Summer Face/Off Poker Tournament - Final Live Satellite!

 

 

The final edition of the live satellites for the Malta Summer Face/Off Poker tournament kicked off at 20:15Hrs at the Dragonara Casino on the 26^th May 2010.

 

34 Players registered for the €37 + €3 event which resulted in 4 prizes being given out to the fortunate winners of the Satellite tournament.

 

The prizes consisted of main event seats to the €300 + €30 summer Face/Off Poker Tournament, being held at the Dragonara Casino between the 28^th and the 20^th May 2010.

 

 

All players were at their seats at 20:15hrs, stacked at 5,000 chips, when the first hand of the night was dealt at the Dragonara Poker room. Players were split up on 4 tables taking up the entire floor space with 8 – 9 players sitting at each table for the 20 minute levelled tournament.

 

For the few hands of the tourney, players utilised a relatively tight strategy and the first players out of the tourney were those that encountered some sort of bad beat at an early stage of the tournament progression.

 

After about 90 minutes of play, the tournament was down to 25 players, when Antoine De Giorgio encountered an ice-cold deck which saw him out of the tourney at an unusally early stage. Blinds were still at 100/200 when Georgina Zammit [KK] raised the SB to 400, followed by Antoine De Giorgio [AA], who re-raised to 1,200. Gaetano Caruana [QQ] retaliated with an All-in, followed by an All-in from Gerogina and De Giorgio. To their astonishment players saw one of the coldest decks ever, with 3 pairs of the highest possible pockets, in a 3 way heads up. The dealer followed by uncovering the flop which showed a King giving Georgina the advantage, and was followed by a Q on the turn which gave Gaetano trips, but kept him trailing Georgina’s trips Kings. To Antoine’s dismay, a 9 turned up on the river which ended his tourney progression giving all of his chips to Georgina Zammit.

 

By 22:15 blinds had reached the 200/400 level and 20 players were left in the game. The average stack was now at 8,500 chips and players got broken down to 2 tables led by Emerson Farrugia

 

A heads up between Thomas Chandler vs. Stephen Spiteri took place after all players in the hand folded to a BB raise of 1,200. Thomas Chandler pushed all-in with 4,000 whilst holding A10 and got called by Stephen Spiteri holding A9. The flop, turn and river cards did nothing to strengthen any of the players hands, which resulted in Stephen Spiteri going out in 19^th place as Thomas’s push more than covered Stephen’s chip stack at the time.

 

An ‘Under the Gun’ call from Andrew Camilleri whilst holding 88 was met by Andrew Cutajar [SB] who raised to 1,500 chips. Philippe Lenferna who was on the Big Blind at the time, folded and Andrew Camilleri pushed against Cutajar, who was holding A9 in that hand. With both players all-in pre-flop, and over 12K in the pot, Andrew Camilleri was in the lead, all the way up to the river, where Andrew Cutajar paired his 9 sending Andrew Camilleri out in 18^th place.

 

By now the chip lead was as follows:

1^st Thomas Tinglev

2^nd Martin Hillstrup

3^rd Emerson Farrugia

 

Following a few more hands, the blinds had reached the 300/600 level and the average stack was up to 11,300 chips. At this point, 15 players were left in the game.

 

At 22:45, Thomas Chandler, holding a slightly higher than average stack at 7,000 chips was last to act and raised 1,500 with a pair of Ducks in his hands [22] Ruben Velden, on the Big Blind called with A7 which resulted in a fold by the remaining players at the table, and the dealer followed by dealing out the flop which showed 39A. Ruben hit his Ace and quietly checked, and Thomas bet 2,500 to scare off his opponenent. Ruben Velden called and the turn was shown as a 7 which gave Ruben 2 pairs - Aces and 7’s. Ruben checked his hand again and Thomas, [who put his opponent on a flush draw, as there were two clubs out on the table] pushed All-in in a last attempt to push his opponent out of the hand. Ruben, however was committed at this point, and held a reasonable 2 pairs which gave him all the right to call Chandler’s all-in which sent Chandler out at the showdown following the river. Velden took over Chandler’s stack of 7,000 putting him in a comfortable position for the upcoming blind levels

 

 

Holding a 9,000 stack, and last to act, Andrew Cutajar pushed All-in with JJ following a 600 bet by the first player to act – Valerio Cascapera. Moira Cassar [BB] folded to Cutajar’s bet, yet Valerio called with AK. The flop instantly put Valerio in the lead when an A42 showed up, and Valerio’s paired Ace kept its strength throughout the river sending Cutajar out in 12^th place, and putting Valerio in a very desirable position at such a crucial stage of the tournament. Valerio was now chip leader at the tournament.

 

Following a 15 minute break, 11 players were at their seats for the 500/1000 blind level. Antes had already kicked in and all players were paying out 100 during each hand played or folded. 

 

A match up between Tony Ciantar [79] and Thomas Tinglev [TT] saw the tables break down to the final table when Tony hit a 7 on the flop and pushed all-in to try to push his opponent out of the hand. An aggressive Tinglev called Ciantar’s bet, which, supported by his towering chips, covered Ciantar’s stack sending him out in 11^th position. The tournament was now down to 1 table with 10 players and an average stack of 17,000chips and Valerio Cascapera was still in the lead followed by Jonathan Vincent and Ivan Farrugia.

 

Ivan Farrugia soon toppled Valerio, as a hand between him and Reuben Velden gave him the advantage on the board. Whilst holding AA, Ruben went all-in preflop and got called by Ivan’s Snowmen [88]. Ruben pushed 11,000 of his chips on the rockets and lost his entire stack when Ivan hit an 8 on the turn sending Ruben out in 10^th place.

