|
|
. |
 |
 he Guardian Poker Column |
|
| |
|
 |
| |
 |
| |
| Sean Ingle in Las
Vegas writes for the Guardian News Group |
| Thursday July 16 2005
|
| |
 |
| |
| Email :
TheEditor on any
subject. |
|
|
| Hachem walks away with $7.5m |
After eight days of play, Australian Joseph Hachem - a former
chiropractor - walks off with the $7.5m first prize
At 6.46am Las
Vegas time this morning, as the sun started to sheepishly rise above the Nevada
sky, a turn of the card changed Joseph Hachem's life.
The Australian, a
former chiropractor, had been playing almost non-stop for 14 hours on the final
day of the World Series of Poker when he decided to go all-in against Steve
Dannenmann.
Hachem flopped a straight, his opponent missed the chance to
tie on the river, and suddenly the Australian was $7.5m dollars richer. As his
fellow countryman - who had boisterously supported him throughout - launched
into chants of 'Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!" the 38-year-old took a
joyous victory lap around the stage at Binon's Casino, wrapped himself in an
Australian flag and cried "Thank You America!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 "A million dollars changes my life, let alone $7.5m," he said. "It
changes everything. I can look after my family, my mum, my kids."
The
other seven players who started the final day of the world series also swelled
their bank accounts by $1m after 10 days of gruelling hand-to-hand combat, bad
beats and wild swings of fortune. Last Wednesday, when the tournament got
underway, 5,619 chancers staked $10,000 for their with a chance of glory.
Gradually they were whittled down, the top 560 earning a portion of the $52m
prize pot.
Friday night's play in downtown Vegas was slow and steady.
With so much money at stake, players took few risks. One who did, Mike 'The
Mouth' Matusow, a poker pro from Las Vegas - the nickname refers to his love of
trash-talking - was the first to be eliminated after Dannenmann caught a
straight to top Matusow's pocket 10s.
The next few players to depart
reflected poker's weird and widespread appeal. Brad Kondracki, a law student,
finished eighth while Daniel Bergsdorf, a Swedish truck driver, was seventh.
Scott Lazar, a film production assistant and part-time magician, was sixth,
while Irishman Andrew 'The Monk' Black, a Buddhist from Belfast, whose hobbies
include "contemplation and meditation", finished fifth.
Black, whose day
job is as a charity worker, looked disappointed when he walked away. His
supporters tried to rally him with a cry of "Hip, hip! Hooray! Hip, hip!
Hooray! Hip, hip! Hooray!", but Black just shook his head. His frustration at
some bad beats was evident - although his $1.75m winnings should soon ease his
pain.
Kondracki didn't take his defeat too hard either, telling
reporters: "I'll probably drink way too much and wake up and buy something
really expensive that I don't need."
Towards the end of the day, the
officials put the $7.5m first-place prize in stacks of hundreds on a table near
the players, guarded by security men with shotguns, prompting cries of 'Oh my
God!' but doing nothing to speed up play. But, after two further hours, the
four remaining players began to be eased out: Aaron Kanter, won $2m for
finishing forth - hitherto his biggest win was $8,000 - while Joe Hachem made
$2.5m for finished third.
Then it was down to two. It didn't take long -
only six hands in, Hachem flopped a seven-high straight and earned the right to
pick up the $7.5m. When confronted with the mountain of cash, he smiled and
said: "I can tell you I've made more money this week than in many years of
fixing people's backs."
Then he paused, uncertain for a second, and
asked: "Is this all mine?" The joyous cries of his supporters told him that it
was, and that his life would never be the same again.
|
|
|
|
. |
|
| The Editor's WSOP
Reports |
| Latest |
|
|
| The Editor's WSOP
Reports |
| Latest |
|
|
Main Menu)
