Scotty Nguyen: Biography, Career and Poker Results

June 3, 2025
Updated October 15, 2026

Scotty Nguyen is a Vietnamese-American professional poker player, born in 1962, known as “The Prince of Poker”. He won the World Series of Poker Main Event in 1998, added the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship in 2008, and holds five WSOP bracelets and a World Poker Tour title. He was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2013. ^[1][2][13] His line on the final hand of the 1998 Main Event, “You call, it’s gonna be all over baby!”, is still one of the best-known quotes in tournament poker. ^[1]

Scotty Nguyen at a World Poker Tour event — “Scotty Nguyen” by World Poker Tour is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.

Table of Contents

Scotty Nguyen: key facts

Name	Scotty Nguyen
Nickname	“The Prince of Poker”, “The Prince” ^[1][3]
Country	Born in Vietnam; nationality listed as United States ^[1]
Born	1962 ^[13]
Known for	1998 WSOP Main Event title; mixed games and Omaha; table talk
Poker Hall of Fame	Inducted 2013 ^[3]
WSOP bracelets	5 ^[2]
WPT titles	1 (Gold Strike World Poker Open, January 2006) ^[1][2]
Live tournament earnings	$12,765,459 as of October 5, 2026 ^[1]

Early life: from Vietnam to California

Nguyen left Vietnam as a child during the war. According to his PokerNews profile, he spent time in Taiwan before moving to the United States to live with a host family. ^[1] In a 2022 Card Player podcast he described escaping the war and surviving almost a month stranded at sea before he reached the United States as a teenager. ^[4] PokerNews described him in 2013 as having come to the country as a refugee from war-torn Vietnam. ^[3]

He later left school to pursue poker, playing in backrooms and pool halls around California before moving to Las Vegas in his early twenties. ^[1] In a 2017 interview with PokerNews he said: “I came here to Las Vegas with nothing. No dollars, no family, nothing.” ^[5]

Beginning in poker

In Las Vegas his bankroll went up and down, and he took a job dealing at local casinos. After a few years of dealing and playing, he quit to focus on poker. ^[1] Card Player’s summary of his 2022 podcast interview recounts a two-week trip to Lake Tahoe in which his bankroll grew from $200 to nearly half a million, followed by a run in Las Vegas that took him to seven figures, money he did not hold on to at first. ^[4]

His first WSOP bracelet came in 1997, in the $2,000 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo event, which had 215 entries and paid him $156,950. ^[2] A year later, after a last-second satellite win, he entered the 1998 Main Event. ^[4]

Playing style

Four of his five bracelets came in limit and pot-limit games rather than No-Limit Hold’em: two in Omaha Hi-Lo, one in Pot-Limit Omaha and one in H.O.R.S.E., a rotation that includes Razz and Seven Card Stud. ^[2] PokerNews wrote in 2015 that although he is best known for his No-Limit Hold’em successes, many of his recent deep runs had come in limit games. Nguyen explained why: “You know baby, no-limit you can play good all day for two straight days and then take one bad beat and you’re gone.” ^[6]

He is also known for talking and joking at the table. In 2017 he told PokerNews: “When I won the Main Event in 1998, the way I played the game made it fun for everyone. That’s how poker got so big, not because of Moneymaker.” ^[5]

Greatest achievements

WSOP bracelets

Year	Event	Entries	Prize	Source
2008	$50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship	148	$1,989,120	[2]
1998	$10,000 No-Limit Hold’em Main Event	350	$1,000,000	[2]
2001	$5,000 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo	107	$207,580	[2]
2001	$2,500 Pot-Limit Omaha	102	$178,480	[2]
1997	$2,000 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo	215	$156,950	[2]

The 1998 Main Event

The 1998 Main Event drew 350 entries, and Nguyen beat Kevin McBride heads-up for $1,000,000, succeeding 1997 champion Stu Ungar. ^[1][2] On the final hand there was a full house on the board. Nguyen held a bigger full house, put McBride all in, sipped his beer and said: “You call, it’s gonna be all over baby!” McBride answered “I call, I play the board”, and Nguyen turned over the winning hand. ^[1] Nguyen held a nine, and celebrated on the rail with “Party time, baby. We did it, man!” ^[5]

The next day, his brother was killed in a car crash in Vietnam. For this reason, according to PokerNews, Nguyen does not wear his 1998 bracelet. ^[1]

The 2008 $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship

In 2008 Nguyen won the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship, a field of 148 players, for $1,989,120 and his fifth bracelet. ^[2] It was the first year the winner received the Chip Reese Memorial Trophy, named after the event’s first champion, and the final table lasted 314 hands. ^[7] Michael DeMichele finished second. ^[8]

The final table, broadcast on ESPN, also drew heavy criticism. Card Player wrote that Nguyen “directed abusive language at the tournament staff and the other players”, and published his apology. ^[9] Tournament director Matt Savage, in a PokerNews column, called his actions “inexcusable” and wrote that he was shocked Nguyen had not been penalized. ^[10]

