Chau Giang

Chau Giang

  • Name: Chau Giang
  • Current Residence: Las Vegas, Nev.
  • Born: July 7, 1955
  • Birth Place: Vietnam

Despite the fact that Chau Giang is not one of the most recognizable poker pros, he is regarded by many as one of the top high-stakes cash game players in the world.

Giang has spent much of his poker career focusing almost exclusively on cash-game play, with the exception of the World Series of Poker. Recently, though, he has begun playing more major events and has already garnered three WSOP bracelets and numerous other substantial cashes, the biggest of which was his second place finish in the 2005 $10,000 World Poker Open.

Born in Vietnam, Giang made his way to the States in the late 1970s. Arriving in Florida, he struggled with minimum wage jobs before learning to play poker while working as a cook in Colorado. After enjoying moderate success as a card player he decided to move to Las Vegas to pursue his career as a professional.

Giang is an all-around player with well-developed skills in all forms of poker, although many believe him to be most skilled in Omaha Eight-or-Better. Once in Vegas and playing regularly, he quickly fought his way up the food chain and became well-known in the poker community for earning more than $100,000 in his first year.

Now one of the most respected and feared high-stakes cash game players, Giang has enjoyed winning streaks that have bordered on the supernatural. At one time he was winning so consistently, rumors of his use of voodoo magic - gossip Giang himself did nothing to either spread or dispel - began circulating through the card rooms.

Giang was a regular in the Big Game at the Bellagio and it was there that he became involved in the series of outrageously high-limit heads-up battles with Texas billionaire Andy Beal. Giang, along with a group of the world's best poker pros, banded together and pooled their bankrolls to take on Beal at stakes of up to $100,000/$200,000. Although not a complete blow-out, the consortium of pros (who called themselves "The Corporation") is up overall.

According to Barry Greenstein, if Chau were better spoken he would almost certainly be regarded as one of the top five players in the world. Currently focusing heavily on tournament play, we are sure to see Chau at many more final tables in the years to come.

Trivia

  • Has three WSOP bracelets
  • Considered one of the top high-stakes cash game players in the world
  • A regular at the Bellagio’s “Big Game”
  • One of the original members of “The Corporation," a group of pros who took on Texas Billionaire Andy Beal in a series of the highest-stakes cash games in history
  • Married with three kids

