Seat 4: Erkan Soenmez, 37, Hannover, Germany, PokerStars qualifier (4,850,000)

An online qualification propelled Erkan Soenmez to travel to Monaco. He won the EPT Main Event package for €530; otherwise, he wouldn't be here. Still, though, the 37-year-old salesman from Hannover is quite experienced at the felt. Soenmez plays poker a decent amount of time. Online, he enjoys firing up the Sunday slate — once in a while — and playing live event satellites.

Soenmez said he usually makes three or four poker trips each year, with Barcelona and Prague being his regular spots. Most of his buy-ins fall into the mid-stakes category, in which he's notched several five-figure scores.Yet, coming into this tournament, Soenmez had a fairly modest objective: "My aim was to cash," he said.

Reaching a final table on the big stage is an entirely new dimension for the father of four. "My kids are too young to know that I play poker, so they think I'm on a business trip," he revealed. Now Soenmez is guaranteed to return home with the biggest prize of his poker career.