As we head into a 15-minute break in Day 1C, 92 players are still vying for their place in the tournament out of 129 entries so far. With late registration still open, the field could grow even more as new challengers join the action.
The next level resumes at 500/1,000, setting the stage for another exciting round of play. Stay tuned for updates as the competition heats up!
Level 6: 400/800 (800)
Entries: 94/129
The action built up to the river on a board of 5♦7♠9♠J♦2♥. With 30,000 already in the pot, Johann Muhlbauer checked to Enrico Grella, who bet a sizable 25,000. After a moment’s thought, Muhlbauer made a hero call with K♦9♦, holding just top pair on a tough board.
Grella mucked his hand, conceding the pot to Muhlbauer’s gutsy play. The call showed sharp instincts and resilience as Muhlbauer scooped up the chips.
Johann Muhlbauer: 120,000
Enrico Grella: 21,500
Level 6: 400/800 (800)
Entries: 93/123
An intense hand unfolded between USA’s John Santini and Germany’s Jai Fuong on a flop of J♥7♣9♣. After Fuong bet, Santini check-raised to 4,000. The turn brought the 8♦, completing several possible straights. Santini led out with a bet of 8,000, only for Fuong to shove all-in for 54,400, pushing his stack into the middle with confidence.
Santini quickly called, and the hands were revealed:
Realizing his opponent held the nut straight, Santini sighed and acknowledged, “Oh, you have the nuts.” Indeed, Fuong’s straight left Santini drawing thin, needing a Queen to split the pot. Unfortunately for Santini, the river didn’t deliver, leaving him with just 4,700 chips.
John Santini: 4,700
Jai Fuong: 120,000
The much-anticipated H.O.R.S.E. event is now underway, with 25 players already registered and ready to face the challenge. Hosted by renowned poker player Jon Kyte, this unique event pushes participants to the limit across five poker variants—Hold’em, Omaha Hi-Lo, Razz, Seven Card Stud, and Eight-or-Better. It’s a true test of versatility and skill, as players prepare to showcase their expertise in every round.
Level 3: 200/400 (400)
Entries: 83/94
With the first rounds of Day 1C underway, players are taking a quick 15-minute break to recharge. So far, 94 competitors have joined the field, each fighting for their chance to advance. It’s been an interesting start, with big hands and bold moves setting the tone. Stay tuned as we dive back into the action shortly!
Level 1: 100/200 (200)
Entries: 54/54
The excitement is in the air as Day 1C of the Grand Event begins! Players have taken their seats, the cards are in motion, and the tables are set for another action-packed day. With an opening field of 54 entries on Level 1 and more players steadily joining, today promises intense competition and thrilling moments.
Each player begins their journey with a starting stack of 50,000 chips and 40-minute levels. Today’s Day 1C will play down to the top 15% of the field, with all surviving players securing a min-cash and advancing to the next stage.
Good luck to all those chasing their place in Day 2!
Check out the tournament structure for the MPF Grand Event Day 1C:
| LEVEL | SB | BB | ANTE |
| 1 | 100 | 200 | 200 |
| 2 | 100 | 300 | 300 |
| 3 | 200 | 400 | 400 |
| 4 | 200 | 500 | 500 |
| 5 | 300 | 600 | 600 |
| 6 | 400 | 800 | 800 |
| 7 | 500 | 1000 | 1000 |
| 8 | 600 | 1200 | 1200 |
| 9 | 1,000 | 1500 | 1500 |
| 10 | 1,000 | 2000 | 2000 |
| REGISTRATIONS CLOSE – 15′ BREAK – CR 100 | |||
| 11 | 1,000 | 2500 | 2500 |
| 12 | 1,500 | 3000 | 3000 |
| 13 | 2,000 | 4000 | 4000 |
| 14 | 2,000 | 5000 | 5000 |
| 15 | 3,000 | 6000 | 6000 |
| 16 | 4,000 | 8000 | 8000 |
The excitement continues as we kick off Day 1C of the MPF Grand Event! With players already bagging big stacks in the opening flights, today’s competitors have their eyes on joining the ranks of those advancing to Day 2. As always, the tables are set, and a thrilling deep-stack structure awaits, giving every player the chance to navigate the field and build a stack. Will Day 1C bring even more record-breaking numbers? Stay tuned as we follow all the action at the tables!
Our live-blog coverage kicks off as the clock starts at 14:00, where we’ll be bringing you real-time updates, big hands, and thrilling moments as players battle it out at the tables. Stay tuned throughout the day for all the latest action, surprises, and stories unfolding in this intense fight for a place in the next round.
Wednesday (30th October) Schedule at the 2024 Malta Poker Festival Autumn Edition
Wednesday also brings a range of side events for players to showcase their skills, starting with the Betsson One Bullet €170 Freezeout at 16:00, featuring 25-minute levels and late registration open through the first eight levels.
Following this, at 17:00, is the anticipated HORSE 5 Mix event, hosted by renowned Norwegian poker player Jon Kyte.
The Hendonmob Championship Day 1 kicks off today at 19:00, featuring 30-minute blind levels and 10 levels of late registration. Players who make it through Day 1 will return to the tables for Day 2, beginning tomorrow at 15:00. Rounding out the evening, we also have an MPF Grand Event Satellite starting at 9 p.m., offering one last chance for players to secure their spot in the Grand Event.
