€5,300 Main Event
Day 1a Started
2025 PokerStars EPT Malta
€5,300 Main Event
Day: 1a
Event Info
2025 PokerStars EPT Malta
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 1a
Buy-in
€5,300
Prize Pool
€4,355,300
Entries
898
Level
35
Blinds
200,000 / 400,000
Ante
400,000
Entries
319
Players Left
102
Players Left 1 / 898
Filter
(1)
Not since 2016 has the PokerStarsEuropean Poker Tour (EPT) made its mark on Malta, but after nearly a decade away, the tour’s long-awaited return to the Mediterranean island has already lived up to the hype.
The 2025 PokerStars EPT Malta at Casino Malta has been running hot all week, and today marks a huge day on the schedule. The final tables of both the €100,000 Super High Roller and the €1,650 PokerStars Open Main Event will crown champions, while the spotlight shifts to the cards in the €5,300 EPT Main Event.
The last time the EPT visited Malta, Aliaksei Boika captured the 2016 Main Event title, outlasting 468 entrants to take home €355,700 after defeating Mats Karlsson heads-up.
Nearly nine years later, the trophy is once again up for grabs as a fresh field of hopefuls take their shot at poker glory.
2016 EPT Malta Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize (EUR) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aliaksei Boika | Belarus | €355,700 |
| 2 | Mats Karlsson | Sweden | €261,730 |
| 3 | Dmitry Yurasov | Russia | €192,650 |
| 4 | Elie Saad | Lebanon | €141,780 |
| 5 | Peter Ockenden | United Kingdom | €104,340 |
| 6 | Tomas Macnamara | United Kingdom | €76,790 |
| 7 | Bastian Dohler | Germany | €56,520 |
| 8 | Xixiang Luo | China | €41,590 |
| 9 | Dominik Panka | Poland | €41,590 |
Plan for Day 1a
Day 1a kicks off at 12 p.m. local time, where players will begin with a 30,000-chip stack and blinds of 100/100/100. Ten 60-minute levels are scheduled, with breaks every two levels and a 75-minute dinner break after Level 6.
Registration will remain open until the start of Day 2, and players are permitted up to two entries across both opening flights and Day 2.
Day 1a Schedule
| Level | Duration | Small Blind | Big Blind | BB Ante |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 60 min | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| 2 | 60 min | 100 | 200 | 200 |
| 20 min break | ||||
| 3 | 60 min | 100 | 300 | 300 |
| 4 | 60 min | 200 | 400 | 400 |
| 20 min break | ||||
| 5 | 60 min | 200 | 500 | 500 |
| 6 | 60 min | 300 | 600 | 600 |
| 75 min dinner break | ||||
| 7 | 60 min | 400 | 800 | 800 |
| 8 | 60 min | 500 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| 20 min break | ||||
| 9 | 60 min | 600 | 1,200 | 1,200 |
| 10 | 60 min | 1,000 | 1,500 | 1,500 |
Stay locked in as PokerNews brings you live updates from the tournament floor.
Level: 1
Blinds: 100/100
Ante: 100
Level 1
: Blinds 100/100, 100 ante
With 76 players registered at the start of Day 1a, cards are in the air!
Level 1
: Blinds 100/100, 100 ante
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
||
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
|
||
|
30,000
30,000
|
30,000 |
Level 1
: Blinds 100/100, 100 ante
Heads-up on a board of 5♦9♥9♣4♦4♥ with more than a starting stack in the pot, Lukas Zaskodny in the cutoff jammed for his last 11,900.
Alexander Ivarsson on the button went deep into the tank, staring at Zaskodny for a long moment. He eventually folded, but had already lost half of his stack.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
47,100
47,100
|
47,100 |
|
|
12,100
17,900
|
17,900 |
Level 1
: Blinds 100/100, 100 ante
Roberto Milito raised to 400 from middle position. Erik Eisen in the cutoff called, as well as Jon Kyte in the small blind.
After Kyte and Milito checked a flop of A♥2♠Q♣, Eisen bet 300. Kyte folded but Milito check-raised to 1,500. Eisen called.
Milito checked the J♣ turn and saw Eisen bet 4,500. Milito went deep into the tank and called to find the 3♠ that he checked again.
Eisen bet an extra 7,500, and it took a long moment again for Milito to fold.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
34,500
34,500
|
34,500 |
|
34,500
34,500
|
34,500 |
|
22,700
22,700
|
22,700 |
Level 1
: Blinds 100/100, 100 ante
Florian Sarnow opened to 300 from the hijack and was called by both Eric Afriat on the button and Artem Shaganov in the big blind.
The flop of K♥10♥A♥ looked promising but Sarnow's continuation bet made everybody fold.
In the next hand, Sarnow opened again to 300. Afriat three-bet from the cutoff and was called by Shaganov in the small blind, but Sarnow four-bet to 3,100 to make both of his opponents fold.
It was then Emmanouil Zografakis' turn to raise to 300 from middle position. Afriat to his left three-bet to 800,000, but Zografakis four-bet to 2,700. Afriat quickly called.
The dealer fanned a flop of 9♦4♥A♥ and Zografakis continued for 2,500. Afriat smiled and folded K♠Q♠ face up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
34,000
34,000
|
34,000 |
|
31,000
31,000
|
31,000 |
|
28,800
28,800
|
28,800 |
|
26,000
26,000
|
26,000 |
Level 1
: Blinds 100/100, 100 ante
Cards went on their backs on a flop of 8♥6♣3♣ with Corel Theuma in the small blind at risk for 18,000 against Nicola Marxer in the hijack.
Corel Theuma: A♠8♣ 
Nicola Marxer: Q♠Q♦
Theuma flopped top pair but ran into queens. He wanted an eight to improve his hand but the J♣9♥ runout didn't help him and he became the first player eliminated of this EPT Malta Main Event.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
46,000
46,000
|
46,000 |
|
Busted |
Level 1
: Blinds 100/100, 100 ante
Mario Trattou raised to 300 from middle position and called after Omar Del Pino on the button three-bet to 1,000.
Del Pino continued for 600 on a flop of A♥K♣4♦ and was quickly called by Trattou who checked the 10♣ turn. Del Pino checked back.
The 8♦ river didn't bring more action but Trattou directly mucked his cards to leave the pot to Del Pino.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
33,000
33,000
|
33,000 |
|
29,000
29,000
|
29,000 |
|
||
|
29,000
29,000
|
29,000 |
|
28,000
28,000
|
28,000 |
