Day 4

The 2025 Battle of Malta Spring Edition has now reached its final table. It will be played out to a finish at Intercontinental Hotel, adjoined to Casino Malta, with play commencing at 2pm. There are now just eight players left out of the 1,542 who began the quest for ultimate triumph, the €120,000 top prize and a very unique trophy.

The big stack going into the final is Adrian Ziemichod from Poland, who commands over a third of the chips in play. American Robert Perelman lies in second with just under half the stack of the chip leader, with Finnish Rasmus Lundström just a pip behind in 3rd.

With the exception of Attila Szucs from Hungary who is the short stack, the rest of the chasing pack are from Italy. Three of the poker azzurri are Oscar Arezzo, Giovanni Caggia and Luca Tonarelli and all will be walking away with their biggest cashes of their poker lives, wherever they finish on the final table.

The largest stacked of three Sicilians to have made it this far is the flamboyant Flaviano Cammisuli. The 33-year old from Pacino is an experienced player who has been coming to the Battle of Malta for many years. It’s also not his first final table, as he was 6th in the 2016 Battle of Malta Main Event.

Flaviano Cammisuli

Chip Counts Going Into The Final

The Grateful Eight: Battle of Malta Main Event Final Table, Spring Edition

How to Watch the Battle of Malta Final Table

The live stream of the final table (on a 30-minute delay) will be broadcast on the Battle of Malta’s YouTube Channel. There will also be a blog following the action and a wide variety of multi-media coverage across the event’s social media platforms.

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Blog Coverage

From 24 Down to Eight

The penultimate day of the Main Event began with quick fire slaughter, as six players hit the rail within the first 40 minutes of play. The pace then slowed down and with 18 left there were still two players in contention looking for back-to-back final tables. Alessandro Siena, who finished 4th in the 2024 Autumn Edition was very unfortunate not to go deeper, but lost out in 18th place when his Q♣Q♠ was defeated by Adrian Ziemichod’s A♣9♣ after a second nine hit on the river.

Ziechimod already had a large stack at this point and his streak continued, hitting a royal flush at one point and getting paid off. He’s a strong player and with such a big stack going into the final, he may be hard to peg back. He only has two years worth of results in TheHendonMob database, however he has already amassed over $200,000 in live cashes and has made deep runs in many events. At last year’s WSOPE, he cashed no less than six times.

Adrian Ziemichod

The other former finalist was Bulgarian Ivaylo Eftimov, one of the most aggressive players left in the tournament. However he also lost the majority of his stack in the hand in which Ziechimod made his Royal Flush, and eventually busted in 10th, just short of securing back-to-back final tables.

The most experienced player on the final is American Robert Perelman. While his style of play may not have been as aggressive as some, he quietly crept up the chip chart throughout the day to bag the second largest stack of just over 10m. His previous best result was a win on the Heartland Poker Tour in Las Vegas in 2011 for over $150,000 and he will be hoping to go close to matching that with a win here on Wednesday.

Robert Perelman

The player who experienced the biggest rollercoaster ride of the day must have been Rasmus Lundström. The 25-year old Finnish player saw his chip stack yo-yo several times, frequently trading chips with both Flaviano Cammisuli and Gabriele Carro.

With ten players left Rasmus was on the low point of his fairground poker ride, but ended the day on a high after busting Carro with a rivered straight versus the Italian’s pocket aces. Rasmus had made a risky call on the turn, which paid off when he hit his straight and managed to lure Carro to make a call with aces after going all-in on the river. He is certainly one to watch on the final table.

Rasmus Lundström

Side Events

Tuesday was the last day in which side events were running, as Wednesday will focus solely on the final table of the Main Event. There were four tournaments that took place, starting with the €300 MAS NLH, in which 131 players entered, creating a prize pool of €32,357, with €7,750 up top for the winner. That honour went to Salvatore Patti from Italy, who beat Battle of Malta legend Fotios Ntamaris from Greece heads up.

The €200 Dark Knight also had its second running of the series, which also had 131 entries and in this one Greek player Anargryos Loizos managed to avenge his compatriot Fotios’s defeat by taking top honours and the €5,060 first prize. Graham Price and Keane Stevenson, both from England finished 2nd and 3rd respectively.

Twenty players contested the final €200 PLO of the week, with Denilson Gutierez Chacon from Spain claiming the victory for €1,900.

The final €150 Hyperturbo didn’t have an official sponsor, however Battle of Malta host Glenn Brown might has well have claimed it, given how much he’s donated in some of these events throughout the week. However on this occasion, he recouped at least some of his buy-ins back by finishing 4th for €570. The event had 42 entrants and was won by the UK’s Victoria McClurg for €1,630, with Poland’s Blazej Przgorzewski runner up and Emzy Oliver in 3rd.

