Joao Vieira opened to 5,000 from under the gun, which only Sergiu Sirghi called in the big blind.
When Sirghi checked on the A♣10♦K♠ board, Vieira continued for 4,500, which Sirghi called.
The dealer added the 5♣ turn to the board, and this time, when Vieira put a more substantial 22,500 into the middle, Sirghi surrendered and returned his cards to the dealer.
Longmao Fan had opened under the gun when Bosco Li put in a three-bet to 15,000 in middle position. Marcelo Bonanata then called all-in in the cutoff for exactly that amount, and Fan reshoved when the action was back on him.
Li went deep into the tank, eventually deciding to call off his stack of 71,500 to put himself at risk of elimination.
Marcelo Bonanata: K♥K♦ 
Bosco Li: A♠K♠
Longmao Fan: Q♥Q♣
Li's dire situation improved as the 5♥4♣J♠3♠ turn gave him flush and straight outs, but the river fell the inconsequential 4♦ instead.
Bonanata scooped the pot with his kings, and Fan was awarded the sizable side pot with his pocket queens.
Xavier Cortazar raised to 4,000 from under the gun, which only Will Kassouf called in the big blind.
Kassouf checked on the 9♠A♦J♥ flop before calling a continuation bet of 5,000.
The 5♣ turn joined the board, and when Kassouf checked for a second time, Cortazar continued with a bet of 12,000, which was enough to see Kassouf relinquish his hand.
In a pot of roughly 60,000, Ben Heath got his stack of 71,500 in from under the gun on the A♠10♠9♣ flop against Marcelo Bonanata in the hijack, who had him covered.
Ben Heath: A♣K♣
Marcelo Bonanata: A♦7♦
Heath's kicker remained in play on the J♥5♣ runout to double him up and cross the 200,000-mark.
The 2026 EPT Monte-Carlo Main Event saw 1,011 players join the field, generating a prize pool of €4,903,350.
The top 151 players will receive a payout, with a minimum cash of €9,200.
All eyes will be on the first-place prize, though, as the eventual champion is set to walk away with €825,000, alongside the coveted Golden Shard trophy.
| Place | Prize | Place | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | €825,000 | 16-17 | €37,200 |
| 2 | €515,000 | 18-20 | €32,350 |
| 3 | €368,750 | 21-23 | €28,150 |
| 4 | €283,550 | 24-27 | €24,450 |
| 5 | €218,300 | 28-31 | €21,300 |
| 6 | €167,850 | 32-39 | €18,500 |
| 7 | €129,050 | 40-55 | €16,100 |
| 8 | €99,450 | 56-71 | €13,950 |
| 9 | €76,500 | 72-95 | €12,150 |
| 10-11 | €61,700 | 96-119 | €10,600 |
| 12-13 | €51,400 | 120-151 | €9,200 |
| 14-15 | €42,800 |
With 15,000 in the pot and a monotone 8♦J♦3♦ flop face up on the felt, the action was on Giuseppe Calio, who bet 3,500. Julien Sitbon responded by moving all in for 17,000, which Calio called.
Julien Sitbon: J♠10♠
Giuseppe Calio: 8♠8♥
Sitbon required running cards to keep his Main Event run alive, but the K♠ turn was unforthcoming.
The board was completed by the 6♠, and, as Sitbon left the area, Calio absorbed his opponent's stack into his own.
With around 13,000 in the pot on a heads-up A♣K♠10♠ flop, Jimmy Armougom had made it 15,000 to go, and Nikita Kuznetsov moved all in. Armougom debated for a while before calling off his stack of 105,000, being covered by his opponent.
Jimmy Armougom: A♠10♦
Nikita Kuznetsov: A♥A♦
The J♠ turn brought Armougom flush outs as well as some opportunities for a chop, but the 8♥ river bricked off to decide the massive pot in Kuznetsov's favor.
Not much later, Espen Jorstad moved in his last 15,000 or so from the big blind and was called by Oshri Lahmani in the cutoff.
Espen Jorstad: A♦J♣
Oshri Lahmani: A♥K♥
Jorstad needed to hit a gutshot after the K♠10♣9♠ flop, but it was not to be as the 4♣6♦ runout remained clean for Lahmani.
Defending champion Aleksandr Shevliakov and start-of-day chip leader Paraskevas Tsokaridis were in a blind-on-blind battle. With 13,500 in the pot, they
arrived on the K♥Q♥8♠6♦ turn.
Shevliakov bet 4,000, which Tsokaridis raised to 15,500. Shevliakov then three-bet to 33,000, and Tsokaridis called. Shevliakov checked once the A♣ fell on the river, prompting Tsokaridis to put his opponent all-in for 47,500.
Shevliakov did not take long before mucking his cards, and Tsokaridis soared across the 400,000-mark by winning the pot.
2023 EPT Monte-Carlo runner-up Leonard Maue got his above-average stack of 108,500 in from the cutoff, being put at risk by Maxime Manzone in early position.
Leonard Maue: A♥K♥
Maxime Manzone: Q♥Q♦
Manzone's queens remained ahead on the 9♠5♥4♣3♦ flop and turn, but Maue made a straight on the 2♣ river to scoop the pot and double up.
Manzone was left with eight big blinds, which he lost not much later to be eliminated.
Arriving as Christopher Nguyen's stack was being pushed across the table to Alan Buttner, the high-roller regular had put his stack in the middle versus ace-king, holding an inferior ace-high.
Buttner's hand remained best as the dealer spread a low board, and Nguyen was eliminated.
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