Napelka Leads Final 24 in Hunt for Malta Poker Festival Glory
The time is here and the mission is clear. The 2024 Battle of Malta Spring Edition €550 Main Event is down to just 24 players from the record-breaking field of 1,460 entries. Today, we will learn who will become the latest Grand Event champion as players battle for a €100,900 top prize.
Krystian Nalepka leads the way with a massive stack of 7,150,000, good for 72 big blinds with the action resuming with nearly 47 minutes remaining on the clock with blinds at 50,000/100,000 along with a 100,000 big blind ante. Blinds after this level will increase to one hour in length providing players more play on the final day.
Elvijs Kuceruks and Ashley Harrison each bagged over 5 million. Harrison at one point late on Day 2 was the chip leader with over 8 million but suffered back-to-back bad beats to lose a chunk of his stack.
Meanwhile, Jordan Dumas, Petteri Miettinen, and Sebastian Mortensen will all begin with more than 4 million in chips.
Cards are in the air starting at 1 p.m. Stay tuned for the biggest hands, bad beats, stories, and more on the final day of the 2024 Malta Poker Festival.
Start of Day 3 Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Chips | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Krystian Nalepka | 7,150,000 | 72 |
| 2 | Elvijs Kuceruks | 5,725,000 | 57 |
| 3 | Ashley Harrison | 5,300,000 | 53 |
| 4 | Jordan Dumas | 4,500,000 | 45 |
| 5 | Petteri Miettinen | 4,500,000 | 45 |
| 6 | Sebastian Mortensen | 4,125,000 | 41 |
| 7 | Rosario Saddemi | 3,800,000 | 38 |
| 8 | Jake Allen | 3,750,000 | 38 |
| 9 | Sven Meschede | 3,330,000 | 33 |
| 10 | Ludovic Uzan | 3,000,000 | 30 |
| 11 | Richard Koppel | 2,975,000 | 30 |
| 12 | Matthew Vicarage | 2,950,000 | 30 |
| 13 | Terence Newton | 2,675,000 | 27 |
| 14 | John Forsman | 2,375,000 | 24 |
| 15 | Roar Flotre | 2,250,000 | 23 |
| 16 | Colin Bidwell | 2,000,000 | 20 |
| 17 | Vilde Ekren | 1,825,000 | 18 |
| 18 | Jorgen Jessen | 1,825,000 | 18 |
| 19 | Maxime Delhommeau | 1,675,000 | 17 |
| 20 | Kevin Rothlisberger | 1,675,000 | 17 |
| 21 | Stefan Trevelyan | 1,450,000 | 15 |
| 22 | Marcos Padron | 1,425,000 | 14 |
| 23 | Philipp Drayer | 1,400,000 | 14 |
| 24 | Indre Stanaityte | 1,350,000 | 14 |
Final Day Payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | €100,900 |
| 2 | €63,300 |
| 3 | €42,300 |
| 4 | €31,350 |
| 5 | €24,400 |
| 6 | €19,400 |
| 7 | €16,010 |
| 8 | €13,100 |
| 9 | €10,400 |
| 10-12 | €8,400 |
| 13-15 | €6,900 |
| 16-18 | €5,750 |
| 19-23 | €4,750 |
| 24-31 | €3,900 |
Two New Events on Monday
In addition to the climax of the Grand Event, Monday also boasts the final days of The Hendon Mob €250 Championship at 2 p.m. and the €1,100 High Roller at 4 p.m.
Two new tournaments grace their presence on the final day including the €170 Bounty Hunter Days Progressive Closer and the €230 MPF Last Chance.
Best of luck to all of the players on the final day!