Live Blog – Day 2

Final Day Seat Draw

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 1:57 am

TableSeatPlayerChipsBig Blinds
31Fabio Aprile3,700,00031
32Lasse Jacobsen1,060,0009
33La Sengphet3,400,00028
34Martynas Brazdzionis11,695,00097
36Raoul Van Wersch4,035,00034
37Vlad Ardeleanu3,785,00032
41Arnaud Cressent2,510,00021
42Jozsef Hegyi4,655,00039
44Chris Da Silva1,100,0009
46Lewis Coffin2,485,00021
47Oliver Said2,800,00023
48Maik Buss1,960,00016
81Tomasz Caba2,500,00021
83Michal Gavurnik1,080,0009
85Kjetil Hanstvedt1,850,00015
86Paolo Aleo4,125,00034
87Salvtore Ritrovato2,765,00023
88Angelo Patane5,915,00049

2023 MPF Spring Edition Grand Event Payouts

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 1:54 am

PlacePlayerPrize
1€100,600
2€75,690
3€55,420
4€37,400
5€20,150
6€14,850
7€11,400
8€9,050
9€7,550
10€6,150
11€6,150
12€5,050
13€4,150
14€4,150
15€4,150
16€3,350
17€3,350
18€3,350
19Shaun Halliday€3,350
20Alessandro Furneri€3,350
21Lars Eriksson€2,820
22Serguei Skrypnikov Laviolle€2,820
23Humberto Galindo€2,820
24Bogdan Juc€2,820
25William McMurray€2,820
26Jostein Groedum€2,820
27Alex Montgomery€2,470
28Antonino Karman€2,470
29Michal Kulesza€2,470
30Marko Luksa€2,470
31Jonathan Therme€2,470
32Vincenzo Scarcella€2,470
33Scott Roberts€2,470
34Louis Le Boisselier€2,470
35Ulf Andersson€2,470
36Lucien Jouanneau€2,170
37Cedric Offner€2,170
38Christopher Collins€2,170
39Joaquim Ferriera€2,170
40Koen Meutstege€2,170
41Mikael Bjertrup€2,170
42Fabrizio Nobile€2,170
43Antonio Chille€2,170
44Erik Lindqwist€2,170
45Andrei Mjagkov€1,920
46Manoj Navani€1,920
47Paul Young€1,920
48Noel Studer€1,920
49Rauno Kiviloo€1,920
50Giovanni Nava€1,920
51Chen Keren€1,920
52Robert Boon€1,920
53Daniel Toffel€1,920
54Kerryjane Craigie€1,720
55Georgios Georgiou€1,720
56Ian Gascoigne€1,720
57Peter Kaspar€1,720
58Thomas Hofmann€1,720
59Damir Savio€1,720
60Thomas Petit€1,720
61Torben Krogh€1,720
62Olga Liscsinzky€1,720
63Presiyan Tsvetanov€1,720
64Kevin Houghton€1,720
65Salvatore Incardona€1,720
66Guiseppe Loreto€1,720
67Daniel Spavin-Haigh€1,720
68Simon Taylor€1,720
69Theo Schmitt€1,720
70Corentin Viaud€1,720
71Serdar Demircan€1,720
72Dost Ghrabie€1,520
73Johannes Grootelaar€1,520
74Edward Chun Ho Yam€1,520
75Paul Maguire€1,520
76Daro Berisa€1,520
77Jemery Bametz€1,520
78Emil Karhu€1,520
79Zaheer Zeb€1,520
80Stepan Brychta€1,520
81Roland Boothby€1,520
82Erik Ostergaard€1,520
83James Thody€1,520
84Attila Kassitzky€1,520
85Maciej Toma€1,520
86Daniele Staropoli€1,520
87Benjamin Rensen€1,520
88Ertan Cicekdemir€1,520
89David Ozmen€1,520
90Sjoerd Nikkels€1,320
91Santaluna Baldassare€1,320
92Daoud Abu€1,320
93Kaspar Schmid€1,320
94Liwei Wang€1,320
95Fabio Coppola€1,320
96Amber Glasby€1,320
97Per Moller€1,320
98Aurelien Giard€1,320
99Katie Swift€1,320
100Pieter Koedijk€1,320
101Philip Roberts€1,320
102Fabio Sturba€1,320
103Thomas Lowter€1,320
104Marian Ivanov€1,320
105Pavle Pecelj€1,320
106Yannick Rohrbach€1,320
107Eduardo Terrivel€1,320
108Leon Campbell€1,320
109Fabian Fleischmann€1,320
110Antonios Onourfriou€1,320
111Luke Pace€1,320
112Robert Teunissen€1,320
113Anastasios Apostolou€1,320
114Firat Cankaya€1,320
115Dejan Dabetic€1,320
116Grant Pirie€1,120
117Robrecht Winterink€1,120
118Arn Kungl€1,120
119Ashley Wilson€1,120
120Callum Gordon€1,120
121Torsten Riedl€1,120
122Kaloyan Kirov€1,120
123Anthony Whalley€1,120
124Massimo Bruno€1,120
125Mantas Petrauskas€1,120
126Michael Frost€1,120
127Fraser Mackenze€1,120
128Paolo Rando€1,120
129Andrew Cutajar€1,120
130Giulio Spaminato€1,120
131Rob van Embden€1,120
132Jonathan Schuman€1,120
133Anton Shroter€1,120
134Matthew Adams€1,120
135Ian Swan€1,120
136Boris Zismanov€1,120
137Julien Gadanho€1,120
138Nicky Molmans€1,120
139Thomas Steedman€1,120
140Giuseppe Signorelli€1,120
141Oscar Arezzo€1,120
142Samuel Biland€1,120
143Olav Kok€1,120
144Raimondo Marcello€1,120
145Thibault Branly€1,120
146Andrei Musat€1,120
147Nauseda Grazvydas€1,120
148Daniel Kuhlmann€1,120
149Lars Halkier€1,120
150Joseph East€1,120
151Ivan Picavet€1,120

Final Day 2 Chip Counts

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 1:53 am

Martynas Brazdzionis

Lithuania’s Martynas Brazdzionis will be in the captain’s chair on the final day of the 2023 Malta Poker Festival Spring Edition Grand Event with more than double the chips of his nearest competitor. Here is a look at the chip counts for the players that advanced to the final day:

PlacePlayerChipsBig Blinds
1Martynas Brazdzionis11,695,00097
2Angelo Patane5,915,00049
3Jozsef Hegyi4,655,00039
4Paolo Aleo4,125,00034
5Raoul Van Wersch4,035,00034
6Vlad Ardeleanu3,785,00032
7Fabio Aprile3,700,00031
8La Sengphet3,400,00028
9Oliver Said2,800,00023
10Salvtore Ritrovato2,765,00023
11Arnaud Cressent2,510,00021
12Tomasz Caba2,500,00021
13Lewis Coffin2,485,00021
14Maik Buss1,960,00016
15Kjetil Hanstvedt1,850,00015
16Chris Da Silva1,100,0009
17Michal Gavurnik1,080,0009
18Lasse Jacobsen1,060,0009

Brazdzionis Extends Lead Again; Eliminates Eriksson

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 1:24 am

Level 26: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 18/1,226

Martynas Brazdzionis opened for 325,000 from the small blind. Lars Eriksson three-bet jammed from the big blind for about 2 million and Brazdzionis snap-called.

