Ottomar Ladva EPT Paris is a storyline that keeps writing itself. The Estonian pro defeated Punnat Punsri in heads-up play to win the €100,000 Super High Roller at EPT Paris 2026. He takes home €970,920 from a €2,257,920 prize pool.
It’s his fourth EPT title and the second time in three weeks he has walked away with close to a million euros. Just 21 days earlier, Ladva won the Onyx High Roller Series Main Event in Cyprus for $1,150,000. That’s north of $2.3 million in February alone.
Ottomar Ladva EPT Paris: The Final Table
Ten players came back for the final day, with late entries pushing the total to 24 entries. Bryn Kenney, Brandon Wilson, Thomas Eychenne and Punnat Punsri all jumped in on the day. Nine of the 15 returning players were their country’s number one ranked player. This wasn’t a soft field.
Jean-Noel Thorel led for most of the day but fell in fourth for €271,000. Teun Mulder busted in third for €406,400, setting up a heads-up match nobody expected to last as long as it did.
| Place | Player | Country | Payout |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Ottomar Ladva | Estonia | €970,920 |
| 2nd | Punnat Punsri | Thailand | €609,600 |
| 3rd | Teun Mulder | Netherlands | €406,400 |
| 4th | Jean-Noel Thorel | France | €271,000 |
Five Hours of Heads-Up Play
Heads-up started around 10 p.m. on Sunday with Ladva holding a big chip lead. Punsri didn’t fold. Both players came back from 5:1 chip deficits at different points in the match.
The battle ran past 3 a.m. before a winner was found. Over five hours of swingy, back-and-forth play before Ladva finally closed it out.
Punsri came in off a strong run through the festival and had won the 2025 GPI Player of the Year award. Losing a heads-up battle this deep hurts, but €609,600 for second is nobody’s bad day. For Ladva it was his fourth PokerStars Spadie trophy.
Chess Champion, Poker Elite
Ladva won four Estonian Chess Championships before poker took over. In 2021 he won the GGPoker Super MILLION$ High Roller for $325,957, which at the time looked like a breakout result. It turned out to be the start of something bigger.
The EPT Barcelona €25K High Roller title in 2024 was the next major landmark. His career live earnings now sit above $6.6 million, built almost entirely through high buy-in live events. Four EPT titles is a number very few players in the world can match.
EPT Paris Still Running
The EPT Paris 2026 festival runs through March 1 at Le Palais des Congrès. The €5,300 Main Event is in its final stretch with Jorge Abreu leading the chip counts. The €10,300 High Roller also wraps up on March 1.
It’s been a strong week of live poker in Paris across all buy-in levels. The Main Event field still has plenty left to play for heading into the final days.
