Pasi Sormunen Leads 13 Qualifiers into Final Day of No Filter Poker Series Legends of the Game Event
The atmosphere was crackling today at Olympic Park Casino, Tallinn as players converged on the 2025 No Filter Poker Series Nordic & Baltic Championship Open for the €3,500 No Limit Hold'em No Filter Legends of the Game event.
The event obtained a total of 101 entrants, creating a €323,301 prize pool. After nineteen 30-minute levels, only 13 players were left standing, all of whom have locked up a minimum cash of €7,050, while the sum of €85,400 awaits the victor.
The qualifiers are led by Pasi Sormunen of Finland (2,020,000), who holds a reasonable lead over fellow countryman Pasi Laihinen (1,590,000), while Duncan Horst of the United States (1,230,000) completes the podium places.
€3,500 No Limit Hold'em No Filter Legends of the Game End of Day 1 Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pasi Sormunen | Finland | 2,020,000 | 81 |
| 2 | Pasi Laihinen | Finland | 1,590,000 | 64 |
| 3 | Duncan Horst | United States | 1,230,000 | 49 |
| 4 | Antti Maki-Franti | Finland | 940,000 | 38 |
| 5 | Mathias Siljander | Finland | 920,000 | 37 |
| 6 | Bengt Larsson | Sweden | 775,000 | 31 |
| 7 | Rusen Yilmaz | Sweden | 475,000 | 19 |
| 8 | Tommi Lankinen | Finland | 470,000 | 19 |
| 9 | Mikko Ylamaki | Finland | 460,000 | 18 |
| 10 | Roope Tarmi | Finland | 400,000 | 16 |
A win here will take Sormunen over the seven-figures in recorded cashes milestone, with a fifth-place finish at the EPT Barcelona Main Event in 2013 for €253,000 being his biggest recorded score to date among total recorded cashes of $914,365.
Laihinen has recorded scores of just over $250,000, and he clearly enjoys playing at Olympic Park, with his biggest cash being a third-place finish in February this year in the Kings of Tallinn Main Event.
The exuberant Horst, who burst into song on numerous occasions throughout the day, has recorded cashes of under $90,000, and he will be hoping to beat his career-best score, being a 16th-place finish for just over $16,000 in a deepstack event at this year's World Series. (All figures courtesy of The Hendon Mob).
Day 1 Action
The event gave players an opportunity to battle with genuine legends of the game, and a lavish opening ceremony introduced reigning WSOP Main Event champion Michael Mizrachi, 1998 Main Event winner Scotty Nguyen, and two-time bracelet winner Juha Helppi to the room.
Helppi would get off to a quick start with an early double-up, but Mizrachi would fall in Level 5 to his own son, Paul Mizrachi, much to the glee of his offspring.
The elder Mizrachi's second bullet would come to an end in a cooler against Guillermo Gordo, and he would ultimately depart just after the three-table redraw to Bengt Larsson. His son's tilt at the title ended when he ran into Antti Maki-Franti's pocket queens, and when the dust settled ultimately none of the legends would make the Day 2 cut.
Sormunen started his charge to the top of the standings when he found a huge river hero call to bust Joonas Helin, and he then picked up rockets to send Igor Pihela packing close to the bubble.
Horst's stack would also primarily arise close to the bubble, his aces holding against Viljami Salakari, after previously spiking a two-outer against the same opponent to stay in it.
Salakari was left with crumbs following the hand with Horst, and he was destined to bubble the tournament shortly thereafter.
€3,500 No Limit Hold'em No Filter Legends of the Game Payouts
| Place | Prize | Place | Prize | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | €85,400 | 7 | €14,850 | |
| 2 | €59,650 | 8 | €11,950 | |
| 3 | €40,850 | 9 | €9,451 | |
| 4 | €29,850 | 10-11 | €7,950 | |
| 5 | €22,850 | 12-13 | €7,050 | |
| 6 | €18,450 |
The players will return to Olympic Park Casino at noon, October 19 to do battle for the title, and play will continue until a winner is crowned.
A stream will be available on Olybet Poker's YouTube channel, with the action on a 30-minute delay. Our coverage will be delayed to match the stream, so be sure to stick with us at PokerNews as we see who can claim the Legends of the Game title and chunky first-place prize.