It’s not so much his accomplishments in the almost 500 tournaments that he played, as it is the legacy he left behind after tutoring his own successors. Starting with his own wife, Van Nguyen, first ever female winner of a mixed event, the 2008 World Poker Tour Celebrity Invitational. David Pham and Minh Nguyen are other prominent members of that list of successors. In fact, it is one of his students that awarded him his nickname «The Master».
Another part of his legacy comes with the 2 schools in Vietnam that he provided the funds for and the 14 tons of rice that he bought and sent to poor families of his home country. Admittedly, these are far more important facts than the 11 million dollars that he has accumulated in prizes during his career as a professional poker player.
Early Life
He was born in the capital of Binh Thuan Province of Vietnam, Phan Thiet in 1954. He had to drop out of school when he was 13 years old, in order to provide for his family. Looking for a better future, he boarded a boat with another 87 of his countrymen and sought (and received) political asylum from the U.S.A. As of 1986 he is formally an American citizen living in Bell Gardens, California.
Officially his poker career begun in 1984 at a junket in Los Angeles. Before becoming a professional, he bought and operated a furniture store and a dry-cleaning business. He achieved his first title in 1987, while his highest achievement is the 4th place in an ITM Main Event in 1996.
Major Wins
Typically, and surprisingly, he hasn’t won any major tournaments on the World Poker Tour. 5 times he has made it to the final table, while he received a reward another 17. The legendary status is a result of the over 475 times that he managed to complete a tournament in a position that earned him money and the total of 95 tournaments that he won.
Bracelets
The Master holds 7 WSOP (World Series of Poker) distinctions:
Evidently, his aggressive style found a better match with the 7-card stud variation of the most popular card game.
Impact
A part of his income comes from collecting a portion of the winnings that his students achieve. While that can be considered as controversial, it’s what he does with that money that is important. In fact, his involvement with charities and other activities that have to do with his native country, have earned Men Nguyen a lot more respect than his life around the poker tables. For those that register to a bookie made for winners, it is certainly a great psychological boost to know that they also support such worthy causes.
