2025 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius – Ace Breaker: €1,100 NLH High Roller

After eliminating Paulius Kostickis in the very first hand of heads-up play, Roman Kulijev is now crowned the winner of the €1,100 High Roller during the OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker at Olympic Casino Vilnius.

Kulijev played aggressively at the final table, and he held a commanding chiplead from 3-handed play to the title. A fun fact is that Kulijev qualified to the tournament through a €80 satellite, in which he at one point had less than 1 big blind. Considering he just earned himself €24,180, he should be very happy with his profit!

Our team at poker.pro thanks you all for being with us today. Tomorrow morning, we’ll bring you a recap article of today’s High Roller event. Then, we’ll begin our coverage of the €555 Main Event, as Day 1b starts at 12:00.

Congratulations to Kulijev for winning today’s title, and stay tuned for tomorrow’s daily recap of the 2025 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker where we will recap Kulijev’s road to victory.

On the very first hand of Heads-up, Roman Kulijev raised to 100,000. Paulius Kostickis went all in for 400,000 and Kulijev decided to call.

Paulius Kostickis: K♣2♥
Roman Kulijev: 10♣7♣

Kulijev kept running hot as he hit a straight on the 8♠K♦6♥9♠K♥ board, trumfing Kostickis’ three-of-a-kind.

In other words, Heads-up lasted 1 single hand. For his second-place finish, Kostickis was awarded €16,870.

Roman Kulijev: 4,800,000
Paulius Kostickis: 0

Paulius Vaitiekūnas and Roman Kulijev clashed all in pre-flop.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: K♦J♣
Roman Kulijev: A♥2♥

Ace-high was good on the 5♣5♦6♥10♥4♠ board; Vaitiekūnas collected €12,310 for his third-place finish and it’s now time for heads-up.

Roman Kulijev: 4,100,000
Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 0

Nothing too major has happened during the last 30 minutes of play; Roman Kulijev has been using his commanding chiplead bullying the other 2 players.

However, Paulius Vaitiekūnas and Kulijev just clashed all in pre-flop, Vaitiekūnas being the player at risk with 380,000.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: A♠5♥
Roman Kulijev: 7♠7♦

Vaitiekūnas doubled up on the 8♥10♥A♥J♣4♣ board. He’s still alive fighting for the first-place payout of €24,180.

Roman Kulijev: 3,000,000
Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 800,000

Action was folded to Kęstutis Jungevičius in the small blind who decided to only call the big blind of Roman Kulijev. Kulijev checked and the flop was dealt.

On 2♥3♠A♣, Jungevičius led out for 65,000 and Kulijev called. The turn came A♠, and Jungevičius continued for 125,000. Kulijev once again elected to call.

On the river 7♦ Jungevičius fired 375,000, just to hear Kulijev announce all in before his chips even touched the felt. Jungevičius leaned back and looked up at the roof. After a sigh or two, he called.

Roman Kulijev: 2♣2♦
Kęstutis Jungevičius: 9♦9♣

Kulijev’s full house meant Jungevičius was eliminated in 4th place, earning himself €9,300. Right after the hand, the remaining 3 players went on a break.

Roman Kulijev: 3,215,000
Kęstutis Jungevičius: 0

From the button, Kazimieras Ramaška raised to 65,000. Roman Kulijev called from the big blind.

The flop came J♥7♦4♦, and Kulijev led out for 100,000. Almost instantly, Ramaška went all in for 600,000. Kulijev let out a heavy sigh before tossing in a chip for a call.

Kazimieras Ramaška: K♥9♥
Roman Kulijev: Q♠7♠

Kulijev was ahead and the board would complete J♥7♦4♦8♦3♦. No flush for Ramaška who was forced to the rail to collect the €7,300 fifth-place prize.

Roman Kulijev: 1,400,000
Kazimieras Ramaška: 0

Aivaras Kerušauskas clashed all in against Paulius Vaitiekūnas pre-flop.

Aivaras Kerušauskas: A♥10♦
Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 9♣9♥

Vaitiekūnas improved to a full house on the 2♦3♠2♣9♠4♦ runout. Kerušauskas takes home €5,650 for his feat.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 1,200,000
Aivaras Kerušauskas: 0

Mindaugas Grigaitis went all in pre-flop and was called by Kazimieras Ramaška.

Mindaugas Grigaitis: A♠9♥
Kazimieras Ramaška: K♠7♣

The board ran out 8♥K♥5♦Q♣6♠ meaning Grigaitis busted in 7th place, earning himself a €4,380 paycheck.

Kazimieras Ramaška: 700,000
Mindaugas Grigaitis: 0

It’s been a somewhat calm final table. Roman Kulijev has been making some moves, punishing the 3 shorter stacks to the left of him.

