Sam Farha just oozes a classic gambler style. Dangling a "lucky" never-smoked cigarette from his lips and piercing his opponents with dark, mysterious eyes - Farha commands respect. Farha is always polished, well-dressed, and confident. Throw in his unpredictable, aggressive style, and one can quickly see how his presence spells intimidation for his opponents.
Born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1959 - Farha developed a passion and incredible talent for pool, Pac-Man, and eventually poker. He was known as the "Pinball Wizard" of Beirut. The threat of civil war in his homeland prompted Farha's move to the United States in 1977 to escape his native country's turmoil. He settled in Wichita, Kansas where he earned an undergraduate degree in business administration from the University of Kansas. Although poker was his real calling, he took a sensible path and used his degree to land a few regular jobs upon moving to Houston with his brother in 1991. The urge for poker was strong for Farha. After turning $2,000 into $7,000 during a gambling trip to Las Vegas he decided to pursue poker professionally. In 1996 he won the WSOP Pot Limit Omaha event. In the same event he placed third in 2001 and second in 2002. Ditching the regular job was wise. To date, Farha's lifetime earnings exceed $2,000,000, with over $1.5 million earned from tournament poker. Farha has earned fame and respect in the gambling world and has been a spokesperson for Harrah's. Among Farha's other notable wins are $1,300,000 at the 2003 WSOP where he lost a legendary match to Chris Moneymaker, and $398,560 during the 2006 WSOP. He is still going strong in 2007 with recent wins including $25,000 at the WPT's No Limit Holdem championship, 83rd place at the Five Star World Poker Classic for $46,400, and two wins at the Las Vegas Poker After Dark event.
