The WSOP Main Event featured three-way matchups with hundreds of big blinds: A vs K vs K

Day 3 of the 2026 WSOP Main Event featured a massive pot of A vs. K vs. K. Arnaud Mattern eliminated his opponent's K with his A, taking the chip lead.

During Day 3, Level 1 of the 2026 WSOP Main Event, a three-way pot involving hundreds of big blinds took place, in which one player wisely folded despite having already poured a significant amount of chips into the pot.

The phase began at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, with over 3,000 remaining players hoping to enter the prize bubble expected to burst early on Day 4. One player, Matthew Radcliffe, appeared to be in a favorable position to win in poker's biggest event. He entered Day 3 with a decent stack, but a cold hand eliminated him before the first break.

A crazy hand of cards

According to Christian Zetzche of PokerNews, with blinds at 1,000/2,500, Arnaud Mattern raised to 5,500 from early position with A♠A♦. Delmiro Toledo then 3-bet to 20,000 (we'll reveal his hand later). Radcliffe re-raised to 70,000, and Mattern called with A.

Action returned to Toledo, who 5-bet to 150,000. Radcliffe jumped up from his chair and shoved all 153,000 chips into center. Mattern raised to 300,000. Toledo, holding a large chip stack, was in trouble but decided to fold. He revealed K♣K♦ before throwing his cards into the deck.

Radcliffe's situation worsened after seeing those hands, as he also held K♠K♥ and had no chance of hitting a set. He was already drawing dead on the turn, and the board opened with 9♠6♥2♣7♠J♦, eliminating Radcliffe just one day away from the money bubble.

Mattern, the 2007 PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) champion, has a record of over $2.5 million on The Hendon Mob. As of press time, he has accumulated 877,000 chips, making him one of the largest chip holders early on Day 3.

PokerNews will continue to provide you with live updates on the WSOP Main Event until the event concludes on August 5th.

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