2025 Kings of Tallinn – Event #25: €1,100 NLH Kings of Tallinn Main Event

The 113 players have found their seats, and the cards are in the air for the third day of the Kings of Tallinn Main Event.

Four days ago, Ahmet Canatan was the final player standing in the second-biggest tournament of Kings of Tallinn, the €555 Championship, to win his first Kings of Tallinn trophy. Today, at noon local time, Canatan will return to Olympic Park Casino for Day 3 of the record-breaking €1,100 Main Event as one of the chipleaders, looking to take down the biggest event as well.

The Main Event’s seven-figure guarantee drew a bumper crowd to Estonia, with 1,181 entries on the clock at the end of late registration. Only 113 of them have made it to the third day, with Canatan having the fourth-largest stack in his bag. He will sit down with 951,000 chips, equaling 119 big blinds at the start of play. Canatan is only eight big blinds behind chipleader Mikael Haapaniemi, who gathered the only seven-figure stack of 1,015,000 on Day 2. Aklilu Laitinen and Yaniv Peretz sit in between Canatan and Haapaniemi, while Michael Dwyer rounds out the top five, trailing a bit with his stack of 837,000.

Top Ten Chip Counts

Rank	Player	Country	Chip Count	Day 3 Big Blinds
1	Mikael Haapaniemi	Finland	1,015,000	127
2	Aklilu Laitinen	Finland	976,000	122
3	Yaniv Peretz	Latvia	967,000	121
4	Ahmet Canatan	Denmark	951,000	119
5	Michael Dwyer	Ireland	837,000	105
6	Mirco De Martini	Italy	825,000	103
7	Isak Bergstrom	Sweden	677,000	85
8	Piotr Sztenkiel	Poland	650,000	81
9	Jevgeni Voitovits	Estonia	617,000	77
10	Olaf Larssen	Norway	611,000	76

Plenty of other notables are still in contention for the €182,000 top prize. Mathias Siljander (511,000), Juha Helppi (511,000), and Kai Lehto (221,000) are still in the race to become the first-ever two-time Kings of Tallinn champion. Among the Estonians looking to keep the trophy on home soil are Igor Pihela Jr. (577,000), Priit Parmasto (297,000), Stanislav Smeljov (167,000), and Mauri Dorbek (144,000).

All of them are guaranteed to walk away with €2,450, but all eyes will be on the five- and six-figure prizes of the final table as the tournament progresses deeper and deeper today.

Remaining Payouts

The tournament will resume in Level 20: 4,000/8,000 (8,000). Each level will last for 60 minutes, and a break is scheduled after every two levels. An exact plan for today has not been announced yet, but the expectation is that only one or two tables will remain at the penultimate day’s end.

Stay tuned as the live reporting will continue to provide highlights from the largest-ever Kings of Tallinn Main Event.

An ambitious guaranteed prize pool of €1,000,000 was set out for the €1,100 Main Event of the Kings of Tallinn’s tenth anniversary. The series had never reached a seven-figure prize pool, so records had to be broken. And broken they were, as at the end of late registration midway through Day 2, the tally stood at 1,181 entries, surpassing the guarantee and creating a prize pool of €1,098,330.

At the end of the day, only 113 players were left standing, all in the money. Mikael Haapaniemi was the only chip millionaire, ending up with a stack of 1,015,000, good for 126 big blinds when play resumes on Day 3. Haapaniemi finished sixth in the 2023 Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown Main Event and has made good strides to make his second Main Event final table at Olympic Park Casino.

Haapniemi’s fellow Finn Aklilu Laitinen sits in second on the leaderboard with a stack of 976,000, while Yaniv Peretz from Latvia occupies third place with 967,000 chips. €555 Championship winner Ahmet Canatan is well on his way to another success this week as he bagged 951,000, while Irish mainstay Michael Dwyer rounds out the top five. Jevgeni Voitovits was the best performing Estonian on Day 2, ending up in ninth place with 617,000.

End of Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts

Rank	Player	Country	Chip Count	Day 3 Big Blinds
1	Mikael Haapaniemi	Finland	1,015,000	127
2	Aklilu Laitinen	Finland	976,000	122
3	Yaniv Peretz	Latvia	967,000	121
4	Ahmet Canatan	Denmark	951,000	119
5	Michael Dwyer	Ireland	837,000	105
6	Mirco De Martini	Italy	825,000	103
7	Isak Bergstrom	Sweden	677,000	85
8	Piotr Sztenkiel	Poland	650,000	81
9	Jevgeni Voitovits	Estonia	617,000	77
10	Olaf Larssen	Norway	611,000	76

Many other notable players made it through to Day 3, including Igor Pihela Jr. (577,000), past Kings of Tallinn champions Mathias Siljander (511,000), Juha Helppi (427,000) and Kai Lehto (221,000), and lone US representative Robbie Schiffbauer (292,000). Start-of-day chipleader Veikka Keto-Tokoi also found a bag, although the 262,000 he ended the day with was less than what he started with.