Battle of Malta reporter Alek Gillies (right) with Hyperturbo Finalist Glenn Brown

The Battle Booth

The Battle of Malta’s daily talk show is a newly introduced element to the coverage at this edition and there have been several episodes so far, the most amusing of which is the extended show shot at the player party. It can be viewed along with all the other shows on the Battle of Malta’s YouTube Channel. Yesterday’s edition, “Behind the Scenes” is now available to view, in which Jason Glatzer and Glenn Brown are joined by Lorena and Jonathan from the media team.

After roughly eight hours of play, Day 4 of the 2025 Battle of Malta Main Event came to an end. It was an absolutely thrilling day, which started with a few short stacks busting during the earlier stages, followed by some thrilling hands that saw many chips trading owners. Let’s take a look at what played out during play today.

Ziemichod did Great

Emanuele Pandetta was the first player to bust out from Day 4, and from that moment, the action escalated quickly. One of the players who was very active today was Adrian Ziemichod. He eliminated Alessandro Siena in brutal fashion, and from there on, he was on a mission to collect as many chips as humanly possible. He booked the chip lead during the first break and never looked back; perhaps the highlight of his day was when he turned a royal straight flush and even got value from it.

Adrian Ziemichod will enter the final table as the chipleader with 21,300,000 in chips.

Another player who won some crucial pots during the day was Finland’s Rasmus Lundström. Hitting a straight on the river, he won one of the biggest pots of the tournament and earned himself great presumptions maneuvering the table. Lundström was also the one to put an end to Day 4 when his rivered straight cracked Gabriele Carro’s aces and brought the number of players down to eight.

Rasmus Lundström.

Grande Finale

Tomorrow at 14:00, the remaining eight players will return to the Eden Arena at the Intercontinental Hotel in St. Julians and continue the fight for eternal poker glory and a €120,000 first-place payout. They will resume play at Level 31 (Blinds 100,000/150,000 with a 150,000 Ante); the seat draw and chip counts look as follows:

Once again, tomorrow’s final table will begin at 14:00, and the whole shebang will be live-streamed on the Battle of Malta YouTube channel, FaceBook page, and website. Jason Glatzer and guests will provide great commentary on the 30-minute delayed broadcast, and the live reporting will follow the delay.

Good luck to all the players, and let’s end the 2025 Battle of Malta with a bang!

Even though the Main Event has long since ended for the day, three of today’s four side events are still ongoing at Casino Malta and the Intercontinental Hotel in St Julians.

The one event that has been completed was the final Pot Limit Omaha event, with a €220 buy-in. It attracted a field of 20 runners, paying the top three only. It was won by Spaniard Denilson Gutierez Chacon for €1,900 with Estonian Rait Kaimer taking second and Thomas Mosler third.

The first side event of the day to start was the MAS NLH with a €300 buy-in and it is now on the final table with six players left. It had 131 Greek legend Fotios Ntamaris is one of those still in contention, vying for the €7,750 first prize.

The Dark Knight also had 131 entries and is now down to the last 11, with €5,060 up top for the eventual winner. The final €150 Hyperturbo of the festival has 17 of 42 entrants left , including both Jason Glatzer and Glenn Brown. Will either of them follow in my footsteps and emerge as a Spring Edition champion? Its possible.

We’ll report on the outcomes of these events in the morning.

Fotios Ntamaris

Day 4 of the Battle of Malta is now history. After Gabriele Carro’s exit, courtesy of Rasmus Lundstroem, play was adjourned. The final table will begin at 2pm on Wednesday 9th April, when the Grateful Eight will return for the final skirmish of the Spring Edition. Grateful, not hateful, there’s only positive vibes at this table.

Level 31: 100,000/150,000 (150,000)
Entries: 8/1,542

Gabriele Carro eliminated in 9th place for €10,200

Roughly 15 minutes into the 9-handed unofficial final table, Gabriele Carro opened to 300,000 from the Cut-off. Seated in the Big Blind, Rasmus Lundström decided to call.

The flop came 3♥Q♠4♦. Lundström checked to Carro, who continued for 325,000. Lundström made the call, and the dealer dealt the 8♥ on the turn. Lundström checked again, and Carro now bet 600,000. Lundström threw in five 100,000 chips and made the call.

The river was the 5♠. Lundström completed the check trifecta, and Carro bet 1,100,000. Then, Lundström forced Carro all in for 3,000,000 in total.

Carro leaned back in his chair and sighed heavily. He threw in two timebank chips and was visibly agonized by Lundström’s move. After some time, Carro eventually made the call.