 

 

At 23:30 Moira Cassar went heads up against Emerson Farrugia. Moira was holding K6 against Emerson's A9 when she pushed All-in and got called by Emerson. The dealer uncovered a KQ798 which gave Moira the lead with a pair of Kings which she kept throughout the river. Moira was in desperate need of this break as she was the lowest stacked players at the table even after this hand which gave her a few more gasps of breath for the final table action.

 

 

The chip count at this stage was as follows:

Thomas Tinglev – 40,000

Jonathan Vincent – 29,000

Ivan Farrugia – 24,000

 

 

Blinds reached the 800/1,600 level when Moira Cassar pushed all-in and got called by Thomas Tinglev. Moira put her 11,000 chips at stake on AK vs Thomas's KJ. The delaer uncovered Q73TQ which resulted in another win for Cassar giving her a massive boost taking her stack up to 23,000 from her short stacked position less than 30 minutes before.

 

Emerson was now at the bottom of the scale and started to get aggressive with more frequent pushes intended to scare off his opponents and gobble up some blinds while doing so. Tinglev, who was catching some good cards like pocket 5's and various face cards, was tempted to call a few times, but restrained himself after his loss against Moira Cassar a few hands back which lightened his chip stack causing him to play a slightly tighter strategy against his opponents.

 

By 00:15 blinds had reached 1k/2k with 200 being paid out by players as antes and Moira Cassar was giving a great display of her aggressive final table strategy with excellent opponent assessment and an equally matching betting strategy. At the final table the best defense is often offense, and Moira Cassar made sure that she didn't go quietly into the night at the end of the tournament pocketing various blinds with her more conservative opponents.

 

Thomas Tinglev who was slowly being caught up by his opponents changed gears and went back to his aggressive strategy which brought him deep into the tournament and successfully kept him in the lead at the final table. A succession of 3x bets gave him a greater lead when his opponents didn't dare call his cards, allowing him to create a wider gap between him and the rest of the players at the table.

 

Following the break at 00:30, Emerson Farrugia, on the big Blind of 3,000 pushed All in with 21,800 chips with his Big Slick [AK], all players folded, yet Jonathan Vincent felt that his AJ was strong enough for Emerson’s push, and called the bet. The board showed a 62452 giving Emerson the lead, taking him up to almost 44,000 chips. The hand left Vincent crippled with less than 2,000 chips to go on, practically taking away any chances of him qualifying for the tournament prize. This hand also saw Emerson Farrugia take place as the new chip leader.

 

The final straw was drawn for Jonathan when he went up against Ivan Farrugia [SB] who held 22 against Jonathan Vincent’s KJ. The board showed a Q3347 but the community cards did not help Jonathan’s hand get any stronger sending him out in 5^th place. At that point there was just one player left before the tournament came to a close.

 

Moira Cassar was playing her hands less aggressively than the previous 2 levels and as result of blinds pressure, she was forced to push her 5,900 chips on the button whilst holding KT. Tinglev called her with his A2 and her K gave her the upper hand when QTK48 showed up on the board. Moira managed to double up to 13,000 taking her up to 4^th biggest stack, followed by Martin Hillstrup.

 

The next level of blinds came in at 1:15am at 2,000/4,000 + 400 antes and Moira decided to manipulate her table image by pushing an uncalled all-in with a hand she showed as 2 4 while her opponents were off guard. She successfully managed to increase her stack to 19,000 chips and maintain her position at the table.

 

The next push came from Ivan Farrugia on the BB which was followed by a fold by all the players giving him another 8,000 in blinds and antes.

 

The final hand was played between Moira Cassar and Martin Hilstrup when Martin pushed with Q6. Moira Cassar called Martin’s push with her K6, but this time, her King did not bring her luck as the board showed an 89A on the flop, a Q on the turn, giving Martin a pair of Queens, and a 3 on the river. Martin had slightly more chips than Moira and by taking over her chips, Moira was out in 5^th position, ending the tournament with his pair of ladies.

 

The winners of the final live satellite for the Malta Summer Face/Off poker tournament were: Thomas Tinglev

Emerson Farrugia

Ivan Farrugia

Martin Hilstrup

 

 

The Summer Face/Off Main Event tournament is taking place at the Dragonara Casino between the 28th and the 30th May 2010. Players are encouraged to pick their starting days, Day 1A or Day 1B as early as possible, since many players have already started giving indications of their preferred starting days.

 

You may register for the €300 + €30 Summer Face/Off Poker tournament by buying in directly at the Dragonara Casino.   Seats are limited, so make sure you register early to participate in Malta’s hottest Poker Tournament in Summer 2010!

 

 

Malta Poker Events

 

 

Dave Meli - 'King Of November' In the November €220 Poker tourney

Host: Malta Poker Events
Venue: Portomaso Casino
Main Event: €220 Freeze-out
Side Event: €50+5
Registered Players: 49
Tourney Duration: 8 Hours

Another fantastic live poker tournament took place on Sunday the 29th November 2009 in the charming Maltese Islands at the heart of the mediterranean. The ‘Kings and Queens of November' by Malta Poker Events drew together 49 players at the Portomaso Casino, St. Julians for November's €220 Freeze-out tournament, taking up the prize pool to almost €10,000.

7 Poker players were paid out at the end of the poker tourney which had Dave Meli in first place winning €3,000 for his efforts. Meli protected his stack and took it up to over 180,000 when he started the heads up on the final table against Sergei Cutajar who placed in second, winning himself €2,100. Utilising an extremely aggressive heads up strategy, Meli managed to take over Cutajar's stack and win himself the title of ‘Poker King of November 2009'. This is Meli's second consecutive win in the end of month tourneys, after he placed fourth in last months Halloween €220 tournament taking home €1250 winning a total €4250 in the last two events.