Day 2 Action

The day started with four more levels of late registration, at the end of which around 300 players remained. About half of them would get in the money as there were 151 paid spots, but the likes of Martin Kabrhel, Harry Lodge, Renan Bruschi, Blaz Zerjav, Robert Kaggerud, and Espen Sandvik would not come close to reaching the bubble phase.

Tarmo Tammel waved off some 30 spots before the money, while Tobias Leknes fell not much later. The first-ever Kings of Tallinn champion Ranno Sootla could not do it again ten years later as he ended up in 170th place.

Roope Tarmi, Panagiotis Mavritsakis, and Ermo Kosk got tantalizingly close to the money, all busting within ten eliminations away from it. Where many a poker tournament slows down near the bubble phase, the steady flow of eliminations continued.

Eventually, three all-in and calls happened simulteanously just before hand-for-hand. Kestutis Jungevicius, Enea Subashi, and Nikolay Ponomarev all busted at different tables with 152 players remaining, meaning that they split two min-cashes and walked away with a consolation prize of €1,400 each.

The remaining players had all secured themselves a min-cash of €2,100 as play continued for another hour or so. Kristiana Stauere (141st – €2,250) booked back-to-back in-the-money finishes in the Main Event and was quickly followed by Luka Sorainen (136th – €2,250) and Igor Pihela Sr. (134th – €2,250).

Paul Newey (127th – €2,250) busted a few spots later, while Vivian Saliba (119th – €2,450) and recently-crowned Kings of Tallinn PLO champion Gisle Olsen (117th – €2,450) picked up a pay jump as they were eliminated during the final few hands of the night.

When all was said and done, 113 players bagged up for Day 3, who have all guaranteed themselves a payday of €2,450. However, the massive prize pool has left €182,000 reserved for the winner, which all 113 will be dreaming of tonight.

Remaining Payouts

Day 3 will start tomorrow at noon local time. The tournament will continue in Level 20: 4,000/8,000 with an 8,000 big blind ante, with levels remaining 60 minutes long throughout the day.

Tune back in to the live report tomorrow as the Kings of Tallinn Main Event will get into the business end of things.

The tables are bagging and tagging as the last hands of Day 2 have been played out.

Stay tuned for chip counts and a recap of this exciting day.

Lukas Rodionovas opened to 12,000 under the gun and called when Jonatan Fors three-bet to 33,000 in the next seat over. Rodionovas check-called for 20,000 on the A♣Q♥2♥ flop, after which the 7♠ was turned.

Fors sized up to 60,000, about a third of his stack. He was then quickly put all-in by Rodionovas. Fors eventually found a fold, claiming to have an ace.

Upon hearing this, Rodionovas tabled A♦K♦ for an ace with the best kicker as he stacked up his chips.

Lukas Rodionovas – 373,000
Jonatan Fors – 115,000

The floor has announced four more hands will be played before Day 2 concludes.

Felix Seelentag checked the 5♦8♠J♥9♠ turn over to Davor Pavic. Pavic then made a bet of 34,000 into the pot of 75,000.

Seelentag raised all in, and Pavic made the call for his stack of 140,000 after some time thinking.

Davor Pavic: J♦9♦
Felix Seelentag: A♥A♦

Pavic was in great shape against the aces of Seelentag, but the 5♥ river paired the board to give Seelentag a higher two pair, knocking out his neighbor.

Felix Seelentag – 395,000
Davor Pavic – 0

Pasi Laihinen put in 109,000 on the button for an all-in bet. Davor Pavic tossed in a calling chip from the small blind, and the cards were tabled.

Pasi Laihinen: 2♥2♣
Davor Pavic: A♣K♦

Laihinen made a full house on the 4♦2♦3♠8♠4♥ runout to win the flip and double up.

Pasi Laihinen – 230,000
Davor Pavic – 180,000

Olaf Larssen raised to 13,000 from middle position. Jesper Hansen then shoved all in for 73,000 from the cutoff before Artem Berliand four-bet his stack of around 200,000 in the middle.

Larssen quickly got out of the way as the other two players revealed their cards.

Jesper Hansen: A♥K♦
Artem Berliand: Q♠Q♦

The classic flip would be decided in Berliand’s favor as the J♣4♠5♠8♣8♦ board remained absent of aces and kings, eliminating Hansen.

