T.J. is considered one of the best tournament players of all time. He has won more than fifty major events with buy-ins of $500 or more. For years, he has been the leading or in the top five of money winners at the World Series of Poker.  Speaking of the World Series, T.J. has placed four times in the top five of the $10,000 Main Event including two second place finishes to Chris Ferguson in 2000 and Bill Smith in 1985. He has four bracelets for his wins in Omaha in 1987, Pot Limit Hold'em and Omaha 8 or Better in 1994, and Omaha Pot Limit in 1998. He has also placed on the World Poker Tour, at the Reno Hilton and the Bicycle Casino.

T.J. graduated from Jefferson High School in Daly City, California where he played basketball, football and baseball. He went on to the University of California at Berkeley on a baseball and football athletic scholarship. He dropped out of college to work and help his father with some of his mother's medical bills when she became ill. When he was drafted into the army he started honing his poker skills. When he left the army, he played for the Montreal Allouettes of the Canadian Football League before being traded to the Toronto Argonauts. After a knee injury ended his career, he again played poker until he started Bets Quality Foods with his father and his brother-in-law. After that business went bad and he and his first wife split up, TJ went to Texas. He worked a regular job and was playing poker on his days off. After a while, he was making more money playing poker and decided to play poker full-time. He traveled the road to find the best poker games to play in. He was introduced to his second wife, Joy and they married in 1984.

T.J. has written four poker books with Tom McEvoy: Championship Tournament Practice Hands, Championship Holdem, Championship Omaha, and Championship No-Limit and Pot Limit Hold'em.