Joe Hachem
Joseph Hachem, the 2005 WSOP Main Event Champion
Nowadays Joe Hachem can often been seen online at pokerstars, where he is one of their pros with teammate Vanessa Rousso. But he was just a regular amateur poker player not long ago
His name is Joseph Hachem. His age is 42 years old. His place of residence is Providence, Melbourne, Australia by way of Lebanon.
Joe’s main distinction is of course is victory at the WSOP. Hachem seemed to come out of nowhere, defeating 5,618 other competitors his first time out to win the 2005 World Series of Poker. Unlike previous amateur winners Chris Moneymaker and Greg “Fossilman” Raymer, Hachem did not quality for the tournament online. Instead he decided to step up to the plate and pay the full $10,000 buy-in. That $10,000 investment would win him $7.5 million.
His final Table play was memorable. After playing for six straight days, Hachem persevered in a marathon 14-hour final table game, where he enjoyed some incredible flops. Holding a Q-7 to then-table leader Aaron Kanter’s pocket nines, Hachem got a Q-8-2 on the flop to pave his way towards the WSOP championship. In his final hand against runner-up Steve Dannenmann, Joseph held a 7-3 to his opponents A-3. The flop on that hand revealed a 4-5-6, giving Hachem a straight that would seal the tournament for him.
But Joe understands good hands. Hachem knows a thing or two about the importance of a good hand. Before becoming the 2005 WSOP champion, he made a living as a chiropractor for almost 20 years. When a rare blood disorder in his hands forced him to leave his trade behind, Hachem started playing poker, first in local casinos and then online.
He soon found mortgage banking as a means to support his wife and four children, but he decided on setting that career aside to play in more poker tournaments. But the real beauty of his $7.5 million winnings? While he still had to pay a significant portion to the U.S. government, because Hachem is considered an amateur, his winnings are not technically considered taxable in Australia.