Olaf Larssen – 462,000
Artem Berliand – 315,000
Jesper Hansen – 0

With 153 players remaining and 151 in the money, three all-in and calls were announced in the room. Play was immediately halted as the floor went table by table to announce the hands.

The first hand, Kestutis Jungevicius had gone all in preflop for his final few blinds and was called in two spots. Marek Zigel and Mikael Haapaniemi then checked down the 5♦4♣8♣3♣K♠ board, and a showdown was ordered.

Jungevicius tabled A♥J♥ for ace-high and was third-best against the 10♦8♥ of Haapaniemi and A♦K♦ of Zigel. The highroller champion was eliminated and needed to wait for the other all-ins before he knew if he would get a return on his investment.

At another table, a huge pot of more than 250,000 chips had played out between Ahmet Canatan and Enea Subashi. They had arrived at a river of 4♦Q♣2♥K♥10♠ when Subashi committed his stack of 255,000.

Canatan looked him up, and the cards were revealed once the floor arrived. Subashi tabled A♦K♠ for top pair, but it was no good against the 4♠4♣ of Kanatan, who was awarded the huge pot with his set. Subashi made the final table at the Autumn Edition a few months ago but bubbled the event this time around.

The third all-in player was Nikolay Ponomarev, who at risk for his stack of 63,000 against Isak Bergstrom on a flop of 2♥6♣8♣.

Nikolay Ponomarev: K♥K♦
Isak Bergstrom: A♣K♣

Bergstrom paired his ace on the A♦ turn, leaving Ponomarev with one out. It did not arrive on the 4♣ river, upgrading Bergstrom to a flush instead.

Ponomarev joined Jungevicius and Subashi at the payout desk as the three players split two min-cashes between them, netting them €1,400 each.

Ahmet Canatan – 800,000
Mikael Haapaniemi – 720,000
Isak Bergstrom – 400,000
Marek Zigel – 360,000
Kestutis Jungevicius – 0
Enea Subashi – 0
Nikolay Ponomarev – 0

Aklilu Laitinen raised to 13,000 in middle position. Kyosti Isberg called in the small blind before Jari Nikunlassi three-bet to 60,000 from the big blind.

Lailinen then moved in, covering both opponents. Isberg called off his stack of 160,000 while Nikunlassi opted to fold and preserve his stack of 18 big blinds.

Kyosti Isberg: A♥K♣
Aklilu Laitinen: 10♠10♣

No ace or king appeared on the 8♦2♥4♦6♠4♥ board to bail Isberg out, and he quickly departed the table.

Aklilu Laitinen – 880,000
Jari Nikunlassi – 90,000
Kyosti Isberg – 0

Catching the action on a turn of 5♠6♣8♠9♦, Mathias Siljander checked out of the big blind to Ted Magnusson in the hijack. Magnusson piled in a bet of 70,000, more than half his stack, sending Siljander into the tank.

Eventually, Siljander put Magnusson all-in for 120,000 total and received a snap-call.

Ted Magnusson: 8♣7♣
Mathias Siljander: 10♠9♠

Magnusson’s straight had a solid lead, but Siljander hit his flush draw on the Q♠ river. The disgruntled Magnusson had no option but to head to the rail only a few spots before the money would be reached.

Mathias Siljander – 550,000
Ted Magnusson – 0

Lars Olofsson got his stack of 138,000 in preflop from under the gun against Jari Nikunlassi in the big blind.

Lars Olofsson: 7♥7♦
Jari Nikunlassi: A♥A♣

With only ten percent of the field left to go before the money, Olofsson was at risk of losing out. However, the 7♣8♦2♣8♣Q♠ board made him a full house to crack Nikunlassi’s aces and stay in contention.

Lars Oloffson – 283,000
Jari Nikunlassi – 145,000

The remaining players have been sent on a 20-minute break. When they return, they will play two more 60-minute levels before Day 2 wraps up.

Steinn Karlsson raised to 8,000 in the hijack. Enae Subshi bumped it up to 27,000 in the small blind, which Karlsson called.

Subashi made a hefty bet of 40,000 on the J♦5♥3♦ flop, and Karlsson looked him up. The 6♦ turn checked through to the K♦ river, where Subashi bet another 40,000.

Karlsson immediately flicked in a calling chip. Subashi tabled K♠K♥ for a rivered set, but Karlsson won the pot with 8♠8♦ for a flush.

Steinn Karlsson – 370,000
Enea Subashi – 160,000

Toni Ylitervo had raised preflop from the cutoff, and Tobias Napel had defended his big blind. Napel then checked over to Ylitervo on the Q♠Q♥8♦ flop, after which Ylitervo bet 7,000.

