Joe Hachem will be wearing the Asian Poker Tour patch now.

Over the past six years Joe Hachem has lived the life that many poker players dream of. Travelling the world, playing in big buy-in poker tournaments and winning millions of dollars along the way, Hachem was kept apart from his family for a good chunk of the year.

In December, the 2005 WSOP Main Event champion and his sponsor of six years, PokerStars, parted ways and Hachem hinted that being able to spend more time with his family was part of the reason. Sunday morning in Melbourne Hachem announced he had signed on with the Asian Poker Tour and parent company AsianLogic – a deal that will allow him to stay closer to home.

“I will be working with the Group in several areas, initially as a new ambassador for the Asian Poker Tour to further the growth of poker and to assist them with several strategic opportunities in Australia and the Asia Pacific Region,” said Hachem. “There are separate elements here in light of potential regulatory change in Australia, which requires a different focus from that adopted for the general international poker market. I considered offers from several other brands, but this partnership was the best fit for me as it gave me an active role and the ability to participate as the businesses evolve.”

Hachem won the 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event and spurred on a ‘Moneymaker Effect’ of his own in his native Australia. As the country moves towards a regulated market, Hachem could find himself at the forefront of another poker explosion in Australia.

“(Joe’s) knowledge and understanding of the gaming industry both domestically and internationally will be invaluable to us going forwards. The Asian Poker Tour is already widely recognised as Asia’s only independent Tour and we feel Joe will be able to help us expand this business,” said Tom Hall, Non Executive Chairman of AsianLogic. “AsianLogic and its partners are also involved in a number of poker and gaming projects and Joe is helping us with some of these, particularly those in Australia and New Zealand.”

Hachem becomes the fourth APT ambassador. J.C. Tran, Quinn Do and Nam Le have been representing the APT since 2008.

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