhood.

"This is all conjecture, but Asian American kids, they get so used to high expectations -- you have to get As, you have to go to a good school, you have to be a doctor or a lawyer -- that you almost get used to disappointment. You do amazing things, and it's still never good enough. Maybe that's what hones that competitive edge, because in poker, you have to keep getting better or the game will pass you by."

For immigrants, childhood is even more of a proving ground for the round table. "I had a very tough time growing up, baby, I went through so much you got no idea," says Scotty Nguyen, who came to the United States as a young refugee.

"I came from scratch. A lot of Americans start out with millions from their parents. We Asians, we gotta learn from scratch. When I was young, I sat around on the street playing poker, and my dad would drag me home and beat me. But it doesn't matter, I just keep coming back, playing the same game, because my dad stopped buying me things at nine years old.

"Everything I had, I won on my own -- I won my clothes, my shoes, my books for school, everything, playing poker. Before I left Vietnam, I brought home to my family 100,000 dong, which is like $100,000 here. And how many people are going to make $100,000 over there?"

Or as Sebok puts it: "You go through horrible stuff, you have to be really scrappy to make it through and come out the other side. I hear things from my Asian friends on the circuit, about being tortured, thrown in jail, going hungry. And you know what? It makes losing a few hands of poker not seem so bad. It makes you a lot tougher mentally -- and that's the difference between winning and losing at this game."

Many other reasons for Asian poker preeminence are floated by interviewees I spoke with for this story -- such as the fact that most Asian cultures don't subscribe to the Western/Christian idea that gambling is a sin, or the statistical/mathematical aspect of poker (and we all know that Asians are great at math!), or as Johnny Chan jokingly suggests, the inherent intellectual superiority of Asians ("Man, it's because we're the smartest people in the world!").

But the one that convinces me most is the one that the players themselves uniformly profess: Asian players are hungrier. In some cases, they have something to prove. In others, they have someone to provide for.

Sweetening the Family Pot

Most of the flashier stars on the circuit are blunt about why they got into the life. Big-money poker is the only game there is in which skill, smarts and a little bit of luck can literally make you a millionaire overnight. But while they're not ashamed of owning mansions and Maseratis or going on the occasional $20,000 afternoon shopping spree, the Asian players I spoke to consistently cited family as the main reason they decided to go pro.

"I support 40 people, baby," says Scotty Nguyen. "I built the most beautiful house in Nha Trang, six stories, 14 bathrooms, 10 bedrooms, for my mom, my sister and her family. First thing I did when I won the World Series in 1998 was build that house for my mom. Then I built houses for my brothers and my sister. You know, baby, I give to my family, nothing less than three mil. All my winnings, baby."

Even though most have become who they are against the wishes of their families, the instinct of putting family first is still strong. Not to mention the thrill of, well, proving mom and dad wrong for a change.

Says Johnny Chan: "I started gambling as a pro at 16, when it was actually illegal, but the casinos didn't care back then so long as I had money. And my parents hated it. But you know what? I'm the most recognized poker player in the world. Be a doctor, a lawyer, you may have a good living, but you're never gonna be recognized around the world."

The New Girl

It's not just the old-school guys who feel the burden of family responsibility.

"It's my only talent, I feel like I have a duty to use it," laughs Liz Lieu, who in less than a year of play has gone from total anonymity to widespread recognition as one of poker's rising stars.

"I have to help my parents out. My mom and dad, they did everything for us, and now it's only right that I do the same thing for them, so I pay for all their expenses. When I'm at a table, playing a tournament, I try that much harder. I can't fail, because if I do, I'm bringing others down with me."

The motivation seems to be working. Lieu finished fifth in the first public event of 2005's World Series of Poker and money-placed in three of the five events she entered at the Festa, including her final-table finish in Event 4. She's also attracted her share of smitten fans: "It's flattering ... I got a lot of that at the Bellagio, guys coming up to me asking me to sign 8x10 photos" -- not to mention bloggers and message board mavens following every move of "Lovely Liz."

Lieu -- who, like the vast majority of Asian poker pros is Vietnamese American -- first got into the game right after high school, when a now ex-boyfriend started a home game for his circle of friends. "I was immediately hooked," she says. "Poker was the only thing I've ever really been into learning. I ran my own game, I dealt cards, I did anything I could to learn."