Napel raised to 27,000, quickly getting called by Ylitervo. Napel sized up to 45,000 on the K♣ turn, with Ylitervo putting in another call.

The 7♣ river was checked down. Napel showed J♣7♠ for a rivered pair of sevens but was bested by the A♣8♥ of Ylitervo, who had called down with a pair of eights.

Toni Ylitervo – 275,000
Tobias Napel – 83,000

With a sizable pot already in the middle, Jan-Mikael Kesanen made a bet of 42,500 on the 6♣5♠10♠5♣ turn from the small blind. He was then put all-in by Riku Maatta in early position.

Kesanen sighed but decided too much money was in the middle and committed his stack of 135,000.

Jan-Mikael Kesanen: A♥10♣
Riku Maatta: Q♠Q♥

Kesanen still had outs, but they did not come in on the 9♠ river, and he was consequently eliminated from the tournament.

Rauno Ratt put his last 10,500 in from the cutoff and was called by Ludvig Sterner and Teemu Toikkanen in the blinds.

Sterner and Toikkanen checked through the board of 3♦K♠K♣3♣2♥, and all cards were revealed.

Ratt tabled A♦Q♦ for an ace kicker to the two pair on the board, winning the pot against Sterner’s 8♥7♥ and Toikkanen’s 10♥9♠

Ludvig Sterner – 175,000
Teemu Toikkanen – 120,000
Rauno Ratt – 35,500

In a pot worth 70,000, Chris Da Silva checked from the big blind on a flop of J♥4♠A♦ Marcel Verheul quickly fired 30,000, which Da Silva called.

The 8♠ then fell on the turn. Da Silva checked over again, after which Verheul swiftly moved all in. Da Silva’s stack of 120,000 was covered, and he went into a deep tank.

“Why do you go all in?” Da Silva asked.

“Because I think I have the best hand,” Verheul replied.

“Will you show if I fold?” Da Silva asked after some more time had passed.

Verheul answered affirmatively and received a fold in response. True to his word, Verheul tabled 6♥2♥ for an insane bluff with six-high and no draws.

“You don’t want to get up,” Verheul revealed as he raked in the pot and increased his already big stack by some more.

Marcel Verheul – 395,000
Chris Da Silva – 120,000

Simeon Tsonev was down to just 20,000, which he got in preflop against Markus Ylanne.

Simeon Tsonev: A♦K♠
Markus Ylanne: 7♥7♦

Tsonev took the lead on the J♣A♥8♥ flop, but the table erupted in “Ooh”s as the 7♠ hit the turn.

Ylanne had made a set to lock up the pot, and Tsonev said his goodbyes as the meaningless 2♦ river completed the board.

Markus Ylanne – 230,000
Simeon Tsonev – 0

A completed board of 8♦7♠10♥A♠2♦ was in front of Tran Xuan and Mikael Haapaniemi in the blinds. Xuan checked over to Haapaniemi, who fired 69,000 into the pot of 90,000.

Xuan spent some minutes in the tank before shoving all in for not much more. Haapaniemi snap-called and tabled J♠9♦ for the nut straight. Xuan’s 10♣7♣ was no good, and he swiftly left the tournament area in search of a new tournament to play.

Mikael Haapaniemi – 430,000
Tran Xuan – 0

Tero Kilkanen had pushed in his stack of 56,000 on a flop of 9♦8♣7♣ from the big blind and had been looked up by Aklilu Laitinen in early position.

Tero Kilkanen: K♥9♥
Aklilu Laitinen: A♣K♣

Laitinen hit a higher pair on the A♠ turn, after which the 5♣ upgraded him to a flush to lock up the pot and eliminate Kilkanen.

2023 Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown champion Kai Lehto was on the button and had Theodoros Ampelikiotis at risk in the cutoff for 128,000.

Theodoros Ampelikiotis: 7♠7♣
Kai Lehto: 10♠10♦

Lehto’s dominating pair faced no issues on the K♦4♥Q♠A♥9♦ runout, eliminating his neighbor and nearly doubling up.

Kai Lehto – 284,500
Theodoros Ampelikiotis – 0

A massive 1,181 entries have been made in the Kings of Tallinn 10-year anniversary Main Event, making it the largest Kings of Tallinn Main Event ever.

A prize pool of €1,098,330 has been generated, surpassing the ambitious €1,000,000 guarantee. 151 players will get paid at least the min-cash of €2,100, while the eventual champion will walk away with the gargantuan sum of €182,000.

The full payout table can be found below.

The players have been sent on a 45-minute dinner break. The action is expected to resume around 7:45 p.m. local time.

Akseli Hosia raised to 5,000 under the gun. Mirco De Martini then made it 12,500 in middle position, which Mykolas Savickas called cold on the button.