The tournament started when players took their seats by 16:30hrs after being handed their 7,000 chips. They slowly started building up their stack further in the moderately paced 30 minute blind levels, by taking shots at their opponents hands - checking, betting and smartly folding their way to later stages of the game.

By 9pm, the tournament had been reduced to 2 tables which took the average stack to around 17,000 chips - 2 hours later, players were at the final table in bubble territory with 8 players left in the game and an average stack of 43K.

With Dave Meli in the chip lead, the players at the final table in this month's end of tourney were the following:
- Dave Meli
- Sergei Cutajar
- Patrick Mifsud Tommasi
- Jackie Cachia
- Tania Apap
- Giovanni Tozzolino
- Andrea Wirth
- Kevin Price

Some action from the final table -
With the blinds at the 12th level at 1,500/3,000 + 300 antes, Kevin price pushed all-in holding A10. Kevin was quite low stacked at this stage yet took his chances with a relatively strong hand. Dave Meli called Kevin's push whilst holding QQ, a hand which maintained its strength after the board showed 4 7 6 5 9. Kevin exited the tournament in what could have turned out to be a straight, had an 8 come out on the board, yet as the river card was uncovered, he lost his entire stack to Dave and left the tourney in 8th position, almost placing himself in the money.

At the 13th level of blinds, now at 2,000/4,000 + 400 antes, Andrea Wirth [Germany] was down to her last 30,000 chips. She took her chances at an all-in with a very respectable K 10 - a move which got called by Sergei Cutajar who held A K at the time. The dealer uncovered a 2 7 9 3 9 giving Sergei the advantage with his A high and pair of 9's on the board. Andrea went out in 7th position winning €330.

6 players were left in the Game and the action started heating up considerably as the game dynamics started to allow for a wider range of starting hands - Here, Tanya Apap, pushed her 11K stack into the pot and got called by Patrick Mifsud who held a much larger stack in comparison at around 60K. Tanya's K5 went up against Patrick's A10 who hit a pair when a 10 came out on the board. Tanya's hand didn't gain any strength by the river which sent her out in 6th position winning a respectable €475.

A head to head clash took place towards the later stages of the game when Segei Cutajar pushed all in with 70K after seeing the flop show 9 6 7. Sergei had top pair with a chance for a straight yet this didn't stop Patrick Mifsud from insta-calling him - Patrick had already hit his straight on the flop with his 8 9. The turn came out as a nine which now gave Sergei a set of 9's, yet he was still behind Patrick's straight. The river card came out as a 7 which paired another 7 on the board giving Sergei a runner-runner-Full house, and a terrible bad beat to Patrick, whose call didn't cover Sergei's stack, which sent Patrick out in 5th position with €700 in cash as his prize. Sergei was now up to 143,000 chips and leader at his table with Dave Meli now in a not so distant second.

Jackie Cachia, the last remaining female at the table pushed her 23K stack whilst holding Q10. Sergei was at a slight disadvantage with his J10, yet called Jackie's bet in an attempt to take over her entire chip stack and widen the gap between him and Meli. The community cards showed a 7 A 5 K 3 which didn't strengthen Sergei's hand and gave Jackie a quick double up, which came as a blessing at this stage of the game. Jackie was now at 46K.

The next hand saw two pocket holders go head to head with KK held by Dave Meli who pushed all in and got called by Giovanni Tozzolino, who held 10 10. Dave kept his advantage throughout the flop turn and river cards, winning 20K in chips and sending out Giovanni in 4th position with €1,115.
3 players were left in the game at this stage and Sergei Cutajar was still at the lead followed by Dave Meli and Jackie Cachia. In an attempt to double up whilst holding Q9, Jackie pushed once again and got called by Dave with his K 10. The flop showed a 4 T 7 giving Dave a pair which turned into a set when another 10 came out on the turn. Jackie took her final blow when Meli's hand changed into a full house when the second 7 came out on the river. Meli was now in the chip lead holding over 180K when he sent out Jackie in 3rd position with €1,580 as her prize.

A relatively balanced heads up between Sergei and Dave started at 1:00Am with each of them holding approximately 50% of the tourney chips. The blinds were 3k/6k + 500 antes at the 14th level.

Dave, a regular and experienced live player who frequently makes it to the final table in his live and online tourneys was quite comfortable in this environment. A heads up specialist, with a well sized stack to complement his position was ready for the challenge against his slightly less experienced yet competent opponent Sergei.

Within a few hands, using an extremely aggressive strategy, Dave managed to dominate Sergei and take over a large proportion of his stack, reducing it to around 30k before giving Sergei his final blow.

The final hand had Sergei start at an advantage while holding QQ when he pushed all in and got called by Dave when he held 6 9. The board showed a 7 5 7 which kept Sergei in the lead, but didn't maintain its strength when the turn and river cards came out as a 6 and another 6 which gave Meli the lead with a set of sixes.

Dave meli won the tournament sending Sergei out in 2nd with €2,100. Dave went home with €3,000 in this months €220 tourney.

A €50+5 side event was also hosted for players who either busted out early or didn't make it into the €220 tournament.

The final hand of this 10 player sit ‘n' go saw some interesting action between Henning Frick and Etienne Roe. Etienne Roe flopped a straight with his Kh J and pushed against Henning who held AK at the time. The J on the turn gave an advantage to Henning who now had an Ace high straight, yet lost the hand when the river gave a K high flush to Roe. Etienne Roe won the tourney taking home €250 for placing first.



