SCOTTY NGUYEN

"You call this one and it's all over, baby."
Scotty Nguyen to his final remaining opponent at the World Championships in 1998.

His opponent – Kevin McBride – did call. And lost it all to Scotty Nguyen. They both had full house – but Nguyen’s was better.

The quote above is typical Scotty Nguyen. It is confident, it is aggressive, and it contains the word “baby”. This is simply the way Nguyen plays poker – and this is the way he ended up in the money at more than 100 events during 2000-2004. He has won 4 gold bracelets and a total of 30 major tournaments.

Born in Vietnam, Nguyen left his home country and his family at the age 14 to move to USA. He had great difficulties making his way in his new country and often skipped school to play poker instead. Being expelled from school and losing his small bankroll, he started working as a casino dealer. From that position he learned more about how to lose and how to win – and decided he preferred the latter. He now started making a decent living from cash games – and in 1995 made his first appearance on WSOP, becoming World Champion three years later.

Nguyen is not only known for confidence and aggression, but also for his charm, friendliness, and for being one of the top earning tournament players of all time. Not bad for someone who as a kid started completely from scratch, without his family, in a new country.