Hosia also came along, and a flop of 2♥Q♥Q♣ was fanned by the dealer. De Martini continued for 10,000, being called by Savickas before Hosia got out of the way.

De Martini slowed down on the 2♠ turn and checked to his opponent. Savickas then bet 15,000, receiving a quick call from De Martini. Savickas doubled his bet to 30,000 on the 7♣ river, again being looked up by De Martini.

Savickas tabled A♥Q♦ for trip queens. De Martini shook his head and sighed as he showed A♠A♦ for a no-good pair of aces and paid his dues to Savickas.

“I’m running too hot,” Savickas concluded as he raked in the chips.

Mykolas Savickas – 350,000
Mirco De Martini – 295,000
Akseli Hosia – 36,000

Nikolay Ponomarev checked out of the small blind in a pot with 75,000 chips in the middle. Joni Rantamaki then bet 20,000 on the 8♣J♠J♥ flop, which Ponomarev called.

Ponomarev also check-called Rantamaki’s bet of 22,000 on the K♣ turn before the 3♣ river went check-check.

Ponomarev tabled A♠A♣ for his second pair of aces in a short time. This time, they brought him the win as Rantamaki nodded and tossed his cards into the muck.

Nikolay Ponomarev – 209,000
Joni Rantamaki – 110,000

Renars Skanis open-jammed for 30,000 in the hijack. It folded to Yaniv Peretz in the big blind, who called to put his fellow Latvian at risk.

Renars Skanis: 7♠7♦
Yaniv Peretz: J♠10♠

Peretz paired up on the 4♣J♦3♥8♦Q♣ board, besting the sevens of Skanis and knocking him out of the tournament.

Yaniv Peretz – 150,000
Renars Skanis – 0

Mikko Heikkala opened to 5,000 from early position. Martynas Racinskas three-bet to 13,500 in the next seat over before Roberto Sellitto four-bet to 30,500 in the hijack.

Heikkala quickly got out of the way, but Racinskas announced his all-in. Racinskas covered Sellitto’s stack of 230,000, making the five-bet worth almost 100 big blinds.

Sellitto did not need long before finding a fold, saving himself plenty of chips to play with.

Mikko Heikkala – 31,000
Martynas Racinskas – 290,000
Roberto Selitto – 200,000

Nikolay Ponomarev checked from the small blind on a turn of J♠9♠K♠5♦. Cutoff Bo Sehlstedt made a bet of 28,000 into the pot of 75,000, which Ponomarev called.

The pair checked the 10♣ river down, with Ponomarev tabling A♠A♥ for a pair of aces.

Sehlstedt had K♦J♦, however, and his two pair awarded him the large pot.

Bo Sehlstedt – 412,000
Nikolay Ponomarev – 120,000

Michal Cornak and Peter Rees were battling over a pot of 30,000 when they went to a flop of 10♠9♦2♠. Cornak checked to Rees, who fired a bet of 12,000.

Cornak then put in a small check-raise to 26,000, which Rees called after some thinking time.

The J♣ turn saw Cornak revert to checking, prompting Rees to put his opponent all-in for 55,000. Cornak quickly released his cards, surrendering the pot as Rees’ stack crossed 150 big blinds.

Peter Rees – 320,000
Michal Cornak – 55,000

Roberts Rumba had gotten his stack of 22,000 at risk from the small blind against Vu Vuong in the big blind.

Roberts Rumba: Q♣6♦
Vu Vuong: 5♠3♠

Vuong made a full house on 3♦A♦5♥J♦5♦, trumping the flush of Rumba and knocking him out of the tournament.

Vu Vuong – 170,000
Roberts Rumba – 0

Glen Gaines got his stack of 45,000 in preflop from the big blind against Kestutis Jungevicius under the gun.

Glen Gaines: A♥Q♠
Kestutis Jungevicius: A♠K♠

Both players made a pair on the 6♠K♦Q♣J♠8♠ runout. Jungevicius’s pair of kings was the higher one, eliminating Gaines from the Main Event.

Kestutis Jungevicius – 195,000
Glen Gaines – 0

Arriving on a flop of A♣4♣3♥, Karri Jaaskivi checked out of the big blind to Jari Nikunlassi in middle position. Nikunlassi fired a bet of 6,000, which Mykhailo Mikhalov called on the button.

Jaaskivi then made it 16,000 to go, stringing only Nikunlassi along to a J♦ turn. Jaaskivi then put his stack of 45,000 at risk, sending his opponent into the tank.

After a while, Nikunlassi put in a call, and the cards were revealed.