Dave Meli [Left] and Sergei Cutajar [Right]

€220 Tourney Results:
1. Dave Meli - €3000
2. Sergi Cutajar - €2100
3. Jackie Cachia - € 1580
4. Giovanni Tozzolino - € 1115
5. Patrick Mifsud - € 700

Photos of the Event may be viewed at the Gallery at MaltaPokerEvents.com. A highlights video of the tournament will also be online in the coming days.

The December satellite tournaments are back starting from Thursday, the 3rd December at the Portomaso Casino. Winners of these €37+3 satellite events will win their seats into the 2 day Poker NYE Special Edition €330 taking place at the Portomaso Casino on 29th and 30th December 2009. Check out the events section at Maltapokerevents.com for the full live schedule.




Malta Poker Events

Girl Power Prevails At The Halloween €220 Tournament 1.11.09 - Malta Poker Events

Host: Malta Poker Events
Venue: Portomaso Casino
Tournament Style: €220 Freeze-out
Registered Players: 64
Satellite entries: 17 players
Direct Buy-in: 47 players
Tourney Duration: 9 Hours

64 poker players registered for the Halloween €220 Freeze-out tourney at the Portomaso Casino hosted by Malta Poker Events. The prize-pool reached just under €13,000 giving out cash prizes to the 9 poker players who made it into the money this month. The first prize of €4000 went out to Beatriz Bernal Leonardo [Spain], for placing first.

The first hand of the night was dealt at 16:45, with blinds increasing every 30 minutes, as players quickly started making plays for each others chip stacks which amounted to 7000 at the beginning of the tourney.

By the first break, the player count was down to 48 players which took the average stack to about 9300 and by 21:45, 19 players were left. Around 6 hours into the game, the tourney was down to the final table and included players Leo Said, David Meli, Ivan Farrugia, John Olsen, Spartaco Vivaldi, Beatriz Bernal Leonardo, Chris Sammut, Hiryonen Mikko Ilan and Jacob Nilsson.

The highlights at the final table started with one of the most animated player at the table, Leo Said who was in the Chip lead, and followed closely by David Meli. Leo placed a 40K bet which got called by the lowest stack at the table, as a last struggle to get back into the game. Hiryonen Mikko Ilan didn’t have enough chips to cover Leo’s bet and pushed all in while holding JQ. The flop immediately favoured Leo’s AQ as he paired both his hole cards when the QAT32 were uncovered from the deck sending Hiryonen out in 6th Position with a pair of Queens.

The chip distribution at the table with 5 players left was now as follows:
1. Leo Said – 142K
2. David Meli – 132K
3. Christopher Sammut – 69K
4. Spartaco Vivaldi - 65K
5. Beatriz Bernal Leonardo – 49K

With the blinds now at 3k/6k Spartaco Vivaldi was now on the button and pushed all-in holding JQ. Spartaco, who had a slighter bigger chip stack after collecting some blinds in the previous hands got called by Chris Sammut who was on the big blind and holding AQ. Here, the dealer uncovered 69Q22 which gave both players a pair of Queens, yet Chris Sammut held the lead with his stronger kicker [Ace]. Chris doubled up with this call taking his stack up to over 130K placing him inches away from Leo Said, the chip leader at the time. Spartaco’s stack took a decisive blow with this hand as he was left with just 4.5K which he lost in the following hand against Beatriz Bernal Leonardo who sent him out in 5th place with €950.

At 12:45am the table featured four poker players of which three Maltese and one Spanish player. With J8 in his hands, Leo Said called the big blind in the pot against David Meli. Leo raised upon pairing his Jack on the flop and David Meli who held A6 retaliated with a call upon pairing his Ace. The turn showed an 8 which now gave Leo 2 pairs, Hooks and Snowmen, and the confidence to bet another 20K on his hand. After some thought, David called Leo’s bet, and the dealer uncovered yet another Jack, giving Leo a full house with Jacks full of eights. At this point Leo slowly poured all of his chip stack, pushing all in into the pot - David Meli called this push, only to see Leo’s monster which overpowered David’s pair of Aces sending him out in 4th position with €1250.

With just three players left at the table, and a great distance between her and the remaining two other players, Beatriz now started to implement a more aggressive style pushing all in against Leo Said and Christopher Sammut on several occasions. She managed to increase her chip stack by winning the blinds several times as none of the other players were willing to take unnecessary risks at this crucial stage of the game.

At around 1:15am, Chris Sammut offered an All-in challenge to the other players while holding A8. He got called by Leo, who held a far greater chip lead while holding AK. The board showed JK629 giving Leo a pair of Kings which resulted in Chris’s busting out leaving Leo and Beatriz Bernal Leonardo as the final two players at the table. Chris Sammut was awarded €1490 for placing 3rd, an excellent placing, considering the high level of international competition at the tournament.



With just two players left in the game and a great disparity between their chip stacks, it seemed like Leo would have forcefully finished the game in a few hands, yet Beatriz showed no signs of weakness. She started pushing Leo into uncomfortable positions which led to him handing her many blinds and small raises after folding hands in order not to lose big chunks of his pot all at once. Within a few rounds, however, Beatriz had reached Leo’s Chip stack which was over 365K before they competed heads up, and slowly surpassed him.

Beatriz started by doubling up with the first All-in by Leo when he was holding 69 against her 98. The table showed AA934 giving her the advantage with her higher kicker and doubling her chip stack as she uncovered her hole cards.

A few bluffs, aggressive plays, and several uncalled all-ins later, Beatriz was now holding a larger stack than Leo, who was playing very passively at this advanced stage of the game. Beatriz gave Leo a very hard time in this heads-up challenge playing very aggressively, forcefully pushing Leo out of many pots by re-raising and pushing all-in to dominate her much more experienced opponent.