Kulijev raised to 55,000 from the cut-off, and Egidijus Matonis decided he wouldn’t be pushed around anymore. He went all in from the small blind for 165,000, and after a minute of consideration, Kulijev made the call.

Egidijus Matonis: 9♠9♥
Roman Kulijev: A♣2♥

“What can you do”, Matonis must have felt as he saw the board run out 4♥A♦J♠7♦J♥. After showcasing good patience, he unfortunately had to see himself go out in 8th place.

Roman Kulijev: 1,105,000
Egidijus Matonis: 0

Roman Kulijev opened to 55,000 UTG. Mindaugas Grigaitis smooth-called from UTG+1 and action was the folded to Kazimieras Ramaška in the hi-jack who decided to go all in for 235,000. Kulijev called and Grigaitis opted to fold.

Kazimieras Ramaška: 8♥8♠
Roman Kulijev: Q♥10♥

“Snowmen”, Ramaška said as he turned over his hand. A third snowman made its apperance as the board ran out 8♦5♠4♣4♦7♣.

Roman Kulijev: 895,000
Kazimieras Ramaška: 540,000

As previously reported, Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas entered the final table with only 1 big blind. He committed his 15,000 and Paulius Kostickis automatically called from the big blind.

Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: A♦6♠
Paulius Kostickis: 9♠9♦

The board 10♠5♠K♠10♥2♥ meant Kriaučiūnas was the first to bust from the final table. While Kriaučiūnas headed to the cashier to collect his €2,550 prize for ninth place, the final eight players each earned a pay jump to at least €3,280.

Paulius Kostickis: 760,000
Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: 0

Just before the final table was reached, Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas opened from the cut-off and was called by the small blind and Paulius Kostickis from the big blind.

Kriaučiūnas bet every street on the 10♣10♠10♥6♣8♥ board, and Kostickis stuck until the end, calling Kriaučiūnas down.

Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: K♥J♠
Paulius Kostickis: A♠Q♠

Kriaučiūnas will enter the final table with 1 big blind.

Paulius Kostickis: 730,000
Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: 15,000

Martynas Račinskas became the first casualty after the players had reached the ITM stage of the high roller.

He clashed all in pre-flop against Paulius Kostickis.

Martynas Račinskas: A♦K♣
Paulius Kostickis: 9♦9♣

It was quite the rollercoaster ride as the board ran out 10♠J♣8♠K♥9♥. Račinskas took home €2,550 for his 11th-place finish.

Paulius Kostickis: 735,000
Martynas Račinskas: 0

The bubble burst in the most dramatic fashion.

Jaakko Hotti opened to 30,000. Paulius Vaitiekūnas 3-bet to 90,000 and Hotti called.

The flop was 8♥6♣2♦, and the action went check-check. On the turn 9♣, Vaitiekūnas bet 80,000 and Hotti made the call.

River fell Q♦ and after Hotti checked, Vaitiekūnas went all in for roughly 300,000. Hotti took a couple of minutes thinking over his decision; Vaitiekūnas had him covered by a fine margin. Eventually, he did make the call.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: K♣K♠
Jaakko Hotti: 10♦10♣

This not only meant that Hotti busted and that the remaining 10 players were in the money, but it also meant that the last non-Lithuanian player left in the field was out. The remaining 11 players will now fight for the first-place payout of €24,180.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 1,200,000
Jaakko Hotti: 0

At Table 2, Sigitas Raila went all in for 140,000. Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas had him just covered and made the call.

Sigitas Raila: A♥2♣
Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: A♦K♦

When the dust settled, the board read 4♣6♦8♦6♠9♦ meaning Raila’s tournament life had come to an end. Hand-for-hand play began with the action on the money bubble with 12 players remaining and 11 players earning at least a €2,550 payout.

Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: 300,000
Sigitas Raila: 0

WSOP bracelet winner Karolis Sereika opened to 25,000 from the cut-off. Roman Kulijev three-bet jammed for 194,000 and Sereika called off his stack for less.

Roman Kulijev: 9♦7♦
Karolis Sereika: K♠Q♣

Unlucky for Sereika, the board ran out 8♠10♣2♠7♠8♣, leaving him with just 40,000.

He decided to go for broke on the next hand, and this time, he was called by Aurimas Stanevičius.

Karolis Sereika: A♣7♣
Aurimas Stanevičius: K♥K♦

No ace on the 5♣6♠J♥10♦5♥ board; Sereika’s high roller adventure came to an end.

Roman Kulijev: 400,000
Aurimas Stanevičius: 190,000
Karolis Sereika: 0

Aurimas Stanevičius went all in for 65,000 and was looked up by WSOP bracelet winner Karolis Sereika from the big blind.

Aurimas Stanevičius: A♦K♦
Karolis Sereika: A♥9♣

Stanevičius’ monster improved at the 6♠K♣4♦Q♦2♠ board; he earned himself a valuable double-up and is still very much in the mix.

