Raymond Rahme
Encyclopedia
Raymond Rahme is a South Africa
n professional poker
player. He was the first African
to reach a final table at a World Series of Poker
Main Event, finishing third and earning $
3,048,025, equating to some R
21,000,000 in his own country." He took his seat at the 2007 Main Event by finishing fourth at the All Africa Poker Championship, the largest poker tournament ever played on the African continent. Because of this windfall, Rahme has made more money than any other African tournament poker player.
with money garnered from illegal gambling dens
in Hillbrow, Gauteng
, where he made ends meet.
As an adult
, however, he became a successful businessman
, involved in such a variety of concerns as construction
, car dealership
s, nightclub
s, bookmaking
, restaurant
s and "you name it".
as a member of "Team PokerStars
" (which sponsored his trip to the WSOP) under the screen name "Ray Rahme", but it is less a passion than a duty now. "I don't really enjoy internet poker," he told SA Sports Illustrated
recently, "but my contract says I have to play online for sixty hours a month. Internet poker is impersonal. You have no control over the game or your opponents."
He came into the online game only as a retirement hobby in 2006 after being introduced to it by a friend:
He was strongly supported there by a vociferous throng of his countrymen, especially after he eliminated Alexander Kravchenko, at which point it burst into a jubilant rendition of "Shosholoza
". It was only after the WSOP, however, that he decided to make a career
of his hobby
: "I didn't want to be known as a one-hit wonder." Since then, he has picked up victories at Gold Reef City
and Emperor's Palace locally, and Sanremo
, Swaziland and the Aussie Millions
in Melbourne
, among others. As of 2009, his total live tournament winnings exceed $3,300,000. His 3 cashes at the WSOP account for $3,063,786 of those winnings.
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n professional poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
player. He was the first African
African people
African people refers to natives, inhabitants, or citizen of Africa and to people of African descent.-Etymology:Many etymological hypotheses that have been postulated for the ancient name "Africa":...
to reach a final table at a World Series of Poker
World Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker is a world-renowned series of poker tournaments held annually in Las Vegas and, since 2005, sponsored by Harrah's Entertainment...
Main Event, finishing third and earning $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
3,048,025, equating to some R
South African rand
The rand is the currency of South Africa. It takes its name from the Witwatersrand , the ridge upon which Johannesburg is built and where most of South Africa's gold deposits were found. The rand has the symbol "R" and is subdivided into 100 cents, symbol "c"...
21,000,000 in his own country." He took his seat at the 2007 Main Event by finishing fourth at the All Africa Poker Championship, the largest poker tournament ever played on the African continent. Because of this windfall, Rahme has made more money than any other African tournament poker player.
Early days
Rahme left school at the age of fifteen — "I have no formal education behind me [... but] I guess you could say I've been streetwise since an early age" — and bought his first automobileAutomobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
with money garnered from illegal gambling dens
Gambling in South Africa
Following a near outright ban for most of its history, several forms of gambling were legalised in South Africa in 1996. A change in legislation saw the establishment of legal casinos, a national lottery and other forms of gaming....
in Hillbrow, Gauteng
Hillbrow, Gauteng
Hillbrow is the inner city residential neighbourhood of Johannesburg, Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is known for its high levels of population density, unemployment, poverty and crime....
, where he made ends meet.
As an adult
Adult
An adult is a human being or living organism that is of relatively mature age, typically associated with sexual maturity and the attainment of reproductive age....
, however, he became a successful businessman
Businessperson
A businessperson is someone involved in a particular undertaking of activities for the purpose of generating revenue from a combination of human, financial, or physical capital. An entrepreneur is an example of a business person...
, involved in such a variety of concerns as construction
Construction
In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of human multitasking...
, car dealership
Car dealership
A car dealership or vehicle local distribution is a business that sells new or used cars at the retail level, based on a dealership contract with an automaker or its sales subsidiary. It employs automobile salespeople to do the selling...
s, nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
s, bookmaking
Bookmaker
A bookmaker, or bookie, is an organization or a person that takes bets on sporting and other events at agreed upon odds.- Range of events :...
, restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s and "you name it".
Today
Rahme and his wife Teresa have six children. He plays online pokerOnline poker
Online poker is the game of poker played over the Internet. It has been partly responsible for a dramatic increase in the number of poker players worldwide...
as a member of "Team PokerStars
PokerStars
PokerStars is the largest online poker cardroom in the world. PokerStars' satellite tournaments produced the 2003 World Series of Poker champion, Chris Moneymaker. 1983 champion Tom McEvoy, 2005 champion Joe Hachem, 2009 champion Joe Cada and 2010 champion Jonathan Duhamel and others also represent...
" (which sponsored his trip to the WSOP) under the screen name "Ray Rahme", but it is less a passion than a duty now. "I don't really enjoy internet poker," he told SA Sports Illustrated
SA Sports Illustrated
SA Sports Illustrated is a South African sports magazine published in print monthly.Founded in 1986, it is today South Africa's most popular sporting periodical...
recently, "but my contract says I have to play online for sixty hours a month. Internet poker is impersonal. You have no control over the game or your opponents."
He came into the online game only as a retirement hobby in 2006 after being introduced to it by a friend:
Initially I took part in cash competitions with online players, but I got frustrated because I kept losing money. I was about to give up when my friend suggested I try online gambling, and that's where it all began. I paid R77 to take part in a satellite tournament and made it through to a mini-tournament, where I had to pay R385 to sign up. I won that and was invited to the All Africa Poker Championship in SwazilandSwazilandSwaziland, officially the Kingdom of Swaziland , and sometimes called Ngwane or Swatini, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa, bordered to the north, south and west by South Africa, and to the east by Mozambique...
, not online but around the table, and, when I finished in the top four there, I got a travel package of R150,000 to the main WSOP tournament in Las VegasLas Vegas, NevadaLas Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
.
He was strongly supported there by a vociferous throng of his countrymen, especially after he eliminated Alexander Kravchenko, at which point it burst into a jubilant rendition of "Shosholoza
Shosholoza
Shosholoza is a Ndebele folk song that originated in Zimbabwe but was popularized in South Africa. The song is a traditional South African Folk song was sung by Ndebele all-male migrant workers that were working in the South African mines in a call and response style...
". It was only after the WSOP, however, that he decided to make a career
Career
Career is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as a person's "course or progress through life ". It is usually considered to pertain to remunerative work ....
of his hobby
Hobby
A hobby is a regular activity or interest that is undertaken for pleasure, typically done during one's leisure time.- Etymology :A hobby horse is a wooden or wickerwork toy made to be ridden just like a real horse...
: "I didn't want to be known as a one-hit wonder." Since then, he has picked up victories at Gold Reef City
Gold Reef City
Gold Reef City is a large amusement park in Johannesburg, South Africa. Located on an old gold mine, the park is themed around the gold rush on the Witwatersrand. Park staff wear period costumes of the 1880s, and the buildings on the park are designed to mimic the same period...
and Emperor's Palace locally, and Sanremo
Sanremo
Sanremo or San Remo is a city with about 57,000 inhabitants on the Mediterranean coast of western Liguria in north-western Italy. Founded in Roman times, the city is best known as a tourist destination on the Italian Riviera. It hosts numerous cultural events, such as the Sanremo Music Festival...
, Swaziland and the Aussie Millions
Crown Australian Poker Championship
The Australian Poker Championship, commonly known as Aussie Millions, is a series of poker tournaments held at the Crown Casino, in Melbourne, Australia...
in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, among others. As of 2009, his total live tournament winnings exceed $3,300,000. His 3 cashes at the WSOP account for $3,063,786 of those winnings.