€1,100 Main Event
Day 3 Started
2022 Unibet Malta
€1,100 Main Event
Day: 3
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 3
2022 Unibet Malta
Buy-in
€1,100
Prize Pool
€359,000
Entries
359
Level
31
Blinds
100,000 / 200,000
Ante
200,000
Entries
9
Players Left
1
Who Will Win the Largest Unibet Open Malta Main Event in History?
The return of the Unibet Open to the European live poker scene after a hiatus of more than two and a half years will come to a thrilling conclusion as of noon local time at the five star Intercontinental Hotel in St Julian's. Out of a field of 359 entries in the flagship €1,100 tournament, nine players from eight different countries remain in contention for the biggest slice of the €359,000 prize pool.
It was the largest Unibet Open Main Event on Malta in the fifth edition and followed in the footsteps of a record-setting Unibet Poker Belgian Championship at Casino Blankenberge in Belgium for the operator. All finalists have locked up a payday of €7,200 but all eyes will be set on the top prize of €75,000 and becoming the newest Unibet Open Main Event champion in the 15th anniversary edition.
Local resident Mats Karlsson from Sweden, representing Malta leads the way and already knows what it takes to run deep on the Mediterranean island. Back in 2016, he finished second in the EPT Malta Main Event and returns with 2,515,000 in chips. Fellow Swede Serdar Demircan (2,350,000) sits in second place and reached back-to-back final tables in this very event after he finished sixth in the 2019 edition for a payday of €13,450.
Denmark's Henrik Juncker completes the Scandinavian podium with 1,935,000 in chips and has more than two times as many chips as the nearest follower thereafter. Rene Kuhlman (915,000) returns with 34 big blinds right in the middle of the pack, narrowly ahead of Rain Molderkivi (870,000).
Several other players are closely bunched together including Samuele Lo Presti (775,000), Tal Sardal (645,000), and Raymond Wheatley, who is a student of Unibet ambassador Dara O'Kearney. Belgium-based American player Daniel Illingworth is the bottom stack by some margin with 270,000 and has nine big blinds at his disposal.
Final Table Seat Assignments
| Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Raymond Wheatley | Ireland | 515,000 | 17 |
| 2 | Tal Sardal | France | 645,000 | 22 |
| 3 | Serdar Demircan | Sweden | 2,350,000 | 78 |
| 4 | Rene Kuhlman | Netherlands | 915,000 | 31 |
| 5 | Samuele Lo Presti | Italy | 775,000 | 26 |
| 6 | Mats Karlsson | Malta | 2,515,000 | 84 |
| 7 | Henrik Juncker | Denmark | 1,935,000 | 65 |
| 8 | Daniel Illingworth | United States | 270,000 | 9 |
| 9 | Rain Molderkivi | Estonia | 870,000 | 29 |
There are 54:27 minutes left in level 23 at blinds of 15,000-30,000 and a big blind ante of 30,000. The level duration remains at 60 minutes each until six contenders remain, after which it will be reduced to 45 minutes each. Once the field is down to the final three, the level duration then concludes at 30 minutes each until a winner has been crowned.
Unibet Open Malta Stops at a Glance
| Year | Entries | Prize Pool | Winner | Country | Top Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 293 | €417,525 | Mateusz Moolhuizen | Netherlands | €117,000 |
| 2016 | 292 | €292,000 | Martin Soukup | Czech Republic | €65,000 |
| 2018 | 273 | €273,000 | Daniel Jacobsen | Denmark | €60,090 |
| 2019 | 327 | €327,000 | Alan Carr | United Kingdom | €53,400 |
| 2022 | 359 | €359,000 | €75,000 |
Thirty minutes is also the delay of the cards-up coverage on the Unibet Poker Twitch and YouTube channels for the live-streamed final showdown. All PokerNews updates will be based on the delay to not spoil any of the action.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Winner | Country | Prize (in EUR) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | €75,000 | ||
| 2 | €46,460 | ||
| 3 | €32,090 | ||
| 4 | €23,770 | ||
| 5 | €18,280 | ||
| 6 | €14,070 | ||
| 7 | €11,250 | ||
| 8 | €9,000 | ||
| 9 | €7,200 |
Level: 23
Blinds: 15,000/30,000
Ante: 30,000
Karlsson Sets the Pace
Level 23
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
"Let's go baby," Serdar Demircan joked and then claimed "one of us will win almost 100k" before other finalists responded that it's closer to 50k. The top amount is in fact all the way in the middle with €75,000 up top.