The game came to a close at around 2:00am when Leo pushed All-in holding K9 only to get called by Beatriz who held a much stronger hand – A pair of Kings. The flop showed 94T64, which gave Beatriz a much stronger lead, as Leo’s hand didn’t gain strength with any of the Flop, Turn or River cards. By now, Beatriz’s stack covered Leo’s push which guaranteed her 1st Place in the Halloween tourney, sending out Leo Said in a very respectable 2nd place with €2500 and winning herself €4000 in cash in addition to the Poker Table generously sponsored by Malta Poker Supplies.



Beatriz, our first ever female participant to win such an event, was delighted with her biggest win to date, and admitted that she hardly ever plays live tournaments at such an entry price, yet was encouraged to play by a close friend, who also participated in the event, yet didn’t place himself ‘in the money’. Her well paced aggressive style and heads-up strategy, were the decisive strengths with which she managed to outsmart her final opponent in a heads up challenge that saw her chip stack increase by over 700% in the last few hands of the tourney.

With her stunning performance at the final table, this young and flourishing player has proven that Poker, which usually features a higher male participation rate, is a game which goes beyond gender, and serves as a perfect example for aspiring female poker players giving them more confidence in participating in similar events held around the islands.

Results:
1. Beatriz Bernal Leonardo [Spain] - €4000
2. Leo Said [Malta] – Satellite - €2500
3. Chris Sammut [Malta]- € 1490
4. David Meli [Malta[ – Satellite - € 1250
5. Spartaco Vivaldi [Italy] - € 950


Photos of the Event may be viewed at the Gallery at MaltaPokerEvents.com. A highlights video of the Halloween tournament will also be online in the coming days.

The November satellite tournaments are back starting from Thursday, the 5th November at the Portomaso Casino. Winners of these satellite events will win their seats into the November €220 taking place at the Portomaso Casino on Sunday the 29th November 2009.


Malta Poker Events

Malta Poker Events - October Satellite Tournament – Episode 3 [15.10.09]

Date: 15.10.09
Time: 20:30hrs
Venue: Portomaso Casino, Malta
Starting stack: 3000 chips
Blind levels: 18 minutes


The Portomaso casino was full of fun packed poker action last night as the casino’s poker halls accommodated the Malta Poker Events October satellite – Episode 3 as well as the Poker Idol €330 side event for the group of professional poker players who qualified for the poker holiday package through the Poker Idol Poker Room. A €5/€10 cash game and the regular €1/€2 were also held for the many players who stormed the casino last night. Several Italian players were also present as they also joined in on the action against some of the best players introduced to the Maltese Poker Scene by Poker Idol, the online poker room tagged as ‘the future of online poker’.

The satellite event for the Halloween themed tournament attracted 19 local players this week, resulting in 5 payouts - 2 main event tickets being given out to the prize winners, two tickets for next week’s satellite event plus the remaining pot for Jackie Cachia, who placed fifth. The multi table tourney started at 20:30Hrs and progressed at the normal rate with the break taking place after approximately 75 minutes.

As a mid-game surprise for our players, the Portomaso Conference centre was set-up for this eventful day with a full blown buffet featuring a vast array of carefully prepared gourmet to suite the most discerning tastes. Players were invited to indulge in a wide range of sea food, pasta, cold cuts and an assortment of cheeses, sweets and exotic fruits to complement the fantastic overall turnout last night. In the buffet area, Malta Poker Events players also had the opportunity of meeting up and networking with professional poker players who participated in the Poker Idol Open side event which took place last night at the Portomaso Casino.

After refuelling with the exquisite food preparation, players rejoined their tables to compete for the final prizes for their respective tournaments.

The final table of the October edition Satellite tournament commenced at around 23:15Hrs and featured many of the regular players who participate in the weekly satellites as well as some new players who were hopeful about winning their buy-in to this month’s Halloween-themed event. Among these were also previous satellite winners JP Grech, Massimo Pappalardo, Rueben Velden and Leo Said.


After the tournaments were over and prizes given out, players were invited to club 22 at the Portomaso tower for a night of partying in company of the Poker Idol crew and players.


Photos may be viewed at the gallery section on the Malta Poker Events website.



Winners of the Halloween themed €220 event on the 1st November 2009 pictured above.
• Leo Said [Left]
• David Meli [Right]

Winners of satellite tickets
• Rueben Velden
• Joe Camilleri

Winners of remaining pot:
• Jackie Cachia

With just two remaining satellite events before the €220 tourney this month, join us next Thursday the 22nd October at the Portomaso Casino for your chance to win a seat into the Halloween themed poker tournament being held on the 1st November 2009. Prize pool is expected to exceed €13,000 this month!

Free parking, snacks and beverages for all our players.

For more information on our current event schedule, please contact us on info@maltapokerevents.com

Malta Poker Events

Malta Poker Events - Monthly Tournaments

Participate in the freshest Malta poker events this season.

Join a prize pool reaching around €10,000 every month [based on 50 players] marking your monthly poker appointments in autumn 2009.

With non-stop weekly poker action in the coming season, Malta Poker Events and the splendid Casino at the Portomaso are providing poker players with weekly satellite poker tournaments leading up to €220 freeze-out tournaments being held in the months of September, October and November 2009.

We also included an interesting twist to the schedule with a monthly €45 knockout tournament, which will surely see more forceful plays than those seen in the freeze-out events.

Visit the events section at maltapokerevents.com for the full September Schedule.

Tournament photos and updates will be added to our Photo Gallery at maltapokerevents.com and an assortment of online Poker channels.