Lundström turned over A♠2♠ for a rivered straight. Carro couldn’t believe it as he showed the table his A♥A♦ holdings.

Rasmus Lundström: 9,625,000
Gabriele Carro: 0

With that, Carro was eliminated in 9th place. For his feat, he was awarded €10,200. As he headed over to the payout desk, the rest of the players celebrated as the tournament director brought eight plastic bags to the table.

The remaining players will nog bag their chips and return tomorrow, April 9, at 14:00, to battle it out for the 2025 Battle of Malta Main Event title and the first-place payout of €120,000.

That concludes our live coverage for Day 4 of the Main Event. Stay tuned for a recap of the day, as well as chip counts for tomorrow’s official 8-handed final table.

The final table of nine has now been reached, but play will continue until one more player falls by the wayside, as tomorrow’s TV final table is eight-handed. Here  are the chip counts and the seat draw. Play is about to resume, with 64 minutes left in the level.

Chip Leader Adrian Ziemichod

Level 30: 100,000/150,000 (150,000)
Entries: 9/1,542

Having lost the majority of his stack against Adrian Zeimichod, Eftimov was left with just 650,000. He moved all-in under the gun and was called by Robert Perelman in the big blnd.

Eftimov: T♥8♠

Perelman: A♥K♠

It was all but over on a flop of

T♠J♦Q♣

and the 4♥ on the turn made the J♥ on the river an irrelevancy.

Eftimov from Bulgaria was chasing back-to-back final tables, as he had finished 8th at the Autumn Edition, but it was not to be.

Ivaylo Eftimov, 10th place for €8,100

Level 30: 100,000/150,000 (150,000)
Entries: 10/1,542

Adrian Ziemichod

Adrian Ziemichod opened to 300,000 from UTG, and Big Blind-player Ivaylo Eftimov was the sole caller. On the flop 4♣A♦K♦, Eftimov checked to Ziemichod, who continued for 300,000. Eftimov snap-raised to 1,100,000 and Ziemichod decided to call.

Action went check-check on the Q♦ turn. The river was the A♣, and after Eftimov checked, Ziemichod bet 3,300,000. After a minute’s worth of consideration, Eftimov made the call.

Ziemichod turned over J♦T♦ for the stone-cold nuts. As his stack reached new highs, Eftimov was left with crumbs.

Adrian Ziemichod: 19,600,000
Ivaylo Eftimov: 650,000

It seems to becoming a two tier event, with a gap beginning to grow between the chip rich and the chip poor. While Adrian Ziemichod and Rasmus Lundstroem are chip aristocrats, Azerro and Szucs are paupers and the rest occupy a burgeoned middle class. Will this chip imbalance bring the day to end in the next level? We’ll find out soon when play resumes.

The final ten players in the Battle of Malta Spring Edition have now gone on a 15-minute break. Meanwhile the tournament staff are colouring up and updating the chip counts, which are coming shortly.

Level 30: 60,000/120,000 (120,000)
Entries: 10/1,542

Jannik Bengtsen out in 11th for €8,100

Action folded to Jannik Bengtsen, who opened to 240,000 from the Button. Adrian Ziemichod, seated next to Bengtsen in the Big Blind, forced Bengtsen all in for 2,040,000. Bengtsen snap-called.

Adrian Ziemichod: J♥T♥
Jannik Bengtsen: Q♥Q♦

Two ladies on the hand, but no lady luck on the board for Bengtsen, as it ran out J♣6♠J♦3♣8♠. He busted in 11th and cashed for €8,100, as Ziemichod’s already big stack grew even taller.

Adrian Ziemichod: 14,200,000
Jannik Bengtsen: 0

Level 30: 60,000/120,000 (120,000)
Entries: 11/1,542

Attila Szucs

Adrian Ziemichod opened to 240,000 from the Button. Short-stacked Attila Szucs raised to 620,000, leaving only 150,000 behind. Ziemichod forced Zsucs all in, and naturally, he made the call.

Adrian Ziemichod: 4♦4♣
Attila Szucs: A♠9♠

went all in for 770,000

The runout 5♥8♥5♠A♣K♣ secured a crucial double up for Szucs.

Adrian Ziemichod: 12,800,000
Attila Szucs: 1,600,000

Level 30: 60,000/120,000 (120,000)
Entries: 11/1,542

Christoph Tanner, 12th for €7,210

A short-stacked Christoph Tanner went all in from the Cut-off for 1,150,000. Action folded to Jannik Bengtsen in the Big Blind, who called immediately after he took at look at his cards.

Christoph Tanner: T♥9♥
Jannik Bengtsen: A♠J♥

Tanner didn’t connect on the 3♦5♠2♦6♥K♦ board, and such, he was eliminated in 12th place, earning himself €7,210.