Karolis Sereika: 185,000
Aurimas Stanevičius: 130,000

From the hi-jack, Aurimas Stanevičius opened to 20,000. Kazimieras Ramaška decided to call from the small blind, and the before the 4♠10♣9♣ were dealt on the flop.

Ramaška was the first one to act, and he decided to come out hot. He bet 15,000, Stanevičius called, and the turn fell 4♥. Ramaška continued on the aggressive path and now bet 38,000. Once again, Stanevičius called.

On the river 8♦, Ramaška wasted little to no time before he bet 40,000. This sent Stanevičius into the tank, and he thought for maybe 3 minutes before deciding to fold.

While this exciting hand was played out at Table 3, Mantas Ungulaitis busted on the other table, reducing the total number of players to 14.

Kazimieras Ramaška: 340,000
Aurimas Stanevičius: 90,000
Mantas Ungulaitis: 0

Jari Mahonen went all in for roughly 30,000 UTG, and was called by Roman Kulijev (small blind) and Aivaras Kerušauskas.

On the K♥Q♦5♦ flop, Kulijev bet 33,000 and was called by Kerušauskas. The turn 3♦ fell and Kulijev seemingly wanted to be the one to eliminate Mahonen; he went all in for 166,000.

Kerušauskas sighed as he leaned back in his chair, contemplating a call. Eventually he folded, and presumeably he was pleased with this as Kulijev turned over A♦8♦.

Mahonen turned over Q♠4♥ but was drawing dead; he was eliminated in 17th place, meaning there’s only 2 tables remaining.

Aivaras Kerušauskas: 406,000
Roman Kulijev: 272,000
Jari Mahonen: 0

The board read 10♠Q♥6♠7♥K♠ as Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas went all in for 40,000 into the 60,000. Kęstutis Jungevičius gave it some thought before calling.

Kriaučiūnas showed Q♠7♣; Jungevičius presumably couldn’t beat a two-pair as he mucked his hand.

The remaining 17 players are now on a 15-minute break.

Kęstutis Jungevičius: 289,000
Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: 255,000

Ignas Jasinevicius went all in pre-flop for 20,000. He was called solely by Jaakko Sakari Hotti.

Ignas Jasinevicius: Q♣10♣
Jaakko Hotti: A♠J♦

Even though holding a pretty hand, Jasinevicius recieved no help on the 8♦A♦Q♥8♣J♥ runout. As Jasinevicius busted from the tournament, there are 17 players remaining and it’ll soon be only 2 tables remaining.

Jaakko Hotti: 155,000
Ignas Jasinevicius: 0

At Table 3, Sigitas Raila opened to 18,000 from the button. Kazimieras Ramaška decided to defend his big blind.

The flop came 5♠A♣K♥ and it was Ramaška who led out for 8,000, a bet that Raila decided to call. On the turn Q♦ Ramaška continued his aggression, this time firing out a 23,000 bet. Raila took some time before he decided to call.

Ramaška didn’t slow down on the 2♥ river and bet 15,000. Raila now decided to click it back to 30,000. Ramaška snap-called.

Raila turned over J♥10♠ revealing the nut straight. Ramaška let out a sigh as he mucked his hand.

Kazimieras Ramaška: 270,000
Sigitas Raila: 230,000

After Egidijus Matonis opened to 15,000 from the button, Linas Bitinas moved all in for 112,000. Egidijus scratched his head before making the call.

Linas Bitinas: K♠8♦
Egidijus Matonis: 5♠5♥

Once again Matonis came out on top in an all in-situation, as the board spelled out K♦9♠A♦2♥7♥. Bitinas hit the rail.

Egidijus Matonis: 440,000
Bitinas: 0

Linas Bitinas raised to 15,000 in the hi-jack. Kazimieras Ramaška called from the button, and Egidijus Matonis decided to defend his big blind.

All players checked the Q♥3♠6♠ flop. On the turn A♦ however, the pace would pick up. Action was checked to Ramaška who bet 22,000, only to be check-raised by Matonis to 68,000. This move then sent Bitinas into the tank. After about a minute’s worth of consideration leaning back in his chair, he folded, and so did Ramaška.

Another decent pot went the way of Matonis.

Egidijus Matonis: 350,000
Kazimieras Ramaška: 170,000
Linas Bitinas: 63,000

Robertas Šakinis moved all in for 68,000 from the cut-off. Action was folded to Egidijus Matonis in the big blind who requested a count. He thought it over for around 2 minutes before making the call.

Robertas Šakinis: K♦Q♦
Egidijus Matonis: K♠J♥

Things looked good for Šakinis – at least before the K♥10♣5♥10♥7♥ runout. Matonis hit his flush, and such, Šakinis was sent to the rail.

