button in SafariJawad Habib Dominates Day 1b of Coolbet Open Main Event
It was another busy day at the 2026 Coolbet Open. Day 1b of the €550 Main Event drew a crowd of 242 entries to Olympic Park Casino in Hilton Tallinn Park, increasing the collected prize pool to €197,125 as the total number of entries grew to 411. However, with Day 1c taking place in the evening today and four levels of late registration to go on Day 2, those numbers are sure to increase further.
At the end of today's nine levels, Jawad Habib secured the chip lead with 219,500, being the only one among the 103 survivors to cross seven starting stacks in chips. Habib held the chip lead heading into the final break of the afternoon, and did not relinquish it once in the following three levels. Over the past two years, Habib has become a regular at Olympic Park Casino and has made four final tables. With 146 big blinds to take to Day 2, Habib will be looking to add the Coolbet Open final table to his resume.
Following Habib in the counts is Oystein Stai, who went on a rampage during the final level, scoring multiple knockouts to soar to a stack of 191,700. Stai's fellow Norwegian Jan Holte sits in third with 171,200, while Latvia's Kristaps Renga and hometown player Ranel Kasi complete the top five with 170,000 and 157,000, respectively.
End of Day 1b Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gunnar Jacobsen | Norway | 223,700 | 186 |
| 2 | Jawad Habib | Sweden | 219,500 | 183 |
| 3 | Oystein Stai | Norway | 191,700 | 160 |
| 4 | Leif Lindstrom | Sweden | 187,300 | 156 |
| 5 | Visa Kiviharju | Finland | 171,200 | 143 |
| 6 | Jan Holte | Norway | 171,200 | 143 |
| 7 | Kristaps Renga | Latvia | 170,000 | 142 |
| 8 | Hendry Kullamae | Estonia | 157,400 | 131 |
| 9 | Ranel Kasi | Estonia | 157,000 | 131 |
| 10 | Atle Larsen | Norway | 149,100 | 124 |
Two previous Coolbet Open winners showed up on Day 1b, and they both secured a bag for Day 2. After a rough start, defending champion Guillermo Gordo hit his stride and ended with 50,100, while 2024 victor Anders Bjorkheim knew a solid grind and bagged 89,000, nearly three starting stacks.
Other notable players who will return for Day 2 include Finnish poker veteran player Jukka Juvonen (121,400), last year's finalist Ole Wasenius (64,600), and Swedish regular Stefan Olofsson (51,200). Luis Campusano (56,900) and William Corvalan (54,900) are part of a sizable group of Chilean players making the trek halfway across the world to the Coolbet Open each year, and they secured their spot on Day 2 as well today.
Day 2 of the Coolbet Open Main Event will begin September 4 at noon local time, starting with blinds at 1,000/1,500 with a 1,500 big blind ante. The 170 players who have qualified so far will be joined by the survivors of Day 1c, which has just gotten underway at the time of writing. The chip counts for Day 1c will be posted below this recap before the start of Day 2. Unlimited reentries and late registration will remain possible until the end of Level 13, the fourth level of Day 2, and the second day of the three-day tournament is scheduled to play to the money.
PokerNews will be back on the floor to report the entirety of Day 2, so make sure to tune back in for the final numbers and the exciting bubble action.