Main Event Day 1a | 2018 Unibet Open Malta

05-18-2018 00:02 UTC+2

28 Players Survive Day 1a of the 2018 Unibet Open Malta Main Event

Yori Epskamp

Level 10 : 1,000/2,000, 300 ante

For the third time since it's inception, the Unibet Open has set up shop on the popular island of Malta. The first of two starting days at the Intercontinental Hotel in St. Julians attracted a total of 88 runners. After ten levels of 60 minutes, 28 of them were able to make their way to Day 2, with French's Charly Grenet claiming top honor. Grenet bagged 197,400 to distance himself from his nearest challengers Jenny Israel (168,500) and Ilkka Heikkila (154,300).

2017 Unibet Open London Main Event winner [Removed:158] had a strong showing as well, bagging 131,400 to strengthen his bid for a second title. Besides the title, Van Lancker also finished third in this event back in 2016, making him one to watch going forward.

Other notables that made it through were French pro's Johan Guilbert (77,100) and Erwann Pecheux (36,900). Guilbert was left short after a brutal full house over full house situation halfway through the day but climbed back up to a near average stack.

It was a bad day for the hosts as all participating Unibet Ambassadors fell by the wayside throughout the day. Daiva Byrne, Espen Uhlen Jorstad and Sophia "djarii" White ran out of chips during the ten levels of Day 1a. Byrne lost a coin flip with pocket tens against ace-queen, White lost ace-eight to pocket tens when a ten hit the river after an ace flopped, and Jorstad was short early on and never could get anything going.

Sophia "djarii" White — Unibet Poker Ambassador Sophia 'djarii' White Busted Late on Day 1

The same empty-handed faith awaited defending champion Martin Soukup, who won this event when it was last held two years ago. Dehlia de Jong, Niko Koop, Bas de Laat, Paul Berende and Jorma Vuoksenmaa were other notables who's attempt at Unibet Open success ended on the first day.

All 28 surviving players return on Saturday, May 19, at noon to play the second of three days. On Friday, the same ten levels await the players that join Day 1b. A bigger field is expected to show up, including a slew of Unibet Ambassadors and eSporters.

At the feature table. the winner of the €330 Unibet Deepstack Open Cup was crowned today, and it was none other than 2017 Unibet Open Copenhagen champion Kaarel Lepik who reaped the top reward. Lepik conquered a final table that also contained Dan Murariu to capture his second Unibet title and win €13,860.

PokerNews will be on the floor to cover the Main Event event from start to finish as the Unibet Open rolls on Friday, May 18. There will be a special treat for the early birds: from 10 a.m., the stream will feature the Tag Team tournament that was held on Wednesday. This four-hour Sit 'n Go features all the Esporters as well as Unibet Ambassadors. Once the tournament has concluded, the live stream will switch to broadcast the action of Day 1b.

Tags: Dan Murariu Dehlia de Jong Erwann Pecheux Espen Uhlen Jorstad Johan Guilbert Jorma Vuoksenmaa Kaarel Lepik Martin Soukup Niko Koop Sophia "djarii" White

05-17-2018 17:19 UTC+2

Daiva Byrne Eliminated

Yori Epskamp

Level 5 : 300/600, 75 ante

Unibet Ambassador Daiva Byrne has been eliminated from the tournament. The Baltic Blonde got it in with from the cutoff against on the button for 15,000 total. A queen on the flop ended her Main Event run early on Day 1.

Player	Chips	Progress
[Removed:158]	65,000	11,000
Raiko Prii	42,000	-9,000
Jenny Israel	35,000	-11,000
Ludovic Breau	32,000	-13,000
Alex Hendriks	25,000	-18,000
Dehlia de Jong	12,000	1,500
Daiva Byrne	Busted

05-17-2018 16:52 UTC+2

Please Fold, Please Call?

Yori Epskamp

Level 5 : 300/600, 75 ante

At the Unibet Open, the classic all-in triangle has been equipped with an interesting tidbit that has been the causing quite some rumor. You see, below the words 'ALL-IN', one side of the triangle reads "Please call", while the other side softly whispers "Please fold". Just like that, a simple flip of the triangle could add another level on top of an already complicated thought process.

In a hand against Christos Triantaphyllo, Johan Guilbert used said triangle fully to his advantage. The board was reading and Triataphyllo had checked to the Frenchman. Guilbert moved all in and the dealer flung the all in button towards him, reading "Please call".

Guilbert, who was seated next to the dealer, instantly slid it back and picked the other all-in triangle in one fell swoop, the one which had "Please fold" on top. Guilbert's tablemates had a good chuckle about it while Trianthaphyllo went even deeper in the tank.

After Trianthaphyllo had thought for over a minute, Guilbert turned the screws on the poor Belgian by flipping the all-in triangles again, now begging for a call. That proved too much for Trianthaphyllo and he folded shortly after, showing the . Guilbert showed nothing and stoically raked in the pot.

Player	Chips	Progress
Johan Guilbert	70,000	40,000
Christos Triantaphyllo	15,000	15,000

Tags: Christos Triantaphyllo Johan Guilbert

05-17-2018 10:46 UTC+2

Welcome to Day 1a of the 2018 Unibet Open Malta Main Event

Yori Epskamp

Scott "Sco" McMillan, winner of the eSports Battle Royale IX

The second stop of the Unibet Open's 11th season is on Malta! The Intercontinental Hotel, located in the vibrant city of St. Julians, sets the stage for five days of heated poker action. It's the third time Unibet has set up shop on the Mediterranean island, after visits in 2011 and 2016. Martin Soukup of the Czech Republic is the last winner, after taking home €65,000 in 2016.

Two-time Unibet Open champion Mateusz Moolhuizen kicked off his storied poker career here in 2011 with a win and a massive €117,000 first-place prize. The Dutchman has been spotted but will likely appear on Day 1b as he's still active in the €330 Unibet Deepstack Open Cup that concludes today.

Yesterday saw the conclusion of the popular eSports Battle Royale IX, with Scott "Sco" McMillan lifting the trophy and claiming the first-place prize of €5,000, defeating Jordy "MojoOnPC" Janssens (€3,000) and Kevin "Papaplatte" Teller (€2,000). It's the second time McMillan cashed the Battle Royale this season, after finishing 3rd in London earlier this year.

Unibet Open Events in Malta at a Glance

Year	Buy-in	Entries	Prize Pool	Winner	Prize
2011	€1,650	293	€417,525	Mateusz Moolhuizen	€117,000
2016	€1,100	292	€292,000	Martin Soukup	€65,000

Day 1a of the €1,100 Unibet Open Main Event kicks off at noon local time. Both starting days will feature 10 levels of 60 minutes each, with a break after each two levels. A dinner break is scheduled at the end of level 6 and late registration will be open up until the start of level 7. As is traditional at the Unibet Open, the tournament will be played in freezeout mode.

Day 1 Level Structure