Satellite Winner Vicky Nguyen Loving Her first WPT Experience at Gardens Casino

By Sean Chaffin

Vicky Nguyen may be new to poker, but so far things are going well. After winning a $1,100 satellite on Thursday night, she’s making a deep run on Day 1B of the WPT Gardens Poker Championship with literally only a few days of poker experience.

The 49-year-old mother of four from Fountain Valley, California, works in finance during her day job and has done a little poker backing on the side for friends in recent years. After learning a bit from her players, she began watching more televised poker including the WPT. 

“I just came in last year and started putting people in games,” she says. “They discussed with me how to do this and do that, and then I’d learn by watching TV. I lost some money [from some backers] and then decided to play for myself. Last year I didn’t even know how to play. I just wanted to play in a big event.”

After learning the ropes, she’s played a bit at the Gardens. How did it feel being so inexperienced and winning a satellite entry?

“I was so happy,” she says while showing off a photo of herself at the table. “Everyone loved me and was happy for me.”

Just after the final break in the action on Friday, Nguyen had a stack of 53,500 and was all smiles. She hopes the big run continues with bagging some chips for Day 2. 

“I’m still learning,” says Nguyen. “I’m still not even sure how they split the pots sometimes.”

Sean Chaffin is a freelance writer in Crandall, Texas, and his work appears in numerous websites and publications. Follow him on Twitter @PokerTraditions.