The competitive world of high-stakes poker is no stranger to superstars. Huge tournaments provide the perfect platform for skilled players to become recognized. The massive prize pools of international events like the World Series of Poker (WSOP) are often secondary to the fame one achieves from winning them. 

The allure of the biggest tournaments draws new players from all over the world. Every event has numerous young players trying to prove themselves. Many of them succeed, going on to become household names themselves. Today, we’ll cover one such poker pro: Timothy Adams. 

Player Overview

Timothy Adams is a Canadian professional poker player from Burlington, Ontario. He has an impressive tournament career with over $30 million in lifetime earnings. This puts him third on the list of highest-earning Canadian players and 18th on The Hendon Mob’s all-time money list. 

Adams’ prolific tournament career includes scores at the WSOP and other High Roller Tournaments. He has one WSOP bracelet from the No-Limit Hold’em Four-Handed event in 2012. Beyond the WSOP, he has wins at events like the Australian Poker Open, the European Poker Tour, and the Triton Poker Super High Roller Series.

Early Life

From an early age, Adams’ life revolved around two sports: soccer and hockey. He was a huge fan of both and dreamt of becoming a professional athlete. Fiercely competitive, he spent most of his childhood training and honing his skills, playing soccer in the summer and hockey in the winter.

His aspirations of becoming a pro were more than just a wild dream. At 14, he had to make a tough choice about which sport to pick up full-time, and he decided on soccer. From there, Adams made it to the top league of his province and competed in international tournaments.

His parents fully supported his passion for soccer, which became almost an obsession. “I had this thing where I just had to touch the ball every day. I’d always have one of these miniature soccer balls in my house, and it’d drive my parents crazy.”

Unfortunately, Adams’ goal of becoming a professional soccer player faded when he was 17. And at 18, during his first year of university, he was introduced to poker.

Surrounded by a network of poker-playing friends, Adams honed his skills playing online. One day, he placed second in a $3 rebuy online tournament, finishing ahead of thousands of players. He scored $4,000, and that moment resonated with him. Realizing how potentially lucrative poker could be, he turned his love of the game into a career.

Tournament Career

Adams began playing live tournaments in 2007, steadily cashing for five-figure scores in events like the Bellagio Cup, WSOP, and PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. 

His first major breakthrough and six-figure score came in 2012, when he took down a No Limit Hold’em Four Handed event for $392,476. That same year, he finished 7th in a WSOP Six Handed event for $100,696 and took 4th in the World Poker Tour (WPT) Main Event for $158,349. 

Adams debuted at the European Poker Tour (EPT) the following year. He managed an impressive 4th-place finish at the Super High Roller event, walking out with $636,088. He then finished sixth in the EPT London for $284,069 and fifth in the WSOP Europe No Limit Hold’em High Roller event for $135,977.

Adams’ next big year was 2016, where he scored $142,560 at the Aria Super High Roller, a $386,400 win at the Bellagio Cup XII, and $676,915 for third place at the EPT Barcelona.

Tournament Career

Adams began playing live tournaments in 2007, steadily cashing for five-figure scores in events like the Bellagio Cup, WSOP, and the PCA. 

His first major breakthrough and six-figure score came in 2012, when he took down a No Limit Hold’em Four Handed event for $392,476. That same year, he finished 7th in a WSOP Six Handed event for $100,696 and took 4th in the World Poker Tour (WPT) Main Event for $158,349. 

Adams debuted at the European Poker Tour (EPT) the following year. He managed an impressive 4th-place finish at the Super High Roller event, walking out with $636,088. He then finished sixth in the EPT London for $284,069 and fifth in the WSOP Europe No Limit Hold’em High Roller event for $135,977.

Adams’ next big year was 2016, where he scored $142,560 at the Aria Super High Roller, a $386,400 win at the Bellagio Cup XII, and $676,915 for third place at the EPT Barcelona.