pro-am poker equalizer

Player Profile

Johnny Chan - The Orient Express

While some people use products made out of orange oil to clean their houses, Johnny Chan uses oranges to clean up at poker tables.

Johnny was born in Canton, China and his family moved to the U.S. when he was six. His remarkable career started humbly enough. As a teen, he played nickel and dime games at a Houston-area bowling alley. Despite the low stakes, his pals didn’t appreciate Johnny taking all their money. Not wanting to hurt his friendships, Johnny went looking for a new game. He found one a lot closer to home, in the basement of his father’s restaurant. His dad ran a regular game and Johnny convinced him to let him join. Just like with his peers, the adults got tired of Johnny walking away with their money week after week. Eventually, he was told by the regular players that the game was cancelled, despite the fact the restaurant’s parking lot was filled with their cars after hours.

Johnny went searching for bigger waters and bigger fish, and found them both in Las Vegas. Right off the bat he would win big, turning $500 into $20,000 overnight. But since he was still young and undisciplined, he would lose his cool and his bankroll as quickly as he won it.

Eventually, he got his act together, stopped being a hot-head, and picked up an orange. In the days when players could smoke in casinos, Johnny brought an orange to every game. Its sweet, ripe smell would mask the smoky casino air. The more Johnny would win, the more the orange became his trademark.

As far as his nickname goes, "The Orient Express," was earned when he knocked out 13 players from Bob Stupak’s America’s Cup Tournament in less than 40 minutes. Johnny's steamroller style serves him well, especially in the World Series of Poker, where he’s collected 10 gold bracelets and won back-to-back Main Events in 1987 and 1988.

Johnny's success at the tables has launched other ventures. He was featured in the 1998 film Rounders, and he has mentored many other poker players, including the 2006 Main Event winner, Jamie Gold. Johnny was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2002. He’ll play in Poker Equalizer’s first round against Gus Hansen, the player who derailed the "The Orient Express" at the final table of the first Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament.