The 2023 Battle of Malta Autumn Edition featured not one but two different Sviten Special events. The one that just kicked off today boasts a €250 buy-in.

We have been to hundreds if not thousands of poker events over the years and this is the first time in at least our memory that a Sviten Special event boasts a guarantee. Thus far, with just 29 entries, there is some added value thanks to a €10,000 guarantee slapped on this event. Of course, we expect that to be shattered, but you never know.

We explained the rules of Sviten Special a bit the first time this was hosted at this festival but in case you weren’t paying attention we will run through them again. The pot-limit game combines both five-card draw and five-card Omaha in the same game.

It begins simply enough with each players dealt five cards starting from the small blind. The first round of betting takes place followed by a turn and another round of betting.

Hopefully, you aren’t lost so far as it gets slightly trickier from here on out. Players will have an opportunity to exchange cards. They can stand pat, draw five, or anything in between. The exchanged cards are all dealt face down into the player’s hand except when just drawing one card is drawn. When that is the case it is face up. The player can decide if they are happy with that card. If they are, it goes into their hand. If not, they can choose to exchange that card for a new one which will be dealt face down into their hand.

A turn is dealt after the exchanging of cards before the third round of betting takes place followed by the river when the final betting round occurs. The best five-card draw hand at the showdown wins half the pot while the best five-card Omaha hand wins the other half.

This is a fun game to play whether tournaments, cash, or home games, so its worth checking out even if not hopping into the action.

Sviten Special author Martin Smith, Simon Ruckert, Niklas Nyman, Kaidar Viikman Marko “Cinderella Story” Keskel (see Day 1c blog to hear more about his story), Matteo Crapanzano, and Eva Jiretom are among the players in action. Best of luck to the Sviten Special players in their hunt for the title.