In the first hand of the day, Mats Karlsson raised to 60,000 with the 
in the hijack and Henrik Juncker called with the 
from one seat over. The 
flop was checked by both players and the 
fell on the turn.
Karlsson now bet 80,000 and Juncker folded to get shown the set of queens.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
2,700,000
185,000
|
185,000 |
|
||
|
1,900,000
-35,000
|
-35,000 |
Three Jams In a Row
Level 23
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Daniel Illingworth claimed the blinds and big blind ante when his shove with the 
got through.
Samuele Lo Presti then raised to 60,000 with the 
and found no action either.
Tal Sardal was the next to shove for 570,000 with the 
on the button to get through with it, too.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
855,000
-15,000
|
-15,000 |
|
645,000 | |
|
440,000
-75,000
|
-75,000 |
|
345,000
75,000
|
75,000 |
Cooler for Kuhlman Against Demircan
Level 23
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Serdar Demircan raised the button with the 
and was called by Rene Kuhlman out of the big blind, who had the 
. On the 
flop, Kuhlman check-called for 70,000 and improved to a flush on the 
turn while Demircan made a straight.
The check by Kuhlman triggered a second bet worth 225,000. Kuhlman just called and the 
rolled over on the river. The third street in a row was checked by Kuhlman, who had 490,000 behind.
Demircan moved all-in and was snap-called to instantly say "fuck" and take a hit to the stack.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,800,000
885,000
|
885,000 |
|
1,400,000
-950,000
|
-950,000 |
Small Pot for Karlsson
Level 23
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Raymond Wheatley got another shove through with the 
and was then in early position with the , which went into the muck after very brief consideration.
Mats Karlsson opened the button to 50,000 with the 
and Daniel Illingworth opted to just call out of the big blind with the due to the abundance of fold equity. On the 
flop, Illingworth fell behind and folded to a continuation bet.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,700,000 | |
|
|
||
|
|
285,000
-60,000
|
-60,000 |
Demircan Makes it Rain
Level 23
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Serdar Demircan raised to 60,000 with the 
for Rain Molderkivi to defend the 
in the big blind. Both players had a piece on the flop on which Molderkivi checked, Demircan bet 70,000 and took it down instantly.
Demircan then opened the 
and Raymond Wheatley let go of the 
in the big blind.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,680,000
-20,000
|
-20,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
1,800,000
-100,000
|
-100,000 |
|
|
1,770,000
-30,000
|
-30,000 |
|
|
1,585,000
185,000
|
185,000 |
|
850,000
75,000
|
75,000 |
|
|
745,000
-110,000
|
-110,000 |
|
|
645,000 | |
|
|
455,000
15,000
|
15,000 |
|
|
240,000
-45,000
|
-45,000 |
Karlsson Takes an Unusual Line
Level 23
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Samuele Lo Presti found no value despite claiming the blinds and big blind ante holding the 
. Henrik Juncker then raised to 60,000 with the and Serdar Demircan didn't fully pay attention to limp with a king-rag as he missed the open raise, to which it was ruled he does not have to call the full amount. Demircan then forfeited the limp while Rene Kuhlman defended the 
and folded after the 
.
Mats Karlsson then opened to 60,000 with the 
and Kuhlman called with the 
in the small blind. The duo headed to the 
flop on which Kuhlman checked and Karlsson knuckled it back. Both saw the turn for free and Kuhlman bet 60,000.
Almost instantly, Karlsson grabbed into his stack and then raised to 250,000. No call by Kuhlman followed and Karlsson pulled further ahead.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,900,000
220,000
|
220,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
1,700,000
-70,000
|
-70,000 |
Another Shove Goes Through for Illingworth
Level 23
: Blinds 15,000/30,000, 30,000 ante
Daniel Illingworth jammed the from under the gun for the last 315,000. One seat over was Estonia's Rain Mölderkivi, who folded the . Tal Sardal two seats over glanced at the and asked for an exact count
The headache of the Frenchman subsided after a minute and the shortest stack hung around once more. Illingworth showed his cards to which Sardal said "good fold from me, I had king queen of hearts."
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
570,000
-75,000
|
-75,000 |
|
|
390,000
150,000
|
150,000 |