Notable Tournament Cashes

Tournament Place Winnings
2009 WSOP, Event 49 - $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship 7th $184,087
2009 WSOP, Event 40 - $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship 11th $61,837
2009 WSOP, Event 32 - $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em 59th $7,119
2009 WSOP, Event 21 - $3,000 H.O.R.S.E. 16th $11,477
2008 WSOP, Event 54, Main Event No-Limit Hold'em 518th $25,090
2008 WSOP, Event 48, No-Limit Hold'em 168th $3,795
2008 WSOP, Event 40, 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball (Limit) 17th $6,842
2008 WSOP, Event 37, World Championship Omaha Hi-Lo Split... 12th $38,658
2008 WSOP, Event 33, World Championship 7-Card Stud Hi-Lo... 11th $24,534
2008 WSOP, Event 19, Pot-Limit Omaha 34th $4,869
2008 WSOP, Event 13, No-Limit Hold'em 43rd $10,925
2008 WSOP, Event 4, Mixed Hold'em 11th $23,406
WPT Season 6, World Poker Challenge 8th $65,565
WPT Season 6, Bellagio Five Diamond World Poker Classic 97th $28,905
2007 WSOP, Event 48, 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball (Limit)... 22nd $5,414
2007 WSOP, Event 42, Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo Split... 47th $3,939
2007 WSOP, Event 33, Pot-Limit Omaha w/re-buys 5th $96,005
2007 WSOP, Event 7, Pot-Limit Omaha w/re-buys 18th $30,235
WPT Season 6, Mandalay Bay Poker Championship 10th $26,235
WPT Season 5, Foxwoods Poker Classic 24th $21,442
2007 Special, Wynn Classic 9th $34,571
WPT Season 5, L.A. Poker Classic 5th $341,710
2006 WSOP, Event 32, Pot-Limit Hold'em 12th $21,319
2006 WSOP, Event 26B, Pot-Limit Omaha w/ Rebuys 3rd $90,810
2006 WSOP, Event 25, No-Limit Hold'em Shootout 81st $4,805
2006 WSOP, Event 9, No-Limit Hold'em 50th $7,309
2006 WSOP, Event 3, Pot-Limit Hold'em 76th $3,008
2005 WSOP, Event 45, $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em 28th $2,440
2005 WSOP, Event 28, $5,000 Limit Hold'em 24th $7,585
2005 WSOP, Event 9, $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em 27th $12,910
WPT Season 3, WPT Invitational 5th $10,000
WPT Season 3, World Poker Open 2nd $773,448
2004 WSOP, Event 29, Limit Hold'em 17th $8,000
2004 WSOP, Event 24, Seven Card Stud World Championship 10th $12,180
2000 WSOP, Event 6, $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha 11th $5,385
1993 WSOP, Event 10, Limit Ace-to-Five Draw 1st $82,800
1998 WSOP, Event 8, Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 1st $150,960
1993 WSOP, Event 19, Pot-Limit Hold'em 2nd $61,200
1997 WSOP, Event 5, Pot-Limit Omaha 3rd $42,300
2001 WSOP, Event 2, Limit Hold'em 3rd $113,345
2002 WSOP, Event 27, Pot-Limit Omaha 4th $30,180
2002 WSOP, Event 15, Pot-Limit Omaha 5th $25,940
1995 WSOP, Event 4, Chinese Poker 7th $3,623
1995 WSOP, Event 18, Pot-Limit Omaha w/ rebuys 8th $8,562
1998 WSOP, Event 15, Pot-Limit Hold'em 8th $10,320
1993 WSOP, Event 16, Pot-Limit Omaha 9th $3,200
1998 WSOP, Event 10, Limit Seven-Card Stud 9th $5,700
2001 WSOP, Event 23, Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 9th $8,305
1995 WSOP, Event 6, Limit Razz 12th $2,588
2000 WSOP, Event 14, $2,500 Pot-Limit Omaha 13th $5,360
1992 WSOP, Event 4, Limit Hold'em 13th $4,200
1993 WSOP, Event 18, Pot-Limit Omaha 13th $2,085
1999 WSOP, Event 2, Limit Razz 14th $2,115
1995 WSOP, Event 21, No-Limit Hold'em 18th $4,980
1995 WSOP, Event 1, Limit Hold'em 25th $4,200

Player Analysis of Chau Giang ?

Description

Chau has been a consistent winner in the biggest games for many years. If he was more articulate, he would be recognized as one of the top five players in the world. He is a great front-runner and even though he is criticized for his lack of control when he is losing, he often gets even because his opponents let him run over the game as they protect their wins. He has won three WSOP bracelets although he has only played in about 50 events.

Best Game

Omaha Eight-or-Better

Weakness

Plays long sessions when losing, although he does it more successfully than most

Chau Giang's Score

7 7/10

  • Aggressiveness 7
  • Looseness 7
  • Limit 8
  • No-Limit 7
  • Side Games 8
  • Steam Control 4
  • Against Strong Players 8
  • Tournaments 7
  • Short-Handed 7
  • Against Weak Players 7

Amusing Anecdote

When I first started playing with Chau, I talked to him about the hands in Vietnamese. I know all of the cards, numbers, and poker terms in Vietnamese but, overall, the number of words in my vocabulary is about the same as a five-year-old’s. Also, I have trouble understanding the language when it is spoken at the pace of a native speaker.

For the next couple of sessions I nodded as Chau talked to me in Vietnamese. He got frustrated one time when he was telling me that in Vegas, the low hand acts first in Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo with no qualifier. They had added the game to the mix of games, and as an out-of-towner, this was the first time I played it with them. Apparently, I had bet out of turn.

My girlfriend walked up and said to Chau, "He doesn’t understand you."
Chau replied, "I’ve been talking to him in Vietnamese for three days."

She said, "He’s a good listener."

Analysis brought to you by Barry Greenstein

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