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Antonio Esfandiari

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Antonio Esfandiari
Antonio Esfandiari in 2008
Nickname(s)The Magician
ResidenceSan Francisco, California
BornAmir Esfandiary
(1978-12-08)December 8, 1978(age 45)
Tehran,Iran
World Series of Poker
Bracelet(s)3
Final table(s)10
Money finish(es)46
HighestITM
Main Event finish		24th,2009
World Poker Tour
Title(s)2
Final table(s)8
Money finish(es)16
European Poker Tour
Title(s)None
Final table(s)1
Money finish(es)1
Information last updated on8 August 2021.

Antonio"The Magician"Esfandiari(Persian:امیر اسفندیاری;born December 8, 1978, asAmir Esfandiary),[1]is a professionalpokerplayer and former professionalmagician,known for his elaborate chip tricks. Esfandiari was the face of the now-defunct poker site,UltimatePoker.[2][3]

In addition to appearing on several poker television shows, he has won twoWorld Poker Tour(WPT) championships and threeWorld Series of Poker(WSOP) bracelets in his career, including the "Big One for One Drop"in2012,a $1,000,000 buy-in tournament benefiting theOne Drop Foundation.By winning the event, Esfandiari won thesecond largest single payoutin tournament poker history at $18,346,673. Esfandiari was ranked number one for all-time tournament poker winnings, untilDaniel Negreanutook this title by finishing 2nd in the "Big One For One Drop 2014".

In 2012, he authoredThe Magician's Secrets for Winning Tournamentson Insta Poker, a poker strategy game available for iOS.[4]

Early life

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Esfandiari was born inTehran,Iran.When he was nine years old, his family moved toSan Jose, California.He graduated fromDel Mar High Schoolin 1997.[5]He then went briefly to jail after he got caught by the police selling marijuana.[6]

At the age of 19, he changed his name to Antonio, which was adopted from a desire to be a magician. Antonio the magician sounded more mystical than Amir the magician. At the same time he also had a nose job done to look less foreign.

He became a professionalmagician.While he was performing magic, he was invited to a game ofTexas Hold 'emand started to play poker. He has a younger brother, Pasha, who also plays poker.[7]

Personal life

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Esfandiari is married to Amal Bounahra, daughter of Lebanese-Belizean poker proBadih "Bob" Bounahra.[8]Esfandiari and his wife had a son on January 7, 2015.[9]

Live poker

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In 2004, Esfandiari won his firstWorld Series of Pokerbracelet in pot-limit Texas Hold 'em.[10]He won close to $1.4 million and his firstWorld Poker Tourtitle at the L.A. Poker Classic.[11]

Esfandiari appeared in the second and third seasons of thePoker Superstars Invitational Tournament.After finishing last the previous year, Antonio was able to redeem himself with a second-place finish the third season.[12]He was also in each season ofGSNseriesHigh Stakes Pokerand each season ofNBC'sPoker After Dark.[13][14]

On April 12, 2008, Esfandiari made the final table at the 2008 PokerStarsEPTGrand Final inMonte Carlofinishing in eighth place, winning €168,000 ($266,004).[15]On July 14, 2009, Esfandiari made his deepest finish to date in the World Series of Poker Main Event, finishing 24th on day 8 of the tournament, earning $352,832.[16]

In 2010, he won his second World Poker Tour title by winning the WPT Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World for over $870,000.[17]On July 3, 2012, he won the largest buy-in tournament in history, the Big One for One Drop, a $1,000,000 buy-in live event.[18]After beating 47 other players, he earned $18,346,673, the biggest cash prize in poker history.[19]The same year at the2012 World Series of Poker Europe,Esfandiari won his third bracelet in the €1,100 No Limit Hold'em event, defeating Remi Bollengier heads-up to earn €126,207.[20]In the 2013 World Series of Poker, he placed fourth in the One Drop High Roller tournament, the successor to the Big One that he had won a year earlier, and earned $1,433,438.[21]

As of 2023, his total live tournament winnings exceed $27,800,000.[22]Esfandiari has been ranked as high as #14 on theGlobal Poker Index.[23]

On January 10, 2016, Esfandiari was disqualified from the 2016 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure $5,300 Main Event after apparently urinating in a bottle as a result of a prop bet withBill Perkins.[24]

World Series of Poker Bracelets

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Year Tournament Prize (US$/EU€)
2004 $2,000 Pot Limit Hold'em $184,860
2012 $1,000,000 Big One for One Drop No Limit Hold'em $18,346,673
2012E €1,100 No Limit Hold'em €126,207

An "E" following a year denotes bracelet(s) won at the World Series of Poker Europe

World Poker Tour Titles
Year Tournament Prize (US$)
2004 $10,000 L.A. Poker Classic $1,399,135
2010 $10,000 Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic $870,124

