Offers flood in for $10 million poker king AUSSIE

Offers flood in for $10 million poker king AUSSIE poker king Joe Hachem is on his way to becoming one of Australia's richest men.

Days after winning the World Series of Poker, the former chiropractor is negotiating to triple his $10 million winnings into a $30 million pay cheque through a series of lucrative commercial contracts.

Hachem, a father of four, has spent the past week in a $3600-a- night luxury suite in Las Vegas sifting through dozens of business proposals.

Offers include a plan to become Crown Casino's poker ambassador, an offer to star in a series of television infomercials in the US, sponsorship from elite clothing manufacturers, and deals with internet gambling sites. "I'm averaging two meetings a day with people," he said.

"People are talking about all sorts of sponsorships -everything from clothing to internet sites- but it's a matter of sifting through and capitalizing on it and trying to be a good ambassador for poker."

Last weekend Hachem, 39, beat 5619 poker players from around the world in a nine-day Las Vegas poker marathon.
He told The Sunday Times he was quitting his job as a mortgage broker to play up to six poker tournaments a year overseas and the Aussie Millions poker tournament at Melbourne's Crown Casino in January.

"Poker is a passion," he said. "It was a hobby."

This week he was joined in his suite at the exclusive Wynn Casino by Jeannie, his wife of 16 years, and their four children.

An emotional Hachem said he could not have beaten the best players in the world without the support of his wife.

He said he would speak to his wife every night during the tournament and she told him "you're destined for this -don't give up".

With a glass of Moet champagne in her hand, Jeannie Hachem said she knew her husband was going to have a big poker win.
"I always said to Joe, `one day you are going to make it', but I didn't think this soon, though," she said. "I'm still in shock, you have no idea. It really hasn't sunk in yet ^ I can't comprehend it, it's too much."

The Hachems plan to spend the winnings on their children's education and helping family members. "This now means I can look after my family," Hachem said.

"Family is it for me, it's the start and finish. There's a lot of people in the family that I have wanted to help, that need help."
The Hachems arrived in Australia from Lebanon in 1972 and suffered several setbacks, including family deaths and a blood disorder that forced Hachem to quit his job as a chiropractor three years ago. Hachem said he was shattered with having to give up his job.

"I was lost: chiropracting was my passion. I studied for five years and practised for 13 years," he said.

After 12 months of counselling, he turned to mortgage-broking to make ends meet, but "unfortunately I entered mortgage-broking on the cusp of the property downturn, so it started off really well, but this last year has been a real tough slog".

Today, though, his biggest problem is having to fend off the sharks that have begun circling in Vegas. "Everybody is trying to spin me," he said.

"A guy I met just to say hello suddenly wants to be my agent and I don't know him from a bar of soap."

Since his win, Hachem has been careful to surround himself only with relatives, including his brother, Tony, and cousin, Billy Sukkar, who were at his side for the tournament and supplied him with double espressos to keep him awake during his 14-hour days.

Accountant Tony Hachem is managing his brother's affairs and spent the past week dealing with commercial and media inquiries from Africa, the Middle East, Europe and the US, as well as establishing that his brother was not liable for tax in Australia because he was not a professional gambler.

Meanwhile, Joe Hachem, despite wearing a $63,000 winner's bracelet, can still not believe what he won.

"Whatever time I wake up, if it's the middle of the night or not, I just expect it to be gone," he said.

The Hachems are due to leave Las Vegas early this week and after an appearance by Hachem on the top-rating Jay Leno television program will return to Melbourne.

By NICK PAPAS