Clonie Gowen

A poker biography of Clonie Gowen.

Quick Information

Name - Clonie Gowen

Born - 1971, Oklahoma, United States

Poker Room - Full Tilt Poker

Biography

Clonie Gowen is one poker player who is destined for greatness. For starters, she was named Cycalona on her birth date in 1971 due to the fact that a strong storm was then battering Oklahoma. With her performance and her status as a poker player, it could be said that that particular incident in life was a sign of the many big things that were bound to come her way.

At an early age, Clonie, as she was eventually called, showed potentials of becoming heavily involved in the field of sports. She engaged in several competitive sports events, notably basketball and track and field. In the former, she was part of the state basketball team that competed for the state championship. In the latter, she was able to secure seventh spot in that sport's high jump division.

Clonie was indeed a natural athlete, but unlike others, she also happened to be naturally attractive, and this beauty led her to compete, at the tender age of 15, for the Miss Teen McAlister Oklahoma crown, a title that she eventually took home.

The latter part of her teenage years saw the pretty Clonie moving to Texas where her destiny as a great poker player started to take its initial form. It was here where she met her Texas boyfriend whose father then introduced her to poker. She instantly got hooked on the game, showing a natural talent in playing the cards.

Armed with an inherent drive to succeed, Clonie then decided to take the game of poker more seriously. On weekends, she would make several hundred dollars in a few games, even if it meant making several trips and driving all the way to Shreveport, Louisiana, just to enjoy a few good rounds.

The Louisiana venture proved to be a major point in her poker career since it paved the way for Clonie to participate in her very first big-time poker exposure. This happened in 2002 at the World Poker Tour Costa Rica Classic where she made a relatively good showing with her tenth place finish. Although she did not win the top prize, the exposure led to an invitation to take part in the WPT Ladies' Night Invitational the following year, where Clonie took first place, beating more experienced poker players, including Jennifer Harman and Annie Duke.

Two years later, Clonie again proved her worth as a great poker player by landing third in the 2005 Las Vegas Full Tilt Poker Championship. By December of that year, she was able to bag fourth place at the Fourth Annual Five Diamond World Poker Classic.

When she eventually settled down with her husband whom she bore two children, Clonie put up a travel agency, a business that she later gave up in favor of her love for poker, which she decided to engage in, full time.

Nowadays, Clonie still plays a nasty game of online poker as Team Full Tilt Poker member, alongside several other poker heavyweights like Phil Gordon, Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer, and Phil Ivey, with whom she assists aspiring amateurs in improving their games through online chats and games. Clonie has also decided to further expand her poker horizons by appearing as a special guest commentator in various poker tournaments, notably at the European World Poker Championship and at the Ultimate Poker Challenge. She has also gotten involved in teaching by being a significant partner in one poker school where she teaches people the game basics.

Apart from her poker achievements, Clonie's reputation also soared. Clonie has invaded the entertainment scene, appearing one time in a "Good Morning America" segment and gracing the covers of several prestigious magazines, including Esquire, the Dallas Observer, and the New York Times. With these and more, definitely, this is one poker player whose name has become synonymous with greatness.

Last Updated ( Saturday, 08 December 2007 )

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