Duy's Palace

Owner: viet

CT user viet rounder unveiled the first mock-ups of his Blue Chip Company custom set in December, 2006, explaining that he wanted to pay tribute to his family and his home, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Inspired by the Caesars Palace, Atlantic City chips (noting that even the featured Ionic columns have a place in Vietnamese history as architectural vestiges of French rule), he selected photographs of his five brothers and their father on which he modeled a unique design for each denomination. He wanted the design to mimic portraits of military leaders and so he hand-drew from photos and digitally revised the drawings to "noblize" and "villainize" each member of his family.

The result was an instant classic that was roundly praised and is still cited by many as the first custom set that made their jaw drop. The non-traditionally colored denominations set it apart even further and the sheer volume - more than 2,500 chips - stood out among custom sets that were then more commonly 400 or 500 chips. The top notch design work resulted in a chip set that would look absolutely at home on the tables of any high class casino in the world.

In his many trip reports of vacations and get-togethers with family and friends - where cooking seemed to play as big a part as poker - Duy's Palace chips can be seen flying in cash games and tournaments, both easily spread with the generous breakdown of the set.

Duy hoped that these would become a family heirloom and if he can pass along his love of poker to the next generation, it surely will be. However, this is certainly the most personalized custom set that has actually increased in value, so if he or his children ever want to pass it along to another in the chipping community, they will certainly set off a bidding war.