By Brendan Loy

In just three rounds, Tran has gone from 79th to guaranteed champion. That's right, he has already clinched my pool, mathematically eliminating his 217 opponents before the Final Four even tips off. That rarely happens. I've been running my "Living Room Times" pools every year since 1996, when I was a freshman in high school, and this is only the fourth time somebody has clinched during the Elite Eight. What's more, the first three times, the number of contestants in the pool was 17, 24, and 43, respectively. That means less diversity of picks, so it's easier to win and easier to clinch early. But to clinch a 218-person pool on the tournament's second weekend is absurdly impressive.

Tran is modest about his achievement: "It's something to be proud about, I guess. But it's a lot about luck. I mean, c'mon, I got lucky."

Unfortunately for Tran, his luck won't be rewarded with an impending payday. My pools are "moneyless" -- free to enter, no cash prize. They've been that way since high school, when I didn't want to get in trouble with the administration (gambling within the school walls was frowned upon), and they've stayed that way ever since, for tradition's sake. So, Tran gets bragging rights among his peers and publicity on a Web site currently averaging 2,000 hits a day -- and a championship T-shirt, paid for by yours truly -- but no moolah.

So, does he wish he'd entered his freakishly successful bracket in some other, more lucrative pools? Not really. Tran's in it for the love of the game. "Yeah, I mean, the money's one thing, but I'm not doing this as an investment," he says, reflecting on the two money pools he entered, with different brackets that aren't doing as well. "Your pool is a lot more important because it's against you, and you're a USC fan."

Gee, thanks.

Besides, he adds, "I'd gladly pay money to see UCLA win the championship." A UCLA win will give Tran the largest margin of victory in the 10-year history of my pool. He hopes to witness a Bruins championship first-hand in Indianapolis, just 140 miles south of South Bend. "I don't have tickets, but I'm going to go down there and try to buy some," he says.

So, what is Tran's advice for aspiring bracket gods?

"Make sure you look at match-ups when making your picks, and don't pick Cinderellas just for the sake of picking Cinderellas," he says. "But it's all about luck. Don't enjoy the tournament just because of your bracket. Enjoy it because it's exciting to watch."

Yeah, easy for him to say.