WPO Aix-les-Bains: 32 Left in Main Event, High Roller Update

WPO Aix-les-Bains Main Event: only 32 players remain

Late in the evening, the WPO in Aix-les-Bains is moving exactly the way a major live series often does: the Main Event is shrinking fast, and every elimination brings the field closer to the money jumps and the final stretch. With the pace of bustouts accelerating, the remaining players are now operating in a very different environment from the one they faced earlier in the day.

Several well-known names have already fallen, including Pierre Calamusa, Leo Margets, Benjamin Chalot, and Hervé Gouzil. That matters because it reminds us how unforgiving deep tournament poker can be: reputation does not buy safety, and even experienced professionals can run into brutal spots once the stacks get shallower and the pressure rises.

Among the 32 players still alive, one recognizable name stands out above the rest: Matthieu Pontin, aka “Laponte”. He is seated at the TV table and currently holds 3,255,000 chips. With blinds at 70,000 / 140,000 / 140,000, that stack is now in the zone where every preflop decision, every river value bet, and every shove can have huge tournament consequences.

The average stack is 4,633,000, and every remaining player is locked up for at least €3,300. The exact end time of the day is still not officially known, which adds one more layer of uncertainty. At this stage, stamina, focus, and emotional control matter just as much as hand selection.

High Roller: the field is down to 117 players

The High Roller has also progressed significantly. From a starting field of 344, only 117 players remain, and the prize pool has climbed to €297,000. That is the point where tournament poker starts to separate the players who can consistently apply pressure from those who struggle once the average stack becomes more meaningful.

Blinds are now back at 3,000 / 7,000 / 7,000, while the average stack sits at 337,000 chips. In a field like this, stack depth is everything: a healthy stack can dictate action, while shorter stacks are forced to pick their battles carefully and look for the right all-in spots.

• Benjamin Chalot — 520,000
• Jbzz — over 800,000
• Davidi Kitai — 670,000
• Sacha Cohen — 360,000
• Leo Margets — 290,000
• Hervé Gouzil — 300,000
• Marc Bougaret — 220,000
• Kool Shen — 220,000
• Timothé Rey — 50,000

Jbzz is building an especially dangerous stack and can now apply real pressure across the table. Davidi Kitai also looks well positioned, and whenever a player of his caliber is comfortably above average, opponents know they are facing a tough tactical battle rather than a standard chip-count contest.

Monster Stack: 214 players remain from 995 entries

The Monster Stack is following a similar path. Out of 995 total entries, 214 players are still in contention. The prize pool is now fixed, and the eventual winner will collect €38,000.

The average stack is 232,000 chips, and the blinds are currently 3,000 / 7,000 / 7,000. Monster Stack events are always interesting at this stage because the deeper structure creates more play, but once the field gets smaller, every pot becomes more valuable and every mistake becomes more expensive.

That balance is exactly what makes this format attractive to a wide range of players: it rewards patience, but it also rewards timely aggression. If you want to improve in formats like this, studying structure-aware strategy through a poker school can be just as important as having a strong technical foundation.

Expert analysis: why this stage matters

This is the part of a live festival where poker becomes much more than card play. With 32 left in the Main Event, and the High Roller and Monster Stack both in deeper stages, the central edge comes from stack management, pressure selection, and ICM awareness.

• Short stacks need to look for realistic double-up spots instead of waiting forever.
• Middle stacks must balance survival with pressure, especially when pay jumps become more relevant.
• Big stacks can widen their ranges, but they also become the players everyone watches closely.

For players who want to understand the ecosystem behind live events, it helps to know how poker rooms structure tournaments and how live poker clubs create the environments where this kind of poker develops. The better the structure, the more skill edges tend to show up over time.

There is also a practical takeaway for anyone grinding live or online series: the deeper you go, the more valuable discipline becomes. A single marginal shove can be the difference between a deep run and a missed score, which is why smart players keep working on their process, not just their cards.

Final thoughts on the WPO action in Aix-les-Bains

The WPO in Aix-les-Bains is now in a very compelling phase. The Main Event has reached 32 players, the High Roller is heading toward its late stages, and the Monster Stack is still packed with enough chips and pressure to produce major swings.

For spectators, that means more drama is coming. For players, it means every decision must be sharper than ever. And for those looking to prepare for these moments in advance, it is worth following promotions & bonuses and choosing the right poker agent or platform setup to maximize long-term value.

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