The King's Million EPC Super Main Event has a champion. A Romanian professional playing under the name Nik won the €1,150 Super Main Event at King's Resort in Rozvadov for €546,100, closing out a seven-day tournament that drew 7,013 entries and built a prize pool of €6,855,207. It is the largest live win of his career, and it came at the end of a series in which he had already reached another final table.
For a tournament that sits at the very top of the European Poker Championship (EPC) schedule, the numbers are worth unpacking. They say a lot about how big the Czech poker calendar has become, how deal-making works at a final table, and what a mid-priced buy-in can still deliver in 2026.
The numbers behind the Super Main Event
According to PokerNews coverage of the event, the Super Main Event attracted 7,013 entries, well above the advertised guarantee. The resulting prize pool of €6,855,207 comfortably cleared the guarantee, which means there was no overlay for the organizers to cover. Day 1e alone, the final starting flight, drew 1,763 entries, which was a record for the series.
Only 852 players reached Day 2 inside the money. That works out to roughly 12 percent of the field, which is a fairly standard payout ratio for large-field live events but still means close to nine in ten entries went home with nothing. Nik was the chip leader of that group when Day 2 began and stayed at or near the top of the leaderboard for most of the tournament.
If you are used to online fields, a live field of this size is remarkable. A €1,150 event with more than seven thousand entries is the sort of number you normally associate with the biggest online Sunday tournaments. It is a reminder that the appeal of a King's Resort festival is not only the prize pool. Players travel for the structure, the atmosphere, and the chance to win the King's Million Royal Scepter, a trophy that Nik also took home.
How the final table played out
The final table was nine-handed and featured players from across Europe: France, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Czechia, Germany, and Italy. The lower payouts were as follows: Antonio Sciacca of Italy took €61,300 for ninth, Erdinc Guentay of Germany earned €82,800 for eighth, Pavel Stribrny of Czechia collected €111,300 for seventh, Wiktor Weiner of Poland won €148,300 for sixth, and Mourad Tounnouti of the Netherlands banked €202,300 for fifth.
The top four players agreed a four-way deal. PokerNews reported that the deal left more than €200,000 to play for, with the extra money going to the top two finishers. That structure is important. Instead of splitting the entire remaining prize pool, the players locked in their ICM-based amounts and kept a significant bonus on the table for the winner and runner-up.
Nik was only third in chips at four-handed, so the deal suited him. He later explained his thinking plainly to PokerNews: "I would not accept the deal if I was the chip leader." Once the deal was done he doubled up with pocket eights, then eliminated Lyubomir of Bulgaria in third place with pocket queens. Heads-up against France's Christophe Vincent, Nik won the final hand with two pair to claim the title. Vincent was the runner-up, and the combined payouts for the top two places landed well into six figures.
One note on the numbers: published payout tables for deal-affected finishes can be confusing, because the deal amounts and the original payout ladder are often mixed together. The headline figure that matters is the one Nik received for the win, €546,100.
Why Nik's deal logic makes sense
The quote about the chip leader is a good summary of how experienced players think about deals. A final-table deal is usually calculated with an ICM model, which converts chip stacks into expected prize-pool equity. If you want a refresher on how that works, see our explainer on what ICM is.
In simple terms, a chip leader's ICM value is smaller than the chip lead might suggest, because the payout curve is relatively flat compared with the stack difference. Even so, the chip leader usually has the greatest chance of winning the top prize. The chip leader therefore gives up more by taking a deal than a short or medium stack does. A medium stack, like Nik at four-handed, gets a guaranteed amount that is often higher than he could expect from playing on.
That is why Nik's logic holds up. As the third-largest stack, he stood to gain from locking in a six-figure amount and still playing for the extra money. As the chip leader, he said he would have declined. It is a simple rule of thumb many pros use: the deal favours the short and medium stacks; the chip leader needs a reason to take it.
Nik's background and the breakout
This was not a case of an unknown player stumbling into a deep run. Nik told PokerNews that he plays professionally. He finished seventh in the €1,000 Mystery Bounty earlier in the same series, a week before the Super Main Event victory. In January he won a WSOP Circuit ring in the €3,000 High Roller at King's Resort, and he had reached four other final tables at the venue since 2023.
That sort of record at a single venue is worth noting. Large live festivals reward players who put in volume, understand the structure, and adapt to the way the fields play. The King's Million series is known for deep stacks and long levels, which favours skill, and Nik's repeated final tables suggest he has found a style that works there.
He also said the result was "over the expectation, over the guarantee," a reference to the fact that the field and prize pool were much bigger than the advertised number. That is the kind of comment that sums up the series: even the organizers' bold guarantee looked small by the end.
What this means for players
There are a few practical takeaways for anyone planning to play big-field live events.
First, field size is a benefit and a challenge. A 7,000-entry field means a huge first prize, but it also means a long grind and a lot of variance. Only about 12 percent of players cash. If you are planning a trip to a festival like this, budget for several buy-ins and think about your bankroll before you register. Our guide to bankroll management explains how to size your tournament budget.
Second, learn to value deals. Many players accept or reject deals based on instinct. Understanding ICM lets you make an informed choice. Use a calculator, ask for the numbers, and decide based on your stack, your skill edge, and your appetite for risk. Our poker odds calculator is a good place to practise the math on specific hands, while the tournaments hub covers general tournament strategy.
Third, qualify smartly. Large-field festivals regularly run satellites and online qualifiers. If you cannot afford a €1,150 buy-in straight up, a smaller satellite may be a better route. Online sites that run qualifying tournaments for live events are worth checking, and our online poker vs live poker comparison explains how the two formats differ in structure and cost.
The bigger picture for European poker
The record Day 1e count and the €6.8 million pool say something about the health of European live poker. Post-pandemic recovery has been strong in Central Europe, and King's Resort has benefited from its location, its schedule, and its reputation for well-run events. Attendance at a festival like this feeds the whole ecosystem: satellites, side events, cash games, and online qualifiers.
For players in the United States and Canada, events like this are a reminder that the best live value often sits outside North America. The €1,150 buy-in is below the price of many US mid-stakes events, but the guarantee and field size are far larger. If you are planning a poker trip, the WSOP schedule is a useful point of comparison for what buy-ins and structures look like on other circuits.
Final thoughts
Nik's win was built on stack management, a smart deal, and a few key coolers going his way. He entered Day 2 with the chip lead, found himself in the middle of the pack at four-handed, took a deal that protected his downside, and then played the final hand well to take the title and the Royal Scepter. It is a good example of how a professional navigates a final table: respect the ICM math, keep the upside alive, and take the chances when they come.
For the rest of us, the lesson is the same as it always is. Big fields create big opportunities, but the edge comes from preparation, discipline, and a clear understanding of the numbers. Whether you play live or online, the fundamentals in our poker strategy hub remain the best place to start.