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Joe Hachem is a Lebanese-born Australian poker player who won the 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event, beating a field of 5,619 entries for $7,500,000. A former chiropractor from Melbourne, he was the first Australian to win the title, and the following year he added a World Poker Tour title at the Five Diamond World Poker Classic. In Australia he is often called the “Godfather of Australian Poker” for the boom that followed his win. [1][3]
Joe Hachem: key facts
| Full name | Joseph “Joe” Hachem [3] |
|---|---|
| Nickname | “Diamond Joe” [1] |
| Country | Australia [1] |
| Born | 1966, Beirut, Lebanon [1][6] |
| Lives in | Melbourne [7] |
| Known for | Winning the 2005 WSOP Main Event; the Australian poker boom that followed |
| WSOP bracelets | 1 (56 cashes, 9 final tables on WSOP.com) [2] |
| Major titles | WSOP Main Event 2005; WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic 2006 [3][4] |
| Hall of Fame | Australian Poker Hall of Fame, inaugural inductee 2009 [1] |
| Live tournament earnings | $13,083,051 as of October 5, 2026 [1] |
Early life: from Beirut to Melbourne
Hachem was born in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1966, just before the Six-Day War. He was the eldest of three sons, and he was six when his family emigrated to Melbourne, Australia, with the help of a loan organized through the Catholic Church. His parents separated when he was 13. His youngest brother, Tony Hachem, is also known in the poker world. [1][6]
He worked from a young age, including at a meat-packing plant and in modeling, before becoming a chiropractor and building his own practice. That career ended when he was diagnosed with erythromelalgia, a rare condition that causes chronic inflammation of the blood vessels in the hands and feet. He sold the practice and went to work as a mortgage banker. [6]
Beginning in poker
Hachem picked up poker in the mid-1990s and became a regular in the cash games and tournaments at Melbourne’s Crown Casino. He also hosted a monthly 30-player, three-table tournament in his garage. His winnings in Melbourne built the bankroll that paid for his trip to the 2005 World Series of Poker. [1][6]
The trip came about at the last minute, when his wife, Jeanie, changed the family’s vacation plans so that he could travel with a group of friends from Melbourne who were going to Las Vegas. It was his first visit to the WSOP. Before the Main Event he finished 10th in a $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em event, one place short of the final table. Unlike the two previous champions, he was not an online qualifier: he paid the $10,000 Main Event entry himself. [1][6]
Playing style
Hachem made his name in No-Limit Hold’em, but many of his later WSOP cashes came in mixed and split-pot games, above all Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo. In 2015 he said of that event: “This is the one tournament outside of the Main Event I look forward to every year.” [1][7]
He describes himself as a low-volume player who relies on live reads rather than study tools. “My game is always just solid… I don’t put any real time into it, I don’t play that much,” he told PokerNews in 2026, adding: “I still believe my live play reads and the way I handle myself at a table serve me well.” [8]
Greatest achievements
The 2005 WSOP Main Event
The 2005 Main Event drew a record 5,619 entries. Its prize pool of $52,818,610 was the largest ever for a single tournament, and the $7,500,000 first prize was the biggest tournament payout up to that time. [4] The final table at Binion’s Gambling Hall & Hotel in Las Vegas lasted 14 hours and included Mike Matusow, who finished ninth, Andy Black, Aaron Kanter and Tex Barch. Hachem was short-stacked for much of the day before a late run gave him a lead of roughly two to one going into heads-up play against Steve Dannenmann. [3]
On the final hand Hachem held seven-three and flopped a straight on a 6-5-4 board. Dannenmann, with ace-three, made top pair on the turn and called Hachem’s all-in, and the river did not help him. Hachem won $7,500,000 and Dannenmann $4,250,000. Hachem became the first Australian to win the Main Event and the sixth non-American in the tournament’s 35-year history. [3] PokerNews described him in 2026 as still the only Australian to have won it. [8]
The 2006 WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic
In December 2006 Hachem won the World Poker Tour’s Five Diamond World Poker Classic at Bellagio for $2,207,575. [1][4] The event had 583 entries at a $15,400 entry fee. Daniel Negreanu went out in third place, and Hachem beat Jim Hanna heads-up. The win made him the fourth player to hold both a WPT title and a WSOP Main Event title, after Doyle Brunson, Scotty Nguyen and Carlos Mortensen. [5] His autobiography presents this win as the result that answered critics who had called him an amateur after 2005. [6]
Selected tournament results
| Year | Event | Result | Prize | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | WSOP $10,000 Main Event (5,619 entries) | 1st | $7,500,000 | [3] |
| 2006 | WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic (583 entries) | 1st | $2,207,575 | [4] |
| 2006 | WSOP Event #5, $2,500 No-Limit Hold’em Six-Handed | 2nd | $256,800 | [7] |
| 2012 | Aussie Millions $100,000 Challenge | 3rd | A$330,000 | [1] |
| 2019 | WSOP Event #65, $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship (193 entries) | 3rd | $201,041 | [2] |