Lars Eriksson: 88
Martynas Brazdzionis: KK

Eriksson was unable to get a miracle with his snowmen on the AJJ23 board and hit the rail near the end of the evening.

Meanwhile, it seems like hands are loosening players up as both Shaun Halliday and Alessandro Furneri also hit the rail to leave just 18 players remaining.

Martynas Bradzionis – 11 million
Lars Eriksson – 0

Lars Eriksson
Lars Eriksson

Final Four Hands

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 1:20 am

Level 26: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 21/1,226

The floor just announced that there will be four more hands played on Day 2 before players bag chips into tomorrow’s final day.


Brazdzionis Wins Massive Pot Against Furneri With Kings vs. Queens

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 1:01 am

Level 26: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 21/1,226

Alessandro Furneri opened for 200,000. Martynas Brazdzionis three-bet to 750,000 and Furneri jammed for about 4 million. Brazdzionis snap-called his stack of 3.2 million and the cards were turned over.

Martynas Brazdzionis: KK
Alessandro Furneri: QQ

Furneri just got done rebuilding his stack after being down to a handful of big blinds. He will have to try again as his queens didn’t pull ahead of cowboys on the 486A3 board. Meanwhile, Brazdionis won the biggest pot of the tournament thus far.

Shortly after, Brazdionis extended his chip lead after he eliminated Serguei Skrypnikov Laviolle to leave just 21 players remaining.

Martynas Brazdzionis – 9 million
Alessandro Furneri – 700,000
Serguei Skrypnikov Laviolle – 0


Galindo Loses His Short Stack

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 12:52 am

Level 26: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 22/1,226

Humberto Galindo jammed his short stack of around six big blinds from the lojack and was called by Alessandro Furneri from the big blind.

Humberto Galindo: QJ
Alessandro Furneri: A8

Galindo got nowhere on the double-paired 7KK73 board and hit the rail with his queen kicker not beating an ace kicker.

Alessandro Furneri – 4 million
Humberto Galindo – 0

Humberto Galindo

Hanstvedt Doubles Through Brazdzionis

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 12:47 am

Level 26: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 23/1,226

Kjetil Hanstvedt jammed for 1 million from the cutoff and was called by Martynas Brazdzionis from the small blind.

Kjetil Hanstvedt: Q9
Martynas Brazdzionis: 66

Hanstvedt fist-pumped in the air after his queen connected on the turn with the 53AQ5 running out on the board to win the hand with a better two pair.

Martynas Brazdzionis – 3.3 million
Kjetil Hanstvedt – 2.2 million


Payouts for €2,470

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 12:21 am

PlacePlayerPrize
27Alex Montgomery€2,470
28Antonino Karman€2,470
29Michal Kulesza€2,470
30Marko Luksa€2,470
31Jonathan Therme€2,470
32Vincenzo Scarcella€2,470
33Scott Roberts€2,470
34Louis Le Boisselier€2,470
35Ulf Andersson€2,470

Final Day 2 Break

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 12:20 am

Players are on their final break of Day 2 and will play one more blind level after the players return from break with blinds at 50,000/100,000 with a 100,000 big blind ante.


Furneri Wins Two Flips in a Row

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 12:17 am

Level 25: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 26/1,226

Alessandro Furneri was short after losing a bulk of his stack to Paolo Aleo. He doubled up once on a flip with nines against ace-ten before just winning another flip as follows:

Furneri jammed for 1.4 million from the lojack.

“How much?” asked Humberto Galindo from the button.

Galindo called sooner after getting a count.

Alessandro Furneri: 55
Humberto Galindo: A9

Furneri’s fives were good on the 6JK2J board to double through Galindo.

Alessandro Furneri – 3 million
Humberto Galindo – 1 million


Cowboys for Aleo

By Jason Glatzer | May 1, 2023 12:04 am

Level 25: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 27/1,226

Alessandro Furneri opened the button for 175,000 before Paolo Aleo jammed for 1,640,000 from the small blind. Furneri tanked for less than a minute before he called.

Paolo Aleo: KK
Alessandro Furneri: JJ

Aleo’s cowboys not only held but he even improved to a set on the 874KQ to double through Furneri.

Aleo left his seat for a moment in excitement and ran over to his friend who happened to be by railing the hand.

Paolo Aleo – 3.4 million
Alessandro Furneri – 800,000


Sick Board Gets Cressent Back in the Hand

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 11:50 pm

Level 25: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 27/1,226

Alex Montgomery jammed for slightly less than 1 million from middle position before Arnaud Cressent called off his stack of 725,000 from the big blind.

Arnaud Cressent: 66
Alex Montgomery: 55

Cressent was far ahead but that all changed after Montgomery flopped the goods with the 10105 flop improving him to a full house

However, the 10 turn put trips on the board and improved Cressent to a better full house. Cressent doubled through Montgomery after the J river completed the board.

Arnaud Cressent – 1.6 million
Alex Montgomery – 175,000

Arnaud Cressent

Hegyi Wins the Battle of Unibet Qualifiers

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 11:39 pm

Level 25: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 28/1,226

Sengphet La opened for 160,000 from the lojack and was called by Jozsef Hegyi from the hijack. Michal Kulesza three-bet jammed for slightly less than 1 million. La folded and Hegyi called to bring a showdown between two players who qualified online at Unibet Poker for a MPF package.

I shared this information with Unibet DeepStack Open founder Alex Henry.

“Yes!” said Henry. “They both actually qualified in the same satellite.”

Michal Kulesza: AJ
Jozsef Hegyi: AK

Hegyi’s big slick held on the 698Q6 board to eliminate fellow qualifier Kulesza.

