Phil Galfond is an American poker player, best known for his abilities in the pot-limit Omaha game. He rose to fame in the early 2000s, garnering attention for his high-stakes PLO performances.
Over the years, Galfond has established himself as a prominent poker star, winning three WSOP bracelets. The 39-year-old has also excelled as an online player and has reportedly earned over $10 million from his poker career.
On that note, here is everything you need to know about Galfond.
Phil Galfond’s family and hometown
Phil Galfond was born in 1985, in North Potomac, Maryland. He was raised in Maryland but currently resides in Las Vegas. Galfond lived in Manhattan, New York, for a time, where he made headlines for installing a steel slide between two floors of an apartment. He also briefly moved to Vancouver, Canada to avoid the Black Friday that hit the US Online Poker Market.
Galfond is married to actress and poker player Farah Fath. Fath is best known for portraying Mimi Lockhart on Days of Our Lives. The couple welcomed a son named Spencer in 2018.
Phil Galfond’s education
Galfond completed his early education at the Thomas Sprigg Wootton High School. He then went on to pursue a degree in Philosophy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
When did Phil Galfond start playing poker?
Galfond started playing poker with friends when he was still in high school. However, he only got serious about it as a profession in college.
Speaking in an appearance on the Life Outside Poker podcast, the American recalled his journey in the game.
“Growing up I played card games with friends, (which was) technically poker, I barely call it poker. Starting around 12-13 and really through middle school and high school, that’s like the main social activity we did, was get together at somebody’s house and play cards. But there was no strategy to it, I mean none of us knew what we were doing, I was probably better than average but not special in any way and that was kind of it,” he said (1.10).
“Then when I was in college in Wisconsin, I went to University of Wisconsin, one of my friends from back home won a tournament on party poker for $30,000 or something and so it became the talk of all of us. He actually reached out to me individually and said you know ‘Phil I’ve been reading poker books and actually studying and I think you’d be really good at this if you put some effort in’, and that’s all it took. I mean I was I was happy to try it out,” he added.
Phil Galfond’s poker career
Galfond entered the live tournament circuit in 2006. His first money finish came in the $10,000 Championship Event at the Jack Binion WSOP Circuit Event in Robinsonville, Mississippi. Throughout his career, Galfond has registered multiple impressive performances in the World Series of Poker.
He has won three WSOP bracelets – the 2008 WSOP $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha $5,000, the 2015 WSOP $10,000 2-7 Draw Lowball No-Limit Championship, and the 2018 WSOP $10,000 Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Lo – Championship. Additionally, in 2013 he finished second at the WSOP $25,000 No Limit Hold’em – 6 Handed, and in 2015 he registered a fourth-place finish at the WSOP $10,000 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball (Limit) Championship $10,000.
Outside of WSOP events, Galfond is best known for his exploits in online poker. He primarily focuses on the $200/$400 stakes and above at the No-limit Texas Hold ’em and Pot-Limit Omaha tables and has accumulated over $10 million in online winnings.
What is Phil Galfond doing now?
Since October 2024, Galfond has stopped playing cash games and only participated in the occasional tournament. Talking to the Digital Social Hour about his decision, he said:
“I kind of have nothing to play. I don’t really play tournaments, tournaments are not my thing. I play cash games and cash games have all gone private. So, the only thing if I wanted to play high stakes now in a public game — it’s basically just tournaments, they’re my only option.”
Since distancing himself from competing, Galfond has become a poker coach, sharing advice from his vast experience.
Edited by Samya Majumdar