Martin Kanaker Reflects on His Poker Journey at The Festival Series
At the Festival Series, the excitement never stops, and day two of The Festival Malta Main Event brought us another round of epic poker stories. Amid the hustle and bustle, we caught up with Martin, a player who unfortunately busted out earlier in the day. He shared insights into his tournament run, the hand that led to his exit, and his life outside of poker.
A Poker Journey Marked by Familiar Hands
Martin's exit from the tournament came as a result of a nemesis hand—pocket sixes—that had haunted him since day one. Reflecting on his final hand, he recounted the frustration of losing against ace-queen, a situation eerily similar to an earlier encounter in the tournament.
"It’s my nemesis hand. I lost to ace-queen again, just like on day one when I flopped a set of sixes. I check-raised and then bet straight into a boat, which also had a queen," he explained. The déjà vu moment was a frustrating way to exit the tournament, but Martin kept a positive outlook despite the unfortunate hand.
Life Beyond the Felt: Social Media and Maltese Adventures
Though poker is a huge part of his life, Martin is no stranger to multitasking. Outside of the tournament circuit, he balances his poker passion with a career as a social media manager, helping various companies with content creation and distribution. He humorously noted that poker remains his "main hobby," but his professional life allows him to stay creative while engaging with different brands.
One of the highlights of Martin's social media presence is his ongoing effort to learn Maltese. Having lived in Malta for over a year, he's made it a personal goal to connect with locals by tackling the notoriously challenging language.
"It's very hard, but it’s fun, and the locals appreciate when you try," Martin said with a smile. As part of the interview, we even challenged him to demonstrate some of his newly acquired language skills on the spot.
Learning Maltese: A Fun, Yet Challenging Pursuit
To kick off the language test, Martin was asked to say, "Can I have one beer, please?" in Maltese. Though his effort to recall the number one was a bit shaky, he managed to remember that beer in Maltese is "ra." Andreas Hoglund, fellow Swedish countrymen of Martin, laughed along with him as he gamely tackled more phrases, including introducing himself and sharing one of the first sentences he ever learned.
"I think it means something like, 'I buy food at the supermarket,’" he said, reflecting on the early days of his language learning journey. Despite the difficulty, Martin remains motivated to continue learning, appreciating the connections he builds with Maltese speakers along the way.
Looking Ahead
As the interview came to a close, Martin reflected on his future plans, both in poker and beyond. He expressed excitement for the next stop on the Festival Series in Bratislava (Nov 18-24) and offered his gratitude to the people supporting him on his journey.
"Thank you, and come to the next stop in Bratislava. See you there!" Martin concluded, ever enthusiastic about the road ahead.
Though this chapter of the tournament didn't end with a victory for Martin, his upbeat attitude, passion for learning, and dedication to poker continue to inspire those around him. With more stops ahead in the Festival Series, we can’t wait to see what the future holds for him, as we are pretty sure he will at some point win one of these coveted winner portraits once again!
