The prestigious and this year even record-breaking € 10,350 WSOP Europe Main Event gathered up to 688 entries, creating a €6,536,000 prize pool and the winner was awarded with a beautiful prize of €1,276,712 along with the most valuable bracelet.

Josef Guláš Jr., who entered the Main Event thanks to a ticket from the Italian Poker Sport tournament, took home the bracelet and the aforementioned huge financial reward. Of course, we did not miss the opportunity to interview the champion of such a prestigious tournament and we asked him for a longer interview. Enjoy!

Hi, first of all we want to congratulate you on this incredibe success. Many of our readers may not know you, so you could tell us something about yourself at the beginning, e.g. how old are you, where are you from, how long have you been playing poker?

"Hello, thank you very much. I am 29 years old and I am from Most. I focus primarily on Cash games. I've been playing poker since I was 15, when I started playing with my high school peers on breaks."

Do you work somewhere or is poker your only income?

„I have a business, I take poker as extra income.“

Do you also do any sports, or what sports do you watch? Except for poker, of course.

„I've been playing football since I was little, until I was 15 at the highest level, but it didn't work out. I didn't have discipline, I didn't work hard. Now I know that hard work is behind it all. Talent is never enough in any sport. I don't play football now, because I have had some stomach problems for the last 2 years, but I continue to watch football regularly, it's a part of my life. I also watch tennis and hockey.“

With one win, you immediately surpassed all the lifetime winnings of your father, who is a well-known name on the Czech poker scene. Was he the one who brought you to poker?

„I found my way to poker myself.“

We saw your first major win at the IPS final table in October, where you took home almost €38,000 and a ticket to the WSOPE Main Event. What did this success mean to you? Did you have any idea where you can get through that ticket?

„It certainly didn't occur to me how far I could go. It's a huge success for me, which I really appreciate.“

Lockdowns were also incforce in the Czech Republic - how did you take advantage of this forced break? Did you study the game or play online poker?

„I studied the game, played online and I was quite successful. I hit the final table twice in a row"

Were you on a table with a well-known foreign name during the WSOP, or one of the home players you were worried about?

„I met many great players on the table, both foreign and Czech, I respect every player, but I would not say that was directly worried about someone“

Have you ever played at the same table with your father? If so, do you take him as your opponent and give him nothing for freee, or do you prefer to cut him some slack?

„I never played with my father on the table. Once we where close to the Final table in Rozvadov, but I think I dropped  11.“

Do you have any poker role models? Someone you like and watch him play?

„I really like the tournament game by Michael Addamo and Justin Bonomo. They are something like Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi in football. A big step further than everyone else.“

Let's move on to the WSOPE Main Event itself. How did you play, did you feel comfortable, were you lucky to have good seats?

„I played comfortably, very slow structure, so there was no hurry. Great atmosphere, so perfect.”

Did you prepare in any special way before the final day? Have you discussed with anyone how to play such a prestigious tournament?

„I prepared regularly after each playing day for another hour in bed.“

Did you feel pressured by the influence of that huge money on the final table?

„I tried not to think about it, I felt pretty cool.“

Did you study your opponents and their game before the final table? Who did you "fear" the most?

„I already knew my opponents from the previous playing days, so I already knew something about them and I googled the rest of the players.“

You weren't on the TV table for the first time, does the whole show around you have any effect on you or you can push it all out and focus only on the game?

„I can always just concentrate on my game, I had no problem with the show around it.“

You earned an incredible amount of € 1,276,712, which is more than CZK 32,470,000. What do you plan to do with the prize? Are you planning to buy a property, or a dream luxury car?

„I plan to buy a family house and then we will see.“

Do you plan to invest part of the money, e.g. to cryptocurrencies or something else on the stock market?

„I have no plans to invest in the cryptocurrencies“

Was winning the bracelet a dream for you, or you don't collect such prizes, trophies and it's more about that money?

„It's mainly about money, but the bracelet was a dream“

The March EPT stop in Prague has already been announced - will you be a part of it?

„I will be at the EPT in Prague for Cash Games“

Will you now travel around the world and try your luck in other big tournaments, such as the Las Vegas WSOP? Or will you take advantage of this fat reward and move on to higher stakes?

„I want to go to Las Vegas and Miami. I will continue to focus primarily on Cash games. I will not move to higher stakes, I will continue to play limits up to 25/50 €“

Have any sponsors approached you yet?

„Someone has already contacted me.“

Do you watch poker live streams? Maybe live streams from our production?

„I watch poker live streams and I also saw a live stream from your production. Good work!“

Josef, thank you very much for the interview, congratulations once again, we wish you much success and a Merry Christmas.

„Thank you very much again, I also wish you a lot of success and a beautiful Christmas.“

Source: Tomáš Stacha, Pokernews.com, Kings Resort