Jozsef Hegyi – 3.8 million
Michal Kulesza – 0


Laviolle Gets His Revenge on Roberts

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 11:23 pm

Level 24: 30,000/60,000 (60,000)
Entries: 32/1,226

Scott Roberts is part of Team Roberts along with his wife Lisa. The couple is well-known, especially in the United States where they are from for traveling around to poker events and have even won some WSOP gold rings in the process.

Unfortunately, Team Roberts won’t be adding an MPF Grand Event trophy to go along with their other accolades.

During one of the opening flights, Roberts doubled through Serguei Skrypnikov Laviolle with king-jack against queens with four threes appearing on the board. Both Laviolle and Roberts separately reminded us of this hand we reported after Roberts was on the rail as follows:

Roberts jammed for about eight big blinds from the small blind with queen-jack and was up against the eight-seven held by Laviolle after he called. An eight spiked the river and that was it for Team Roberts.

It was lovely to see both Scott and Lisa once again after many years from meeting them for the first time. We hope they enjoyed their trip to Malta and we wish them luck in winning a trophy in a side event during the final day of our amazing festival tomorrow.

Serguei Skrypnikov Laviolle – 2.2 million
Scott Roberts – 0


“Show & Tell Time is Over”

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 11:13 pm

Level 24: 30,000/60,000 (60,000)
Entries: 33/1,226

La Sengphet is the last woman standing in the Grand Event. She has made the most of her time since the dinner break and keeps piling on chips as we’ve watched her climb from 1 million to nearly 5 million in chips.

She just took down a three-bet pot against Vlad Ardeleanu as follows:

Ardeleanu continued for 275,000 on the A76 flop and Sengphet called. The K turn followed and Ardeleanu bet 425,000. Sengphet paused for about a minute before she raised to 1,125,000.

Ardeleanu went into the tank for about five minutes before he folded.

“Nice bluff,” Ardeleanu said to Sengphet after the hand.

“Show and tell time is over,” responded Sengphet.

La Sengphet – 4.8 million
Vlad Ardeleanu – 2.4 million


Payouts for €2,170

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 10:49 pm

The following players cashed for €2,170 in the Grand Event. The final 35 players are now each guaranteed at least a €2,470 payout.

PlacePlayerPrize
36Lucien Jouanneau€2,170
37Cedric Offner€2,170
38Christopher Collins€2,170
39Joaquim Ferriera€2,170
40Koen Meutstege€2,170
41Mikael Bjertrup€2,170
42Fabrizio Nobile€2,170
43Antonio Chille€2,170
44Erik Lindqwist€2,170

Jouanneau Loses a Flip and His Chips

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 10:46 pm

Level 24: 30,000/60,000 (60,000)
Entries: 35/1,226

Lucien Jouanneau got less than 1 million in chips in from late position and was up against Raoul van Wersche for a flip for his tournament life.

Lucien Jouanneau: 99
Raoul van Wersch: AK

Van Wersch won the flip after the QA1045 board connected with his ace to send Jouanneau out of the Grand Event in 36th place.

Raoul van Wersch – 2.8 million
Lucien Jouanneau – 0


Sengphet Doubles Through Ardeleanu

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 10:27 pm

Level 23: 25,000/50,000 (50,000)
Entries: 36/1,226

Three players limped before Vlad Ardeleanu raised to 300,000 from the big blind. La Sengphet called while the other two players folded.

Ardeleanu fired out for 125,000 on the 8JJ flop and Sengphet called. The 8 double-paired the board on the turn. Ardeleanu jammed and La snap-called her stack of 1,020,000.

La Sengphet: KJ
Vlad Ardeleanu: AK

Ardeleanu was drawing dead and La doubled up with a full house after the Q river completed the board.

La Sengphet – 3.1 million
Vlad Ardeleanu – 2.3 million

La Sengphet

Patane Ousts Two With Rockets

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 10:18 pm

Level 23: 25,000/50,000 (50,000)
Entries: 38/1,226

Joaquim Ferriera opened for 410,000 with just 320,000 behind from the lojack. The action paused on Koen Meutstege for a few minutes before he opted to jam for 1,045,000 from the hijack.

Angelo Patane paused for a few moments before he asked for a count of Meutstege’s stack. A couple of minutes later, he called. Ferriera tanked for a minute before he called off his stack as well.

Joaquim Ferriera: KQ
Koen Meutstege: 99
Angelo Patane: AA

Patane’s rockets held to oust two players after the 66588 ran out on the board.

Angelo Patane – 4.8 million
Koen Meutstege – 0
Joaquim Ferriera – 0


Ace-Queen No Good for Nobile

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 10:06 pm

Level 23: 25,000/50,000 (50,000)
Entries: 41/1,226

Martynas Brazdzionis jammed from the small blind before Fabrizio Nobile called off his short stack of under 10 big blinds from the big blind.

Fabrizio Nobile: AQ
Martynas Brazdzionis: K10

Brazdzionis improved to trips on the K49K3 runout to send the first player since the dinner break to the rail in Nobile.

Martynas Bradzionis – 4.3 million
Fabrizio Nobile – 0


Four More Day 2 Blind Levels

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 9:58 pm

We were just told by the floor that the plan for Day 2 (subject to change) is to play four more blind levels.

Players will battle for three blind 50-minute levels before a break before playing one final blind level. It is possible that the action will end earlier if the final two tables are reached before the end of the scheduled action.


Players Back From Dinner

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 9:51 pm

Level 23: 25,000/50,000 (50,000)
Entries: 42/1,226

Players are back from dinner break with blinds at 25,000/50,000 with a big blind ante of 50,000.


Full Chip Counts of Final 42 Players at Dinner Break

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 9:36 pm

PlayerChipsBig Blinds
Vlad Ardeleanu3,695,00074
Alessandro Furneri3,580,00072
Michal Gavurnik3,450,00069
Angelo Patane3,140,00063
Martynas Brazdzionis2,910,00058
Humberto Galindo2,690,00054
Lewis Coffin2,650,00053
Scott Roberts1,955,00039
Jostein Groedum1,950,00039
Arnaud Cressent1,920,00038
Shaun Halliday1,895,00038
Jozsef Hegyi1,800,00036
Maik Buss1,710,00034
Koen Meutstege1,670,00033
Serguei Skrypnikov1,665,00033
Raoul van Wersch1,395,00028
Oliver Said1,370,00027
Fabio Aprile1,355,00027
Chris Da Silva1,315,00026
Salvatore Ritrovato1,250,00025
Alex Montgomery1,245,00025
Antonino Karman1,220,00024
Mark Luksa1,140,00023
Ulf Andersson1,140,00023
Lars Eriksson1,120,00022
Vincenzo Scarcella1,115,00022
Lasse Jacobsen1,030,00021
Lucien Jouanneau1,025,00021
La Sengphet1,015,00020
Paolo Aleo935,00019
Christopher Collins925,00019
Joaquim Ferriera730,00015
Jonathan Therme670,00013
Kjetil Hanstvedt635,00013
Tomasz Caba580,00012
Michal Kulesza580,00012
Mikael Bjertrup455,0009
William McMurray420,0008
Cedric Offner415,0008
Bogdan Juc410,0008
Fabrizio Nobile345,0007
Louis Le Boisselier300,0006

Players Cashing for €1,920

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 9:27 pm

The following players cashed for €1,920. The 42 players returning from dinner break have each locked up €250 more and are guaranteed at least a €2,170 payout.

