Category Day 1D

Level 6: 400/800 (800)
Entries: 356/439

Thomas Panagopoulos raised from an early position and got 3-bet to 6,500 by Florian Bender on the button. Action folded back to Panagopoulos, who made the call. The flop came K♣2♦4♦ and, after a check from his opponent, Bender continued with a bet of 4,500. Panagopoulos called.

Both players checked the turn 6♥. When the river 10♦ hit, Panagopoulos checked again, and Bender fired out a larger bet of 11,500. After some thought, Panagopoulos made the call.

To the surprise of those watching, Bender revealed 10♣6♣ for a runner-runner two pair, a daring preflop 3-bet that ultimately paid off.

Thomas Panagopoulos – 56,000
Florian Bender – 80,000

Level 6: 400/800 (800)
Entries: 360/430

Spain’s Benjamin Rivera opened the action with a raise to 1,200, receiving calls from both blinds – Marko Keskel and Francesco Palumbo. The flop came J♥7♠4♦, and after two checks, Rivera continued for 1,400. Keskel folded, but Palumbo raised it up to 5,000, which Rivera called.

The action continued on the 10♥ turn, where Palumbo repeated the bet of 5,000. Rivera stayed in with a call. The river 9♥ saw Palumbo size up with a 10,000 bet, and Rivera didn’t take long to call.

The hands were revealed:

• Francesco Palumbo: Q♥J♦ (pair of jacks, queen kicker)
• Benjamin Rivera: A♦J♠ (pair of jacks, ace kicker)

Both players held a pair of jacks, but Palumbo’s kicker left him outmatched. Rivera took down the pot, putting Palumbo’s kicker issues on full display!

Benjamin Rivera – 140,000
Francesco Palumbo – 34,000

Day 1D of the Malta Poker Festival Grand Event has come to a thrilling close, adding another packed day of poker action to this incredible tournament series. With 341 entries in 1D, the total count for the first four flights now stands at an impressive 983 entries.

By the end of play, only 52 players from Day 1D bagged up chips, each securing a minimum cash of €1,000 and a coveted seat in Day 2. Leading the pack are Antonio Alba with 1,200,000 chips and Ciaran Mccullagh with 1,089,000, both heading into Day 2 in a strong position with over a million in chips.

The festival also crowned Jeffrey Duddy as the Hendon Mob Championship winner, after a hard-fought heads-up deal with Robert Sherwood. Duddy took home €17,540 and the coveted trophy in a spectacular finale.

In the spirit of Halloween, Renato Azevedo triumphed over 221 entries in the Halloween tournament, securing €8,960. The night also featured a costume contest, where Chucky stole the show with the best costume, winning a VIP package for MPF Spring 25.

Meanwhile, Constantin Hagemann emerged victorious in the Bounty Hunter Malta Days tournament, conquering a record 547 entries to win €9,630 + Bounties. This turnout had the venue buzzing and operating at full capacity.

Congratulations to all players advancing to Day 2, to Duddy for his Hendon Mob win, and to Azevedo and Chucky for their Halloween victories. This tournament is set to break records, with a guaranteed €500,000 prize pool well within reach!

Check out Day 1D Chip Counts of the final 52 players:

