Australian Sean Ragozzini Looks to Follow in Joe Hachem��s Footsteps in WSOP Main Event
In 2005, the World Series of Poker (WSOP) relocated to the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino. That year, Australia��s Joe Hachem topped a 5,619-entry field to win the $10,000 Main Event for $7.5 million, which sparked a poker boom in his home country.
Now, 16 years later in what��s rumored to be the WSOP��s last year at the Rio, 35-year-old Sean Ragozzini is seeking to follow in his fellow countryman��s footstep.
"I just learned with friends. I think it was after Moneymaker, especially in Australia after Hachem won it,�� Ragozzini told PokerNews. ��A lot of guys my age, I guess I was 18 or 19 at the time, got involved and started playing home games. I kind of had a knack for the strategy part of it. I enjoyed it and it was fun taking money off my friends.��
Ragozzini, who has dual citizenship in the United Kingdom, qualified for the 2021 WSOP Main Event online at GGPoker via a $1,000 satellite. With just two tables remaining in the tournament, Ragozzini is guaranteed a nice six-figure score with a good shot at millions.
Heater Continues
��Not a real job, just play a lot of poker,�� Ragozzini told PokerNews when asked what he does. ��I play a bit of both live and online.��
According to The Hendon Mob, Ragozzini had $576,448 in lifetime earnings before the 2021 WSOP. Back in May, he won the WPTDeepStacks Gold Coast A$5,000 Challenge for $108,790, and just a few days later he won the A$3,000 Quartetly Poker Championship Gold Coast for $53,769, which he chopped with his good friend Vincent Huang. Those scores came two years after he took down the 2019 Star Sydney Champs A$20,000 High Roller for a previous career-best $153,826.
��I��ve probably taken it more serious the last few years, have had some good results, can��t complain,�� Ragozzini said when asked about his recent success.
If Ragozzini continues to make a run for the bracelet, he��ll be cheered on by both family and friends.
��I��ve got a few friends, about five or six guys, who are playing a lot as well. We kind of came together, it��s been good,�� said Ragozzini, who said he is single but has half a dozen nieces and nephews.
Only time will tell if cheers of ��Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi!�� ring throughout the Main Event once again, and if Australian victories can bookend the Rio era of the World Series of Poker.