Taxes could take big chunk of Hachem's WSOP winnings

Australian national Joseph Hachem might be forced to pay 47% of his WSOP Main Event first place winnings of $7.5 million to government tax collectors.

Worth an estimated $10 million AUD, Hachem's winnings could be cut in half if Australian taxation authorities are able to prove that he won the money as a professional gambler, meaning he systematically invoked specific skills and strategies in order to win.

While this sounds like a challenging task for the Australian Tax Office, Hachem has perhaps made it easier on them by repeatedly acknowledging the extent to which he has read poker theory and applied this knowledge to his game, not to mention his admission that he never believed being a professional poker player was a realistic career option until he tried it.