| 2008 | EPT Grand Final, Monte Carlo | 11th | $159,943 | [1] |
| 2023 | WSOP $10,000 Main Event (10,043 entries) | 402nd | $40,000 | [2] |
| 2026 | WSOP $10,000 Main Event | 803rd | $22,500 | [1] |
World Series of Poker record
Hachem’s WSOP.com profile lists one bracelet, 56 cashes, 9 final tables and $11,260,146 in earnings, a total that includes the World Poker Tour results shown on that profile. [2]
Ambassador for Australian poker
Hachem was a member of Team PokerStars Pro for six years, leaving in 2011, and appeared on televised shows such as The Big Game. [1][4] According to PokerNews, the interest created by his win helped the 2007 Aussie Millions in Melbourne draw the largest field to date for a poker tournament outside the United States. [1] In a 2026 interview he said that when he left for Las Vegas in 2005, Australia had one poker room, at Crown Casino, with 17 tables, and that after his victory it grew to 200 tables, with at least one poker room in every state. [8]
Poker runs in the family. His brother Tony is also a well-known poker player, and his sons James, Daniel and Anthony also play; Daniel finished runner-up in a WSOP event in 2024. In 2026 Joe, Tony and James all reached Day 3 of the Aussie Millions Main Event in Melbourne, where Joe finished 50th for A$24,640. [1][9]
Hall of Fame
Hachem was one of the inaugural inductees of the Australian Poker Hall of Fame in 2009. [1] He is not a member of the Poker Hall of Fame run by the World Series of Poker: he does not appear on its list of inductees on WSOP.com, which runs up to the 2026 class. [10]
Book: Pass the Sugar
In 2009 Hachem published his autobiography, Pass the Sugar, written with Peter Ralph and published by Melbourne Books. The title comes from the catchphrase he made famous during his 2005 run, when his friends on the rail greeted each big pot with “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!” The book covers the Main Event, his early life and his years after the win. [6]
In his own words
- “Where has 10 years gone?” On the tenth anniversary of his Main Event win, June 2015. [7]
- “I ignited the poker boom in Australia.” March 2026. [8]
- “There’s no way that the way we thought about poker 20 years ago would survive in today’s environment.” March 2026. [8]
- “There’s only one thing left for me to win and that’s the Aussie Millions.” March 2026. [8]
- “The whole plan for the Main Event was that if one Hachem doesn’t get you another Hachem will!” At the 2026 Aussie Millions. [9]
Iconic hands and moments
Jamie Gold vs. Joe Hachem on Poker After Dark (PokerGO)
Joe Hachem v David Redlin (partypoker, Top 100 Greatest Poker Moments)
WPT 5 Questions: Joe Hachem (World Poker Tour)
FAQ about Joe Hachem
How old is Joe Hachem?
Joe Hachem was born in 1966, according to his PokerNews player profile. [1]
Where is Joe Hachem from?
He was born in Beirut, Lebanon, and moved to Melbourne, Australia, with his family at the age of six. He plays under the Australian flag and lives in Melbourne. [1][6][7]
What is Joe Hachem’s net worth?
There is no reliable public figure for his net worth. What can be verified is his live tournament record: $13,083,051 in earnings as of October 5, 2026, according to PokerNews. Earnings figures do not account for buy-ins, staking or expenses. [1]
How much did Joe Hachem win in the 2005 WSOP Main Event?
He won $7,500,000, at the time the largest first prize ever paid in a poker tournament. [3][4]
How many WSOP bracelets does Joe Hachem have?
One, from the 2005 Main Event. His WSOP.com profile lists 56 cashes and 9 final tables. [2]
Is Joe Hachem in the Poker Hall of Fame?
He is in the Australian Poker Hall of Fame, as an inaugural inductee in 2009. [1] He has not been inducted into the WSOP’s Poker Hall of Fame. [10]
What does “pass the sugar” mean?
It is the catchphrase Hachem made famous during his 2005 Main Event run, and the title of his 2009 autobiography. [6]
Did Joe Hachem write a book?
Yes. Pass the Sugar, written with Peter Ralph, was published by Melbourne Books in 2009. [6]
Who is Joe Hachem’s wife?
His wife is Jeanie, whose change of vacation plans made his trip to the 2005 WSOP possible. They have sons James, Daniel and Anthony. [6][9]
Related Poker Legends
Read more about Chris Moneymaker, the 2003 Main Event champion whose win started the poker boom, and about Doyle Brunson and Scotty Nguyen, who like Hachem won both a WSOP Main Event and a World Poker Tour title.
Sources
- PokerNews, Joe Hachem player profile, accessed October 5, 2026.
- WSOP.com, Joe Hachem player profile, accessed October 5, 2026.
- PokerNews, 2005 WSOP Main Event: Joe Hachem Wins $7,500,000, July 16, 2005.
- PokerNews, WSOP Main Event Champions 2003-05: Moneymaker, Raymer, Hachem, April 20, 2022.
- PokerNews, A Look Back Through the Sparkling History of the World Poker Tour Five Diamond, December 2015.
- PokerNews, Poker Book Review: ‘Pass the Sugar’ by Joe Hachem and Peter Ralph, July 9, 2009.
- PokerNews, Joe Hachem Makes 2015 WSOP Debut; Reflects on Main Event Win 10-Year Anniversary, June 14, 2015.
- PokerNews, World Champ Joe Hachem Talks WSOP, Poker Today, & the One Title He Still Wants, March 27, 2026.
- PokerNews, “If One Doesn’t Get You, Another Will” The Hachems’ Main Event Charge, May 8, 2026.
- WSOP.com, Poker Hall of Fame, accessed October 5, 2026.
Last verified: October 5, 2026. Figures that change over time, such as career earnings, are given with the date they were checked.