Stay tuned to our blog throughout the week for all the latest updates, stories from the Grand Event, highlights of side event winners, and much more excitement straight from the festival floor.
Day 1c of the 2024 Malta Poker Festival Spring Edition €550 Grand Event was a massive success at Portomaso Casino as the €300,000 guarantee was smashed with 277 entries bringing the total in the kitty up to €360,000 with still three opening flights to go on Saturday and Sunday.
Ashley Harrison surpassed the 1,269,000 in chips bagged by Matte Karjalainen on Day 1b to not only finish on top of the 42 survivors but to also take the overall chip lead after ending the day with a massive stack of 1,648,000. Harrison was relentless near the end of the day, putting pressure on all of his opponents, and will be a force to watch out for on Sunday’s Day 2.
Kelly Kellner also bagged more than 1 million in chips with Jamie Scannell, the entertaining Colin Cooper, and Jorgen Jessen rounding out the top five players on Day 1c.
Meanwhile, perhaps Amanda Smith was the happiest to find a bag despite there not being a ton of chips inside of it. She qualified through a raffle to play in her second live event ever outside of a pub and was elated to earn the €900 min-cash that players already earned simply by finding a bag into Day 2.
The action resumes tomorrow for Day 1d at 1 p.m. In the meantime, check out all of the chip counts below from Day 1c.
| Place | Player | Chips | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ashley Harrison | 1,648,000 | 165 |
| 2 | Kelly Kellner | 1,190,000 | 119 |
| 3 | Jamie Scannell | 656,000 | 66 |
| 4 | Colin Cooper | 507,000 | 51 |
| 5 | Jorgen Jessen | 504,000 | 50 |
| 6 | Petteri Miettinen | 500,000 | 50 |
| 7 | Paul High | 458,000 | 46 |
| 8 | Oliver Mihajlovski | 445,000 | 45 |
| 9 | Boro Skalonja | 434,000 | 43 |
| 10 | Eddy Shaw | 393,000 | 39 |
| 11 | Thomas Jakobsen | 384,000 | 38 |
| 12 | Stuart Oliver | 367,000 | 37 |
| 13 | Yves Thalmann | 364,000 | 36 |
| 14 | Daniel Stacey | 340,000 | 34 |
| 15 | Jonathan Schuman | 328,000 | 33 |
| 16 | Piotr Kuszczak | 325,000 | 33 |
| 17 | Wai Man Kwan | 305,000 | 31 |
| 18 | Colin Bidwell | 290,000 | 29 |
| 19 | Jozsef Dobos | 282,000 | 28 |
| 20 | Tomasz Brzezinski | 277,000 | 28 |
| 21 | Frank Hofener | 273,000 | 27 |
| 22 | Ashley Scott | 273,000 | 27 |
| 23 | Andrea Agnoletto | 271,000 | 27 |
| 24 | Antonio Merone | 256,000 | 26 |
| 25 | Domenico Gala | 254,000 | 25 |
| 26 | Liutauras Armanavicius | 247,000 | 25 |
| 27 | Mark Vella | 242,000 | 24 |
| 28 | Florian Guertler | 241,000 | 24 |
| 29 | Sebastian Pfeiffer | 233,000 | 23 |
| 30 | Jordi Ribatallada Ruiz | 218,000 | 22 |
| 31 | George Warnock | 189,000 | 19 |
| 32 | Wilhelmine Connolly | 178,000 | 18 |
| 33 | Thomas Hofmann | 174,000 | 17 |
| 34 | Ludovic Uzan | 149,000 | 15 |
| 35 | Florin-Radu Postole | 135,000 | 14 |
| 36 | Pontus Magnusson | 122,000 | 12 |
| 37 | Alex Montgomery | 108,000 | 11 |
| 38 | Julien Da Silva | 100,000 | 10 |
| 39 | Alex O’Brien | 95,000 | 10 |
| 40 | Daniel Kuhlmann | 86,000 | 9 |
| 41 | Amanda Smith | 73,000 | 7 |
| 42 | Salvatore Dimartino | 63,000 | 6 |
Level 15: 6,000/12,000 (12,000)
Entries: 42/279
Massimo Bruno jammed for 42,000 from early position and was called by Domenico Gala from the small blind. A hand at another table was taking its time to play out while a crowd emerged around this table.
Massimo Bruno: 6♠3♣
Domenico Gala: A♠Q♦
Bruno bricked the J♥10♣J♣7♥Q♠ board and the rest of the field celebrated that they were in the money for at least a min-cash of €900.
“Oh wow!” said the short-stacked Amanda Smith who was playing in just her second tournament outside of pub league games. “I can’t believe it!”
Stay tuned for the final chip counts from Day 1c of the Main Event and see you back on the floor for Day 1d starting on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Level 15: 6,000/12,000 (12,000)
Entries: 43/279
The first hand in hand-for-hand mode took a bit of time to play out on Table 2. Domenico Gala was put to the test after betting 65,000 into a pot of a lot more with the 10♣Q♠K♦2♣10♠ on the board after the turn.
Jorgen Jessen jammed over the top for 187,000 and Gala tanked for more than five minutes before he folded.
A crowd emerged during this hand in anticipation of something big. While they didn’t get the all-in and call they were searching for they were still dazzled after Jessen opted to table his 10♥10♦ for quad tens.
Jorgen Jessen – 500,000
Domenico Gala – 150,000
