button in SafariNils Knofler Dominates Day 1g to Bag Big in Malta Poker Festival Spring Grand Event
Day 1g of the €500,000 guaranteed €600 Malta Poker Festival Spring Grand Event proved to be by far the busiest starting flight so far, with a total of 243 players trying their luck at Portomaso Casino.
Those figures meant 36 players would qualify for Day 2, and at the end of play, Nils Knofler of Germany topped the standings, almost reaching the 2 million mark (1,909,000). Knofler was followed by Abdellah Baali of Algeria (1,145,000), while Federico Petruzzelli of Italy (1,042,000) also breached the seven-figure milestone.
Knofler started the day strong and remained at the top of the standings throughout. He caught fire towards the end of play, finding a big hero call against Bogdan Martynczuk, and generally dominating proceedings at his table around the bubble.
Petruzzelli also came to the fore late on, cracking the set of Oliver Mihajlovski with a runner-runner flush, and then busting 2025 Malta Poker Festival Grand Event champion Joris Ruijs with aces on the soft bubble.
Knofler appears to be relatively new to the live tournament scene, but four of his five recorded cashes totalling just over $15,000 are final table finishes.
Baali and Petruzzelli both have recorded cashes of under $20,000, and are hunting new career-best scores.
End of Day 1g Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nils Knofler | Germany | 1,909,000 | 127 |
| 2 | Abdellah Baali | Algeria | 1,145,000 | 76 |
| 3 | Federico Petruzzelli | Italy | 1,042,000 | 69 |
| 4 | Danilo Di Mauro | Italy | 838,000 | 56 |
| 5 | Tina Christensen | Denmark | 830,000 | 55 |
| 6 | Antonis Poulengeris | United Kingdom | 811,000 | 54 |
| 7 | Thomas Grahs | Sweden | 652,000 | 43 |
| 8 | Fabio Di Cosimo | Italy | 569,000 | 38 |
| 9 | Alessandro Siena | Italy | 547,000 | 36 |
| 10 | Franky Green | United Kingdom | 525,000 | 35 |
Other prominent names to progress include Thomas Cazaletz (453,000), Ignazio Ulma (308,000) and Tolga Ismen (132,000).
When the dust settled in Day 1h, 18 players qualified from 120 entrants, with Arian Kashi of Denmark (1,135,000) and Giuseppe Mazza-Boussemart (1,085,000) both bagging over seven figures. Those figures mean the event has attracted 943 entrants with three starting flights still to come, while 127 players have booked their spots for Day 2.
The final opportunities for players to make the Day 2 cut are detailed in the schedule below.
2026 Malta Poker Festival Spring Grand Event Remaining Schedule
| Day | Date | Time | Buy-In | Stack | Blind Levels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1i | April 25 | 12 p.m. | €600 | 60,000 | 40 minutes |
| 1j | April 25 | 9 p.m. | €600 | 60,000 | 20 minutes |
| 1k | April 26 | 10 a.m. | €600 | 60,000 | 15 minutes |
| 2 | April 26 | 4 p.m. | 50 minutes | ||
| 3 | April 27 | 1 p.m. | 75 minutes |
PokerNews will be on the floor for the start of play in Day 1i, so stick with us for all your coverage of the Malta Poker Festival Spring Grand Event.