His mother left the family when he was young, leaving his father to raise three children alone. Here’s his story.Īntonio grew up in challenging circumstances, with his family having moved from Iran, escaping a difficult political situation. During his time in jail, he promised himself he would never break the law again. At one point, he’d hit rock bottom, briefly going to jail after he was caught selling marijuana. Yet Esfandiari started from a grand total of zero. He has a net worth of a staggering $27 million, won the biggest prize in poker (more on that later), and continues to perform at the biggest tournaments on the planet. Antonio Esfandiari is one of the faces of poker, so entrenched that it’s difficult to imagine the game without him.