PlacePlayerPrize
45Andrei Mjagkov€1,920
46Manoj Navani€1,920
47Paul Young€1,920
48Noel Studer€1,920
49Rauno Kiviloo€1,920
50Giovanni Nava€1,920
51Chen Keren€1,920
52Robert Boon€1,920

The Dinner Bell Rings

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 8:31 pm

Surviving players are on a 75-minute dinner break. We will update near the end of the dinner break with full chip counts of the players still in contention.

As my French friend and Unibet DeepStack Open founder Alex Henry would say, “Bon appétit!”

UDSO founder Alex Henry & MPF founder Ivonne Montealegre

Groedum Doubles With Big Slick

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 8:30 pm

Level 22: 20,000/40,000 (40,000)
Entries: 44/1,226

Head of Poker at the Betsson Group Jostein Groedum is alive and well. In fact, he just doubled up to 2 million while leaving Erik Lindqwist with dust in his stack.

Lindqwest four-bet jammed for 940,000 from the hijack and Groedum called off his stack of 925,000 from the button.

Jostein Groedum: AK
Erik Lindqwist: 88

Groedum won the flip after both his king and ace connected on the KJ3A5 board to leave Lindqwist with just a few chips.

Jostein Groedum – 2,050,000
Erik Lindqwist – 15,000


Top Pair Doesn’t Hold for Studer

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 8:14 pm

Level 22: 20,000/40,000 (40,000)
Entries: 45/1,226

There wasn’t much in the pot when Michal Gavurnik checked the 4J3 flop from early position. Noel Studer bet 125,000. Gavurnik jammed and Studer called off for his stack of around 500,000.

Noel Studer: J2
Michal Gavurnik: 54

Studer was ahead and his lead was even bigger after Gavurnik didn’t connect with the 9. The table gasped and Studer’s disappointment was visible when the 5 river completed the board to improve Gavurnik to two pair and eliminate Studer.

Michal Gavurnik – 2.5 million
Noel Studer – 0


Payouts for €1,720

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 8:04 pm

The following players were eliminated for €1,720 leaving the final 53 players with at least a €1,920 payday.

The PokerStars at The Hippodrome Head of Poker Kerryjane Craigie was among the recent casualties leaving La Sengphet as the final female remaining in the Grand Event.

PlacePlayerPrize
54Kerryjane Craigie€1,720
55Georgios Georgiou€1,720
56Ian Gascoigne€1,720
57Peter Kaspar€1,720
58Thomas Hofmann€1,720
59Damir Savio€1,720
60Thomas Petit€1,720
61Torben Krogh€1,720
62Olga Liscsinzky€1,720
63Presiyan Tsvetanov€1,720
64Kevin Houghton€1,720
65Salvatore Incardona€1,720
66Guiseppe Loreto€1,720
67Daniel Spavin-Haigh€1,720
68Simon Taylor€1,720
69Theo Schmitt€1,720
70Corentin Viaud€1,720
71Serdar Demircan€1,720

Patane Felts Nava

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 7:59 pm

Level 22: 20,000/40,000 (40,000)
Entries: 49/1,226

Giovanni Nava open-jammed for about 600,000 from the cutoff. Angelo Patane three-bet shoved for a lot more from the cutoff and the rest of the table folded.

Giovanni Nava: AQ
Angelo Patane: AK

Both players nailed a pair on the 762KQ board. Patane’s pair of kings were better than his opponent’s pair of queens to win the pot and eliminate Nava.

Angelo Patane – 2.4 million
Giovanni Nava – 0


Sixes for Halliday

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 7:28 pm

Level 21: 15,000/30,000 (30,000)
Entries: 58/1,226

La Sengphet, who traveled to Malta from Dallas, Texas, is one of two ladies remaining in the Grand Event alongside Kerryjane Craigie. She was cruising along until the following blind vs. blind hand. Regardless of losing this hand, she still has some chips to her name.

Sengphet checked from the small blind with about 500,000 in the pot and the 58443 on the board. Shaun Halliday bet 250,000 and Sengphet went into the tank before she called.

Halliday turned over 66 and won the hand after Sengphet mucked.

Shaun Halliday – 2.8 million
La Sengphet – 1 million


Sevens No Good Against Jacks for Tsvetanov

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 7:14 pm

Level 21: 15,000/30,000 (30,000)
Entries: 60/1,226

Presiyan Tsvetanov three-bet jammed for about 500,000 from the button and was called by Vlad Ardeleanu, who opened from the lojack.

Presiyan Tsvetanov: 77
Vlad Ardeleanu: JJ

Ardeleanu’s jacks held on the 9Q9A5 runout to increase his stack and eliminated Tsvetanov.

Vlad Ardeleanu – 1.9 million
Presiyan Tsvetanov – 0


Payouts for €1,520

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 7:00 pm

The following players each cashed for €1,520. The remaining field has now locked up at least a €1,720 payout.

PlacePlayerPrize
72Dost Ghrabie€1,520
73Johannes Grootelaar€1,520
74Edward Chun Ho Yam€1,520
75Paul Maguire€1,520
76Daro Berisa€1,520
77Jemery Bametz€1,520
78Emil Karhu€1,520
79Zaheer Zeb€1,520
80Stepan Brychta€1,520
81Roland Boothby€1,520
82Erik Ostergaard€1,520
83James Thody€1,520
84Attila Kassitzky€1,520
85Maciej Toma€1,520
86Daniele Staropoli€1,520
87Benjamin Rensen€1,520
88Ertan Cicekdemir€1,520
89David Ozmen€1,520

Never Easy Playing Jacks

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 6:56 pm

Level 20: 10,000/20,000 (20,000)
Entries: 70/1,226

Laviolle Skrypnikov opened for 55,000 from early position before Edward Chun Ho Yam three-bet jammed for about 20 big blinds from middle position. Skrypnikov snap-called and the cards were turned over.