Prior to Šakinis’ downfall, Aleksandras Rusinovas and Mattias Andersson also busted out from the tournament.

Egidijus Matonis: 284,000
Robertas Šakinis: 0

From the hi-jack, Simas Karaliunas went all in for 20,000. Egidijus Matonis asked for a count before raising to 40,000. He successfully isolated the blinds, and the 2 players went to showdown.

Simas Karaliunas: A♠2♥
Egidijus Matonis: 9♣9♦

No help for Karaliunas on the 7♣5♥J♣3♦5♣ board. As he left the table, the tournament director announced a redraw would be made for the remaining 24 players.

Egidijus Matonis: 235,000
Simas Karaliunas: 0

From the button, Paulius Kostickis opened to 10,000. Roman Kulijev decided to defend his big blind.

On the Q♥2♣Q♣ flop, Kulijev check-called a 9,000 bet from Kostickis. Both players checked the J♥ turn and when 4♥ fell on the river, it was now Kulijev who showed initial aggression, betting out 24,000 into the 40,000 pot. After a minutes consideration, Kostickis threw in the chips to make the call.

Roman Kulijev: K♥8♣
Paulius Kostickis: 5♠4♠

Kostickis pair of fives were enough to take home a decently sized pot.

Paulius Kostickis: 320,000
Roman Kulijev: 160,000

Paulius Kostickis raised to 17,000 from the small blind. Big blind player Mantas Jarasiunas wasn’t in the mood of being bullied around and went all in for 60,000. Kostickis asked for a count before he decided to call.

Mantas Jarasiunas: 4♦4♣
Paulius Kostickis: A♣10♥

The board spelled out A♠3♠K♣6♦10♠. Jarasiunas’ pair of fours wasn’t any good; he hit the rail as Kostickis scooped the pot.

Paulius Kostickis: 210,000
Mantas Jarasiunas: 0

Before Level 13 concluded, Robertas Šakinis raised to 10,000 from the cut-off. Roman Kulijev called from the button and after the blinds folded, the 2 players were treated to a flop.

On the 8♦J♣7♠, Šakinis continued for 7,000. Kulijev wasted little to no time before putting in a 16,000 raise. Šakinis folded and Kulijev added to his already impressive stack.

Roman Kulijev: 220,000
Robertas Šakinis: 70,000

From the button, Vladimiras Mečkovskis decided to move ,all in for 43,000. Egidijus Matonis was in the small blind and decided to push his remaining 37,000 to the middle. The big blind folded and the 2 players turned over their cards.

Vladimiras Mečkovskis: A♦5♦
Egidijus Matonis: A♥9♦

Matonis was the player at risk, but he had Mečkovskis dominated. Mečkovskis didn’t get any help from the Q♣A♠8♣2♠6♣ runout and he was left with crumbs.

On the very next hand, action folded to Mečkovskis who committed his last 5,000 to the pot. Vasilijus Piskunovas was priced in to make the call.

Vladimiras Mečkovskis: Q♥9♦
Vasilijus Piskunovas: A♠8♥

As the cards spelled out 4♣7♥2♣8♣8♠, the party came to an end for Mečkovskis.

Egidijus Matonis: 80,000
Vasilijus Piskunovas: 75,000
Vladimiras Mečkovskis: 0

Kęstutis Jungevičius came into the High Roller already with a 2025 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker trophy in hand from earlier in the week and was in second place to start the final day.

He just chipped up after snagging the stack of Michailas Miserkejevas as follows.

Jungevičius defended from the big blind a late position open by Miserkejevas from the cutoff before both players checked the 6♣10♠7♠ flop. Jungevičius bet after the K♣ followed on the turn. Miserkejevas jammed and we arrived to the table as Jungevičius made a call.

Michailas Miserkejevas: 9♥9♠
Kęstutis Jungevičius: A♠K♥

Miserkejevas was unable to hit his two outer after the J♣ river completed the board and still has time to re-enter if he so chooses.

Meanwhile, Karolis Sereika, Egidijus Oleinik and Aleksandras Rusinovas also recently hit the rail. Vasilijus Piskunovas re-entered after his early demise, while Ignas Jasinevicius made his first appearance on Day 2.

Kęstutis Jungevičius – 310,000
Vasilijus Piskunovas – 50,000
Ignas Jasinevicius – 50,000
Egidijus Oleinik – 0
Michailis Miserkejevas – 0
Karolis Sereika – 0
Aleksandras Rusinovas – 0

The board read Q♥7♣10♠ when Aurimas Stanevičius moved all in after a continuation bet from Aki Pyysing. Pyysing made the call and Stanevičius was the player at risk.

Aurimas Stanevičius: A♥Q♠
Aki Pyysing: K♦Q♦

The full board read Q♥7♣10♠6♣A♦, which resulted in a full double-up for Stanevičius.

