Poker Champions of The Festival Series: A Look Back at the Winners from Bratislava to Nottingham
Winning the championship belt of the Main Event in The Festival Series Malta is a significant achievement for any poker player. It comes with a large cash prize and signifies skill and success in the competitive poker world. It can boost a player's career with increased media attention and potential sponsorship deals. Winning a major tournament can also impact a player's confidence and reputation at the poker table, potentially leading to further success in future tournaments and high-stakes cash games. The championship belt has been won by some of the finest names in poker, and we eagerly await to see who will claim it in the 2023 Main Event of The Festival Series Malta at Portomaso Casino.
Bratislava 2021
Our first Main Event, being held at the Banco Casino in the capitol city of Slovakia, attracted a number of 621 entrants. The final table got dominated by the Austrians, which resulted in the bronze, silver and gold medals going to the home country of one of the world’s most famous componists Mozart and Beethoven. It was eventually Martin Mauthner who stayed the best in the rhythm of the music, resulting in a heavy first prize of €56.870!
Martin Mauthner
All-time money list: $76.370
Best live cash: $66.651
Note: Martin has not placed any recent live cash after he won the Main Event of Bratislava 2021.
Tallinn 2022
It was June 2022, when Covid-19 left its marks all over the world, it was finally time for some live poker again! It resulted in a Main Event with 552 entrants, where €56.100 would be given out to the winner. It was eventually Norwegian Eirik Kristiansen who took home the trophy and the title, defeating for example Sascha Manns, Greg Partridge, Lars Viggander and Jari Mahonen on the final table. A great result for the Norwegian poker player, whom we had spoken to a couple of months ago as well. Find here the interview.
Eirik Kristiansen
All-time money list: $76.088
Best live cash: $59.341
Note: Eirik also joined the Festival Series in Bratislava of 2022, resulting in a 3rd place during the Texas Surprise event.
Bratislava 2022
Oktober 2022 is still in history books until this very day due to the biggest ever Festival Series Main Event until this date. It all came together for poker pro Michel Molenaar, beating another Dutch player heads-up in the name of Gerianne Dijkstra. Michel Molenaar still holds the record of the biggest ever live cash in Slovakian live poker history, with an incredible €126.650! It was the result of 1271 entrants who all had the eyes of the newly introduced trophy, a personalized portrait of the Winner’s picture.
Michel Molenaar
All-time money list: $296.025
Best live cash: $123.002
Note: Michel Molenaar is one of the Netherlands’ promising young guns who is travelling a lot for online poker. He already has a total of 30 registered cashes in seven different countries!
Nottingham 2023
For the first time in the history of The Festival Series, the event would be held outside Europe, in Great Britain! The Dusk Till Dawn Pokerclub of Rob Yong opened up its doors for us and did we have a great winner of the Main Event with Ignacio Menendez! All the way from Argentina, he captured the first prize of £37.595! A total of 609 entrants found their way to Nottingham, the home of Robin Hood.
Ignacio Menendez
All-time money list: $53.993
Best live cash: $45.750
Note: Ignacio Menendez only registered live cashes in England, a total of 10! Never before he was that close to such a big first prize, and he instantly took his chance to capture it.
Malta 2023
Back to the roots of poker, back to the rock. Malta is one of Europe’s most promising locations for poker and in just 8 days from now, the Main Event will kick off at the grand Portomaso Casino! There is still a chance to qualify yourself for this event, which just leaves you booking your flights! The weather is already very decent, which is very good for the hospitality events throughout the event week!
With several new events being introduced, such as the 49+ Senior Championship and the Mystery Bounty tournament, the schedule is absolutely fully packed!
Come on, Malta!