Edward Chun Ho Yam: JJ
Laviolle Skrypnikov: KK

Yam was on the rail after his jacks were unable to get ahead of kings on the 759910 board.

Laviolle Skrypnikov – 1.6 million
Edward Chun Ho Yam – 0


More Day 2 Photos

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 6:42 pm


“I Hope I Have One Over”

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 6:33 pm

Level 20: 10,000/20,000 (20,000)
Entries: 82/1,226

Alex Montgomery opened for 45,000 from middle position and was called by Antonio Chille from the hijack and Lucien Jouanneau from the button before James Thody ripped it in for 230,000.

Montgomery asked for a count before four-bet jamming. Chille asked for a count before he folded and Jouanneau folded as well.

“I hope I have one over,” said Thody before the cards were flipped over.

James Thody: A3
Alex Montgomery: AK

“Well, I have one under,” Thody said. “Spades, please.”

The 2K8710 board didn’t provide the spades Thody was looking for. Nor did it provide any other love and he was on the rail.

Alex Montgomery – 900K
James Thody – 0

Alex Montgomery

Day 1d Chip Leader Cicekdemir Eliminated by Jouanneau

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 6:19 pm

Level 19: 8,000/16,000
Entries: 87/1,226

Ertan Cicekdemir three-bet squeezed for 20 big blinds from the big blind. One player folded before Lucien Jouanneau found a call.

Ertan Cicekdemir: 109
Lucien Jouanneau: KQ

Both players bricked the 8J524 runout and Cicekdemir was eliminated by Jouanneau with king-high.

“Nice hand,” said a couple of players at the table. “Nice call.”

“It was because I saw him do the same thing not too long ago with king-jack,” replied Jouanneau.

Lucien Jouanneau – 1 million
Ertan Cicekdemir – 0

Ertan Cicekdemir

Payouts for €1,320

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 6:12 pm

The following players cashed for €1,320 in the Grand Event. The final 89 players have each locked up at least a €1,520 payout.

PlacePlayerPrize
90Sjoerd Nikkels€1,320
91Santaluna Baldassare€1,320
92Daoud Abu€1,320
93Kaspar Schmid€1,320
94Liwei Wang€1,320
95Fabio Coppola€1,320
96Amber Glasby€1,320
97Per Moller€1,320
98Aurelien Giard€1,320
99Katie Swift€1,320
100Pieter Koedijk€1,320
101Philip Roberts€1,320
102Fabio Sturba€1,320
103Thomas Lowter€1,320
104Marian Ivanov€1,320
105Pavle Pecelj€1,320
106Yannick Rohrbach€1,320
107Eduardo Terrivel€1,320
108Leon Campbell€1,320
109Fabian Fleischmann€1,320
110Antonios Onourfriou€1,320
111Luke Pace€1,320
112Robert Teunissen€1,320
113Anastasios Apostolou€1,320
114Firat Cankaya€1,320
115Dejan Dabetic€1,320
Katie Swift

Viaud Leaves Ozmen With Crumbs

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 6:08 pm

Level 19: 8,000/16,000
Entries: 94/1,226

David Ozmen opened from early position before Corentin Viaud three-bet to 135,000 from middle position. Ozmen jammed for 505,000 and Viaud called off his stack of 495,000.

Corentin Viaud: AA
David Ozmen: AK

Viaud’s rockets were the clear favorite and he doubled through Ozmen after the 9K528 ran out on the board.

Meanwhile, Ozmen was left with just half a big blind and his table broke after the hand.

Corentin Viaud – 1,040,000
David Ozmen – 10,000


Big Stacks at Break

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 5:59 pm

PlayerChipsBig Blinds
Humberto Galindo2,000,000100
Noel Studer1,900,00095
Martynas Brazdzionis1,900,00095
Shaun Halliday1,800,00090
Maik Buss1,800,00090
Thomas Hofmann1,300,00065
Serdar Demircan1,300,00065
Raoul van Wersch1,200,00060
Salvatore Ritrovato1,150,00058
Dost Ghrabie1,100,00055
Fabrizio Nobile1,000,00050
Joaquim Ferriera1,000,00050
Peter Kaspar1,000,00050

15-Minute Break

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 5:45 pm

The final 95 players are on a 15-minute break. Blinds will increase to 10,000/20,000 with a 20,000 big blind ante when the action resumes.


More Day 1d Photos

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 5:29 pm


Taylor Doubles His Short Stack

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 5:28 pm

Level 19: 8,000/16,000
Entries: 106/1,226

Simon Taylor jammed for 175,000 from the cutoff and was called by Baldassare Santaluna from the big blind.

Simon Taylor: 1010
Baldassare Santaluna: KJ

Taylor was at risk of losing his stack if he couldn’t win this flip. The tens held on the 2A42Q runout to survive and double his stack through Santaluna.

Baldassare Santaluna – 500K
Simon Taylor – 400K


Players That Min-Cashed (€1,120)

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 5:12 pm

The following players min-cashed the MPF Grand Event. The remaining 115 players each locked up a €200 pay jump and are guaranteed at least a €1,320 payout.

PlacePlayerPrize
116Grant Pirie€1,120
117Robrecht Winterink€1,120
118Arn Kungl€1,120
119Ashley Wilson€1,120
120Callum Gordon€1,120
121Torsten Riedl€1,120
122Kaloyan Kirov€1,120
123Anthony Whalley€1,120
124Massimo Bruno€1,120
125Mantas Petrauskas€1,120
126Michael Frost€1,120
127Fraser Mackenze€1,120
128Paolo Rando€1,120
129Andrew Cutajar€1,120
130Giulio Spaminato€1,120
131Rob van Embden€1,120
132Jonathan Schuman€1,120
133Anton Shroter€1,120
134Matthew Adams€1,120
135Ian Swan€1,120
136Boris Zismanov€1,120
137Julien Gadanho€1,120
138Nicky Molmans€1,120
139Thomas Steedman€1,120
140Giuseppe Signorelli€1,120
141Oscar Arezzo€1,120
142Samuel Biland€1,120
143Olav Kok€1,120
144Raimondo Marcello€1,120
145Thibault Branly€1,120
146Andrei Musat€1,120
147Nauseda Grazvydas€1,120
148Daniel Kuhlmann€1,120
149Lars Halkier€1,120
150Joseph East€1,120
151Ivan Picavet€1,120

Ghrabie Grabs a Ton of Chips With Ladies

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 5:08 pm

Level 19: 8,000/16,000 (16,000)
Entries: 116/1,226

Arno Kungl open-jammed for 65,000 from early position and was called by Dost Ghrabie from the hijack and Angelo Patane from the cutoff before Andrei Mjagokov jammed for close to 1,000,000. Ghrabie quickly called off his stack of 475,000 when the action came back around to him while Patane opted to fold.

