Elias Suhonen Wins €10,200 EPT Barcelona for €114,200

Elias Suhonen claims a high-roller title in Barcelona

Finland’s Elias Suhonen added another major live result to his résumé by winning the €10,200 No-Limit Hold’em event at the PokerStars EPT Barcelona festival. The tournament drew a small but extremely tough field of 31 entries, and Suhonen closed it out by defeating Nicholas Seward heads-up to earn €114,200 from a €310,000 prize pool.

That kind of event is never easy money. In a field packed with experienced regulars, every decision carries extra weight, especially once stacks get shallower and ICM pressure starts shaping the final stages. In other words, this was not just a trophy run — it was a true high-stakes test of adjustment, patience, and endgame execution.

Final table takeaways from the €10,200 No-Limit Hold’em event

The final table reflected the international nature of EPT Barcelona. French player Jean-Noel Thorel finished third for €48,900, Morocco’s Mehdi Chaoui took fourth for €35,300, and American Brandon Wilson placed fifth for €28,600.

That mix of nationalities is typical for a major European festival, where elite live pros and ambitious travelers meet in the same room and the edges are often thin. In a compact field like this, table dynamics matter enormously: one mistimed bluff, one thin value spot, or one bad call can swing the entire payout structure.

Suhonen’s victory also marked his fourth six-figure live score, according to the report. That detail matters because it separates a one-off heater from a player who consistently performs at the highest level. For tournament grinders, repeated six-figure finishes are often the clearest sign of durability in elite live poker.

Erik Lindqwist and the other EPT Barcelona side-event winners

While the €10,200 event grabbed the biggest headlines, several side events produced their own standout stories. Sweden’s Erik Lindqwist won the €5,200 No-Limit Hold’em 6-Max, a tournament that logged 37 entries including re-entries and built a €185,000 prize pool. His €68,200 payday was described as the biggest live score of his career.

Finland’s Luka Sorainen finished runner-up in that event for €43,950. In 6-Max poker, where ranges widen and pressure ramps up quickly, results like this often reward players who can balance aggression with discipline over a much smaller sample of hands than a full-ring event.

Spain’s Francisco Iwan Molina also produced a breakout result by winning the €1,100 No-Limit Hold’em Single Re-Entry. The event attracted 251 entries, and Molina banked €42,635 for first place. The interesting wrinkle is that PokerNews noted his Hendon Mob profile previously showed only one recorded result, making this a significant jump for a player with very limited live history.

Seniors and Hyper Turbo titles add more big stories

The €1,100 No-Limit Hold’em Seniors event drew 280 entrants and generated a €280,000 prize pool. Dutch player and WSOP bracelet winner Antoine Vranken emerged as champion, collecting €55,650. Ireland’s Dara O’Kearney finished fourth for €19,220, another strong showing in a field that mixed seasoned experience with deep tournament know-how.

In the €2,100 No-Limit Hold’em Hyper Turbo Freezeout, Italy’s Youness Barakat defeated Japan’s Sho Homma heads-up in a 42-player field. PokerNews reported that the win pushed Barakat’s lifetime earnings closer to $3.5 million.

Hyper turbos are a very different skill test. With little room for postflop maneuvering, players must be comfortable pushing small edges, handling short-stack spots, and making fast decisions under pressure. It is a format that rewards technical clarity as much as nerve.

Expert analysis: what these EPT Barcelona results tell us

EPT Barcelona is a reminder that modern live poker success is often built across multiple formats, not just the marquee main event. For professionals, side events provide a faster path to meaningful profit and a chance to convert strong form into immediate momentum.

There are several strategic lessons here:

• high-roller fields are small, but the skill density is extremely high;
• 6-Max and Hyper Turbo events reward players who are comfortable with wider ranges and shorter-stack pressure;
• re-entry structures often increase aggression, because players can take more calculated risks;
• for aspiring players, studying these results can help with format selection and bankroll planning.

If you want to understand how players prepare for festival poker, it helps to compare poker rooms, poker clubs, and structured study options like poker school. The right environment matters when the buy-ins climb and the mistakes get expensive.

What comes next at EPT Barcelona

The 2026 EPT Barcelona festival is scheduled to run through August 29, so more big finishes are still on the table at Casino Barcelona. With live coverage ongoing, the event continues to offer a snapshot of who is running hot, who is proving elite, and who is turning deep runs into career-changing results.

For Suhonen, this win reinforces his place among the strongest names in high-stakes live poker. For Lindqwist, Vranken, Molina, and Barakat, the side events delivered exactly what tournament poker promises at its best: one strong run can change a season, and sometimes a career.

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