1	Antonio Alba	1,200,000	Italy
2	Ciaran Mccullagh	1,089,000	Ireland
3	Giuseppe Federico	848,000	Italy
4	Andrea Pasquale Crobu	677,000	Italy
5	Franco Alessandro Pau	672,000	Italy
6	Glen Gaines	644,000	United Kingdom
7	Lars Jonas Hahnert	545,000	Sweden
8	Hendrik Jan Julius Blokdijk	542,000	Netherlands
9	Salvatore Dimartino	521,000	Italy
10	Miika Samuli Toyras	503,000	Finland
11	Roberto Cilia	464,000	Italy
12	Domenico Davide Lando	454,000	Italy
13	Anders Verner Nilsson	426,000	Sweden
14	Michael Broadhurst	408,000	United Kingdom
15	Jacopo Barnabo’	391,000	Italy
16	Kenneth Hugh Liddle	349,000	United Kingdom
17	Volker Markus David Blohs	316,000	Germany
18	Thomas Hofmann	315,000	Switzerland
19	Antonio Gandolfo	298,000	Italy
20	Francesco Gisolfi	294,000	Italy
21	Pablo Felipe Beautell Marrero	292,000	Spain
22	Daniele Caprino	286,000	Italy
23	Simon Edvard Lindell	263,000	Sweden
24	Cem Mauritz Altikardes	249,000	Germany
25	Antonio De Lucia	239,000	Italy
26	Dimitrios Kourous	221,000	Greece
27	Paresys Gauthier	189,000	France
28	Grzegorz Kozieja	189,000	Poland
29	Nikolay Zhurnalov	181,000	Bulgarian
30	Deborah Lee Espe	176,000	United States
31	Joshua James Hardman	176,000	United Kingdom
32	Robert William Mcadam	166,000	United Kingdom
33	Brigitta Helen Gustavsson	136,000	Sweden
34	Huibrecht Den Boer	132,000	Netherlands
35	Mary P Mccullough	132,000	United States
36	Jerry Evald Niklas Johansson	129,000	Sweden
37	Dario Filippelli	116,000	Italy
38	Tor Andre Nesse	102,000	Norway
39	Dmitri Dudakov	69,000	Estonia
40	Mohamed Elyes Bouzgarrou	68,000	Tunisia
41	Danny Adam Hernon	64,000	United Kingdom
42	Moreno Bonasera	59,000	Italy
43	Claudio Paolo Renato Malandri	55,000	Germany
44	Nikolaos Angelou Konstas	Unknown	Greece
45	Terje Widar Bergslid	Unknown	Norway
46	Aidan Cornelius Canny	Unknown	Ireland
47	Michael Goertz	Unknown	Germany
48	Georgios Mellidis	Unknown	Greece
49	Daniel Filipe Pereira Henriques	Unknown	Portugal
50	Martin Svoboda	Unknown	Czech Republic
51	Ann Tillotson	Unknown	United Kingdom
52	Mikel Theodor Waber	Unknown	Switzerland

Congratulations to Jeffrey Duddy, who has emerged victorious in The Hendon Mob Championship, taking home an impressive €17,540! Duddy secured the win after a heads-up deal with Robert Sherwood, capping off a tournament that drew 499 entries, with 75 players advancing to Day 2.

The competition was fierce, and both finalists delivered a thrilling showdown, showcasing incredible skill and resilience. A huge round of applause to Duddy, Sherwood, and all participants for making this an unforgettable event!

Stay tuned for more updates as the Malta Poker Festival continues!

1	Jeffrey Duddy	€ 17,540
2	Robert Sherwood	€ 15,460
3	Adriand Ziemichod	€ 9,000
4	Iraklis Manikaros	€ 7,000
5	Magnus Kristensen	€ 5,300
6	Kevin Frame	€ 4,000
7	Cosme Gomez	€ 3,000
8	Harald Dalderop	€ 2,350
9	Ingo Bluhm	€ 1,970

Check out some photos from the event!

Level 14: 2500/5000 (5000)
Entries: 100/346

The field has narrowed to just 100 players in Day 1D of the MPF Grand Event, with only 52 players advancing to Day 2 and securing a min-cash of €1,000. The competition is heating up as players battle it out for a spot in the next stage, where the stakes will be higher than ever.

With exactly 983 entries across all flights so far and Day 1D drawing a massive turnout, players who don’t advance tonight still have chances to join tomorrow’s flights: 1E, 1F, and the turbo-paced 1G, as well as a last-chance turbo flight at 10:00 on Saturday.

Stay tuned in as we will post the photos and the finalist’s chip counts in the morning.

The action is fast and intense as the remaining players aim to secure their spot. Good luck to all those in contention—let’s see who makes it to Day 2!