When he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2013, PokerNews noted that he was the only player to have won both the Main Event and the $50,000 Poker Players’ Championship. ^[3] That is no longer the case: Michael Mizrachi, a four-time winner of the $50,000 Poker Players Championship (2010, 2012, 2018 and 2025), also won the Main Event in 2025. ^[12]

World Poker Tour title and other results

Year	Event	Result	Prize	Source
2006	WPT Gold Strike World Poker Open (327 entries)	1st	$969,421	[1][2]
2018	WSOP $25,000 Pot-Limit Omaha 8-Handed High Roller	3rd	$592,875	[1][13]
2007	WSOP $10,000 Main Event	11th	$476,926	[1]
2001	WSOP $5,000 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo (107 entries)	1st	$207,580	[2]
2012	WSOP $5,000 Omaha Hi-Lo	2nd	$182,213	[6]
2010	NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship	3rd	$125,000	[1]

Nguyen won his World Poker Tour title in January 2006, beating Michael Mizrachi heads-up at the Gold Strike World Poker Open. ^[1][2] In 2009 he won the inaugural LA Poker Classic $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship. ^[1] At the 2012 WSOP he came close to a sixth bracelet, finishing second to Joe Cassidy in the $5,000 Omaha Hi-Lo event. ^[6] In December 2025, at WSOP Paradise in the Bahamas, he reached heads-up in an invitational for 16 former Main Event champions, finishing second to Greg Raymer. ^[11]

His WSOP.com profile, which also lists WPT and WSOP Circuit results, shows 96 cashes, 36 final tables and $8,680,015 in earnings. ^[2]

Poker Hall of Fame, 2013

Nguyen was elected to the Poker Hall of Fame in 2013, together with 1983 Main Event champion Tom McEvoy. They were chosen from 10 finalists, and the induction ceremony took place on November 3, 2013, at the Rio in Las Vegas, as part of the Main Event final table festivities. At the time PokerNews counted 19 WSOP final tables and eight WPT final tables in his career. ^[3]

In his own words

“You call, it’s gonna be all over baby!” To Kevin McBride on the final hand of the 1998 Main Event. ^[1]
“This is something my grandkids will talk about. It’s awesome, baby, thank you.” On his Hall of Fame selection, 2013. ^[3]
“I know my actions at the table were wrong. For that, I would like to apologize to everyone, especially the fans.” After the 2008 H.O.R.S.E. broadcast. ^[9]
“I never turn down a picture. It’s their moment. Without them, I’d never have made it.” 2017. ^[5]
“If you win the Main Event, you live forever, baby.” 2017. ^[5]

Iconic hands and moments

Greatest Move Scotty Nguyen Ever Made (PokerGO)

His speech before winning the WPT title (World Poker Tour)

FAQ about Scotty Nguyen

What is Scotty Nguyen’s net worth?

There is no reliable public figure for his net worth. What can be verified is his live tournament record: $12,765,459 in earnings as of October 5, 2026, according to PokerNews, which uses Hendon Mob data. Tournament earnings do not account for buy-ins, staking deals or cash game results. ^[1]

How old is Scotty Nguyen?

He was born in 1962, according to his Card Player profile. ^[13]

Why is Scotty Nguyen called “The Prince of Poker”?

“The Prince of Poker” is the nickname listed on his PokerNews profile, and he is often called simply “The Prince”. ^[1][3] No reliable source explains who first gave him the name.

How many WSOP bracelets does Scotty Nguyen have?

Five: the 1997 $2,000 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo, the 1998 Main Event, two in 2001 ($2,500 Pot-Limit Omaha and $5,000 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo) and the 2008 $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship. ^[2]

When did Scotty Nguyen win the WSOP Main Event?

In 1998, beating Kevin McBride heads-up in a field of 350 for $1,000,000. ^[1][2]

Did Scotty Nguyen win a World Poker Tour title?

Yes. He won the Gold Strike World Poker Open in January 2006 for $969,421, beating Michael Mizrachi heads-up. ^[1][2]

Is Scotty Nguyen married?

Yes. In a 2017 interview he said that on breaks from the World Series he calls his wife and his kid. His wife’s name is not given in the sources used for this page. ^[5]

Is Scotty Nguyen in the Poker Hall of Fame?

Yes. He was inducted in 2013, alongside Tom McEvoy. ^[3]

Is Scotty Nguyen still playing poker?

Yes. He has continued to cash at the WSOP, including in the 2025 $1,000 Seniors event, and in December 2025 he finished second to Greg Raymer in the WSOP Paradise invitational for former Main Event champions. ^[1][11]

Related Poker Legends

Read more about Stu Ungar, who won the Main Event the year before Nguyen, Chip Reese, whose name is on the trophy Nguyen won in 2008, and Barry Greenstein, who sat at that 2008 final table.