by Simon Young

Joe Hachem has good reason to stay away from the heaving Amazon Room today. After all, he spent all of yesterday in the place before making it through with 35,300 chips, and is probably grateful for the chance of a rest. But somehow I suspect he will show up at some stage to railbird two of those close to him. First up is his brother, Tony, playing in the Main Event and hoping to emulate Joe's great success of 2005.

Tony Hachem
Tony is a handy player in his own right. He has already cashed here at the WSOP, coming 57th for $7,185 in the $5,000 No Limit six handed event. Just days earlier he scooped $22,000 after finishing fifth in a $1,000 event at the nearby Venetian Hotel, and when I passed by today he was looking solid with his starting stack of 20,000 still intact.

Another Joe will be watching for is his great mate from Australia, Emad Tahtouh. It was Emad, flying the PokerStars flag today, who persuaded Joe to come to the World Series in 2005 and the rest, as they say, is history. Emad has proved himself many times. I watched last September as he finished runner-up to Vicky Coren at the EPT London, taking home $538,000. Sitting in the stands at that final table, cheering his buddy on, was Joe. He even had a turn on the microphone, calling the cards.


Emad Tahtouh
As I stroll around the tournament area I am always struck by the varying shapes and sizes of the players, or their startling diversity in fashion sense. Today, I was noting some very different hair styles on offer. So here's a quick peek at what's on offer in the WSOP Hair Salon...


Charity pink punk
First up is this pink-topped pro. But Gavin Griffin sports the weird style for a reason - to promote a breast cancer charity. He won the PokerStars EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo just a few months ago, explaining that his fund-raising began after his girlfriend fell victim to breast cancer. Thankfully, she is well again now. We wish him well at this event.


Going Green
This mystery guy had gone hideous green for the day, but for no discernible reason other than perhaps mistaking the dye bottle for the shampoo.


Long hair tied up in a ponytail
Here's one of the many ponytails being sported today, on this occasion by one of our PokerStars qualifiers.


Name that man
And here's another chap with long locks, this time left flowing freely. Perhaps you can recognise him by the hat? I'll give you a clue: His first name is Chris and he won the WSOP Main Event in 2000.


Close shave
Finally here's the opposite to the long-haired look - the shaved head, complete with headphones. This would seem to be the most sensible style considering the oven-like temperatures we have been experiencing in Vegas