Seat 2: Blaz Zerjav, 26, Brezice, Slovenia – 9,800,000
Blaz Zerjav was a semi-professional footballer who played for NK Krsko in Slovenia's second division. But since December 2018, it's "no more football, only poker."
The reason is simple: a $1.3 million online score changed Zerjav's life. The whopping payout came after he'd qualified for the tournament for just a few dollars.
Zerjav first picked up poker thanks to his brother, who had played since he turned 18 but soon quit. Blaz, though, eventually made it his career.
He likes traveling, so playing live events goes nicely with his hobby. However, Zerjav says that he still plays mostly online. He used to specialize in Fifty50s back in the day when the format was still popular, but now he's entirely focusing on MTTs.
Outside poker, Zerjav and his wife enjoy reading books together. Currently, they're in the middle of Spare, Prince Harry's memoir.
Zerjav says he also likes to play video games but may not have much time for that anymore; he'll soon become a first-time dad.