Karri Jaaskivi: 4♦2♥
Jari Nikunlassi: A♠Q♣

The J♣ river did not bail out Jaaskivi’s middle pair, and he headed to the exit after complimenting Nikunlassi’s call.

Jari Nikunlassi – 150,000
Mykhailo Mikhalov – 125,000
Karri Jaaskivi – 0

With 20,000 chips in the middle, Duc Nguyen pushed in his stack of 45,500 from the big blind on a turn of Q♣K♣4♥8♥. He was looked up by fellow Dutchman Marcel Verheul, who covered him by a little bit.

Duc Nguyen: K♠4♣
Marcel Verheul: 9♣8♣

Nguyen’s two pair was up against the pair and flush draw of Verheul. The 2♥ river did not improve Verheul’s hand, seeing the pot shipped to Nguyen.

Duc Nguyen – 111,000
Marcel Verheul – 15,000

The players have been sent on a 20-minute break. This break will be the last opportunity to buy into the Main Event.

Steinn Karlsson put in a raise to 3,000 and was three-bet by Christian Hoffmann to 9,000. Enea Subashi then made a tiny four-bet to 16,000, which folded out Karlsson.

Hoffmann quickly put in his stack of 35,500, and Subashi snap-called.

Christian Hoffmann: K♥K♣
Enea Subashi: J♠J♦

Hoffmann’s kings were in no trouble on the Q♠A♦10♠Q♣2♦ board, granting him the double-up.

Enea Subashi – 292,000
Steinn Karlsson – 185,000
Christian Hoffmann – 78,000

Joni Rantamaki opened the action with a raise to 3,000 under the gun. Vetle Holum called in middle position, as did big stack Rune Brunes (pictured) in the small blind. Saliba then three-bet to 16,500, which only Rantamaki called.

The Q♣10♣4♦ flop slowed down Saliba, who forewent a continuation-bet and checked instead. Rantamaki made a small bet of 10,000, enough to let Saliba muck her hand and be awarded the pot.

Rune Brunes – 430,000
Joni Rantamaki – 275,000
Vivian Saliba – 126,000
Vetle Holum – 90,000

Emil Heikkinen pushed in his stack of 53,000 from the big blind and was put at risk by Vu Vuong, who had opened under the gun.

Emil Heikkinen: 6♠6♦
Vu Vuong: 7♦7♣

Heikkinen’s lesser pocket pair received no help on the J♦5♣2♠10♦5♠ runout, eliminating him from the Main Event.

Vu Vuong – 165,000
Emil Heikkinen – 0

Henry Arnhold raised to 3,500 in middle position. Mantas Liachauskas bumped it up to 10,000, with Arnhold putting in a call.

Arnhold then led out for 15,500 on the K♣7♠6♦ flop, seeing Liachauskas call for about half his stack. Liachauskas tossed in the remaining 20,000 on the 3♣ turn after Arnhold had checked to him.

Arnhold debated for a while but eventually decided the price was too good and made the call.

Mantas Liachauskas: A♠A♣
Henry Arnhold: 10♠10♥

The 8♠ river did not upgrade Arnhold’s tens, seeing the aces of Liachauskas hold for a full double-up.

Mantas Liachauskas – 95,000
Henry Arnhold – 75,000

Picking up the action on a turn of 3♦7♥2♦4♣, Kestutis Jungevicius checked from under the gun to Lars Halkier in the cutoff.

Halkier then fired 30,000 into the pot of 55,000 and received a swift call from his opponent.

The 9♠ river saw Halkier instantly move all-in for 57,500 after another check from Jungevicius. Jungevicius asked for a count, put together an exact call, and tossed them in the middle.

“Good call,” Halkier stated as he turned over K♣J♣ for just king-high. To the amazement of the table, Jungevicius tabled A♦4♦ for a pair of fours, scooping the huge pot and ascending back to more than 150 big blinds.

Kestutis Jungevicius – 260,000
Lars Halkier – 0

Arriving on a river of 8♠2♦4♦9♦6♠, Yaniv Peretz pushed his stack of 47,500 into a pot of roughly 100,000 chips.

Henry Gronvik asked for a count before assembling calling chips and putting them in the middle. Peretz triumphantly tabled 6♦5♦ for a flush, netting him the large pot as Gronvik mucked his cards.

Yaniv Peretz – 195,000
Henry Gronvik – 190,000

With about 30,000 already in the middle, Richard Koppel put in his last 15,000 on a flop of Q♣J♠Q♥ and was looked up by Duc Nguyen.

Richard Koppel: K♠10♦
Duc Nguyen: A♥A♦

Koppel could not crack Nguyen’s aces on the J♣8♦ runout, sending him to the rail.

