He’s won and lost millions in the Big Game, had some vicious swings online and blown fortunes in the pit. In 2007 he reportedly suffered a sickening $ 8m downswing, but this year he has been unstoppable. So just what makes the affable Frenchman tick?

David Benyamine stares at me blankly. I’ve been trying to jog his memory over the fact that I have met and interviewed him before, but he’s not having it. Vegas, the Venetian, August 2006? Finally he shakes his head. ‘I don’t get much sleep and it doesn’t help my memory!’

It’s a fair point. Benyamine and fiancee Erica Schoenberg have just arrived in Barcelona for the EPT Barcelona Open after a manic 48 hours which included a tournament stop in Cannes and a TV appearance in Paris; but more than that I think Benyamine may be referring to the sleep-deprived year he’s had.