Contact us on for more information about the freshest poker action this upcoming season: info@maltapokerevents.com

Malta Poker Events

Poker Channel broadcast schedule of the Malta ChiliPoker Open

Poker Channel broadcast schedule of the Malta ChiliPoker Open

Catch the Malta ChiliPoker Open 2009 on the Poker Channel throughout the months of July and August. The broadcasts of the Tournament will also show viewers the highlights of the Malta Poker Seminar, and interviews with seminar speakers and Poker players in Malta.

The broadcast schedule follows:
Saturday 27th June at 23:00 [Aired]
Wednesday 1st July at 22:00. [Aired]
Thursday 16th July 14:00
Sunday 19th July 23:00
Wednesday 22nd 22:00
Monday 27th 22:00
Wednesday 29th 23:00
Thursday 30th 16:00
Sunday 2nd August 22:00
[Times are in the following time-zone: GMT+01:00]

You may even check out Malta Chilipoker Open photos in the Gallery at the Malta Poker Events website.


Malta Poker Events

Malta Poker Events - Satellite Update 9.04.09

Another fantastic event at this week’s Malta Poker Events satellite tournament. The event was held on Thursday the 9th April at the Portomaso Casino. With two weeks to go, players are definitely giving the Malta ChiliPoker Openits due importance as one of Malta’s most anticipated Poker events. The satellite tournament attracted 43 Players who competed for 6 prizes which included 4 Malta ChiliPoker Main event Tickets [€330 Buy-in] and 2 tickets for the Malta Poker Seminar, headlined by Poker pro, Ron Rose.

The 5 tables allotted to the satellite were filled with poker players from different walks of life and different nationalities like Malta, Germany, Uk, France, Czech Republic and Austria. The majority of players were male, yet we noticed a positive increase in the number of female players compared to the previous weeks.

The tournament lasted around four and a half hours with almost half the players out of their seats by the first 90 minutes play. Early hands seen in the first stage of the tournament included Anthony Deguara holding AK where he went up against Lina Theuma holding an AQ. Tony pushed with 5900 chips and hit a King on the river sending Lina out of the tournament with her dominated Queen.

Karsten Busch’s all in and final hand got called by Kevin O’neill who held a better hand and a greater than average chip stack at this time. The flop uncovered a queen that gave Kevin a pair of queens which remained the highest valued cards on the felt by the river. This gave Kevin an even stronger position than he held before, turning him into chip leader on his table. O’neill knocked out another player, Andrea Stellato holding AK in his final hand when he went up against Kevin, holding pocket tens, and all in. The players hands didn’t get stronger when combined with the community cards. The deal won Kevin all of Andrea’s chips.

Trevor Borg, a new face at the Malta Poker Events tournaments, pulled a flush on the river against his opponent who held a respectable QQ. Trevor pushed all in as his final last move in the hand which got called winning him his opponent’s pot. Trevor kicked out another player when his AA went up against 88. None of the player’s hands improved and Trevor won yet another sizeable pot, giving him a favourable position at this stage of the tournament.

Trevor Caruana, a regular at the Malta Poker Events games, who won his ticket to this week’s satellite by placing fifth in last week’s game, got trapped by Matthew Barry’s Flush which dominated Trevor’s KJ. Barry claimed all of Trevor’s chips with his move.

Kevin O’neill who was still on a good run so far, encountered a setback when he caught a KQ. Three players were in on this hand, with bets being called by Adrian Sciberras [A7] and Stefan Kaindlstorfer [KJ] who was on two pairs as the flop was showing K2J. A king on the river made the waters more dangerous for Kevin who was now holding a set of Kings against Steffan’s full house. Kevin pushed all in only to be called by Steffan who won the hand beating both players and giving him a much greater advantage as the tournament was halfway through.

Matthew Barry came out victorious in yet another hand when he called Mario Magri’s all in. Mario pushed all in holding a K10, and Barry called with his AJ. Mario, holding a flush draw and gut shot lost the hand as Barry hit two pairs. The paired AJ held their strength, finishing off Mario’s chances to enter the top six positions.

Down to the final table, the average stack was around 11,000 chips with the chip leader holding around 25k. Here, Luke Galea, one of the more focused players throughout the tournament held pocket 10’s as he gave his final push. He got called by Anthony Deguara holding KQ who paired a Queen on the turn, thus eliminating Luke.

Anthony’s hand strength was forced once again onto Chris Sammut, low stacked at the time. Chris went all in holding 97 yet he got called by Anthony Deguara, holding K6. Anthony’s King paired up on the felt winning him all of Chris’s chips

As the action started getting tougher, Anthony Deguara went all in with an A7 and got called by Etienne Do’s A6. None of the players hit on the flop turn or river, yet a pair of Kings and 2 over cards surfaced on the table which saved Etienne Do as the hand resulted in a split pot between the two players.

By this time the blinds had reached 800/1600 and 6 players were left in the game. The game slowed down considerably with far fewer hands being called. All the remaining players were eligible to prizes at this point as the tourney paid out 4 main event tickets as well as 2 Malta Poker Seminar tickets. Two players out at this stage would result in the end of the tourney, so players were playing very carefully in order to secure their seat in the Malta Chili Poker Open.

An all-in by Etienne Do, holding A10 got called by Barry who, also holding A10 called Etienne’s bet. There was the possibility for a flush, yet the pot ended up split between the two players. This was the second time Etienne showed his cards, and his second split pot on the final table.

The next hand saw the table going down to five players when Daniel Briffa went all in with 6400 chips while holding A10. He got called by Etienne Do whose 77 kept their strength when the community cards showed 45K96.

