Hawkins claims he got hooked on gambling after placing his first winning bet on the 1974 Derby (10p on Snow Knight at 66/1.) He began playing five card draw at school as a teenager, and was later introduced to Texas hold 'em by Neil Channing.
Hawkins writes regular articles for Card Player Magazine and The Hendon Mob's website and also posts on their forum as The Camel. He also posts on the BlondePoker and Two Plus Two forums.