A versatile strategy for the α-substitution of enones through the formal fusion between enones and unactivated alkenes is described. It relies on the formation and use of α-xanthyl-β-hydroxy ketones, which can be considered as synthetic equivalents of the high energy and difficult to tame alkenyl radicals. The process, which can often be accomplished one-pot, could be extended in one case to an α,β-unsaturated ester.