Phil Gordon
- by Oliver Gaywood
Phil Gordon is a man who towers above the opposition – not only physically (Gordon measure in at 6’9”) but also through worldly experience. Gordon is a man who has done it all. After earning a degree in computer science from the Georgia Institute of Technology, he became a millionaire during the boom of computers and the internet in the 90s. Gordon took the next five years off work to travel the world, taking in over fifty countries, spanning five continents, seeing all the famous sites and ticking off all the things a man should do before his thirtieth birthday.
He returned to America full of accomplishments and with enthusiasm for life. Gordon needed a new direction and he looked to poker for his next challenge. He made his professional tournament debut in 2000, cashing in two events at the World Series of Poker.
The following year he made his first final when he finished fourth in the WSOP No Limit Hold ‘em event, walking away with around $400,000. This led to television appearances in the documentary Inside the World Series of Poker that aired on the Travel Channel. He followed up this achievement with two more WSOP final table appearances in 2002 – in the Limit Omaha Hi/Lo and the Pot Limit Hold ‘em.
Gordon furthered his TV career when he was signed up to do expert commentary for the 2003 WSOP Championships before co-hosting Bravo’s Celebrity Poker Showdown and progressing to lead broadcaster for the 2006 WSOP final table.
During this time he was still playing at the poker table, earning both money and respect. He won his first major tournament in 2004, winning the World Poker Tour No Limit Hold ‘em event and the $360,000 prize money. In the final he knocked out both Chris Moneymaker and Masoud Shojaei as he played his winning hand. By the beginning of 2007, Gordon had won over $1,000,000 from tournament play.
He has topped up his earnings by writing books on poker - his titles include Poker: The Real Deal and the box set of Phil’s Little Black Book, Phil’s Little Blue Book and Phil’s Little Green Book. He also contributed to Tales from the Tiltboys. He also bestows his wisdom upon us in his DVD, Final Table with Phil Gordon.
Outside the game, Gordon has shown a charitable side as a board member and national spokesperson for the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation. In 2002, he lost a great aunt to cancer and he has since raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the cause. The foundations website exclusively offers personal tuition from Gordon ($500) and autographed books ($50) with proceeds helping to fund the research.
Although appearing on the television show Blind Date, Gordon is currently single and lives alone in his Las Vegas home.
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