Many players dream of winning a major online poker tournament at some point in their lives. Pascal Lefrancois recently continued a dream run at the online poker tables.
In December, the Canadian won the $25,500 Super High Roller in partypoker’s MILLIONS Online series. Lefrancois topped a field of 43 players for a $323,823 prize.
That win came after winning the same event in March’s MILLIONS Online for $525,089. That’s quite a double for the 35-year-old online poker star.
“It’s always a fun challenge to compete in these high buy-in tournaments, against basically the same guys time after time,” Lefrancois says. “Being fortunate enough to be able to come out on top is obviously a great feeling and a nice achievement.”
Lefrancois spoke this week with PokerScout about his life at the poker table.
No stranger to poker success
Lefrancois grew up on the north shore of Montreal and still lives in the area today. He began playing poker at age 17 while playing junior hockey.
Several of his teammates were regular No Limit Hold’em players and Lefrancois decided to give it a shot too.
“I just got hooked very quickly and started playing online shortly after while I was studying finance at University of Montreal,” he says.
A new career was born and Lefrancois now has $5.3 million in live tournament winnings. That includes some massive online scores. His biggest tournament win came in 2018 when Lefrancois took down the €10,300 partypoker MILLIONS Grand Final in Barcelona for $2.1 million.
The poker phenom has numerous other five- and six-figure scores as well. Another career highlight came in 2010, when he won a $1,500 No Limit Hold’em event at the World Series of Poker for $568,974
Lefrancois doesn’t have a particular poker routine. He looks for major tournament series and high buy-in events.
“Sometimes I don’t play for weeks,” he says. “Sometimes I play 60 hours a week if there are games I don’t want to miss.”
What does Lefrancois enjoy most about the game?
“I’m a gambler at heart, so I really like the gambling aspect of the game,” he says. “I come from a sport background and I always enjoyed competition, so that’s definitely something you find in poker as well.”
Poker and beyond
When not winning big at the poker tables, other interests occupy much of Lefrancois’ schedule. He has several business interests including some real estate holdings including being a partner in a restaurant called Oregon on the north shore of Montreal.
The eatery features high-end cuisine and wine selections, earning nice reviews among diners. Even more business investments could be in the works, with some of his winnings funneled into other interests away from the poker table.
Beyond business and poker, Lefrancois also enjoys traveling and some nice meals with friends and family. He even still hits the rink for some hockey and also plays tennis and golf. Watching sports is also a nice way to relax away from his poker life.
The recent high roller win was certainly a nice way to close out 2021. He battled it out at the tables while at home with his wife. Despite completing a massive accomplishment, there was no big celebration. When he finally secured the win, however, Lefrancois did work in a small reward.
“While I play poker, I like a calm environment, especially in high-pressure situations,” he says. “I enjoyed a good egg nog and Macallan (Scotch whisky) after the win.”
Certainly more poker lies ahead for Lefrancois. He doesn’t have any major plans at the moment and just takes on big online poker events as they come along. The super high roller win adds to a growing poker resumé.
“Poker wise, I’ve never really had tangible goals,” he says. “I take it one day at a time, and I’m going to spend time playing as long as I enjoy it.”
* Lead image courtesy partypoker