She remembers that when she first started out, she'd refuse to leave the table until she made money, often sitting and playing for 24 hours straight ("I can't do that anymore ... you get older, you're not as strong"). After eight years of honing her skills, she went pro four years ago at the age of 26 and now makes a living playing 4-8 games (minimum bet $400, maximum $800) at card clubs like L.A.'s Commerce.

"At some point, someone says, let's play the game up, let's go to 6-12, 8-16, whatever, and then the game starts getting really big. Usually it's me," she laughs. "I've lost $70,000, $80,000 a night before, and won over $150,000."

This past April, Lieu played her first big event, at the World Series, and made final table. "Now I'm hooked," she says. "I'm on the circuit -- there's always a tournament somewhere. I just got back from the Bellagio, next week is Indiana and then in two or three weeks there's one at Foxwoods."

In between, there are 10-hour sessions at the Commerce, three to five nights a week. When Lieu gets home, she's often too wound up to slumber. Her self-prescribed remedy: a few hours playing Internet poker. "I go online and play until I fall asleep," she says. "Half the time, when I fall asleep, the computer's still on."

Unfortunately, her newfound fame has made playing the sites more difficult. "My handle's 'Twinkie,' and when nobody knew me, that was kind of an advantage -- I was an Asian woman named Twinkie, and there was always someone who'd want to play me, thinking, 'Hey, she's probably not much of a challenge.' Now, every time I try to start a heads-up game, it's 'No, Liz,' 'No, Liz,' 'No, Liz.' I can wait four hours and no one will want to play."

Fifty-hour work weeks. Sleepless nights. At the end of the day, once the facade of glamour has been stripped away, the poker life seems a lot less appealing. There are bad runs, too.

"A few years ago, I was going through some hard times with relationships, and that really messed up my mind when it came to poker. I went for months where I just couldn't win -- I'd get pocket aces and still get cracked; anything I played, I'd lose. I lost a lot of money."

Blowing hundreds of thousands gambling isn't something you can go to your parents for commiseration about. And neither the grueling schedule of the life nor the politics of the game lends itself to making a lot friends.

"I try to keep a distance," she says. "I'm not social. I take my work seriously, and the less friends you have, the easier it is to play your game. You start getting close to people, it gets harder to play against them."

One person she is close to is Poker Player of the Year favorite John Phan, another young Vietnamese American.

"We're the same age," she says. "We met each other playing, and when I first met him, we got along really well -- not in a boyfriend-girlfriend way, more like brother-sister. But he's always been there for me. When I went through that bad time a few years ago, he was there for me. He's my best friend. One of my few good friends I have that I trust and hang out with."

Poker is a lonely game. At its core, it's about deceit, distrust and suspicion. As Lieu puts it, "It's not a nice scene -- there are a lot of bad people out there."

Which is why, despite their own passion for the game, players hesitate when asked if they'd let their own kids get into the life. "Baby, poker is the hardest game," says Scotty Nguyen. "Very, very stressful. It can change you into a nasty person, and I don't want my kids to go through that."

Johnny Chan agrees. "I have six kids. Some of them want to follow in my footsteps, and I won't let 'em. Let 'em stay in school first. Although my 13-year-old, Joy, she has the killer instinct. If I did let her play, I think she could get good. She could be pretty close to me."

And for Lieu, there's no question about it -- it's not a career that she'd choose for any of her kids. In fact, it's one that she doesn't see doing herself for the rest of her life. "I stay up so many nights, I don't eat right, I'm always traveling. I've seen myself age a lot," she says. "I haven't even gotten my health back since the World Series of Poker. If you want to do this, your whole life is based around it. I'll probably die at age 40 if I keep up the way I'm going right now.

"I just want to take care of my family, my parents, and see them have a good life. Eventually, I want to find something else to do. Maybe get married. I don't know."

But then she laughs. "But even if I'm no longer doing this as a living, I know I won't be able to stop playing poker for good. I'll always be playing poker."


***

PopMail A couple of quick things before I get to something important. Johnny Chan asked me to mention his book, "Play Poker Like Johnny Chan" -- and you know what? When Johnny talks, people listen. In addition to offering some sage advice if you ever intend to sit at the felt and play, it also provides choice anecdotes from his life and career -- and those of some of his fellow greats, like Doyle Brunson and Chip Reese.