Aurimas Stanevičius: 110,000
Aki Pyysing: 40,000

Finland Jyri Merivirta and Lithuanian poker beast Aleksandras Rusinovas joined the field before the start of the final day to increase the field to 86 entries and counting.

Meanwhile, Vasilijus Piskunovas, who took runner up in the High Roller in the Jacks of June festival last summer, will need to re-enter if he wishes to advance to the final table again as he recently hit the rail as the first casualty of Day 2.

The first hand of Day 2 of the €1,100 High Roller has been dealt. Get ready for an exciting day of live reporting from OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker and Olympic Casino Lithuania.

Late registration closes after the day’s first level, i.e., in 40 minutes.

Welcome to the coverage of the 2025 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker, taking place at the luxurious Olympic Casino Lietuva, located steps from the iconic Vilnius Old Town. Our coverage at poker.pro will focus on the two largest events of this festival starting with Day 2 of the €1,100 High Roller on Thursday before coverage begins for the €555 Main Event from January 31 to February 2 with the start of Day 1b.

The High Roller already attracted a banner field of 84 entries to create a €80,694 prize pool and counting with late registration open for the first blind level of Day 2, which begins at 1 p.m.

Just 34 players survived the opening day of 12 blind levels of 40-minutes each led by Aivaras Kerušauskas after parlaying his stack of 50,000 in chips to 325,000 for 81 big blinds to start `day 2 with blinds starting at 2,000/4,000 (4,000) and increasing every 40 minutes.

The local player has been recording live cashes at The Hendon Mob dating back nearly a decade with his largest cash recorded at The Hendon Mob coming in 2016 when he won a €1,000 event in France for €16,280. More recently, he found glory at the inaugural Kings of Vilnius where he shipped the €555 OlyBet Special in November 2024 to earn the €13,895 top prize. Kęstutis Jungevičius, who already won a trophy this festival is just behind with 262,000 in chips followed by Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas with 209,000.

The Finnish poker legend Aki Pyysing is also in the mix with 127,000. Pyysing is coming in hot after shipping the €1,120 Helsinki Freezeout Main Event for €37,290 just 2 weeks ago and is no stranger to winning big titles.

The tournament is a 2-day event meaning play will continue today until a winner is crowned. The structure for today looks as follows:

Today is also the day that the €555 Main Event kicks off. Day 1a is scheduled to commence at 4 p.m.. The main priority for today will be focusing on the High Roller before we switch gears into the Main Event on Friday for Day 1b.

Cards are in the air starting at 1 p.m. Stay tuned at poker.pro as we provide you a blow-by-blow recap of the action as it goes down until a winner is crowed in the High Roller. Best of luck to all of the players in their question in becoming the latest OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker champion.

Final Day 1 Chip Counts

Place	Player	Country	Chips	Big Blinds
1	Aivaras Kerušauskas	Lithuania	325,000	81
2	Kęstutis Jungevičius	Lithuania	262,000	66
3	Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas	Lithuania	209,000	52
4	Paulius Kostickis	Lithuania	197,000	49
5	Mantas Jarasiunas	Lithuania	169,000	42
6	Martynas Račinskas	Lithuania	168,000	42
7	Kazimieras Ramaška	Lithuania	166,000	42
8	Jari Mahonen	Finland	161,000	40
9	Raivo Grislis	Latvia	156,000	39
10	Paulius Vaitiekūnas	Lithuania	149,000	37
11	Mantas Kudarauskas	Lithuania	144,000	36
12	Žydrūnas Karčemarskas	Lithuania	143,000	36
13	Mantas Liachauskas	Lithuania	138,000	35
14	Sigitas Raila	Lithuania	138,000	35
15	Mantas Ungulaitis	Lithuania	135,000	34
16	Aki Pyysing	Finland	127,000	32
17	Marius Kudzmanas	Lithuania	112,000	28
18	Stig Andersson	Sweden	110,000	28
19	Linas Bitinas	Lithuania	96,000	24
20	Simas Karaliunas	Lithuania	94,000	24
21	Robertas Šakinis	Lithuania	90,000	23
22	Jokubas Pauliukenas	Lithuania	83,000	21
23	Vladimiras Mečkovskis	Lithuania	78,000	20
24	Michailas Miserkejevas	Lithuania	78,000	20
25	Roman Kulijev	Lithuania	74,000	19
26	Kasparas Drazdauskas	Lithuania	69,000	17
27	Mindaugas Grigaitis	Lithuania	64,000	16
28	Egidijus Matonis	Lithuania	61,000	15
29	Aurimas Stanevičius	Lithuania	55,000	14
30	Modestas Kryžanauskas	Lithuania	53,000	13
31	Egidijus Oleinik	Lithuania	51,000	13
32	Karolis Sereika	Lithuania	44,000	11
33	Vasilijus Piskunovas	Lithuania	43,000	11
34	Jaakko Hotti	Finland	16,000	4

After eliminating Paulius Kostickis in the very first hand of heads-up play, Roman Kulijev is now crowned the winner of the €1,100 High Roller during the OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker at Olympic Casino Vilnius.