Jannik Bengtsen: 2,300,000
Christoph Tanner: 0

Level 30: 60,000/120,000 (120,000)
Entries: 12/1,542

Rasmus Lundström

The flop read Q♦3♣9♥ at Table 116 with roughly 850,000 in the middle. Flaviano Cammisuli and Oscar Arezzo both checked to Rasmus Lundström who bet 325,000. Back on Cammisuli who now raised to 900,000. Arezzo folded, prior to Lundström making the call.

The turn was the 7♣, and Cammisuli fired a big 2,300,000 bet. After some pondering and a timebank chip, Lundström made the call.

On the river 8♣, Cammisuli forced Lundström all in for 4,600,000. Lundström didn’t look too comfortable, but, in the end, he made the call.

Flaviano Cammisuli: 3♠3♥
Rasmus Lundström: J♠T♠

Cammisuli was not pleased with the outcome. The same can’t be said about Lundström, though, who shipped what must’ve been the biggest pot of the tournament so far.

Rasmus Lundström: 17,000,000
Flaviano Cammisuli: 2,100,000

Just two hands before this one took place, Rasmus was lamenting the fact that Flaviano had such a big stack, encouraging anyone to take chips off him. In the end he did the job himself.

Play has tightened up significantly since play resumed and there are still 12 players left. However a huge hand has just gone down between two of the chip leaders. Details coming shortly…

The Main Event is now on the second break of the day and the chips have been totalled up by the floor staff and this is the current state of play for the Tremendous Twelve.

Two of today’s side events are now well in progress and the Dark Knight has just begun. It’s been a regular fixture at the Battle of Malta for many years and this is the second running of the caped hero’s favourite poker tournament at the Spring Edition.

There were 17 players in their seats at the start and late registration is open until 8.35pm for latecomers.

Today’s PLO has 16 runners so far and is now in the 6th level, with two levels left for late entry.

The earlier starting MAS NLH is now up to 125 entrants with 25 minutes left for late registration and 64 players still in.

There is just one more side event left to begin, the €150 Hyperturbo at 9pm.

Live updates by Snoopy

Level 29: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 12/1,542

Adrian Ziemichod during the 2025 Battle of Malta.

Adrian Ziemichod opened to 200,000 from the Button. Christoph Tanner was the sole caller as he decided to defend his Big Blind.

Tanner check-called a 225,000 bet from Ziemichod on the J♦K♠5♥ flop. Action repeated itself on the T♦ turn, the only difference being Ziemichod’s bet now was 625,000. Action went check-check on the A♥ river.

Christoph Tanner: J♣9♠
Adrian Ziemichod: K♦T♣

Two pairs were good for Ziemichod as he collected the pot.

Adrian Ziemichod: 9,300,000
Christoph Tanner: 2,200,000

Level 29: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 14/1,542

Start of day chip leader Benoit Kuhn is the latest player to see his tournament life fizzle out of existence. Shortly before the hand in question he was telling the table that he’s still on tilt from a big pot he lost seven hands earlier.

In the hand in question Rob Perelman has opened to 200,000 from the lo-jack. It folded round to Benoit who shoved from the small blind for 1.585m. Attila Suzcs in the big blind tanked for some time, using one of his three remaining time banks in the process before making the call.

Rob Perelman got out of the way pretty quickly.

Benoit Kuhn: 8♥8♣
Attila Szucs: A♠A♣

The board was

Q♣3♥6♦3♣Q♥

This sent Benoit to the rail in 13th place for €7,210.

Attila’s tank was interesting here. He was clearly never folding, but what message was he trying to send to Perelman? Did he want another caller and risk the chances of his bullets holding up?

Attila Szucs: 3,815,000
Benoit Kuhn: 0

Benoit Kuhn, 13th for €7,210

Level 29: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 13/1,542

Giovanna Dimartino was the last woman standing (technically sitting but hey) in the tournament, seated at the Big Blind at Table 116. Facing a 200,000 raise from Rasmus Lundström (Cut-off), Dimartino went all in for 930,000. Lundström determined he was priced in to make the call.

Giovanna Dimartino: A♠A♣
Rasmus Lundström: Q♠8♦

Brutal scenes for Dimartino as she saw the board run out 5♥7♣Q♥2♥8♥. She busted in 14th place for €6,430.

Rasmus Lundström: 9,000,000
Giovanna Dimartino: 0

Giovanna Dimartino, 14th for €6,430

Level 29: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 13/1,542

Adrian Ziemichod

Adrian Ziemichod opened to 200,000 from the cutoff and Attila Szucs three bet to 600,000.

