Background
Gowen was born in Florida, and grew up in Kiowa, Oklahoma. Her first name was inspired by the fact that she was born while a tornado (cyclone) moved through the region.
Gowen was born in Florida, and grew up in Kiowa, Oklahoma. Her first name was inspired by the fact that she was born while a tornado (cyclone) moved through the region.
She finished tenth in a World Tour (WPT) event in late 2002, before gaining national recognition in 2003, winning the televised WPT Ladies" Night event.
Gowen was introduced to poker by her boyfriend"s father, and started playing while living in Dallas, driving to Shreveport, Louisiana, on the weekends. Over the next five years, Gowen added ten more top-40 finishes in WPT and World Series of events. She has not been active in tournament events since a high finish in the 2009 Aussie Millions, in January 2009.
Gowen served as a guest commentator for the Ultimate Challenge, The Gaming Club World Championship and the 888.com Women"s United Kingdom Open.
She was a regular columnist for All In magazine. She frequently hosted tournaments and charity events and was a partner in a poker school.
In early November 2008, a few weeks before season five of After Dark began taping, Gowen was released by Full Tilt, and was not invited to the final three seasons of the After Dark series. In late November 2008, Gowen filed a lawsuit against a company associated with Full Tilt Filed in a Nevada court against software company Tiltware Limited Liability Company, the suit sought damages of $40 million for breach of contract regarding a 1% ownership share, among other things.
The suit was dismissed by a trial court, but later partly reinstated on appeal—though no final outcome has been publicized as of 2014.
As of 2014, having not returned to tournament play since a few weeks after filing her 2008 lawsuit, Gowen"s total live tournament winnings stand at nearly $1,640,000.
She was a member of the varsity basketball team and placed seventh in state high jump. Gowen was an inaugural member of "Team Full Tilt", a group of professional poker players sponsored by, and promoting, the Full Tilt online site.