Kulijev played aggressively at the final table, and he held a commanding chiplead from 3-handed play to the title. A fun fact is that Kulijev qualified to the tournament through a €80 satellite, in which he at one point had less than 1 big blind. Considering he just earned himself €24,180, he should be very happy with his profit!

Our team at poker.pro thanks you all for being with us today. Tomorrow morning, we’ll bring you a recap article of today’s High Roller event. Then, we’ll begin our coverage of the €555 Main Event, as Day 1b starts at 12:00.

Congratulations to Kulijev for winning today’s title, and stay tuned for tomorrow’s daily recap of the 2025 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker where we will recap Kulijev’s road to victory.

On the very first hand of Heads-up, Roman Kulijev raised to 100,000. Paulius Kostickis went all in for 400,000 and Kulijev decided to call.

Paulius Kostickis: K♣2♥
Roman Kulijev: 10♣7♣

Kulijev kept running hot as he hit a straight on the 8♠K♦6♥9♠K♥ board, trumfing Kostickis’ three-of-a-kind.

In other words, Heads-up lasted 1 single hand. For his second-place finish, Kostickis was awarded €16,870.

Roman Kulijev: 4,800,000
Paulius Kostickis: 0

Paulius Vaitiekūnas and Roman Kulijev clashed all in pre-flop.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: K♦J♣
Roman Kulijev: A♥2♥

Ace-high was good on the 5♣5♦6♥10♥4♠ board; Vaitiekūnas collected €12,310 for his third-place finish and it’s now time for heads-up.

Roman Kulijev: 4,100,000
Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 0

Nothing too major has happened during the last 30 minutes of play; Roman Kulijev has been using his commanding chiplead bullying the other 2 players.

However, Paulius Vaitiekūnas and Kulijev just clashed all in pre-flop, Vaitiekūnas being the player at risk with 380,000.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: A♠5♥
Roman Kulijev: 7♠7♦

Vaitiekūnas doubled up on the 8♥10♥A♥J♣4♣ board. He’s still alive fighting for the first-place payout of €24,180.

Roman Kulijev: 3,000,000
Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 800,000

Action was folded to Kęstutis Jungevičius in the small blind who decided to only call the big blind of Roman Kulijev. Kulijev checked and the flop was dealt.

On 2♥3♠A♣, Jungevičius led out for 65,000 and Kulijev called. The turn came A♠, and Jungevičius continued for 125,000. Kulijev once again elected to call.

On the river 7♦ Jungevičius fired 375,000, just to hear Kulijev announce all in before his chips even touched the felt. Jungevičius leaned back and looked up at the roof. After a sigh or two, he called.

Roman Kulijev: 2♣2♦
Kęstutis Jungevičius: 9♦9♣

Kulijev’s full house meant Jungevičius was eliminated in 4th place, earning himself €9,300. Right after the hand, the remaining 3 players went on a break.

Roman Kulijev: 3,215,000
Kęstutis Jungevičius: 0

From the button, Kazimieras Ramaška raised to 65,000. Roman Kulijev called from the big blind.

The flop came J♥7♦4♦, and Kulijev led out for 100,000. Almost instantly, Ramaška went all in for 600,000. Kulijev let out a heavy sigh before tossing in a chip for a call.

Kazimieras Ramaška: K♥9♥
Roman Kulijev: Q♠7♠

Kulijev was ahead and the board would complete J♥7♦4♦8♦3♦. No flush for Ramaška who was forced to the rail to collect the €7,300 fifth-place prize.

Roman Kulijev: 1,400,000
Kazimieras Ramaška: 0

Aivaras Kerušauskas clashed all in against Paulius Vaitiekūnas pre-flop.

Aivaras Kerušauskas: A♥10♦
Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 9♣9♥

Vaitiekūnas improved to a full house on the 2♦3♠2♣9♠4♦ runout. Kerušauskas takes home €5,650 for his feat.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 1,200,000
Aivaras Kerušauskas: 0

Mindaugas Grigaitis went all in pre-flop and was called by Kazimieras Ramaška.

Mindaugas Grigaitis: A♠9♥
Kazimieras Ramaška: K♠7♣

The board ran out 8♥K♥5♦Q♣6♠ meaning Grigaitis busted in 7th place, earning himself a €4,380 paycheck.

Kazimieras Ramaška: 700,000
Mindaugas Grigaitis: 0

It’s been a somewhat calm final table. Roman Kulijev has been making some moves, punishing the 3 shorter stacks to the left of him.