Ziemichod took his time before he announced “all in.” for a total of 7,600,000.

The shorter stacked Szucs looked for a live read and eventually relented as he mucked his two cards

Adrian Ziemichod: 8,200,000
Attila Szucs: 345,000

Level 29: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 14/1,542

Benoit Kuhn opened to 200,000 from UTG. When action came to Clement Kerrien, he went all in for 1,125,000 from the Hi-jack. From the Small Blind, Jannik Bengtsen re-shoved; Adrian Ziemichod folded his Big Blind, and Kuhn also got out of the way. Kerrien VS Bengtsen: it was time for showdown.

Clement Kerrien: 9♣9♥
Jannik Bengtsen: A♥A♣

Aces held up for Bengtsen on the 3♥8♥T♣6♣2♣ runout, and with that, Kerrien was eliminated in 15th place for €6,430. Worth to mention, though, is that Kerrien also collected €5,000 for his chipleader bonus from his Day 1 flight.

Jannik Bengtsen: 3,900,000
Clement Kerrien: 0

Clement Kerrien, 15th place for €6,430

Level 29: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 16/1,542

One of the first hands after the first break, Benoit Kuhn raised to 225,000 from the Hi-jack. Action folded to Clement Kerrien in the Small Blind, who went all in for 750,000. After Robert Perelman folded his Big Blind, Kuhn made the call.

Clement Kerrien: A♦T♠
Benoit Kuhn: A♠7♠

The board T♦2♥2♣5♥9♠ secured a double up for Kerrien.

Benoit Kuhn: 3,000,000
Clement Kerrien: 1,700,000

Level 29: 50,000/100,000 (100,000)
Entries: 15/1,542

Giovanni Caggia opened to 200,000 from UTG. Action folded to Dimitar Syarov in the Small Blind, who went all in for 865,000. Caggia made the call.

Dimitar Syarov: 7♦7♣
Giovanni Caggia: A♠K♣

A classic coinflip situation that went the way of Caggia, as the board spelled out 5♦T♠3♠A♣K♦. Such, Syarov became the first casualty after the break, sent to collect a €5,820 paycheck.

Giovanni Caggia: 4,000,000
Dimitar Syarov: 0

Dmitar Syarov, 16th place for €5,820

Adrian Ziemichod has assumed the chip lead at the break with just over 9m. The top of the chip charts is now occupied by some of the more experienced players to have made the penultimate day. Flavio Cammisuli site in second, Rasmus Lundstroem in 3rd and Ivaylo Eftimoiv is 4th.

Here are the full counts for all 16 remaining players.

Adrian Ziemichod during the 2025 Battle of Malta.

The 16 remaining players in the Main Event are now on their first break of the day. Full chip counts to follow…

Level 28: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 16/1,542

Miletiev Eftimov opened to 160,000 from the Lo-jack. Jannik Bengtsen (Hi-jack) and Adrian Ziemichod (Cut-off) both made the call, prior to Benoit Kuhn raising to 1,000,000. Action folded to Eftimov, who snap-shoved for 2,500,000. Bengtsen and Ziemichod both folded, but Kuhn made the call.

Miletiev Eftimov: J♦J♣
Benoit Kuhn: 9♥9♦

No nine or any other help for Kuhn on the 2♦2♠A♣5♠K♣ runout, which secured a double-up for Eftimov.

Miletiev Eftimov: 5,800,000
Benoit Kuhn: 3,700,000

Ivaylo Eftimov at Battle of Malta Autumn Edition, 2024

With the recent eliminations of Alessandro Siena and Giuseppe Tredici, the Main Event has now been reduced to two tables, with 16 players left in contention. Here is the new seat draw. Full chip counts of the remaining players will be gathered at the first break of the day, in 28 minutes time.

Level 28: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 16/1,542

Flaviano Cammisuli opened to 160,000, and Giuseppe Tredici made the call.

On the 8♣2♥9♣ flop, Cammisuli check-called a 225,000 bet from Tredici, which brought the 4♠ turn. Cammisuli checked once again, and Tredici then went all in for a pot-sized bet. Cammisuli made the call.

Giuseppe Tredici: A♥8♥
Flaviano Cammisuli: Q♥Q♣

The full board would read 8♣2♥9♣4♠5♦. No improvement for Tredici and he busted in 16th place for €5,820.

With Tredici eliminated, 16 players are now remaining and a seat draw for the final two tables is currently being made.

Flaviano Cammisuli: 9,000,000
Giuseppe Tredici: 0

Giuseppe Tredici, 17th place for €5,820

Level 28: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 17/1,542

Gabriel Carro opened from UTG to 160,000. Seated in the Cut-off, Adrian Ziemichod 3-bet to 480,000. Action the folded to Alessandro Siena 4-bet, committing 960,000 of his total 965,000. Carro folded and Ziemichod, naturally, raised Siena all in.

