button in SafariAliaksei Chernak Conquers King’s Again in €400 Deepstack Marathon Final Day
Despite only playing professionally for the last six years, Aliaksei Chernak already had a very significant score on his poker resume after earning the title in the 2023 Euro Poker Million at King's Resort. He has now repeated the feat, taking down the €400 Deepstack event at the 2026 King's Million European Poker Championship after a marathon final day that lasted almost 16 hours.
Chernak spends most of his time playing in the high roller scene in his native Belarus, but has found a second home in Rozvadov, defeating boundless in a lengthy heads-up battle to take home the King’s Million Royal Scepter, along with the top prize of €54,800.
€400 Deepstack Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aliaksei Chernak | Belarus | €54,800 |
| 2 | boundless | Cuba | €34,300 |
| 3 | Karol Radomski | Poland | €25,300 |
| 4 | Maciej Swicarz | Poland | €19,000 |
| 5 | Rafael Griman Pabon | Venezuela | €14,600 |
| 6 | Dan Galinschi | Romania | €11,200 |
| 7 | Andro Scarpa | Croatia | €8,700 |
| 8 | Alpine Nemesis | Czechia | €6,625 |
| 9 | ZAK TYGA | Belgium | €5,115 |
The tournament attracted 1,054 entries, generating a prize pool of €358,360 that saw 106 players return in the money to battle for the crown. Chernak sat in the middle of pack to begin Day 2, but his mindset was to get the most of his experience.
“Concentrate the maximum to play,” the champion told PokerNews shortly after his victory via translator. “Play, yes, but process the atmosphere, vibe, music. Like I know I'm enjoying and then look for all the process around people. I won't win, I won't win, no, only enjoy the moment.”
“I completely believed in myself, and then I had peace inside.”
Outlasting the Field
The first two hours of the final day trimmed almost half of the remaining field, who all returned having locked up at least €800 for earning a bag in one of the seven opening flights of the week.
Play then slowed down as the levels progressed toward the dinner break, and Chernak found himself among the shorter stacks when the final table of nine was determined. By then, his carefree mindset was already paying off as the prospects of a five-figure payday grew closer.
As the lights of the King's Resort feature table got brighter, Chernak was able to stay out of trouble while others met their fate and headed to the payout desk. It was boundless doing most of the damage, building up a big chip lead that would not last long.
Short Stack Survival
Chernak was short and at risk several times, including a pair of all in battles against boundless with just four players remaining. Chernak found an unlikely double when his kicker was dominated,
Just ten minutes later, Chernak was at risk against boundless only to come from behind and survive once more.
From there, Chernak knocked out Karol Radomski in third place before seeing the table tilt his way in heads-up play.
The final hand saw Chernak hold with a pair of tens, knocking out boundless to earn another big win at King's Resort.
"I feel here like home," Chernak explained of his time in Rozvadov. "It's really nice here. Things changed a lot, and I like it as well a lot. The new kitchen, the new games and everything, I really like it."
"Many moments in play today. Very lucky, right? I believe."
