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Joe Hachem

November 4, 2009

By now, you’ve likely seen how the 2005 World Series of Poker ended. It’s a moment I couldn’t forget if I wanted to. After battling with the affable, joking Steve Dannenman for days, I knew I finally had him. With only one card to come and a made straight, I pushed in the rest of my chips.
EPT-Monte-Carlo-Hachem

“Are you still having fun?” I asked him. His expression was priceless.

Seconds later, I was the 2005 WSOP champion, $7.5 million dollars richer, and preparing to embark on a journey that I never imagined.

Life began for me in Lebanon in 1966. My family moved to Australia in 1972 and I’ve lived in Melbourne ever since. Life in the land of the Aussies has taught me one simple thing: nothing is more important than family. I’ve been married for more than 16 years and fathered four children. Loving and supporting them has always been and will always be my main objective.

To that end, I spent 13 years in a successful chiropractic practice. After the turn of the millennium, I developed a rare condition that prevented me from using my hands to do my job. Unable to continue in my regular profession, I took on as a mortgage broker and started looking more closely at poker. Like I’m sure it is for many of you, what was once a hobby quickly became a passion. It was a game I’d been playing for most of my adult life. In the mid-1990s, I started to look at the cards more seriously. Once my condition took away my ability to do chiropractic work, I started to consider myself a semi-professional poker player, playing live in Melbourne and online at PokerStars.

Like any poker player, I’d harbored dreams of the World Series of Poker. I figured they would remain dreams. I couldn’t justify leaving my family for so long and so far away. Ultimately, I found a way to make it happen. Early in the 2005 WSOP, I played a small event, placed tenth, and pocketed $28,000. With the money in my pocket and a new confidence, I peeled off $10,000 and bought into the 2005 WSOP main event.

Seven days later, every poker dream I’d ever had became a reality. I had defeated the biggest poker field in history. I had just won the biggest first prize in poker history. I was a World Series of Poker champion. Now, I’m traveling the world in search of the biggest tournaments and making sure I keep true to the most important thing in my life: my family.

More about Joe Hachem:

Born: Lebanon, 1966
Home: Melbourne, Australia
Family: Married, with four kids
Hobbies: Spending time with family, playing golf, watching movies, having a good meal in a nice restaurant, and enjoying a good cigar in a nice bar
Current car: GS300 Lexus (Black-always black)
Next car: Mercedes CLS 500
Best poker moment: Final hand of the 2005 World Series of Poker
Worst poker moment: Catching Kido Phan with JT to my KK, all-in, and watching the flop come out JJ2 at the 2005 World Series of Poker Circuit event final table at Bally’s in Las Vegas

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Playing poker has its hazards! There are two types players that one should watch out for and try to stay clear of. The Shark and the Donkey! The Shark: The shark is very dangerous. This player is the classic example of the top of the food chain waiting to take advantage of the weakness of lesser poker players. Dealing with a shark is very easy. Stay away from them and stick to shallow waters ie. small stake games. But don't be fooled, smaller, less well know sharks still lurk in these waters. Characteristics of a Shark Usually wait at a table for players to come to them Plays very few hands When they play, they play aggressively Usually win the hands that they play The Donkey If the shark is dangerous, then the donkey is leather. Technically speaking, the donkey has no concept of the what poker is about. These players are gamblers and enjoy the thrill of the chase. Unfortunately, the donkeys get lucky every now and then and usually deliver the worst bad beats imaginable. Dealing with a donkey is pretty straight forward. Select your hand very carefully, and when you have the nuts then punish the donkey with strong/clever betting. Characteristics of a Donkey Usually plays too many hands Plays a range of stakes, mid to highs stakes Always limping in and flat calls bets Hit there cards on the river Surviving the Donkeys and the Sharks is a stressful affair but once your poker scope is set, then pick on the weakness of these players. Be clever, play within your bankroll and keep on learning.