Siena threw in all of his timebank chips; if there was action on any of the other two tables, he wanted to stall for the pay jump. Eventually, he made the call.

Adrian Ziemichod: A♣9♣
Alessandro Siena: Q♠Q♣

An absolutely brutal river card for Siena as the board ran out T♦5♠9♠T♠9♥. He busted in 18th place for €5,060.

Adrian Ziemichod: 11,000,000
Alessandro Siena: 0

Alessandro has had a very tiring 26 hours, as he jumped straight into the High Roller yesterday, where he exited in 8th place. He was still upset when he returned today after just 3 hours of sleep, as he had been the chip leader with 12 players left and was hoping to go further than he did. Nevertheless, he’s had a good week with over €11,000 in cashes.

The moment when Alessandro Siena’s Main Event ended, 18th place for €5,060

Level 28: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 18/1,542

Benoit Kuhn during the 2025 Battle of Malta.

There were roughly 720,000 in the middle when the board read J♣4♠7♦. Benoit Kuhn, Flaviano Cammisuli, and Ivaylo Eftimov all checked, which brought the Q♠ on the turn. Once again checked around and the river was the 6♠.

Kuhn was first to act and checked to Cammisuli who bet 280,000. Eftimov folded rather quickly, but Kuhn pondered a call. Eventually, he called in a somewhat humoristic fashion as he threw his chips directly to Cammisuli.

Cammisuli turned over A♥J♠ and just like Kuhn expected, he couldn’t beat it.

Benoit Kuhn: 7,200,000
Flaviano Cammisuli: 6,800,000

Level 28: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 18/1,542

Flaviano Cammisuli during the 2025 Battle of Malta.

Flaviano Cammisuli opened to 160,000 from UTG. Ivaylo Eftimov (Hi-jack) and Giuseppe Tredici (Button) both made the call.

Action was checked to Tredici on the 7♦T♣Q♥ flop, and he then bet 225,000. Cammisuli called, prior to Eftimov folding.

Cammisuli checked once again on the 7♥ turn. Tredici bet 350,000, and Cammisuli decided to call once more. Action went check-check on the 3♦ river.

Cammisuli turned over Q♣J♣ for two pair. Tredici took a second look at his hand before it hit the muck.

Flaviano Cammisuli: 5,500,000
Giuseppe Tredici: 3,700,000

The first of today’s four side events, the MAS NLH is now off and running, with 35 players registered during the first level of play. Amongst those spotted in the €300 (€260+€40) buy-in event is the UK’s Kenny Burke and Joe Grech.

Kenny Burke (the one in the shades obviously)

Level 28: 40,000/80,000 (80,000)
Entries: 18/1,542

Gatis Reigass moved all in from the Hi-jack for 855,000. Gabriele Carro made the call from the Big Blind.

Gatis Reigass: A♥J♣
Gabriele Carro: K♣Q♣

Not a fortunate river card for Reigass as the board spelled out 8♦9♦7♠6♣Q♥. He was eliminated in position 19 and earned €5,060 for his accomplishments in the tournament.

Gabriele Carro: 6,300,000
Gatis Reigass: 0

Level 27: 30,000/60,000 (60,000)
Entries: 19/1,542

Juan Martinez raised to 135,000 from the Cut-off. Seated in the Big Blind, Rasmus Lundström forced Martinez all in for 2,300,000. Martinez made the call.

Rasmus Lundström: A♥A♦
Juan Martinez: 8♠8♥

No miracle for Martinez on the 7♥Q♣7♣J♦9♦ board. He was sent to the rail, and for his finish in position 20, he earned €5,060.

Rasmus Lundström: 9,410,000
Juan Martinez: 0

Juan Martinez (right) 20th place finisher for €5,060

Level 27: 30,000/60,000 (60,000)
Entries: 20/1,542

Seated in the Hi-jack, Stylianos Kollatos went all in for 700,000. Giuseppe Tredici then put in a large chunk of 100,000 chips in an attempt to isolate him and Kollatos. Flaviano Cammisuli thought about calling for a while from the Big Blind, but eventually, he folded. Kollatos and Tredici turned over their cards.

Stylianos Kollatos: A♠Q♦
Giuseppe Tredici: K♣Q♣

Kollatos was looking good, but, a king was apparent on the 8♦6♦K♦J♠3♥ flop, giving Tredici the winning hand. Kollatos bid farewell as he went to collect a €4,310 paycheck.

