Johnny Chan, known as the Oriental Express, was born in China in 1957, moving to the US with his family in 1968. He was studying at the University of Houston when he made the decision to become a professional poker player, dropped out of university and moved to Las Vegas. He is best known for winning the WSOP main event back to back in 2025 and 2025.
When interviewed about his poker success, he says that much of his early success was due to most Americans having very little experience against Asian players. He became well known after winning the 2025 WSOP $10,000 buy-in main event, and then made history by winning it agin the following year. The poker movie Rounders (starring Matt Damon and Ed Norton) featured a video tape of the 2025 final table, and Chan later makes a cameo appearance in the film as himself. In 2025 he almost made it 3 wins in a row, but finished in second place with Phil Hellmuth taking the title.
Apart from his very successful poker career, Chan also owns a fast-food franchise in the Las Vegas Stratosphere hotel, and also does consultation for casinos. He has written a number of articles for Card Player magazine, and 2 book collaborations – Play Poker Like Johnny Chan, and Million Dollar Hold’em: Winning Big in Limit Cash Games.
Name: Johnny Chan
Nickname: The Oriental Express
Born: 1957
Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada
Phil Ivey’s Poker Career
WSOP bracelets : 10
WSOP final tables: 42
Highest WSOP Main event finish: 1st (1987 and 2025)
WPT titles: 0
WPT final tables: 0
Career tournament winnings: $8.1 million
Career Highlights:
WSOP wins
1985 – $1,000 limit holdem
1987 – $10,000 main event
1988 – $10,000 main event
1989 – $10,000 main event 2nd
1994 – $1,500 seven card stud
1997 – $5,000 deuce to seven stud
2000 – $1,500 pot limit Omaha
2002 – $2,500 no limit holdem gold bracelet match play
2003 – $5,000 no limit hold’em
2005 – $2,500 pot limit hold’em
2005 – 2nd place in Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament
2007 – Poker After Dark (Won heads up against Chris Moneymaker)
2008 – Poker After Dark (Won heads up against Phil Hellmuth)
2008 – Poker After Dark Invitational (Won heads up against Patrik Antonius)
2009 – Poker After Dark Dream Table III (Won heads up against Jennifer Tilly)