Arno Kungl: A6
Dost Ghrabie: QQ
Andrei Mjagkov: AK

Ghrabie won the hand with his ladies to eliminate Kungl and double through Mjagkov after both players failed to improve on the 92962 board.

Dost Ghrabie – 1.2 million
Andrei Mjagkov – 500,000
Arno Kungl – 0


“Maybe I Did, Maybe I Didn’t.. It’s 50/50”

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 4:56 pm

Level 18: 6,000/12,000 (12,000)
Entries: 126/1,226

Louis Le Boisselier bet 120,000 into a pot of around triple that with the K10JQ on the board after the turn. Arnaud Cressent tanked for a couple of minutes before he called.

The 6 river completed the board. About two minutes later, Le Boisselier jammed for more than the 420,000 or so Cressent had behind.

Cressent tanked for close to five minutes. During which, he asked for a count only to learn that he was well-covered. Eventually, Cressent folded.

“Did you have it?” Cressent asked.

“Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t,” responded Le Boisselier. “It is 50/50.”

Louis Le Boisselier – 1.3 million
Arnaud Cressent – 420,000

Louis Le Boisselir

Photos of Some of the Big Stacks from Around the Room

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 4:41 pm


D’Antoni Heading to Marrakech

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 4:21 pm

The clock was paused after the money bubble broke and dozens of players headed over to Table 21 for a big flip taking place between the players that hit the rail close to the bubble.

Nikolaj D’Antoni won the flip after his K5 hit two pair on the 5KJ102 board and will head to the “can’t miss” Winamax Open Marrakech compliments of a package valued at around €2,500 by Winamax.

Tons of players were thrilled for D’Antoni and kudos for Winamax for adding this excitement to the Malta Poker Festival Grand Event.

In other news, we will not have a repeat champion in the MPF Grand Event as Mirko Mostaccio, who won this event in the autumn, hit the rail just short of the money.

Best of luck to the remaining players in the field.


Footballer Regilio Vrede Bubbles Grand Event

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 4:17 pm

Level 18: 6,000/12,000 (12,000)
Entries: 151/1,226

Former footballer Regilio Vrede just bubbled the Grand Event on a cooler. Vrede jammed for 90,000 into a pot of around the same with the 4QJ on the flop and was called by Michal Gavurnik.

The action paused for about three minutes while hands at other tables played out. After that, a big crowd surround the table and the cards were turned over.

Regilio Vrede: AQ
Michal Gavurnik: K10

Vrede was ahead but Gavurnik had many outs to a better pair or to complete an open-ended straight draw. The 10 added more possible outs for Gavurnik with one card to come.

The tournament arena erupted with applause after the 9 river completed the board to complete a straight for Gavurnik.

Unlucky for Vrede but he will have a chance to make up for it with the last nine players to hit the rail before the bubble flipping for a Winamax Marrakech package valued at approximately €2,500.

This author has attended Winamax events in the past at Marrakech, and that isn’t one to miss.

Michal Gavurnik – 1 million
Regilio Vrede – 0

**We will update with a bubble photo shortly.**


Demircan Delivers Three Strikes

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 3:36 pm

Level 17: 5,000/10,000 (10,000)
Entries: 152/1,226

While we are waiting for the bubble to break, here is a funny hand from earlier involved Serdar Demircan.

Demircan opened for 25,000 and was called by Fabrizio Nobile from the big blind.

“Strike one,” said Demircan. “You should have folded.”

Nobile checked in the dark before the five-eight-nine came on the flop.

“That’s strike two,” Demircan said. “You gave me a free card.

Demircan checked and Nobile checked again on the king turn.

“That’s strike three,” Demircan said. “Another free card.”

Dermircan, who is on around 1.3 million in chips, would up betting 50,000 this time around and Nobile folded.

Serdar Demircan – 1,300,000
Fabrizio Nobile – 400,000

Serdar Demircan

Hand-for-Hand

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 3:32 pm

Level 17: 5,000/10,000 (10,000)
Entries: 152/1,226

Players are hand-for-hand on the money bubble with 152 players remaining.


Galindo Rockets to Over 1M

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 3:20 pm

Level 17: 5,000/10,000 (10,000)
Entries: 160/1,226

We caught up with Humberto Galindo, who is quietly grinding a big stack. He shared with us that he got a good amount of his nearly 1.2 million in chips in a big pot where a player ran their stack with ace-nine suited into his rockets.

Also on his table with big stacks were Leon Campbell, Stepan Brychta, and Kevin Houghton.

Humberto Galindo – 1,150,000
Kevin Houghton – 600,000
Leon Campbell – 500,000
Stepan Brychta – 500,000


Luksa Wins Nearly a 1 Million Chip Pot

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 3:10 pm

Level 17: 5,000/10,000 (10,000)
Entries: 167/1,226

Marko Luksa began today with the chip lead and now has it once again after winning a massive pot of around 900,000 in chips against Maxime Chilaud near the money bubble.

Luksa opened for 20,000 from late position. Chilaud three-bet to 83,000 from the blinds. Luksa four-bet to 150,000 before Chilaud five-bet shoved for more than 400,000. Luksa called and the cards were turned over.

Maxime Chilaud: QQ
Marko Luksa: KK

Luksa’s cowboys got the job done on the A45JJ board to eliminate Chilaud and win the biggest pot of the tournament thus far.

Marko Luksa – 1.1 million
Maxime Chilaud – 0

Marko Luksa
Marko Luksa

Various Big Stacks at Break

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 2:56 pm

PlayerChipsBig Blinds
Alex Montgomery1,050,000105
Chris Da Silva890,00089
Martynas Brazdzions770,00077
Manoj Navini760,00076
David Ozmen745,00075
Alessandro Furneri710,00071
Marko Luksa700,00070
Chen Keren690,00069
Anthony Whalley660,00066
Louis Le Boisselier592,00059

First Break

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 2:38 pm

Level 17: 5,000/10,000 (10,000)
Entries: 173/1,226

Players are on their first break. The money bubble will approach soon after the action resumes with 151 players guaranteed at least a €1,120 min-cash.

Blinds will increase to 5,000/10,000 with a 10,000 big blind ante when the action resumes in 15 minutes.


Montgomery Becomes a Chip Millionaire

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 2:36 pm

Level 16: 4,000/8,000 (8,000)
Entries: 181/1,226

Alex Montgomery, who entered today with a top 10 stack of 499,000 in chips is the first player we noticed over 1 million in chips. Montgomery recapped an earlier hand which got him on his way.