Other television appearances

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Esfandiari co-starred in the TV showI Bet You,onMOJO HD,withPhil Laak.[25]He is the face of World Poker Tour's Poker-Made Millionaire. He was also seen in the season 7 opener ofEntourage.In 2012 Esfandiari appeared as an undercover officer in the movieFreelancersstarring Robert De Niro and Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson.[26]

In January 2014, Antonio Esfandiari began shooting a web reality series with Ultimate Poker: Strip Magic. The series features Esfandiari performing street magic on the Las Vegas strip along with exclusive interviews.[27]In March 2014, the season one debuted on Youtube /UltimatePoker.[28]

In September 2014, Esfandiari paired with fellow poker professional Phil Laak on 'Underground Poker', which aired on the Discovery Channel as part of a three-part mini-series entitled 'All In, All Night'.[29]

Bibliography

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  • World Poker Tour: In the Money(2006)ISBN0-06-076305-1

References

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  1. ^https:// cardplayer /poker-players/1283-antonio-esfandiari
  2. ^Ryan, Rich; Collson, Brett (April 2, 2013)."Ultimate Poker Signs Antonio Esfandiari as Brand Ambassador".PokerNews.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
  3. ^Purdum, David (November 14, 2014)."Ultimate Gaming closes company Ultimate Poker".ESPN.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
  4. ^Shapiro, Michael (July 4, 2012)."'Insta Poker': instructional game for iPhone, iPad ".San Francisco Chronicle.RetrievedDecember 3,2023.
  5. ^"Antonio Esfandiari".Team Narnia.Archived fromthe originalon April 30, 2011.RetrievedMarch 31,2011.
  6. ^"Antonio Esfandiari's Life: Net Worth, Losses and Private Life".SoMuchPoker.October 30, 2018.RetrievedNovember 12,2018.
  7. ^Esfandiari, Antonio (September 2005)."Little Brother".Bluff Magazine.Archived fromthe originalon July 1, 2010.RetrievedOctober 10,2010.
  8. ^https:// pokerstrategy /news/world-of-poker/Badih-Bounahra:-Age-Not-an-Issue_52641/
  9. ^"Antonio Esfandiari on Fatherhood".BluffEurope.February 6, 2015.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
  10. ^"35th World Series of Poker - WSOP 2004, Pot Limit Hold'em".The Hendon Mob.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  11. ^"2004 L.A. Poker Classic, No Limit Hold'em Championship - WPT".The Hendon Mob.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  12. ^"Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament Season 3, Grand Final".The Hendon Mob.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  13. ^O'Connor, Will (May 11, 2016).""Poker After Dark" Debuts in PokerGO Studio with "Open House" Week ".PokerGO Tour.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  14. ^Jenkins, Tom (April 22, 2009)."Antonio Esfandiari Does 47 Pushups on High Stakes Poker".Poker News Daily.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  15. ^"European Poker Tour - EPT Monte Carlo Grand Final, No Limit Hold'em - EPT Grand Final".The Hendon Mob.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  16. ^"40th World Series of Poker - WSOP 2009, World Championship No Limit Hold'em".The Hendon Mob.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  17. ^"2010 Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic, No Limit Hold'em - Championship Event".The Hendon Mob.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  18. ^Geller, Shari (July 3, 2012)."Antonio Esfandiari Wins $18 Million at WSOP Big One for One Drop $1M Buy-in Poker Tournament".PokerNews.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  19. ^"43rd World Series of Poker - WSOP 2012, The Big One for One Drop (Event #55)".The Hendon Mob.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  20. ^"World Series Of Poker Europe - WSOPE 2012, No Limit Hold'em - (Event #2)".The Hendon Mob.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  21. ^Fiorvanti, Tim (June 29, 2013)."Esfandiari Finishes Fourth in $111K One Drop High Roller".BLUFF.Archived fromthe originalon July 2, 2013.RetrievedJune 30,2013.
  22. ^"Antonio Esfandiari's profile on The Hendon Mob".The Hendon Mob Poker Database.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
  23. ^"Antonio Esfandiari - DYF033 - United States".The Official Global Poker Index.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
  24. ^Holloway, Chad (January 10, 2016)."2016 PCA Main Event Day 2: Leonardo Pires Leads Final 195, Antonio Esfandiari DQ'd".PokerNews.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
  25. ^O’Callaghan, Dan (September 9, 2022)."Antonio Esfandiari Works His Magic as Poker Player and Crazy Prop Bettor!".888 Poker Online.RetrievedDecember 4,2023.
  26. ^"Antonio Esfandiari".IMDb.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
  27. ^Holloway, Chad (March 5, 2014)."Antonio Esfandiari Stars in Six-Part" Strip Magic "Web Series".PokerNews.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
  28. ^"Strip Magic - Episode 1 - Ultimate Poker".YouTube.March 5, 2014.Archivedfrom the original on December 13, 2021.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
  29. ^Gibson, Sean (September 8, 2014)."Antonio Esfandiari and Phil Laak to Star in Underground Poker".CardsChat.RetrievedAugust 8,2017.
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