Patrik Antonius

Patrik Antonius Biography

Patrik Antonius has definitely proved himself as one of the best all-round poker players in the world, and is one of the youngest of the well-established poker pros.

Forced to abandon his promising tennis career at the age of 15 due to a recurring back injury, Antonius turned his attention to poker, and after initially losing his first few buy-ins at the local casino, Antonius began to take the game more seriously, and started to steadily win, focusing on improving his game.

Antonius began playing online in 2003, growing his bankroll from $200 to $20,000 in a matter of weeks. Earlier in his career Antonius played under several usernames designed to put others on tilt if they lost to him, such as ‘I_knockout_U’ and ‘try_hrdr_fish’, before becoming a member of Team Full Tilt and playing under his real name.

Antonius is known for having played the largest pot ever recorded in online poker: he won $1,356,946 in a pot-limit Omaha heads up pot with the user ‘Isildur1’, later revealed to be Swedish pro Viktor Blom. Live Game Antonius has also proven himself to be a good tournament player as well, finishing 2nd in the 2005 WPT main event for $1,046,470 in what proved to be a break-out event for him.

Antonius has continued this success throughout his career, with live tournament winnings exceeding $4,000,000. One accolade still eluding him is a World Series of Poker bracelet, with two final tables his best, though at 32 he still has more than enough time.

Antonius has been a regular on television poker shows Poker After Dark and High Stakes Poker, helping build his reputation as one of the game’s best and most recognisable players. He holds the honour of having played in the largest pot on High Stakes Poker, winning $749,100 from a pot of $998,800 after the turn and the river were run 4 times.