A player opened from under the gun before three players called including Montgomery from the big blind.

The players in the blinds checked the 1053 flop before the under-the-gun player bet 26,000. Another player flat-called before the player in the small blind jammed for 126,000. Montgomery came in over the top for his table-leading chip stack and the under-the-gun player went into the tank before he called.

Small Blind Player: K2
UTG Player: QQ
Alex Montgomery: 33

Montgomery was ahead with his set of treys and remained ahead after the 9 turn. The 5 river improved the small blind player to a flush but Montgomery won the hand with a full house.

“Boom!” said the player in the small blind prematurely before realizing he lost his chip stack.

We will update some of the other bigger stacks from around the room on the first break.

Alex Montgomery – 1.1 million


Ferrari Runs Out of Gas

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 2:13 pm

Level 16: 4,000/8,000 (8,000)
Entries: 190/1,226

Moreno Ferrari jammed for 81,000 from the small blind. Mantas Petrauskas went into the tank for a few minutes before he found a call for more than half of his stack.

Moreno Ferrari: 87
Mantas Petrauskas: K6

“Wow!” said Ferrari seemingly in shock before the Q4K flop improved Petrauskas to top pair.

“What’s happening?” Ferrari said still in a little shock.

The J turn and 6 river completed the board for Petrauskas to win the hand and felt Ferrari.

“Nice hand,” Ferrari said before leaving.

Mantas Petrauskas – 230,000
Moreno Ferrari – 0


Snowmen Don’t Get Ahead of Cowboys for Swift

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 2:05 pm

Level 16: 4,000/8,000 (8,000)
Entries: 197/1,226

Daniel Spavin-Haigh open-jammed for 93,000 from under the gun. Katie Swift asked for a count from the button before she called.

Daniel Spavin-Haigh: KK
Katie Swift: 88

“Nice hand,” Swift said to Spavin-Haigh when she saw how dominated her snowmen were.

Spavin-Haigh improved further to a set of cowboys on the K29 flop.

“Nice hand,” Swift said to her opponent again.

Neither the A tur nor the 4 river made any difference in the hand and Spavin-Haigh doubled through Swift.

Kaite Swift – 235,000
Daniel Spavin-Haigh – 205,000

Katie Swift

Pinto Loses His Stack to Roberts on a Rollercoaster Ride of a Hand

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 1:58 pm

Level 15: 3,000/6,000 (6,000)
Entries: 208/1,226

Michael Pinto began today with one of the bigger stacks in play with 374,000 in chips. He was down to about 15 big blinds when he lost the rest on a roller coaster of a hand against Scott Roberts.

Roberts opened for 13,000 before Pinto jammed for about 80,000. Roberts called and the cards were turned over.

Michael Pinto: AK
Scott Roberts: QQ

It was looking good for Pinto to double after he pulled out ahead with trips on the AA2 flop. Pinto was still ahead on 5 turn. However, the Q came raining down on the river to destroy the rest of Pinto’s stack.

Meanwhile, Roberts was north of half a million chips after the hand.

Scott Roberts – 525,000
Michael Pinto – 0


Pace Flops Two Pair to Win Massive Pot Against Oldfield

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 1:39 pm

Level 15: 3,000/6,000 (6,000)
Entries: 219/1,226

There was a little bit already in the pot when Luke Pace checked the 86Q flop. John Oldfield bet 30,000 and Presiyan Tsvetanov called before Luke Pace jammed for 301,000. Oldfield called the big shove and Tsvetanov opted to fold.

Luke Pace: Q8
John Oldfield: AA

Pace was ahead with his two pair but Oldfield still had a bit of hope. Neither the 4 turn nor the K river improved Oldfield from his pocket rockets for Pace to win the massive pot. Meanwhile, Oldfield had his work cut out for him as he was below a starting stack after the hand.

Luke Pace – 700,000
Presiyan Tsvetanov – 290,000
John Oldfield – 40,000


Turn Saves Petit

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 1:33 pm

Level 15: 3,000/6,000 (6,000)
Entries: 227/1,226

Thomas Petit jammed for a little more than 10 big blinds from the hijack and was looked up by Jonathan Pastore from the button.

Thomas Petit: 77
Jonathan Pastore: AK

It was looking like Petit would be heading to the showers after Pastore connected with his ace on the AJJ flop. However, Petit moved far ahead after hitting a two outer on the 7 turn to improve to a full house.

Petit wasn’t out of the woods yet as Pastore had a potential four-outer to complete for a better full house. The blank 3 river wasn’t one of those four outs and Petit doubled through Pastore.

Thomas Petit – 140,000
Jonathan Pastore – 65,000


Bandyle Comes Back to the Table

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 1:25 pm

Level 15: 3,000/6,000 (6,000)
Entries: 242/1,226

Tina Bandyle opened from the hijack. Nauseda Grazyvydas three-bet shoved for just under 15 big blinds and Bandyle called.

Nauseda Grazyvydas: AK
Tina Bandyle: AJ

Grazyvydas’s big slick held on the 4K2510 board. The stacks of the two players appeared to be very close. Bandyle, however, ran away from the table and temporarily out of the poker room. This reporter chased after her when we saw she still had 3,000 chips left. Someone else told her first and she got back to the table in an attempt to go from zero to hero..

Nauseda Grazyvydas – 200,000
Tina Bandyle – 3,000


Zeb Wins a Big Flip to Oust Cartarius

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 1:13 pm

Level 15: 3,000/6,000 (6,000)
Entries: 252/1,226

Dror Krici opened for 13,000 from the button. Zaheer Zeb three-bet to 35,000 from the small blind before Louis Cartarius four-bet jammed for 172,000 from the big blind. Krici got out of the way and Krici went into the tank before asking for a chip count.

Zeb found a call about three minutes later and the cards were turned over with Cartarius at risk.

Louis Cartarius: AK
Zaheer Zeb: 1010

Zeb’s tens won the flip to eliminate Cartarius after his opponent was unable to find any love on the 86939 board.

Zaheer Zeb – 400,000
Louis Cartarius – 0


Tens Good for D’Antoni

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 12:57 pm

Level 14: 3,000/5,000 (5,000)
Entries: 273/1,226

Sirin Ongorur three-bet jammed the button and was called by Nicolaj D’Antoni, who originally opened from middle position.

Nicolaj D’Antoni: 1010
Sirin Ongorur: A6

We were hoping to catch Ongorur on the winning end of a hand and hopefully, we will later as he created the technical aspects of the blog and website we are using.

However, this wasn’t the time as D’Antoni immediately improved to a set and never looked back after the 10852Q ran out on the board.