Second, I got a lot of mail, most of it (thankfully) fairly positive about the last column, which, if you remember, explored, among other things, the eating of dogs.

I do want to note two messages in particular -- one from Marjorie Jorgensen, a member of the Jindo Project, asking for permission to post my piece. That reminded me to suggest you visit the Jindo Project if you want to find out more about the amazing Jindo breed, and even better, if you're a caring and patient person interested in adopting one ... because they're not an easy breed to keep, and far too many show up in shelters, abandoned by their original owners.

The second message comes from Eleanor M., a Filipino American woman from the Bay Area who now lives in St. Gallen, one of two Swiss cantons where dog eating continues to this day.

"My husband is from the Canton of Appenzell," she says. "Although he's never eaten dog, or at least believes he hasn't, it certainly is a fact that dog meat is eaten in our region. ... On another note, I'd rather be the butt of a dog-eating joke than an Asian woman in Switzerland. It seems to be the belief of many Swiss men and quite a few Swiss woman that almost all Asian women either work in bordellos or were bought from some agency in Asia that specializes in 'mail order brides.' It was hard trying to acquire a thick skin against all the prejudicial thinking the people have over here."

Which only goes to show that dog eating isn't the only stereotype that Asians face out there.

And now, on to something very important.

A good friend of mine, a talented writer and a leader in the Asian American community, experienced a personal tragedy last week. The parents of Curtis Chin, founder of the Asian American Writers Workshop, were in a car accident that seriously injured his mother Shui Kuen and killed his father Allen.

Curtis' family, who were among the first Asians in Michigan, opened Chung's Restaurant in 1940, and their family business served as the center of the Chinese American community for many years -- even being included in a small part of the documentary "Who Killed Vincent Chin?." Curtis' father was picking up supplies with his wife to start a typical day at the restaurant when the accident occurred.

The family, working with Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy, a national nonprofit based in San Francisco, has established the Shui Kuen and Allen Chin Foundation to offer a $1,000 scholarship each year to an Asian American college freshman whose family comes from the food service industry.

"We felt this was not only part of our own identity, but also a statement about the Asian American community," says Curtis. "My father always stressed three things: education, hard work and good food."

I urge you to make a tax-deductible donation to the fund or suggest other ways that you might help. Donations, which should be made out to AAPIP/The Shui Kuen and Allen Chin Foundation, can be sent c/o Curtis Chin at 215 S. Santa Fe Ave., #3, Los Angeles, CA 90012. You can also e-mail Curtis at SKAFoundation@aol.com.

Thanks, and see you in two weeks.

An article by Daniel Negreanu: Asian Poker Players

from: http://www.modelminority.com/article1072.html

By Daniel Negreanu
Card Player Magazine
January 14, 2005
I grew up in Toronto, which is one of the most multicultural cities in the world. It was common in a classroom of 30 kids to see 20 countries represented. While growing up, I saw that racism was virtually a non-issue. If you watched the news, you’d see a Jamaican woman doing the weather, an Indian woman covering entertainment, a Chinese man covering business, a black man doing sports, and the anchors were from Greece, Italy, Russia, or Israel. Talk about a melting pot, Toronto was like a utopia of peace and harmony among cultures. I’m so proud of my hometown, and I know for a fact that it’s had a very positive effect on my view of the world.

Having said that, in the poker world today, I’m not so sure that I see the same respect for other cultures that I did back in Toronto.

I think the most neglected group of poker players are the Vietnamese. When I say neglected, I’m referring to the amount of media attention they get for their accomplishments. There are two exceptions, of course, Scotty Nguyen and Men “The Master” Nguyen. They garner their fair share of attention because both are very colorful characters. I could provide you a list of Vietnamese players whom you rarely hear much about who play much better than many of the players that ESPN spends a lot of time covering. Nam Le, Hung La, David Pham, John Phan, J.C. Tran, Can Kim Hua, Minh Nguyen, Vinnie Vinh, Tuan Le, and so many more that I could fill the rest of a page. And I didn’t even touch upon the great side-action players, such as Ming Lau, Chau Giang, Danny Dang, and others.

So, why is it that we hear more about Dutch Boyd on ESPN than we do Minh Nguyen? Well, the answer should be obvious to most: It’s all about marketing. American culture doesn’t embrace Asian heroes very readily. You can look at Hollywood as a perfect example of that; you don’t see many Asian actors headlining blockbuster films (outside of Jackie Chan, of course).