Anthony Deguara, now grinding his way through, came to a turning point in the tournament when he went all in with 3,200 chips. He got called by Etienne Do and Matthew Barry holding KJ and QJ respectively. The felt was Queen High, but Anthony’s pocket Kings held up against the other player’s cards by the river which allowed him to triple up turning him into the second biggest stack on the table.

After several more tight plays on the table, Anthony Deguara went all in with his Hooks [JJ] and got called by Stefan Kaindlstorfer, the chip leader at the time. Stefan was holding JQ which gave him two pairs as there were a J and Q on the felt, yet Anthony’s trips gave him the advantage here giving him chip leader position, now holding over 17000 chips.

Another heads up between Anthony and Stefan saw Stefan go all in with AJ against Anthony’s K6 which hit a King on the flop. Stefan won this hand though as he also paired his Ace on the flop when the table showed a K5A77

The tournament came to a close at the 13th level, with the blinds at 1400/2800. The final hand saw Anthony push all-in when he hit the nuts on the river with a full house holding 45 in big blind position. To his misfortune, Barry [K8] was drawing a dead straight which he hit on the turn as the 4 on the river sent Barry out in 5th place. The final deal showed 54764 on the table.


The Satellite Winners 1st through 4th:
Malta ChiliPoker Open Main Event Tickets [Final 4 positions]
Anthony Deguara
Stefan Kaindlstorfer
Matthew Calascione
Etienne Do

Malta Poker Seminar Tickets [5th and 6th]
Matthew Barry
Daniel Briffa

2 more satellite tournaments will be held next week on Thursday the 16th April at the Portomaso Casino and the Oracle Casino. The events are scheduled to start at 20:30Hrs

Winners wil get the chance to win tickets to the Malta Chilipoker Open, and the Malta Poker Seminar. The Malta Poker Seminar is being held at the Mediterranean Conference Centre on the 18th & 19th April 2009. Professional Poker player Ron Rose will be headlining the event.

The remaining tickets for the Malta Poker Seminar are available from the Portomaso Casino, the Mediterranean Conference Centre and may also be booked through info@maltapokerevents.com

Photography from the satellite tournament may be viewed in the photo gallery at maltapokerevents.com

Win Malta Poker Seminar Tickets on XFM

XFM have 2 tickets to give away to the Malta Poker Seminar taking place on Saturday and Sunday 18th and 19th April.

During the Big Drive Home with Jay and Lee from Monday 13th April, XFM listeners will be asked to SMS and register for the Malta Poker competition. Each listener wishing to enter must text Malta Poker and their full name to 50619400.

A list of entrants will be compiled and during the Big Drive Home on Friday 17th, 2 separate entrants will be called and asked 3 questions about poker.

Should they answer all 3 questions correctly the caller will win a ticket admitting them to the Malta Poker 2 day Seminar worth €145 euros.

Malta Poker Events

Ayu Fievet wins 1st Prize at the 4th satellite for the Malta Chilipoker Open 2009

Malta Poker Events - Satellite update.

Last night’s event kicked off at 20:30Hrs at the Portomaso Casino where two tables were set up for the participants. The event lasted around 4 hours in total with Ayu Fievet emerging as the winner of the 1st prize and seat to the main event of the Malta Chilipoker Open 2009.

The Malta Poker Events satellite was well attended with 13 players who got together for the 4th satellite tournament so far. The increased amount of players gave this week’s tournament an additional prize for third pacing and also included cash winnings for second and third place winners. Players included some familiar faces like Clive Tong [Previous winner], Konrad Abela, Trevor Caruana, and Ayu Fievet, who came second in a previous satellite, giving her free entry to last night’s satellite.

With some rare outcomes like a 5 way split pot, a majority of the players kept it tight for the initial stages of the tournament, yet there were some unfortunate flops for strong handed players like Jovin Genovese whose pocket Kings didn’t survive past the river.

The players were moved to the final table a few minutes before the tournament break, where the participants started picking up the pace as blind levels started to become more pronounced.

The action kept heating up as players started dropping out of the table following traps set up by better positioned players as well as well timed calls by those players who had the stacks to afford them.

With 5 players still left in the tournament, a pair of snowmen [88] helped Konrad Abela double up against Carmel Callus, chip leader at the time. Konrad's all-in was called almost instantly by Carmel, who showed an A6 which didn’t develop into a stronger hand by the river.

Carmel didn’t last much longer at the table as a series of events turned him weaker and he exited the table at fifth place. Carmel was followed by Trevor Caruana, who ended up as the bubble, leaving Clive Tong, Konrad Abela and Ayu Fievet to battle it out for their placing in the final three positions.

Another All-in from Konrad who was holding 10Q was called by Ayu with her KQ. Clive also called this hand with his 99, yet Ayu came out as the winner when she hit her king on the flop, sending Konrad out in third place while leaving her and Clive in a heads-up for the first prize.

Being relatively short stacked at this stage and in need of a double up, the last three hands saw three All-ins by Clive. Ayu kept her focus and finally called Clive’s suited 10, 2 with her 10 Q when she paired her Q to claim her prize as winner of this week’s satellite.

Prizes given out during this week’s satellite were as follows:
1st Prize – Ayu Fievet – Seat to Main event of Malta Chilipoker Open 2009
2nd Prize – Clive Tong – Seat to next week’s satellite + €50
3rd Prize – Konrad Abela – Seat to next week’s satellite + €20.

Photos of the event may be viewed on maltapokerevents.com. A highlights video featuring interviews with some players will also follow shortly.