Giuseppe Tredici: 3,150,000
Stylianos Kollatos: 0

Stylianos Kollatos, 21st for €4,310

Level 27: 30,000/60,000 (60,000)
Entries: 21/1,542

Shai Biner, winner of €5,000 big stack bonus on Day 1c

Rasmus Lundstroem opened to 120,000 from under the gun. Shai Biner made the call from the button and Christoph Tanner defended his big blind.

The flop came 3♥4♥Q♦ and both early players checked. Biner moved all in for approximately 800,000 and Tanner was quick to muck. Lunstroem quickly called and both players revealed their hands.

Shai Biner: K♦J♦
Rasmus Lundstroem: K♠Q♠

The board completed with the T♦J♠ for Biner to hit the rail. Along with his placement cash, Biner received an additional €5,000 for being the Day 1a Chip Leader.

Level 27: 30,000/60,000 (60,000)
Entries: 22/1,542

The second elimination of the day was German Konstantin Faerber, who had moved all in for his last 1.265m on a board of

4♣6♠A♥7♦5♦

Ivalyo Eftimov used one of his time banks before making the call.

Konstantin: A♣T♠ for top pair

however it was not good enough

Ivaylo: 5♠5♥ for a set.

We missed the rest of the action in this hand due to there being a flurry of exits right at the start of the day, but one presumes that Eftimov didn’t believe his opponent had the straight when he made the call.

Ivaylo Eftimov: 5,200,000 (estimated)
Konstantin Faerber: 0

Faerber was upbeat about his exit, consoling himself by saying

“oh well, at least I won’t miss my flight (home) now.”

Luckily for Konstantin, the €4,310 he collected for this 23rd place finish is less than the amount required to have to declare it for international travel. No further documentation is required for his imminent departure from Malta International Airport.

Konstantin Faerber, 23rd place finisher (€4,310)

Level 27: 30,000/60,000 (60,000)
Entries: 23/1,542

Christoph Tanner opened to 120,000 from UTG+1. Action folded to small-stack Emanuele Pandetta who went all in for 475,000. Tanner made the call.

Emanuele Pandetta: A♠J♥
Christoph Tanner: Q♠J♠

Pandetta was the favorite pre-flop, but the board 9♠K♥Q♥2♠2♣ had other plans. Such, Pandetta became the first player to bust during Day 4. For his achievement, he was awarded €3,600.

Christoph Tanner: 2,700,000
Emanuele Pandetta: 0

Emanuele Pandetta, 24th place for €3,600

Play has now resumed for the penultimate day of the Battle of Malta Spring Edition. The 24 remaining contenders. will all have their sights firmly on a securing a seat in Wednesday’s eight player final table. With €120,000 in the line for the victor of the event, there’s still everything to play for. A shot clock is being introduced into play for today, which will be 20 seconds pre-flop and 30-seconds post flop. Each player has four 30 second time banks.

TD Andy Tillman has now instructed the dealers to “shuffle up and deal” and the event is in play.

The penultimate day of the Main Event is the last full day of the Battle of Malta Spring Edition. Its the last day that side events will be played on, as on Wednesday the only course on the menu is the final table of the Main Event.

All satellites are now done, but there are four side events to accompany the Main Event on Tuesday. The first of these is the €300 (€260+€40) NLH MAS Event at 2pm. Then at 3pm there is a €220 (€200+€20) 4 Card PLO. At 5pm the second and final running of the €200 (€170+€30) Dark Knight takes place. To round off the day, the €150 (€130+€20) Hyperturbo is in its usual 9pm spot on the schedule.

Please also note that all events on Tuesday, including Day 4 of the Main Event will take place in the poker room on the lower floor of the conference centre. The Eden Arena has been a fantastic venue as always, but the more intimate setting of the lower floor poker room will be perfect for the final two days of the Main Event.

Here’s today’s full schedule:

Tuesday’s Tournament Schedule at the Battle of Malta Spring Edition

On Monday the Battle of Malta Spring Edition  continued at the Eden Arena and Casino Malta, at the Intercontinental Hotel. Although the busiest part of the iconic festival has now passed, there was still plenty of action, with another full schedule of tournaments scheduled.

Benoit Kuhn Bags Chip Lead in Main Event

While many nursed hangovers and creaky vocal chords from Sunday evening’s player party, for the 58 players who returned for Day 4 of the Main Event, the goal was to keep a clear head and make it through the day. Play resumed at 1pm in the Eden Arena in what turned out to be a short session of play, lasting for only four hours.

As expected the chips were flying in a fast and furious manner and four players busted within the first 10 minutes of the day. The pace of eliminations did not slow down much after that and by the first break of the day, just 31 competitors remained with their tournament lives intact.

