Originally from the Lake District, UK, I’ve spent the last few years living and breathing the Southeast Asian poker circuit. Since 2025, I’ve been a fixture on the floor at the APT, PokerStars, and WSOP events, serving as a lead reporter and media specialist for Somuchpoker. My work is about more than just recording action; I manage the social media and digital content that brings action rail to the fans. By combining a business education and creative background, I aim to look past the technical hand histories to capture the actual human grit and drama that happens during a deep run.

Updated: 2026.05.17

Sam Higgs is a Melbourne-born poker player who runs a successful tattoo parlour in Melbourne’s north — and who also holds a WSOP gold bracelet, won at the 2014 WSOP Asia-Pacific at Crown Casino in the $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha event, defeating a final table that included 2010 WSOP Main Event champion Jonathan Duhamel and WPT title holder Mike Watson. “The money is awesome,” he said afterwards. “But winning a bracelet is the ultimate prize.” His wife, watching from the rail, perhaps put it best: “He doesn’t care about the money, he just wants the bracelet. He loves the titles, the rings, trophies, bracelets.”

Career Earnings & Biggest Results

Total live earnings stand at over $1,304,000, per The Hendon Mob.

Career Highlights at a Glance
💰 Live Earnings: $1,304,000+ | 🏆 WSOP APAC Bracelet 2014: $127,843 (PLO) | 🎯 Defeated Duhamel & Watson | 📍 Melbourne tattoo parlour owner

Notable Results (click to expand)

Date	Event	Result	Prize
Oct 2014	WSOP APAC $5,000 PLO, Crown Melbourne (Bracelet)	1st / 80	A$127,843
2025	WPT Australia Main Event	1st	A$967,680
2014	WSOPC Sydney $5K Challenge (heads-up vs Brendon Rubie)	2nd	~$170,000

Biography & Poker Background

Higgs is from Melbourne and describes himself primarily as a business owner rather than a professional poker player — his tattoo parlour in Melbourne’s north is his main occupation, with poker as his parallel passion. That self-deprecating framing doesn’t match his results. He entered the 2014 WSOP APAC at Crown as the overnight chip leader after Day 2, holding more than half the chips in play with four times the stack of his nearest competitor. He navigated that advantage to a final table that included Jonathan Duhamel — the 2010 WSOP Main Event champion — and Mike Watson, one of Canada’s most decorated tournament players who had made six WSOP final tables without a bracelet. Higgs beat them both, winning the PLO event for A$127,843 and his first WSOP gold.

He also holds an Aussie Millions gold ring from a previous PLO title at Crown. His 2025 WPT Australia Main Event victory for A$967,680 — at the same venue — was the crowning result of his career and confirmed that the “part-time” label his self-description suggests is not supported by his tournament record.

“It was a tough line-up, but you have to push yourself. To beat the best you got to be the best, they say,” he told WSOP media after his bracelet win. “And PLO is definitely my preferred game.”

Play Style & Strategy

Higgs is a PLO specialist whose natural game in pot-limit Omaha — his preferred format — translates into unusually dominant performances when he enters premium events in that discipline. His chip-leading entry to the WSOP APAC final table and his subsequent methodical elimination of the field reflects a player in complete control of a format he has studied deeply.