Duc Nguyen – 155,000
Richard Koppel – 0

Vili Vartinen committed his stack of 23,500 from the big blind and was looked up by Roberto Sellitto in the hijack.

Vili Vartinen: K♠Q♣
Roberto Sellitto: K♥J♦

Vartinen was a big favorite to double up, but Sellitto paired his jack on 5♠5♥9♦J♣A♠ to take down the pot and eliminate his opponent.

Roberto Sellitto – 80,000
Vili Vartinen – 0

With 1,075 entries on the clock, the €1,000,000 guarantee has officially been surpassed as the field has two more levels of late registration to grow.

The players have been sent on a 20-minute break as the first two levels have been played to completion.

Sergejs Pislegins had gone all in for 12,300 from middle position. It folded to Tran Xuan in the big blind, who quickly called off.

Sergejs Pislegins: A♠9♠
Tran Xuan: A♥K♦

Pislegins was in dire shape against Xuan’s big slick, but the J♣2♠2♦J♠ turn looked like it would chop up the pot.

It got even better for Pislegins, however, as the 6♠ river upgraded him to a flush, awarding him the full pot and doubling him up.

Sergejs Pislegins – 26,400
Tran Xuan – 21,500

Eldars Sadih-Zade and Veikka Keto-Tokoi had brought their blind-on-blind battle to a river of 2♠6♣A♦5♦K♦. Sadih-Zade bet 25,000 into a pot of 42,000, sending Keto-Tokoi into the tank.

Eventually, the clock was called on Keto-Tokoi. He was counted down to zero, after which his hand was declared dead. He tabled his A♣ for top pair, prompting Sadih-Zade to table J♠8♠ for a stone-cold bluff.

Keto-Tokoi and Sadih-Zade shared a fistbump as the chipleader at the start of today had lost about three starting stacks since play resumed.

With around 10,000 in the middle, big blind Mykhailo Mikhalov threw in his stack of 15,000 on the 4♦3♣9♥8♣ turn and was looked up by Aklilu Laitinen under the gun.

Mykhailo Mikhalov: Q♣9♦
Aklilu Litainen: J♥8♥

Mikhalov’s higher pair held on the 10♦ river, doubling him up to more than a starting stack.

Aklilu Litainen – 87,500
Mykhailo Mikhalov – 40,000

Tomi Arponen tossed in his last 14,000 from the cutoff. Kestutis Jungevicius, who had been victorious in the €5,000 highroller earlier this series, eyed the all-in before committing a call.

Tomi Arponen: Q♣10♣
Kestutis Jungevicius: 5♦4♦

Jungevicius’ suited connector made a flush on A♦J♦J♠3♦8♦ to send out Arponen.

Kestutis Jungevicius – 128,500
Tomi Arponen – 0

Lynh Phan was one of the fresh entries today and got her stack of 20,800 in from the small blind against Ondrej Oravkin in the hijack.

Lynh Phan: A♥A♦
Ondrej Oravkin: K♠K♣

The deck had no kings in store for Oravkin on the 8♥7♣10♠10♣3♥ runout. He doubled up Phan and was left with around 17 big blinds.

Lynh Phan – 44,000
Ondrej Oravkin – 21,000

Daniel Tordjman had raised to 2,500 in the hijack when big blind Enea Subashi three-bet to 9,000. Tordjman put in the call, and a flop of 6♠2♦4♦ was fanned.

Subashi continued for 10,000, and Tordjman stuck around with a call. Subashi then sized up to 24,000 on the [6d] turn, only to be met with an all-in raise to 80,800 from Tordjman.

Subashi asked for a count, pondered for a bit, and then made the call to put Tordjman at risk.

Daniel Tordjman: A♠Q♦
Enea Subashi: K♦4♠

Tordjman was drawing thin with his two overcards as Subashi had the higher flush draw. The 5♥ river did not help the Frenchman as Subashi chipped up to nearly ten starting stacks.

Enea Subashi – 290,000
Daniel Tordjman – 0

Santtu Leinonen opened up to 2,400 from middle position and was called by Calum Grant and Alan Dogan in the blinds.

It checked to Leinonen on the 2♥K♥4♦ flop, who continued for 3,500. Both Grant and Dogan put in calls to the A♦ turn, where Grant checked again.

Dogan, however, led out for 12,000, folding out Leinonen. Grant then shoved all in and Dogan snap-called his stack of 43,700.

Alan Dogan: 5♣3♣
Calum Grant: A♥J♥

Grant had top pair and the nut flush draw but was behind against the turned straight of Dogan. The 2♥ river did not grant Grant his desired heart, doubling up his neighbor and leaving him with around 15 big blinds.