Kuhn played strongly and confidently throughout the day and by the time Terry Jordan was eliminated in 25th place, his stack had grown to almost 7.5m, which would be almost the average stack for the final table. Adrian Ziemichod lies in second place with 6.635m and the effervescent Rasmus Lundstroem is still bubbling alonh nicely with 5.535m. He owes his ongoing continuation in the championship to a great call he made in during level 23 when he busted a bluffing Aristeidi Aftias to win a 7m pot.

There are still two players left in who graced the 2024 Autumn Edition final table and both will be looking to go back-to-back and secure a seat in the final eight. Bulgarian Ivaylo Eftimov who was 8th in November’s final table goes into Day 4 with a stack of 2.29m, while Alessandro Siena takes 1.725m into the last 24.

Remarkably there are still three starting day chip leaders left in the event. Benoit Kuhn is one of those, the others are Clement Kerrien and Shai Biner.

Only five players have above average stacks and there are quite a few shorties still in, Although Day 4 is typically quite a long day, the chip distribution could result in some early fireworks when play recommences.

Top 10 Chip Counts

To view the full chip counts and Day 4 seating draw for all 24 remaining players, click here.

Benoit Kuhn, Day 3 Chip Leader

Vito Burgio Wins High Roller

The Amazingbet High Roller returned for its second and final day with 49 players who had survived Sunday’s Day 1. It featured a regressive structure, which meant that the clock was rolled back five levels at the start of Day 2 and late registration re-opened until the end of level 12.

Another 139 players chose to pay the €1,100 buy-in, bringing the total entries up to 261, building a prize pool of just under €250,000 and a top prize of €45,000!

It was an extremely late finishing event, with play continuing until after 9am, when Italian Vito Burgio emerged victorious after the longest sessions of play ever witnessed at the series. He defeated local James Paris to claim the victory.

One of the players who made the final table in the High Roller is still in the Main Event. Along with several other players in the final 24 of the Main, Alessandro Siena decided to jump into the HR soon after the early finish of Day 3. The other Main Event survivors who also registered for the High Roller all busted fairly quickly and will have had the opportunity to get some good sleep before play restarts. However Alessandro eventually busted in 8th place and will have had reduced slumber time to recover before he’s back in action once again.

Alessandro Siena

Flavia Guedes Wins FLIP Ladies Event for the Third Time

Four side events also ran on Monday, including the FLIP (Fantastic Ladies In Poker) Ladies event, in which Gia Carnestrom was trying to defend the title she won at the 2024 Autumn Edition. Before play began there was an afternoon tea party for all FLIP participants, which looked very tasty indeed.

Gia was not able to repeat the feat this time, but there were other former winners of the event who were also looking to increase their title tally. One of these was Emzy Oliver, a two-time BOM Ladies winner, but she did not make it deep o to the event this time.

The victory went to another double BOM Ladies champion, Flavia Guedes, who becomes the event’s very first 3-time winner! It’s actually her fourth FLIP title, as she has won one at another festival also. Congratulations to Flavia, who took home the €1,650 first prize. She defeated Estonian Maili Tannbaum heads up, who was also the runner up in the same event last year.

There was live blog coverage throughout the Ladies event on PokerPro, covered masterfully by Alek Gillies. It’s well worth a read to see how the full story of the tournament unfolded.

3-Time FLIP Ladies Champion Flavia Guedes

The Poker Fever Tour Event

The €170 (€150+€20) Poker Fever Tour was the busiest side event of the festival, with 353 entries. It was another late finishing event and was won by Italian Rosario Saddemi for €9,580. Compatriot Roberto Cilia was the runner up for €6,490 while Claudio Di Lorenzo (€4,710) completed an Italian 1-2-3 on the metaphorical poker podium. The UK’s Colin Lovelock was 4th for €3,660.

The other side events of the day were the €200 Novibet Road to Greece and the €150 Hyperturbo. The Novibet event was won by Mikael Riku for €2,020, while Gianluca Sardella claimed the nightly Hyperturbo for €2,350. Daily show host Jason Glatzer also made the final in the Hyperturbo, busting in 9th place.

Daily Talk Show Named

The new Battle of Malta talk show ran for four episodes without a name, but it has now been revealed that it has been named The Battle Booth. Originally there were no plans to continue the show until the very end of the series, but due to popular demand, there will be further episodes recorded throughout the last two days of the festival.

Yesterday there were two editions that dropped. The second of these was a bumper edition filmed during Saturday’s players party at The Eden leisure complex. You can watch this entertaining edition below. Look out for the shark and a fine display of bowling from one of the media team members…who could that be? Hit play to find out.

Below are the seat draws for Day 4. Please note that the table number may change, but the table seating is set.