Kulijev raised to 55,000 from the cut-off, and Egidijus Matonis decided he wouldn’t be pushed around anymore. He went all in from the small blind for 165,000, and after a minute of consideration, Kulijev made the call.

Egidijus Matonis: 9♠9♥
Roman Kulijev: A♣2♥

“What can you do”, Matonis must have felt as he saw the board run out 4♥A♦J♠7♦J♥. After showcasing good patience, he unfortunately had to see himself go out in 8th place.

Roman Kulijev: 1,105,000
Egidijus Matonis: 0

Roman Kulijev opened to 55,000 UTG. Mindaugas Grigaitis smooth-called from UTG+1 and action was the folded to Kazimieras Ramaška in the hi-jack who decided to go all in for 235,000. Kulijev called and Grigaitis opted to fold.

Kazimieras Ramaška: 8♥8♠
Roman Kulijev: Q♥10♥

“Snowmen”, Ramaška said as he turned over his hand. A third snowman made its apperance as the board ran out 8♦5♠4♣4♦7♣.

Roman Kulijev: 895,000
Kazimieras Ramaška: 540,000

As previously reported, Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas entered the final table with only 1 big blind. He committed his 15,000 and Paulius Kostickis automatically called from the big blind.

Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: A♦6♠
Paulius Kostickis: 9♠9♦

The board 10♠5♠K♠10♥2♥ meant Kriaučiūnas was the first to bust from the final table. While Kriaučiūnas headed to the cashier to collect his €2,550 prize for ninth place, the final eight players each earned a pay jump to at least €3,280.

Paulius Kostickis: 760,000
Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: 0

Just before the final table was reached, Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas opened from the cut-off and was called by the small blind and Paulius Kostickis from the big blind.

Kriaučiūnas bet every street on the 10♣10♠10♥6♣8♥ board, and Kostickis stuck until the end, calling Kriaučiūnas down.

Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: K♥J♠
Paulius Kostickis: A♠Q♠

Kriaučiūnas will enter the final table with 1 big blind.

Paulius Kostickis: 730,000
Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: 15,000

Martynas Račinskas became the first casualty after the players had reached the ITM stage of the high roller.

He clashed all in pre-flop against Paulius Kostickis.

Martynas Račinskas: A♦K♣
Paulius Kostickis: 9♦9♣

It was quite the rollercoaster ride as the board ran out 10♠J♣8♠K♥9♥. Račinskas took home €2,550 for his 11th-place finish.

Paulius Kostickis: 735,000
Martynas Račinskas: 0

The bubble burst in the most dramatic fashion.

Jaakko Hotti opened to 30,000. Paulius Vaitiekūnas 3-bet to 90,000 and Hotti called.

The flop was 8♥6♣2♦, and the action went check-check. On the turn 9♣, Vaitiekūnas bet 80,000 and Hotti made the call.

River fell Q♦ and after Hotti checked, Vaitiekūnas went all in for roughly 300,000. Hotti took a couple of minutes thinking over his decision; Vaitiekūnas had him covered by a fine margin. Eventually, he did make the call.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: K♣K♠
Jaakko Hotti: 10♦10♣

This not only meant that Hotti busted and that the remaining 10 players were in the money, but it also meant that the last non-Lithuanian player left in the field was out. The remaining 11 players will now fight for the first-place payout of €24,180.

Paulius Vaitiekūnas: 1,200,000
Jaakko Hotti: 0

At Table 2, Sigitas Raila went all in for 140,000. Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas had him just covered and made the call.

Sigitas Raila: A♥2♣
Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: A♦K♦

When the dust settled, the board read 4♣6♦8♦6♠9♦ meaning Raila’s tournament life had come to an end. Hand-for-hand play began with the action on the money bubble with 12 players remaining and 11 players earning at least a €2,550 payout.

Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: 300,000
Sigitas Raila: 0

WSOP bracelet winner Karolis Sereika opened to 25,000 from the cut-off. Roman Kulijev three-bet jammed for 194,000 and Sereika called off his stack for less.

Roman Kulijev: 9♦7♦
Karolis Sereika: K♠Q♣

Unlucky for Sereika, the board ran out 8♠10♣2♠7♠8♣, leaving him with just 40,000.

He decided to go for broke on the next hand, and this time, he was called by Aurimas Stanevičius.

Karolis Sereika: A♣7♣
Aurimas Stanevičius: K♥K♦

No ace on the 5♣6♠J♥10♦5♥ board; Sereika’s high roller adventure came to an end.

Roman Kulijev: 400,000
Aurimas Stanevičius: 190,000
Karolis Sereika: 0

Aurimas Stanevičius went all in for 65,000 and was looked up by WSOP bracelet winner Karolis Sereika from the big blind.

Aurimas Stanevičius: A♦K♦
Karolis Sereika: A♥9♣

Stanevičius’ monster improved at the 6♠K♣4♦Q♦2♠ board; he earned himself a valuable double-up and is still very much in the mix.