Ducks No Good for Berdis

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 12:49 pm

Level 14: 3,000/5,000 (5,000)
Entries: 280/1,226

Oliver Said opened from the button before David Berdis jammed for 130,000 from the small blind. Said called and the two players were flipping for a big pot with Berdis at risk.

David Berdis: 22
Oliver Said: AJ

Berdis was ahead in the flip after both the 478 flop and the 8 turn.

“Yes!”said Said after the J river completed the board to improve him to a better pair.

Berdis got out of his seat and we wish him better luck if he plays in any of the side events today.


Craigie Breathes a Sigh of Relief

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 12:38 pm

Level 14: 3,000/5,000 (5,000)
Entries: 300/1,226

Kerryjane Craigie jammed from middle position for 83,000 and was looked up by Flaviano Cammisuli from the button.

Kerryjane Craigie: QQ
Flaviano Cammisuli: AK

Craigie pulled miles ahead after the Q6K improved her to a set. She appeared nervous despite improving to a full house on the K turn with Cammisuli holding a handful of outs for a better full house or four kings.

The blank J river completed the board and Craigie breathed a huge sigh of relief after winning the hand.

Kerryjane Craigie – 180,000
Flaviano Cammisuli – 40,000

Kerryjane Craigie
Kerryjane Craigie

Georgiou Flops the Nuts

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 12:33 pm

Level 14: 3,000/5,000 (5,000)
Entries: 305/1,226

Georgios Georgiou had his stack of 75,000 in the middle on the 534 flop and was up against Julian Capone.

Georgios Georgiou: 76
Julian Capone: KK

Georgiou already had the nuts with a straight to pull ahead of cowboys and even had a flush draw to boot. Capone needed a pair of runners to win the hand but was drawing to just a three-outer to a chop after the 6 turn. The J river completed the board for Georgiou to double through Capone.

Georgios Georgiou – 170,000
Julian Capone – 25,000


Hays Runs Into Ladies

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 12:26 pm

Level 14: 3,000/5,000 (5,000)
Entries: 309/1,226

“Player out,” is something that can be frequently heard in the poker arena early on Day 2 with more than 20 players already on the rail including Antonin Hays as follows.

Hays jammed for 75,000 from the button.

“How much?” asked Fabio Coppola from the small blind.

The dealer counted Hays’ stack and Coppola announced a call shortly after.

Antonin Hays: K9
Fabio Coppola: QQ

Hays wasn’t able to get there on the 7A258 and was eliminated by Coppola early on Day 2.

Fabio Coppola – 300,000
Antonin Hays – 0


Bagnall Ousts Nima

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 12:18 pm

Level 14: 3,000/5,000 (5,000)
Entries: 324/1,226

Several players have already hit the rail early on Day 2 including Hassan Nima as follows.

Nima jammed for about 12 big blinds from the small blind. Calum Bagnall had Nima covered and snap-called from the big blind.

Hassan Nima: 109
Calum Bagnall: KQ

Bagnall barely had Nima covered and snagged all of his chips with a full house after the 22Q2A ran out on the board.

Calum Bagnall – 125,000
Hassan Nima – 0


151 Players Paid; €100,600 Top Prize!

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 12:10 pm

The payouts have been announced for the MPF Grand Event. The top 151 players will go home with at least a €1,120 min-cash for more than double the €550 buy-in.

Tomorrow’s winner is slated to walk away with much more with a €100,600 top prize on the line! Here is a look at all of the payouts of the 2023 Malta Poker Festival Spring Edition €550 Grand Event.

PlacePrize
1€100,600
2€75,690
3€55,420
4€37,400
5€20,150
6€14,850
7€11,400
8€9,050
9€7,550
10-11€6,150
12-13€5,050
14-15€4,150
16-20€3,350
21-26€2,820
27-35€2,470
36-44€2,170
45-53€1,920
54-71€1,720
72-89€1,520
90-115€1,320
116-151€1,120

Day 2 Begins

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 12:10 pm

Level 14: 3,000/5,000 (5,000)
Entries: 330/1,226

Ludos Academy CEO Danilo de Berardinis and MPF founder Ivonne Montealegre welcomed the players and provided some information about Day 2 of the MPF Grand Event.

One player was disqualified from the event, so we start today with 330 hopefuls in the hunt for the title.

Best of luck to all of the Day 2 players.


Day 2 of the MPF Grand Event Begins at 1 p.m.

By Jason Glatzer | April 30, 2023 10:25 am

The Malta Poker Festival (MPF) Spring Edition €550 Grand Event powered by the Unibet DeepStack Open has been a massive success with 1,226 entries coming out in full force during the five opening flights to generate a huge €588,480 prize pool. This not only smashed the €300,000 guarantee but also nearly doubled it.

A total of 331 entries or 27% of the field survived and are ready to battle for the next two days until the latest MPF champion is crowned.

Day 1a chip leader Marko Luksa bagged the biggest stack of 687,000 with Day 1b chip leader Shaun Halliday (656,000) and Day 1c chip leader Malik Buss (618,000). Here is a look at the top 10 chip counts on Day 2.

PlacePlayerChipsBig Blinds
1Marko Luksa687,000137
2Shaun Halliday656,000131
3Maik Buss618,000124
4Michal Gavurnik577,000115
5Ertan Cicekdemir523,000105
6Chris Da Silva500,000100
7Alex Montgomery499,000100
8Kaloyan Kirov472,00094
9Paul Young459,00092
10Noel Studer447,00089

Players will have a little more time on Day 2 than the opening flights with 50-minute blind levels throughout Day 2. In addition, players will enjoy a smooth 8-max format the rest of the tournament.

The payouts will be announced shortly after cards are in the air. Day 2 is scheduled to conclude the sooner of 14 blind levels or when a final table of nine players is reached.

Head to the Seat Draw post to check out the Day 2 seat draw for the final 331 players.

Meanwhile, the €120 APAT Maltese Championship will crown a winner on its second and final day with cards in the air at 2 p.m.

Several new side events kickoff today as well including the €250 Sunday Deep Stack powered by Stanleybet at 5 p.m., the first of two days of the €1,100 MPF High Roller at 6 p.m., the €200 PLO Knights Crusaders at 7 p.m., and the €150 Win the Button at 8 p.m. Additionally, there is a €150 turbo satellite to the High Roller at 2 p.m. for those looking for a chance to get in for a fraction of the cost.

We will be back on the floor when cards are in the air at 1 p.m. for Day 2. Stay tuned to the Malta Poker Festival blog for all of your updates.

Andrew Cutajar

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