Andrey Zaichenko

Although Moscow native Andrey Zaichenko has been around on the live tournament scene for over a decade now, it is only in the last few years that he has become eminent. His breakout year came in 2014 when he shipped the EPT Prague €10,000 No Limit Hold’em High Roller event for a huge $606,924. These high buy-in tournaments are known to attract accomplished players, and this field was no different with the Russian having to get past the likes of Ole Schemion, Martin Finger and Dario Sammartino to claim the gold.

2014 also saw Andrey have an extremely deep run in the most prestigious tournament in poker – the WSOP Main Event. Although he ultimately fell short of a seat at the November Nine after finishing in seventeenth for $347,521, getting this far in a tournament with more than 6,600 runners is a testament to his ability. Also final-tabling the WSOP $1,500 10-Game Mix event this same year, this collection of scores saw Zaichenko take home well over $1,000,000 in live tournament earnings in 2014

Two years on and Zaichenko achieved the dream of every poker player – to win a WSOP bracelet. His performance in the 2016 $1,500 Limit 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball earned him this accolade along with a six-figure sum to boot. Speaking with WSOP.com after the win, Andrey explained his happiness: ‘In Russia, we have so many good players. I am just so glad to have my name now up there along with them’.

Now with more than $2,900,000 in live tournament earnings, Zaichenko has an equally impressive record online. Playing under the screenname ‘Kroko-dill’ on PokerStars, the Russian’s most notable online scores include a Sunday Million win back in 2011 for $170,854 along with three WCOOP titles. In addition to the $1,600,000+ he has earned on PokerStars, his Full Tilt MTT winnings exceed $700,000 aided by wins in two major FTOPS events.