Back-to-Back: Johnny Chan, 1987

Back-to-Back: Johnny Chan, 1987

I recently heard a radio show that bemoaned an overload of stories about players achieving the American dream through poker. But the criticism was off base.

The idea was that so many players have come from those meager surroundings, and their stories always follow such a similar trajectory, that these narratives have become old hat. Thing is, the reason this story keeps getting told is because it is so appealing – and so powerful.

One of the first players to be the protagonist in this oft-told tale was Johnny Chan. Chan was born in China, and his family emigrated to Houston when he was still young, going into the restaurant business. At 17, Johnny made his first trip to Vegas, where he promptly discovered poker, thriving in the ring games until he got cleaned out by a veteran in heads-up play. The young Chan was hooked.

The result was one of the greatest of poker careers. The ten bracelets were punctuated by perhaps the most stellar run in poker history. Starting in 1987, Chan won two consecutive World Series of Poker Main Events before finishing second in 1989. He was the last player to repeat as champion.

In 1987, with three players left, Johnny got into the first million-dollar pot in World Series history, beating poker author Bob Ciaffone when Ac on the river gave Chan a second pair. It left him with a massive chip lead against Frank Henderson, a man thirty years Chan’s senior.

Chan and Henderson knew each other well. They played in the same circles in Houston and knew each other’s games. Henderson was the more aggressive of the two; Chan, despite entering final-table play with the biggest stack, had played a patient game rather than throw his weight around.

In the final hand, Chan started the action with a raise to T60,000. Henderson, holding pocket fours, chose to move all-in for another T240,000; Chan made the call with As-9c. The flop was Kd-8h-5c. When the turn came Tc, Henderson seemed on the verge of getting back into the match, but Chan’s magical 9h fell on the river, giving him the hand and the Championship. It was an exceptional performance, but it would be the next year’s events that would make Chan the stuff of legend.

Gary Wise

gary@wisehandpoker.com

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