It’s just gone 11pm and it’s time for a packed side event round-up. We have a champion in the Malta Cup; we’re at a final in the IPT €2,000 High Roller; there are three tables left in the seniors and the Dealer’s Choice is on a dinner break. There you have it. Goodnight!
OK, OK, I’ll flesh it out a bit.
So, last time we dropped in on the Malta Cup, there were five players left and a couple of short-stack ninjas somehow managing to navigate the choppy waters of a shallow-stacked EPT tournament end-game.
To bring you up to date: Andras Stumpf’s comeback didn’t last all that long. Although he doubled to eight big blinds when we were last watching, he still went out in fifth for €12,050. However Grzegorz Wyraz enjoyed a spectacular comeback from his own five-handed difficulties. He only had about eight big blinds of his own at one point, but put them to excellent use and watched Neil Ryder and David Breitfuss bust in fourth and third, leaving him heads up with Roman Skudar.
Skudar was by far the least active player when things were getting messy five-handed, but he had the most chips so could afford to be circumspect. He eventually proved to be the immovable object to Wyraz’s irresistible force and claimed the title and the €48,155 first prize. Wyraz took €29,320 for second.
The full results will be over on the Side Events Results Page very soon.
Back to the IPT High Roller and the remaining nine players are now crowded around one table. There is no huge stack among the final nine, but it seems that Michael Tureniec, the former EPT champion, is probably ahead. He has a stack of about 1.9 million, with blinds at 12,000-24,000. So yes, there’s a lot of play still in that one.
The second most recognisable player at the table is Kiryl Radzivonau, the man otherwise known as Angry Moron. Radzivonau made the final table of the EPT Main Event in Barcelona last season and is back chasing a six-figure score again.
The plan is to play to a conclusion tonight, but I’m not sure it will be possible. These €2,000 High Rollers have had a habit of creeping into a third day.
The €200 Senior’s Event has 19 players remaining, spread across three tables. The intention there is to play to a winner also, but that too could be postponed. Fifteen players will be paid, so they have a bubble to play through too before they can think about shrinking to a final and then a winner.
As I dropped by Jackie “Poker Mama” Cachia was all in with her tournament life on the line. She had pocket tens and had been called by ace-king. She wrapped her knuckles on the table when a king came on the flop, but a ten fell on the river to keep her alive.
“I love you,” she told the dealer.
The eight-handed dealer’s choice tournament is also under way. There are nine left, meaning they’re still on two tables — actually more, if I’m honest. They’re on a dinner break, so are probably scattered across the tables of Portomaso.
Everything about EPT Malta is on the main EPT Malta page. More specifically, all the hand-by-hand coverage of the €25,000 High Roller is on the €25,000 High Roller page and everything from the IPT Main Event is on the IPT Main Event page.
No really, begin plotting your own bid for EPT glory by downloading the PokerStars client and having a crack. Follow this EPT event via the EPT app. There you will get all the latest news, chip counts and payouts. You can download it on Android or IOS
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