JC Tran

No one can say that poker pro JC Tran doesn't work hard for his money. The Vietnam-born American player had a late start on the game. He came to America with his family as a child, but didn't recognize the potential of poker until he was well on his way down another career path. Instead, JC Tran chose a more common route: he went to school, studied hard, and got good grades. He earned a Business degree from California State University.

While attending college in Sacramento, Tran learned how to play poker, and after some significant early success in the poker room at the Capitol Casino, his career plans started to change. Maybe Tran's business skills have given him an edge at the poker table, or maybe he's just a natural.

Either way, Tran competed at his first big poker event in 2000. He took home a modest $1550 prize and bowed out of major tournament play for the next two years.

In 2003, Tran reappeared on the poker scene with a renewed sense of purpose. He posted several small wins at the 2003 WPT World Poker Challenge and then progressively increased both his placings and his winnings. In the fall of 2003, he recorded his first tournament victory at the Heavenly Hold 'em Limit Hold 'em event. The prize was $74,150.

At the time, it was a career-high for Tran and it propelled him onward toward more frequent and significant wins. In 2004, Tran finished in the money at sixteen different tournament events. He competed at his first World Series of Poker and proved himself a force to be reckoned with on the World Poker Tour.

The next year saw Tran taking home a lot of cash, but not a lot of titles. In 2006 he upped his game and finished the year with No Limit Hold 'em wins at two separate WPT tournaments. In 2007, Tran continued to make his presence known. He won his current career-high prize of $1,177,010 when he took him second in the WPT's L.A. Poker Classic No Limit Hold 'em Championship.

Less than a month later he won the same event at the next WPT tournament, and then he finished the year with another decisive No Limit Hold 'em victory at the Bellagio Five Diamond World Poker Classic. By now, poker pros knew that Tran was a force to be reckoned with at the Hold 'em tables, but one important achievement had eluded him.

In 2008, Tran proved his superiority by claiming a much coveted WSOP bracelet in the No Limit Hold 'em event. He took the remainder of the year off, and in 2009 has already posted a big win at the Crown Aussie Millions Championship.