button in SafariAmateur Beats the Pros to Take Down WPO Aix-les-Bains Main Event
At Casino Grand Cercle of Aix-les-Bains in the French Alps, many expected players such as the Winamax Team Pros to win the €500 Winamax Poker Open Main Event. But from a massive field of 2,873 entries, which generated a total prize pool of €1,185,974, local player Lucas Archeny, more accustomed to playing freerolls in local clubs than high rollers, made a strong impression and ultimately lifted the trophy.
The 23-year-old took home the €150,000 first-place prize after a hard-fought final table, defeating Etienne De Soultrait in heads-up play (2nd - €105,000), while streamer Mathieu Pontin finished third for €74,000.
2026 WPO Aix-les-Bains Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lucas Archeny | France | €150,000 |
| 2 | Etienne De Soultrait | France | €105,000 |
| 3 | Mathieu Pontin | France | €74,000 |
| 4 | Timothee D'Anfray | France | €51,500 |
| 5 | Nicolas Ehrath | France | €36,000 |
| 6 | Benjamin Goudard | France | €25,500 |
| 7 | Quentin Le Dissez | France | €18,500 |
From the Amateurs to the Pros
Archeny's journey into poker might be unusual for followers of the international circuit, but it fits the profile of a typical Winamax events player: someone who started playing for free at local clubs at 18, stepped up to low-stakes tournaments in the area, and eventually took a shot at this Main Event with success.
"It's an incredible feeling," he said after his win. "It’s hard to explain, but it’s something you never really feel. The adrenaline has come down a bit, and that crazy pressure just disappeared the second I saw the river. It's insane. I’ve just multiplied my biggest score by 15. The memories will come later, but for now, I’m just enjoying it 1,000%."
Despite being an amateur player, Archeny, who works in the accounting sector, showed no fear and gave the impression of a much more experienced player at the table. "Without trying to sound pretentious, I’ve got a few years of experience from playing in the amateur poker club scene, especially against quite a few of my opponents on Day 1, where you often have guys who aren’t as used to playing live. You can tell they’re a bit more stressed. So it helped me a lot with the tells, but also with feeling comfortable. For example, I think my opponent was under a lot of pressure at the final table. I just tried to stay calm, and I think I managed to do that."
His friends from his clubs, Bourg Hold'em Poker and ABC Poker de Saint-Denis-lès-Bourg, were, unsurprisingly, his first supporters. "I had 300,000 messages coming in all day, and a bit yesterday too, so I didn’t have time to reply to anyone," Archeny added. Bringing the trophy back to Friday's club game will be a nice way to thank them.
Now with €150,000 more in his bank account, Archeny doesn't plan to change his life much. "I’m definitely putting it into my bankroll and putting some aside to keep it safe. I’m not going to go crazy and start playing huge live tournaments straight away. If I play tournaments like the €1,500s, they’ll still be within my bankroll, so that’s fine. As for the rest, I really have no idea. I don’t know if I want to buy myself something. It’s not really going to change what I do next."
One thing is certain: he'll be back in March for the Winamax Poker Tour Grand Final, and next year to defend his title if the WPO Aix-les-Bains returns.
Final Day's Action
Better not to be late at the beginning of this final day, as five of the 17 remaining players were eliminated during the first hour of play. Things started in the very first hand with Nicolas Marin facing Etienne de Soultrait, both holding ace-king and the exact same stack. But the board completed a flush on the river for De Soultrait to eliminate Marin (17th - €6,300), who was followed at the cashier desk shortly after by Dimitri Callonnec (16th).
Boris Dupuis ran his ace-king into kings to take 15th place, then a coin flip ended Raphael Bilger's run in 14th place. Sebastien Studer was next to exit with pocket threes which failed to improve against jacks, bringing the field down to the final two tables.
Maxence Vié, however, didn't stay long because he doubled Paul Bigot moments before the redraw, leaving himself with just 25,000. He survived once, but was ultimately eliminated in 12th place (€8,300). Bigot didn't stay much longer at the table after running his ace-four into Nicolas Ehrath's aces, while Le Dissez at the same table hero-called to double up.
Hervé Ponthet doubled up as well, but was eliminated when he moved all-in a second time (10th - €11,000). After his elimination, the pace slowed down a little, but not for long, with Aymane Mamoun flopping two pair with ace-king. Unfortunately for him, Mathieu Pontin with jack-ten had a straight, so Mamoun's run ended in ninth place.
One more elimination was needed to reach the final table, and Leo Viales was the one to miss out, with ace-seven against king-ten. D'Anfray flopped a ten, Viales hit his ace on the turn, but D'Anfray found trips on the river to form the final table.
This final table started slowly, with two hours needed before Le Dissez ran into Archeny's aces to finish in seventh place (€18,500). De Soultrait and Benjamin Goudard both doubled up over the next few hands, but on the hand after his double-up, Goudard was at risk again with jacks against queens. He didn't find the jack he needed and had to leave the table in sixth place (€25,500).
Now the shortest stack at the table, Nicolas Ehrath didn't last much longer, losing with ace-deuce to ace-queen to take fifth place (€36,000).
A long streak of seven all-ins and calls followed over the next three hours, including a 60-minute dinner break, but no elimination was recorded, with three of the four remaining players doubling up once or twice. D'Anfray eventually found another opportunity to go all-in with queen-ten, but he fell to De Soultrait's queens. After starting the day as the chip leader, he took €51,500 for his fourth-place finish.
This elimination opened things up, with Archeny scoring a big double-up through Pontin before sending him to the rail thanks to a flopped set to start heads-up play with a 3:1 chip lead.
This gap however was closed by De Soultrait who hero-called with the third pair for his tournament's life to take the chip lead. But Archeny fought back by hitting a straight to be back in the lead. Both players eventually moved all-in a few hands later, and Archeny's king-seven stayed ahead to offer him the title.
A Winamax event wouldn't be complete without the winner's party that follows the Main Event. But the PokerNews coverage of the 2026 WPO Aix-les-Bains ends here.
In March, Winamax will head to Aix-en-Provence for the Winamax Poker Tour Grand Finale before potentially returning here next year for another WPO. "I had a coffee with the director of the casino. See you soon in Aix-les-Bains," Winamax Live Events Manager Matthieu Duran confessed at the mic during the winner's ceremony.