Overall, the Asian man isn’t as respected in our society as he should be, in my opinion. He is often ridiculed, but rarely taken seriously.

Oftentimes, the language barrier is a big reason why it’s hard for us to relate to the Asian poker player. Many of the successful Asian players on the tournament circuit speak broken English, and that doesn’t necessarily make for “good TV,” which is what it’s all about these days.

Perhaps the most underrated and neglected superstar in our game today is John Juanda. Without question, John has been the most successful tournament player in the world over the last five years. His consistency is unrivaled. If you had to pick one guy to make a final table, your best bet would be John Juanda, hands down. Yet, I’ll often read the message boards on the Internet and notice that John’s name is rarely mentioned among the lists of greats. Those lists are often laughable, obviously, but John’s name should be a mainstay on any list of “superstar” players. His results speak for themselves.

Does all of this matter in the bigger scheme of things? No, I guess not. But it has always bothered me when soft-spoken, well-mannered poker players aren’t recognized for their ability and are pushed to the back, while the loud and boorish take center stage. Now, John Juanda is hardly soft-spoken! If you know John as well as I do, you know that he is a master in the art of the needle. He is an absolute joker at the poker table, needling anybody and everybody. His humor is always good-natured, of course, but I personally don’t think John’s personality has really shone through on television the way it should. That’s too bad, too, because John has really come up with some zingers!

On another note, it’s very hard to ignore how successful the Asian players are in tournament poker. Of the top 20 in Card Player’s Player of the Year Standings, nine are Asian (eight are Vietnamese and one is from Indonesia). So, what is it about the Vietnamese that makes them so good? Is it in their blood? Are they naturally smarter than people in most other cultures?

John Juanda came up with a theory that I thought was very profound. He explained to me that when he first came to this country, he spoke little if any English. So, when he played poker, all he did was watch the action and study people’s body language. If someone was talking to him, he couldn’t understand what the person was saying, but based on body language and facial expressions, he would make educated guesses as to what the person was saying. John went on to say, “You learn a lot more by listening than you do by talking.” Think about that for a moment, as I think it’s a great life lesson.

I have asked others for their opinions as to why Asians seem to do so well as a whole in poker, and have heard a wide variety of answers: “They are hungry. They work hard because they know they have to.” “They don’t take things for granted.” “They have a lot of heart.” All of those responses seem to be reasonable explanations, as far as I’m concerned.

More specifically, there is yet another group of totally neglected poker players in our society — Asian women. If you look around the high-limit sections in either L.A. or Vegas, you’ll see that the limit hold’em games are chock-full of strong, aggressive Asian females. In the ladies event this year at the World Series of Poker, there were four Asian women at the final table: Huong Doan, Millie Shiu, Tracy Phan, and Karina Jett. Where did they finish at that final table? First, second, third, and fourth, respectively.

For Ladies Night II on the World Poker Tour, a tournament was held with more than 300 players for the last seat in the televised event. Who won it? Lavinna Zhang, who’d been playing for just six months. Then, at that WPT final table, she played brilliantly and easily could have hit the parlay, coming in second to Isabel Mercier.

I’m not really sure the rest of the world is noticing how strong the Asians are in the poker world, but I’m writing this column to let everyone know that I’ve sure noticed!

Top Asians in the Poker Industry

By Lifetime Winnings:
1. Men Nguyen - over $7.5 million
2. Scotty Nguyen - over $7 million
3. John Juanda - just shy of $6 million
4. Johnny Chan - just shy of $5.5 million
5. David Pham - just a tad behind Johnny Chan
6. J.C. Tran - over $5 million
7. Tuan Le - over $4.5 million
8. Hieu Ngoc "Tony" Ma - over $4 million
9. Nam Le - just short of $3.5 million
10. John Phan - just short of $3 million

**note: these are only tournament earnings identified by Cardplayer.com -- private play could drastically increase or decrease these amounts

Most Viewed on Cardplayer.com
1. J.C. Tran
2. Danny Wong
3. Liz Lieu
4. David Pham
5. John Juanda
6. Chau Giang
7. Nam Le
8. Johnny Chan
9. Gioi Luong
10. Steve Sung

**note: these statistics were all from Cardplayer.com and were taken as of 6-4-07