Tag: Australian Poker Players

The reason “gambling” gets a bad rep is simply the potential to lose money. Who wants to lose money in the right mind, right? Well, people who actively engage in gambling will disagree. To them, it’s an entertainment expense, just like spending on a vacation.

But not all games in the casino space are based purely on luck. They’re known as games of skill. Poker is undoubtedly the poster boy of the game of skill, having multiple world-class tournaments. Just like the rest of the world, Australia has a vibrant poker culture.

As a matter of fact, Aussie people can play poker online at offshore casinos as well as in poker rooms. All you have to do is find a legal casino and visit the live casino section of the website. You’ll find multiple versions of real money poker including Texas Hold’em, Omaha Hold’em, Pai Gow Poker, and so on.

But we’re not here to discuss the types of poker available in Australia. Rather, we’re here to find out who are the richest Australian poker players. You’d be glad to know that we have identified the 5 richest poker players that you can take inspiration from.

1. Michael Addamo

Poker and Michael Addamo are synonymous in Australia. This 29-year professional poker player has won 4 World Series of Poker tournaments, racking up over $4 million in winnings! He is considered one of the best poker players Australia has ever seen.

Michael was born and raised in Melbourne. From a very early age, he developed a knack for chess, a game that requires intense focus and an analytical brain. He sure had both. According to his bio, Michael started playing poker in 2012 and he won his first tournament only 4 years later!

He started the rampage with Word Series of Poker Europe. As of the time of writing this post, Addamo’s last victory was in the 2021 Poker Masters where he won the last 2 events, securing almost $2 million ($1,958,569) in prize money!

Apart from the major events, Michael Addamo consistently plays local poker tournaments. According to Poker Databases, he has won over $22 million total from poker!

2. Kahle Burns

The name that pops up right after Michael Addamo in terms of the richest Australian poker players is Kahle Burns. In his elaborate career, he has won 11 tournaments and secured over $14 million in prizes.

Some of his latest winnings include the 2022 Mediterranean Poker Party and the 2021 World Series of Poker Online. In fact, he won the career-best $1.7 million at the 2022 Mediterranean Poker Party.

Burns is also active in global tournaments like the World Poker Tour and the European Poker Tour. He has been named Player of the Year multiple times!

Kahle Burns was born in Geelong, the 2nd largest Victorian City in Australia. He developed an interest in poker when he was young. Just like all other players, he started playing local tournaments for pennies. His first major breakthrough came in the 2013 World Series of Poker Asia-Pacific, where he made a whopping $211,392!

His legacy still continues as he’s preparing for the upcoming poker tournaments in 2024, both online and offline.

3. Joe Hachem

The first Australian to win the World Series of Poker main event who is not a 100% Aussie! This Lebanese-Australian poker player is also known for sweeping the largest tournament prize of all time. A whopping $7.2 million!

Joe’s followers have lovingly given him nicknames that encapsulate his prowess very well. He’s known as Diamond Joe, the Australian God, and Ozzie. Throughout his career, this now 57-year-old has won over $12 million, making him the 3rd richest Australian poker player.

What sets him apart from the rest of the players in this post is the fact that he’s one of only 6 players to win both the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour Championship!

Joe Hachem was born in Lebanon. He was only 6 years old when his family decided to make the move to Melbourne, Australia. Before he came to the world of poker, he used to be a chiropractor, a profession he stuck to for 13 years!

4. Jeffery Rossiter

The 4th player on our list of the richest Australian poker players is Jeff Rossiter. His recorded earnings are a little over $6 million, pushing him just past Adrian. Sadly, he’s no longer active in the poker scene. The height of his career was from late 2014 to early 2017. It’s the intensity of his winnings that made him a contender on our list.

Some of Jeffery’s biggest winnings came from the Aussie Millions, EPT Season XI, and EPT Season XII. He has multiple 6-figure winnings throughout his career that helped him rack up the fortune.

Jeff’s name may come as a surprise to many of you as he’s not one of the household names in the poker community. If we have to guess, it’s due to the short span of his career as a professional player. His biggest win was in No Limit Hold’em back in 2017 where he won AUD 440,000 by placing 4th.

5. Adrian Attenborough

The last of the Richest Australian poker players on this list is  Adrian Attenborough. He was introduced to poker by his family when he was only 16. Now, he’s over 28 and he has honed his craft for the past 12 years.

Throughout his career, Adrian has managed to win over $7 million from poker tournaments. He currently lives in Las Vegas and constantly participates in tournaments all over the world. From WSOP International Circuit to Aussie Millions Poker Championship to World Poker Tour, everything is fair game for him.

His last known blow was at the World Series of Poker 2022 where he made the final table with a whopping 50,800,000 chips!

Conclusion

Poker is a game of riches if you know how to play. Millions are not really a big deal when you get the level of the players we’ve listed in this post. And poker is undoubtedly the best casino game to do thanks to the skill component.