Michael Addamo

Michael Addamo was born in 1994 in Melbourne, Australia. As a teenager, he was a competitive chess player, achieving a career-high rating of 1930 in 2013. He initially studied to become an actuary but began playing poker in 2012. His early live cashes came mainly in A$200 weekly tournaments at the Crown Casino in Melbourne. His first significant cash was in the 2015 Aussie Millions Main Event, finishing 21st for A$40,000 (~$31,605). That same year, he recorded his first cash outside Australia at the APPT Asia Championship of Poker in Macau.

Addamo's first trip to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) came in 2016. After a min-cash in the Colossus, he finished third in a $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em event for $196,202, and cashed seven times overall for nearly $250,000. In 2017, he cashed nine times at the WSOP, including a third-place finish in a $333 WSOP.com Online Event. He also traveled to Europe for the first time, cashing in the EPT Barcelona Main Event and EPT Prague High Roller.

Addamo won his first WSOP bracelet in 2018 in Event #24: $2,620 Marathon No-Limit Hold'em, defeating a field of 1,637 players for $653,581. Later that year at WSOP Europe, he captured a second bracelet in the €25,500 Super High Roller for €848,702 ($973,360). He also final tabled the €100,000 Super High Roller, finishing eighth for €264,110 ($300,000).

After his 2018 bracelets, Addamo began frequently entering high-stakes tournaments. In 2019, he won two Aria $10,000 High Rollers, finished third in the WSOP $50,000 High Roller, and had six-figure cashes at partypoker MILLIONS Europe and EPT Barcelona. In 2020, he finally won an Aussie Millions ring in the $50K Challenge, followed by a $100,000 title at the Australian Poker Open.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Addamo thrived online. He won a World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) event in 2019 playing under the screen name "imluckbox." In June 2020, he finished runner-up to Justin Bonomo in the Super High Roller Bowl Online for $1,187,500, his largest career cash at the time. He also won the $100,000 Super High Roller at the WPT World Online Championships for $1,284,113.

The 2021 WSOP was a landmark for Addamo. He won his third bracelet in the $50,000 High Roller for $1,132,968, and then captured a fourth bracelet in the $100,000 High Roller on the final day of the series, earning $1,958,569. Later that year, he won the $300,000 Super High Roller Bowl for $3,402,000, the largest cash of his career. At the 2021 Poker Masters, he won the final two events on consecutive days, including the $100,000 Main Event for $1,160,000, earning the Purple Jacket as series champion.

Addamo continued his high-stakes success in subsequent years. In 2022, he won a €50,000 single-day high roller at EPT Barcelona and a Triton Series Madrid title. In 2024, he finished sixth in the $25,000 WSOP Super Main Event at WSOP Paradise for $1,650,000, and cashed in the $100,000 Triton Main Event. As of early 2025, his live tournament earnings exceed $24,400,000, placing him 40th on the all-time money list and first among Australian players. He has four WSOP bracelets, ten final tables, and 35 money finishes overall.

Addamo is known for an aggressive and fearless style, often putting pressure on opponents in high-roller fields. His intense table presence has earned him the nickname "The Beast." He combines a deep understanding of game theory with a willingness to take calculated risks, making him a formidable competitor in both live and online tournaments.

During the pandemic, Addamo flourished online, adding to his achievements. In March 2021, he won the $102,000 No-Limit Hold'em event at the partypoker MILLIONS Online Series for $1,310,715. Combined with his live results, his total tournament earnings (live and online) have reached over $29.9 million as of early 2025, making him one of the most successful online high-stakes players.

Addamo continued to compete in high-stakes events. In March 2024, he cashed in two Triton Super High Roller Series events in Jeju, finishing 10th in the $150,000 event for $351,000 and 24th in the $30,000 event for $54,500. In February 2025, he placed 38th in the $15,000 event at the Triton Poker Super High Roller Series Jeju (Spring) for $30,500. These results extend his consistent performance among the elite.