Santtu Leinonen – 120,000
Alan Dogan – 107,400
Calum Grant – 18,000

Meelis Ahman raised to 2,500 under the gun and was called by Rohan Oberoi in the hijack. It then folded to Tero Kilkanen in the big blind, who three-bet to 10,000.

Ahman let go of his cards, but Oberoi put in a call to the Q♥6♥Q♦ flop. Kilkanen quickly piled in 35,000 chips, just enough to put his opponent all-in.

After a minute or so, Oberoi mucked his holding and the pot was shipped to Kilkanen.

Meelis Ahman – 150,000
Tero Kilkanen – 130,000
Rohan Oberoi – 33,000

Konsta Heikkila checked from the big blind on a turn of A♠10♣K♦9♦. Oleksii Shchukin then bet 10,000 into a pot of 15,000, which Heikkila called.

The Q♣ river saw Heikkila lead out for 16,000. Shchukin gave it some thought but ended up surrendering his hand and forfeiting the pot.

Konsta Heikkila – 120,000
Oleksii Shchukin – 95,000

Mauro Fungo open-jammed under the gun for 26,900 and was looked up by Bohdan Hyshko two seats over. The rest of the table got out of the way, and the cards went on their backs.

Mauro Fungo: Q♥Q♦
Bohdan Hyshko: A♠K♠

Hyshko failed to pair up on the 8♠7♥7♣10♥5♠ runout, seeing Fungo book an early double-up.

Mauro Fungo – 56,800
Bohdan Hyshko – 24,500

The rooms are filled with the hundreds of players returning for Day 2, and the cards are in the air.

Kings of Tallinn celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, and it did so by announcing its first-ever €1,000,000 guaranteed Main Event. With the previous attendance record at 914 entries, records would have to be broken in the €1,100 buy-in to reach the seven-figure guarantee.

Although the guarantee has not quite been reached yet, the 947 entries across the Day 1 flights have already blown all previous numbers out of the water. With four more levels of late registration to go on Day 2, it seems almost certain that the guarantee will be surpassed.

The most successful player on Day 1 was Finn Veikka Keto-Tokoi, who increased his starting stack of 30,000 tenfold to 300,000 chips, a whopping 250 big blinds when play resumes. Keto-Tokoi has been coming to Kings of Tallinn since 2023 and has already racked up six final table appearances in side events, with one victory during the most recent Autumn Edition. However, a Main Event cash eludes him, something he is looking to change this time around.

Rauno Ratt was the best-performing Estonian on Day 1, returning in third with 253,500. Estonian regular Mauri Dorbek sits in fifth with 229,700, while Autumn Edition’s third-place finisher Enea Subashi is making another Main EVent run with a stack of 205,000. The top ten is rounded out by Sebastian Wahl, who will bring 199,300 to Day 2.

Kings of Tallinn Main Event Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts

Player	Country	Chip Count	Big Blinds
Veikka Keto-Tokoi	Finland	300,000	250
Rune Brunes	Norway	279,000	233
Rauno Ratt	Estonia	253,500	211
Piotr Sztenkiel	Poland	245,000	204
Mauri Dorbek	Estonia	229,700	191
Richard Melby	Norway	224,600	187
Konstantyn Holskyi	Ukraine	221,500	185
Dmitri Zatsik	Estonia	211,400	176
Enea Subashi	Greece	205,000	171
Sebastian Wahl	Finland	199,300	166

In total, 373 players will return to Olympic Park Casino for Day 2. Other notable names include past champions Ranno Sootla (125,200), Mathias Siljander (79,800), Karl Karlsson (76,600), Juha Helppi (56,700), and Priit Parmasto (48,600).

Too many big names have come to Tallinn to name all of them, but a selection of six-figure stacks includes Slovenian star Blaz Zerjav (152,000), Irish legend Michael Dwyer (138,000), Czech all-time money leader Martin Kabrhel (116,500), and Estonian regular Igor Pihela Jr. (111,500).

The cards will go back in the air at noon local time, restarting at Level 10: 600/1,200 with a 1,200 big blind ante. Four more levels of late registration and unlimited reentries are possible, with the absolute latest anyone can join being the start of Level 14, around 4:30 p.m. local time. At that point, the starting stack will be worth 15 big blinds.

Day 2 will play ten levels of 60 minutes each, ending in 3,000/6,000 (6,000). The remaining players will then bag up and return for Day 3 tomorrow, March 1. The bubble could burst near the end of Day 2, so an exciting day is ahead for the players.

How large will the largest-ever Kings of Tallinn Main Event get? Stay tuned to the live reporting to find out the final numbers, and follow along with all the action straight from the tournament floor.