Since he began playing in live poker tournaments, John Juanda has amassed more than 14 million dollars in prize money and five bracelets from the World Series of Poker.
As a result of his many achievements, Card Player Magazine honored him as their Player of the Year on many occasions.

The unpredictability of Juanda’s movements and his aggressive playing style are two factors that contribute to his success at the poker tables. He is one of the most gifted poker players in the world because he has perfected the ability of reading his opponents and anticipating their future actions. This makes him one of the best in the world.

The Steps That Led to His Victory

The 8th of July, 1971 saw Johns Juanda being born in the city of Medan, Indonesia.
When he was in elementary school, he would compete against his buddies by shooting marbles for money. This is where his fascination in gambling began. Because Juanda’s father was a gambler and suffered from an addiction to the activity, Juanda has always been aware of the potentially detrimental consequences that gambling can have on a person.

During his time at the high school that he attended, he was a very successful track athlete, particularly in the events of the 200-meter sprint and the 5000-meter race.
Juanda was offered financial aid from a wide variety of colleges in the United States, but in the end, he decided to enroll at the University of Oklahoma. A buddy who was sitting beside him on the journey over to the United States of America instructed him in the game of poker, which he would go on to become an expert at by the time he graduated from college.

Juanda continued his education at Seattle University to get his master’s degree in business administration after completing his undergraduate studies with a dual Bachelor of Science degree in Management and Marketing. Up until the year 1996, he supported himself by working as a stock trader and a bible salesman. At that point, he was financially stable enough to begin playing poker full-time.

Achievements in the Game of Poker

It took Juanda about three years to reach a level of readiness where he could play in big competitions. His first appearance at the World Series of Poker was in 1999, when he participated in the $1,500 Limit Hold’em event. He finished in ninth place and won $15,000. A few months later, he won the $300 Limit Hold’em tournament in Los Angeles, which resulted in his receiving $400,000 in prize money, which was more money than Juanda had ever seen up to that moment.

In 2002, Juanda competed in the Triple Drawn Lowball Ace to Five event at the World Series of Poker and took home the bracelet along with $49,620 in prize money. He had such a successful year in terms of finishing in the money that he was awarded the title of WSOP Tournament Champion for that year.

The most significant victory of Juanda’s career came in 2008, when he won the main event at the World Series of Poker Europe. As a result of this victory, Juanda was awarded nearly $1.5 million in prize money as well as his fourth WSOP bracelet.
It is really incredible that he has won five bracelets at the WSOP during the course of his career. If you would want additional information on any of those events, you can find it here:

Life Outside of Work
At the moment, he calls the city of Marina del Rey in California home. He is such a wonderful big brother, as seen by the fact that he foots the bill for his younger sister’s college expenses and allows her to live with him while she is attending school.

When he’s not competing in big poker events, you can find him enjoying the adrenaline rush of playing in a variety of underground games all around the globe. Juanda intends to attend medical school when he calls it quits as a professional poker player so that he may realize his lifelong goal of delivering free healthcare to underprivileged populations in third-world nations.