Champion of Poker

A Buddhist, Men ‘The Master’ Nguyen brings to his poker style the solidity of his philosophical leanings. Nicknamed ‘The Master’ because he is known as the best Poker teacher on the circuit who is extremely strict with his students. Nguyen is also known for emphasizing honesty and integrity as part of his teaching course with all his students.

But Nguyen is also known for his kindness and generosity. He was one of the first celebrities to reach out to victims of the September 11, 2001 attack in New York and is known to contribute to the welfare of native Vietnamese communities. He has helped finance the building of two schools in Vietnam and bought 14,000 kg of rice for poor Vietnamese families in 2006.

‘The Master’ came to America in 1978 as a refugee in a boat. He didn’t speak English and looked for part-time or weekend jobs. He used to make $10 a day and slowly started picking up English. He also started studying the language on weekends. Working at $12 an hour, Nguen saved up money for eight years. That was when he first happened to go to a casino. He had no clue about the Seven-Card Stud that was played with a full deck as he had known only Five-Card Stud played with 28 cards in Vietname. In a few hours he lost $2,100 – his savings of eight years!

He went home but knew that he had to return. He went back to Caesar’s Palace Casino the next weekend and won $3,500! Soon, he started playing in tournaments from 1986 because he was hooked to the excitement. Nguyen’s understanding of the game comes entirely from practical play. Soon he had enough money to buy his own furniture and dry cleaning stores. Eventually, in 1990, Nguyen sold both the business es to become a full-time professional Poker player.

Nguyen insisted that he had no head for business and would rather work hard at Poker. Nguyen has three daughters – all born on the same date but in different years!

Nguyen has won more than 75 tournaments and his World Series of Poker bracelets include $1,500 Seven-card Stud in 1992, $2,500 Seven-card Stud Hi-Lo in 1995, $2,500 Limit Texas Hold Em in 1995, $2,500 Omaha Hi-Lo in 1996, $5,000 Seven-card Stud in 2003, $1,500 Ace to Five Triple Draw Lowball also in 2003.

Men has tutored some of the other top Poker players. Many people consider him to have tutored more tournament winners than any other Poker teacher. Men also receives a percentage of the winnings of the students he teachers but he is known to donate a portion of all his earnings. Nguyen has also faced allegations of teaching but nothing was ever proven against him. Nguyen has always denied the charges. For his stature, it is difficult to say if he would have cheated. Nguyen’s total live tournament winnings are more than $9,100,000 till date. Nguyen continues to play on the professional circuit and is still feared as an opponent.