Phil Gordon is one of few professional poker players who retired before going pro. He graduated with a degree in computer science in 1991 from Georgia Tech. He worked for industry giants Santa Cruz Operation and Lockheed. From a young age, Gordon was a self-started and knew he was going to make it big in business. He joined Netsys Technologies when they were just getting off the ground. Through hard work and determination Netsys developed its presence and was acquired by Cisco Systems in 1996. He retired in 1997 and traveled the world. In 2001, Gordon finished 4th in the world series main event which netted him $400, 000 and a gig on television. Phil Gordon can often been seen hosting celebrity poker as well as other poker related television shows.
Phil Gordon continues to do business by creating how to videos for various subjects including poker. The company is called Expert Insight. He helped in the design of the Full Tilt Poker room. Even if Gordon wasn't such a whiz at the poker table, he would still have enough money to live the life of a rock star. He was also one of the original Tiltboys, a group of northern California poker players. He is author of three poker books called: Poker: The Real Deal, Phil Gordon's Little Green Book: Lessons and Teachings in No Limit Hold'em. Phil Gordon is active in every aspect of poker an still has time to dedicate time to fundraising for cancer research. His aunt died of liver cancer and he has been raising funds for the Cancer Research and Prevention Organization. He has yet to win a WSOP bracelet but he's definitely on track for achieving anything he sets his mind to achieving.