IT professional and online poker grinder Aleksandr Shevliakov made headlines by taking down the prestigious 2025 European Poker Tour (EPT) Monte Carlo €5,300 No-Limit Hold’em Main Event, turning a €530 online satellite on PokerStars into a massive €1,000,000 ($1,130,000) payday.
The 37-year-old Russian player not only claimed the EPT Monte Carlo title, but also more than doubled his previous career-best score of $541,206, earned as runner-up in a €10,000 event at the 2023 EPT Paris festival.
“I won. It’s a dream come true. This is it,” Shevliakov said after his breakthrough win.
Massive Turnout in Monte Carlo
This year’s main event attracted 1,195 entries at the Sporting Monte-Carlo, making it the second-largest EPT Monte Carlo field ever, just shy of the 1,208-entry record set in 2024. The total prize pool hit $6,751,750, with 175 players making the money.
Among the top finishers were notable names such as:
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Ari Engel (34th) – Four-time WSOP bracelet winner
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Jose ‘Nacho’ Barbero (31st) – Latin American poker icon
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Juan Pardo (19th) – Spanish high-stakes regular
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Alexandros Kolonias (15th) – 2019 WSOP Europe Main Event champion
Final Table Action: Shevliakov Dominates
Day 6 began with six players, led by Boris Angelov, who was making an impressive back-to-back final table run after finishing runner-up here in 2024.
The first elimination came when Canada’s Jamil Wakil pushed Q-J suited into Shevliakov’s A-K suited. A king-high board sealed Wakil’s fate in sixth place for $225,718. Wakil appeared frustrated with how the hand unfolded and discussed the situation with both Shevliakov and Angelov before leaving the stage.
Wakil now boasts nearly $2.9 million in live tournament cashes.
Shortly after, Shevliakov knocked out Mariusz Golinski (5th – $293,687) in a cooler with A♥K♥ versus A♠9♠. The Q♥J♦10♥ flop gave Shevliakov the nut straight with a royal flush redraw. The 5♥ turn secured a flush, ending Golinski’s run. The Polish pro, who finished fourth in the 2024 WSOP Europe Main Event, now has over $1 million in career earnings.
Italy’s Enrico Coppola exited in fourth for a personal-best $381,827, losing a preflop all-in with J♦3♦ against Shevliakov’s pocket sixes.
Angelov’s remarkable run came to an end in third place, earning $496,296. With this cash and his $670,140 runner-up finish in 2024, Angelov has now amassed over $1.1 million at this event alone, and nearly $5.2 million in lifetime earnings. He fell when his A♣8♥ couldn’t outrun Khossein Kokhestani’s T♣6♠ on a 9♣7♣2♦10♠3♠ board.
Shevliakov Seals the Deal
Heads-up play began with Kokhestani, the 2024 Eureka Poker Tour Hamburg champion from Ukraine, holding a slim lead. Over several hours, including a dinner break and multiple lead changes, Shevliakov gradually gained the upper hand.
The final blow came after Shevliakov won a massive pot with sixes full against Kokhestani’s fives full on a double-paired board. On the final hand, Kokhestani limped the button with A♠6♣, and Shevliakov shoved with K♣2♥. The board ran out 9♦7♠2♣Q♥8♣, giving Shevliakov the winning pair of deuces.
Kokhestani took home $694,950 for his runner-up finish, bringing his career earnings to over $816,000.