Level 13: 2000/4000 (4000)
Entries: 116/346

Simon Lindell once again opened the action on Table 11, only to be met with a 3-bet to 21,000 from Mats Karlsson. Wasting no time, Lindell put Karlsson all-in for his remaining 70,000 chips, and Karlsson snap-called, setting up a classic flip:

• Mats Karlsson: 10♦10♥ (pocket tens)
• Simon Lindell: A♣Q♣ (Ace-Queen suited)

The flop brought a queen in the window for Lindell on Q♦2♣6♦, giving him a top pair and leaving Karlsson on the ropes. The turn 6♥ and river Q♥ dashed any comeback hopes, making trips for Lindell and sending Karlsson to the rail.

Another big win for Lindell as he strengthens his stack on the road to Day 2!

Simon Lindell – 370,000
Mats Karlsson – 0

Level 13: 2000/4000 (4000)
Entries: 116/346

Roberto Cilia, one of the current top stacks, opened the pot and was defended by Per Gaassand in the big blind. The flop came 3♥5♠8♦, and Gaassand led out with a bet of 16,500. Cilia responded by putting Gaassand all-in for his remaining 51,500 chips. After some thought, Gaassand made the call, and the cards were revealed:

• Roberto Cilia: 9♦9♣ (pair of nines)
• Per Gaassand: Q♥5♣ (pair of fives)

With Gaassand behind, he needed help on the turn or river, but the board completed with the 4♣ and A♥, securing the pot for Cilia. Now sitting on more than 400,000, Cilia is looking strong and well-positioned for a Day 2 finish.

Roberto Cilia – 440,000
Per Gaassand – 0

Level 12: 1500/3000 (3000)
Entries: 126/346

Massimiliano Ferro opened from an early position, attracting three calls from Bulgaria’s Nikolay Zhurnalov, Simon Lindell on the button, and Aaron Keenan in the big blind. The flop came J♠8♠6♥, and after everyone checked to him, Lindell fired out a 12,000 bet. Ferro, the original raiser, made a suspicious call, while the others folded.

The turn brought the 3♦, and Ferro checked again, only for Lindell to put him all-in for about 40,000. Ferro snap-called and confidently turned over [invalid notations] for the flopped nuts—a set of jacks. But the hand wasn’t over yet, as Lindell revealed [invalid notations], needing a spade to complete his flush.

In a dramatic turn of events, the river delivered the K♠, sealing Ferro’s fate and sending him out of 1D. Lindell’s flush prevailed, knocking out the Italian in a tough spot.

Simon Lindell – 210,000
Massimiliano Ferro – 0

Level 12: 1500/3000 (3000)
Entries: 136/346

Taivo Sillaste opened to 7,000 on 3k blinds from early position, and right behind him, Simon Edvard Lindell responded with a 3-bet to 17,000. Everyone else folded, setting up a heads-up battle on a flop of 10♦7♦10♠. Sillaste checked, and Lindell continued with a bet of 11,000, which Sillaste called.

The turn brought the 8♦, and both players checked, taking it to a tricky river for Lindell’s 3-bet range, the J♠. Sillaste seized the opportunity and fired a bold 26,000 bet, prompting Lindell to quickly fold. Sillaste picked up a nice pot as both players continue their fight for a coveted spot in Day 2.

Taivo Sillaste: 155,000
Simon Edvard Lindell: 135,000

Here you can see them both sitting next to each other – Sillaste on the left and Lindell on the right:

Level 11: 1000/2500 (2500)
Entries: 151/346

Gareth McIntosh opened from an early position and got a call from Dirk Gerth on the button, with Netherlands’ Huibrecht Den Boer (pictured below) completing from the big blind. The flop came K♦Q♠8♥, and Boer quickly led out with a 10,000 bet from the big blind. McIntosh folded, but Gerth responded by moving all-in for his remaining 34,500 chips. Boer snap-called, and the cards were revealed:

• Huibrecht Den Boer: K♠8♠ (two pair)
• Dirk Gerth: K♣J♦ (top pair)

Gerth needed a jack to keep his tournament life, but instead, the turn brought the 8♣, completing a full house for Boer. The river 7♥ sealed the hand, and Gerth was eliminated as Boer took down the pot in a dominating fashion.

Huibrecht Den Boer: 146,000
Dirk Gerth: 0