Just the second Czech player to join Team PokerStars (Martin Hruby being the first), the 35-year-old from Třinec was officially anointed in a Czech release from PokerStars today.
A former auto plant worker, Staszko has been playing poker for less than five years but has already developed into one of the strongest tournament players in the Czech Republic.
Starting out playing online freerolls, Staszko has since earned nearly four million Czech Koruna (roughly $200,000 USD) playing online under the alias “filfedra.”
He biggest scores however have come in live tournaments.
Most notable are an 11th-place finish in 2010 at EPT Deauville for €35,000 and of course his massive Main Event cash this year for $5,433,086.
“I enjoy a live game,” Staszko said in the release, “but for practical reasons it is better online. I can play every day without ancillary costs.
“The Czech Republic has almost no decent live tournaments. Even tournaments with buy-ins of five or ten thousand crowns for me are not interesting when you have to pay hotel and travel."
Staszko will amend his online preference however to join world champ Pius Heinz in wearing the PokerStars patch for the upcoming live EPT Prague event.
Action starts at the Prague Hilton Congress Hall on Dec. 5.
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