Event #13: €8,400 GGMillion$ High Roller Day 1 | 2026 WSOP Europe

04-09-2026 17:46 UTC+2

Lam Takes It Down

Sava Krink

Level 3 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

There were around 38,000 in the pot with the board fully dealt 8♦3♠9♦6♥2♣. Chau Lam was all in in the big blind position for 48,200. Paulina Loeliger, in the cutoff, already had 15,000 committed and was left with a decision for the rest.

She used a time bank card before ultimately deciding against the call, sending her cards into the muck and conceding the pot to Lam.

Player	Chips	Progress
Chau Lam	101,000 42,600	42,600
Paulina Loeliger	73,500 42,900	42,900

Tags: Chau Lam Paulina Loelinger

04-09-2026 17:51 UTC+2

Smiles at the Table

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Sava Krink

Level 3 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

Ole Schemion had just arrived at the table and opened from under the gun to 1,600. Action folded to Jon Vallinas in the big blind, who called.

The flop came 7♣8♠10♣ and both players checked.

The 3♠ landed on the turn, and Vallinas fired a bet of 15,000, locking eyes with Schemion. The two shared a smile as they stared each other down. In the end, Schemion let his hand go, conceding the small pot to Vallinas after the playful over-bet.

Player	Chips	Progress
Ole Schemion	984,000

Jon Vallinas	168,000 3,300	3,300

Tags: Jon Vallinas Ole Schemion

04-09-2026 18:07 UTC+2

Loeliger Evens the Score

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Sava Krink

Level 3 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

One orbit later, in the same positions, Chau Lam and Paulina Loeliger found themselves in another clash.

The pot was around 12,000, and the board was fully laid out 10♦6♥5♠6♦4♠.

Lam, in the big blind, bet 7,500. Loeliger faced another tough decision, but this time made the call. Lam tabled J♣9♦ for a pair of sixes with a jack kicker, but Loeliger held 10♥8♦ for two pair, tens and sixes, scooping the pot and leveling the score.

Player	Chips	Progress
Paulina Loeliger	84,500 11,000	11,000
Chau Lam	73,400 27,600	27,600

Tags: Chau Lam Paulina Loeliger

04-09-2026 18:15 UTC+2

Popyk Scoops with Aces

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Sava Krink

Level 3 : Blinds 400/800, 800 ante

The board was fully laid out 2♦J♦9♠5♥6♣ with about 98,000 in the pot. Jiaming Zhao, first to act in middle position, checked to Ihor Popyk on the button, who moved all in for 117,300.

Zhao took his time, clearly wrestling with a tough decision. At one point he shuffled his cards and glanced at one, and it seemed that card convinced him to make the call. The card he checked was the J♣, pairing with his K♣ for a pair of jacks, but Popyk showed A♠A♣ for a pair of aces, taking the decent pot.

Player	Chips	Progress
Ihor Popyk	332,600 291,500	291,500
Jiaming Zhao	47,000 47,000	47,000

Tags: Ihor Popyk Jiaming Zhao

Level: 4

Blinds: 500/1,000

Ante: 1,000

04-09-2026 18:32 UTC+2

Duarte Takes the Straight

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Sava Krink

Level 4 : Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

In a three-way pot of about 65,000, the board had run out 4♠6♥K♣8♦10♣. Aylar Lie, first to act in the small blind, checked. Diogo Duarte went all in, covering both opponents, and Chenxiang Miao called.

Lie went into the tank, burning through a few time bank cards before folding, leaving the hand to a showdown.

Miao held K♥9♦ for a pair of kings, but Duarte tabled 7♥5♦ for a straight, scooping the pot and sending Miao to the rail.

Player	Chips	Progress
Diogo Duarte	316,000 177,000	177,000
Aylar Lie	80,000
Chenxiang Miao	Busted

Tags: Aylar Lie Chenxiang Miao Diogo Duarte

04-09-2026 18:42 UTC+2

Barbero Hits the Full House

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Sava Krink

Level 4 : Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

The pot was around 11,500 with the board showing 5♣9♠Q♥7♠9♣.

Nacho Barbero, first to act in the big blind, bet 20,000, leaving himself just 500 behind.

Roman Hrabec, in the hijack, pushed his stack of time bank cards forward, signaling that this decision would take a while. After using almos all of them, he made the call, only to see Barbero table Q♠9♦ for a full house. Hrabec’s hand quickly went into the muck.

Player	Chips	Progress
Nacho Barbero	52,000

Roman Hrabec	28,600 75,900	75,900

Tags: Nacho Barbero Roman Hrabec

04-09-2026 18:54 UTC+2

Enraged Player Disqualified from WSOP Europe + Special Co-Host Josh Arieh | PokerNews Podcast #954

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Chad Holloway

Level 4 : Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

In the 954th episode of the PokerNews Podcast, Chad Holloway is at the 2026 World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) in Prague, where he is joined by special guest cohost Josh Arieh, the 2021 WSOP Player of the Year.

Together, they discuss the enraged player who was disqualified deep in the €5,300 PLO European Championship, players who were upset onthe bubble of that tournament when a chip leader gave the short-stacked big blind a walk, and recent bracelet winners such as Ole Schemion, Mike Leah, and Pedro Faustino.

Arieh then talks about his deep run in the WSOP Europe Main Event, which ended in no small part due to his pocket aces getting cracked on the river. He also shares his thoughts on Prague, having the support of his wife, the Poker Hall of Fame, and playing golf with Daniel Negreanu.

Finally, Chad tells you a bit about PokerNews' MyPlayers feature and catches up with 2023 WSOP Player of the Year Ian Matakis, who made the trip from Minnesota over to Prague. Will he be going for POY again?

Find out all about those stories and more in the latest episode of the PokerNews Podcast! Oh, and be sure to check out the audio version of the PokerNews Podcast that is available on all major podcasting platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and SoundCloud.

A new PokerNews Podcast drops every day this week at approximately 8a PT / 11a ET / 4p UK time. Remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel so you do not miss an episode!

Click here to listen to the new PN Podcast!

04-09-2026 19:01 UTC+2

Maue Out, Machado Flops Quads

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Sava Krink

Level 4 : Blinds 500/1,000, 1,000 ante

The main pot was 1,500 with Leonard Maue all in from the cutoff, while a side pot of around 9,900 had four players battling for it.

The flop came 7♥8♥8♦, and the blinds checked to Atanas Malinov in the hijack, who bet 2,200. Andre Marques on the button and Hugo Machado in the small blind both called. Juho Suutari in the big blind then raised to 8,500. Malinov folded, but Marques and Machado stuck around.

The J♣ landed on the turn. The blinds checked again, Marques bet 24,000, Machado called, and Suutari mucked. Maue had already left the table, giving up his hand.

On the Q♠ river, Machado checked once more, and after some thought, Marques checked back, setting up a showdown. Maue had A♦9♠ for ace high, Marques held 5♥4♥ for a missed flush, but Machado revealed 8♣8♠ for flopped quads, scooping the multiway pot.