Next week’s satellite will be taking place at the Portomaso Casino on the 2nd April 2009. The event is set to start at 20:30Hrs

Malta Poker Events
Chilipoker

With less than four weeks to go, the Malta Poker Seminar 2009 is nearing fruition.

With less than four weeks to go, the Malta Poker Seminar 2009 is nearing fruition. The educational event for aspiring poker winners is scheduled for the 18th & 19th April 2009. The organisers, Malta Poker Events, have commented that the event ‘will attract players from different nationalities with the aim of improving their game throughout a week-end of educational seminars’.

Speakers will share their wealth of knowledge with the attendees in order for them to improve the quality of their poker skills, or to simply reduce the errors they commit at the felt.

The event is headlined by WSOP bracelet winner, a.k.a ‘Champion of the Champions’, Ron Rose, who will be addressing topics related to ‘How to become a Winning No-Limit Tournament Poker Player’. Ron is one of the big names on the list of professionals who will be addressing the seminars.


Malta Poker Events have created an attractively priced package for the Malta Poker Seminar which also includes entry to a free-roll tournament. This event will give players the chance to put their newly found skills to practice against a broad range of players from different backgrounds. Prizes include entry to tournaments held at the Portomaso Casino, which will be held throughout the week following the seminars.

Malta Poker Events have also scheduled a series of tournaments which will be taking place from the 24th till the 26th April 2009 as part of the ‘Malta ChiliPoker Open 2009’ event. The main event will be televised by local TV network Melita Plc, and aired on the Poker Channel throughout the months of May and June 2009. The event is being hosted at the Portomaso Casino, St. Julians, right in the centre of Malta’s nightlife Mecca.

Additional information may be found on Malta Poker Events website www.maltapokerevents.com

Filming of tonight's satellite !

We are filming some content throughout tonight's satellite being held at the Portomaso Casino, including some of the action at the felt and interviews with players.

This will help promote our favourite card game so feel free to drop by to give your support!

Win your seat to the Malta Poker Open Main Event!!

Win your seat to the Malta Poker Open Main Event!!

Satellite tournament taking place at the Portomaso Casino.

Date: 12th March 2009
Time: 20:00Hrs

Buy-In: €37+3
[Capped at 10 persons]




1st Prize –
Entry to Malta Poker Open Main Event
[Worth €330]

2nd Prize –
Entry to Malta Poker Open Satellite Tournament
[Worth €37+3]

Registration at the Portomaso Casino. Open daily from 10am on.

We recommend early registration as to avoid disappointment.

For more info, e-mail on info@maltapokerevents.com

Malta Poker Open 2009

Date: 24th – 26th April 2009
Venue: Portomaso Casino
Main Event: €300+30 [Freezeout]

Side events starting from €30
Several Cash games available.

The 3 day event will be held at Portomaso Casino with highlights of the featured table and player interviews being aired on the Poker Channel, and locally, on the Melita network.

International TV exposure guarantees a priceless value for players, as they stand a chance to be viewed by family, friends and poker players around the globe.

Entry requirements: 25yrs+ for Maltese nationals, and 18yrs+ for foreigners.
For bookings or more information, mail us on: info@maltapokerevents.com,

Alternatively, you may register at the Portomaso Casino reception, satellites also available every Thursday at 20:00 Hrs.

Malta Poker Open Satellite Winner

Portomaso saw a great deal of action last night as it hosted a new scheduled satellite tournament. A group of ten players took to the table at 8.00Pm posting the €37+3 buy-in to compete in the freezeout event.

The event lasted around 3 hours before the winner emerged, Andrew Camilleri, who snatched the first prize with his Qs2s hitting a pair on the flop against Ayu Fievet’s hand.

Andrew won a seat for the €330 main event of the Malta Poker Open, being held at the Portomaso Casino between the 24th and 26th April, while Ayu secured a seat for next week’s satellite giving her a second chance to claiming a seat in April’s tournament.

Next week’s satellite will be taking place at the Portomaso Casino on Thursday evening. The event is set to start at 8.00Pm. Early registration is recommended.

Malta Poker Seminar

Poker Seminar [For Players] - 18th & 19th April 2009

The Seminar is aimed at poker players who are aiming to get better at their game and others who aspire to turn their pastime into a profitable one. Various speakers will be addressing key areas of the game, like reading opponents, mindset, betting strategies, responsible gaming, and more. Speakers will share their wealth of knowledge with the delegates attending the seminars.

Players will leave the seminars with a new found confidence, and ground-breaking strategies in their skill-set.

Following the educational seminars, a free-roll tournament will be held at the Portomaso Casino. The tournament will provide delegates with a platform where they may put their new knowledge to practice against a multitude of players from different backgrounds and styles.

Attendees will also enjoy six coffee breaks and two lunches, and will also be given a hard copy of the presentations, and the topics covered during the seminar. All attendees will receive a certificate of attendance outlining the subject matter covered.

The price of the seminar is €145 [Lm 62.25]. (This includes a full 2 day pass, CD including visual and textual documentation, access to all lunches and breaks, a free-roll tournament and a cocktail party at an exclusive venue to wrap up in style.)

The Poker Seminar is being held at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta and is restricted to people aged 18 and over.

Malta Poker Events

Malta Poker Events has been setup to act as a Mediterranean hub in the worldwide poker community. Our agenda includes coordination of events like educational seminars, tournaments and promotions, while also offering networking opportunities. This will provide devoted poker players the necessary framework to accelerate their learning and do so in an enjoyable and responsible way.

We are committed to increasing awareness of the players so they may improve their skill-set, and progress to making improved, confident decisions when it matters most. Explore the site to learn about poker events being held on the charming island of Malta. You may also check for news and updates on the main page, or join our mailing list for information on current events.