Andre Winkler continues his breakout year with a victory at the EPC Masters.

Andre Winkler won the inaugural King's Million European Championship €2,000 EPC Masters event, taking home €99,600 and the King's Royal Scepter. He defeated a field of 346 players, including a heads-up victory over Marco Giordano.

2026 was a crazy year for recreational poker player Andre Winkler. In May, he won a WSOP ring, his first live victory recorded at The Hendon Mob. Then in July, a huge breakthrough happened. Winkler emerged victorious from thousands of entrants at King's Resort in Rozvadov, winning a €590 buy-in tournament and taking home over €420,000.

Today, at the same venue, Winkler claimed one of only ten remaining King's Royal Scepter trophies, winning the inaugural King's Million European Championship €2,000 EPC Masters event by defeating a field of 346 participants.

"I was actually a little tired, but it was really great," Winkler shared after taking home €99,600 following a heads-up match with eventual runner-up Marco Giordano, a day that lasted 12 hours.

Giordano started heads-up with a chip lead, becoming the most profitable player of the night. He secured €118,400 in a deal, taking the largest share of the €602,040 prize pool. However, after an exciting but intense heads-up battle for the trophy, Winkler secured the victory, the very trophy he had been eyeing ever since seeing the unique design of this new series.

"Winning the EPM two months ago was a bit of a life-changing experience, so I decided to play a lot more than I originally planned. I told my friends I was here to win a Royal Scepter, and this series wasn't going well for me. I fired a lot of bullets, but it ended well. I actually did it again, it's really crazy."

€2,000 EPC Masters Final Table Results

* indicates a one-on-one agreement.

Despite facing off against experienced pros like Tobias Peters at the final table, Winkler admitted he only really started playing live poker about two and a half years ago.

Since then, he has accumulated dozens of prizes at King's Resort alone.

"I don't think there's a better tournament in the world for smaller buy-ins, from €300 to €1,000. There's a €1 million prize pool every weekend," he pointed out.

"I played online until 2024, but then I decided to play more live. I enjoyed it much more. I've stopped playing online and only use it to qualify for live events. I spend all my time at casinos around the world. I originally planned to play 50 tournaments this year, but I think it will end up being 100."

Winkler's Road to Victory

Winkler started Day 2 with one of the largest stacks among the 69 returning players, easily securing one of the 52 prize seats. Then, with 13 players remaining, the blinds caught up with Winkler, who found himself all-in with a short stack of 8 big blinds. His K-3 faced Majik Mike's pocket eights, but Winkler hit a K, igniting his fairytale run. Soon, the final table was set, with Winkler starting with a middle stack of 22 big blinds.

As players fell one by one, Winkler mostly remained neutral, patiently collecting winnings. Until the tournament entered a four-player showdown, he caught Pasquale Casella's bluff and called with a low pair hero. Shortly after, Casella also bluffed away his remaining chips, and Winkler once again benefited.

Peters was then eliminated in a major race, finishing third by Giordano. The remaining two quickly agreed to split the remaining prize pool and fight for glory and the trophy.

Giordano started heads-up with a 2-1 lead, but Winkler quickly doubled up to take the lead. Winkler won several more pots, until Giordano went all-in with K-4, to which Winkler responded with Q-10. Winkler paired on the flop and hit a flush on the river, securing victory and his coveted Royal Scepter trophy.

Want to change Texas Holdem from "can understand" to "can win"?

If you want to learn more about Texas Hold'em, you can continue reading：

The Origins of Texas Hold'em: Why is it the World's Most Popular Poker Variant?
Texas Hold'em Hand Rankings and Showdown Rules (Beginner’s Essentials)
Texas Hold'em Betting teaching: Check / Bet / Call /Raise and Betting Strategy Analysis
The importance of Texas Hold'em position? Why is the back position more advantageous?
How to play Texas Hold'em? Novices learn Texas Hold'em rules, processes and betting teaching in 10 minutes
Texas Hold'em Starting Hands Strategy Guide: Which Hands to Play?
Texas Holdem Starting Hands Chart Tutorial: Complete Starting Hand Chart and Position Strategy
How to play Texas Hold'em? Complete rules and a hand's flow (Preflop / Flop / Turn / River)

Hunter Poker offers comprehensive tutorials, hand analysis, and strategy sharing to help players upgrade from simply "reading the cards" to understanding the range . This allows you to make better decisions in every hand.

▶️ In Facebook Follow Hunter Poker.
📘 In Youtube Follow Hunter Poker.

Want to learn more about Texas Hold'em gameplay and strategies?

Online Texas Hold'em free tournaments typically have no entry fee, making them ideal for beginners to familiarize themselves with the rules and for advanced players to test strategies and gain experience. View full brand profiles to learn about each platform's free tournament schedule, features, and target audience.

Go to learn more