Karolis Sereika: 185,000
Aurimas Stanevičius: 130,000

From the hi-jack, Aurimas Stanevičius opened to 20,000. Kazimieras Ramaška decided to call from the small blind, and the before the 4♠10♣9♣ were dealt on the flop.

Ramaška was the first one to act, and he decided to come out hot. He bet 15,000, Stanevičius called, and the turn fell 4♥. Ramaška continued on the aggressive path and now bet 38,000. Once again, Stanevičius called.

On the river 8♦, Ramaška wasted little to no time before he bet 40,000. This sent Stanevičius into the tank, and he thought for maybe 3 minutes before deciding to fold.

While this exciting hand was played out at Table 3, Mantas Ungulaitis busted on the other table, reducing the total number of players to 14.

Kazimieras Ramaška: 340,000
Aurimas Stanevičius: 90,000
Mantas Ungulaitis: 0

Jari Mahonen went all in for roughly 30,000 UTG, and was called by Roman Kulijev (small blind) and Aivaras Kerušauskas.

On the K♥Q♦5♦ flop, Kulijev bet 33,000 and was called by Kerušauskas. The turn 3♦ fell and Kulijev seemingly wanted to be the one to eliminate Mahonen; he went all in for 166,000.

Kerušauskas sighed as he leaned back in his chair, contemplating a call. Eventually he folded, and presumeably he was pleased with this as Kulijev turned over A♦8♦.

Mahonen turned over Q♠4♥ but was drawing dead; he was eliminated in 17th place, meaning there’s only 2 tables remaining.

Aivaras Kerušauskas: 406,000
Roman Kulijev: 272,000
Jari Mahonen: 0

The board read 10♠Q♥6♠7♥K♠ as Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas went all in for 40,000 into the 60,000. Kęstutis Jungevičius gave it some thought before calling.

Kriaučiūnas showed Q♠7♣; Jungevičius presumably couldn’t beat a two-pair as he mucked his hand.

The remaining 17 players are now on a 15-minute break.

Kęstutis Jungevičius: 289,000
Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas: 255,000

Ignas Jasinevicius went all in pre-flop for 20,000. He was called solely by Jaakko Sakari Hotti.

Ignas Jasinevicius: Q♣10♣
Jaakko Hotti: A♠J♦

Even though holding a pretty hand, Jasinevicius recieved no help on the 8♦A♦Q♥8♣J♥ runout. As Jasinevicius busted from the tournament, there are 17 players remaining and it’ll soon be only 2 tables remaining.

Jaakko Hotti: 155,000
Ignas Jasinevicius: 0

At Table 3, Sigitas Raila opened to 18,000 from the button. Kazimieras Ramaška decided to defend his big blind.

The flop came 5♠A♣K♥ and it was Ramaška who led out for 8,000, a bet that Raila decided to call. On the turn Q♦ Ramaška continued his aggression, this time firing out a 23,000 bet. Raila took some time before he decided to call.

Ramaška didn’t slow down on the 2♥ river and bet 15,000. Raila now decided to click it back to 30,000. Ramaška snap-called.

Raila turned over J♥10♠ revealing the nut straight. Ramaška let out a sigh as he mucked his hand.

Kazimieras Ramaška: 270,000
Sigitas Raila: 230,000

After Egidijus Matonis opened to 15,000 from the button, Linas Bitinas moved all in for 112,000. Egidijus scratched his head before making the call.

Linas Bitinas: K♠8♦
Egidijus Matonis: 5♠5♥

Once again Matonis came out on top in an all in-situation, as the board spelled out K♦9♠A♦2♥7♥. Bitinas hit the rail.

Egidijus Matonis: 440,000
Bitinas: 0

Linas Bitinas raised to 15,000 in the hi-jack. Kazimieras Ramaška called from the button, and Egidijus Matonis decided to defend his big blind.

All players checked the Q♥3♠6♠ flop. On the turn A♦ however, the pace would pick up. Action was checked to Ramaška who bet 22,000, only to be check-raised by Matonis to 68,000. This move then sent Bitinas into the tank. After about a minute’s worth of consideration leaning back in his chair, he folded, and so did Ramaška.

Another decent pot went the way of Matonis.

Egidijus Matonis: 350,000
Kazimieras Ramaška: 170,000
Linas Bitinas: 63,000

Robertas Šakinis moved all in for 68,000 from the cut-off. Action was folded to Egidijus Matonis in the big blind who requested a count. He thought it over for around 2 minutes before making the call.

Robertas Šakinis: K♦Q♦
Egidijus Matonis: K♠J♥

Things looked good for Šakinis – at least before the K♥10♣5♥10♥7♥ runout. Matonis hit his flush, and such, Šakinis was sent to the rail.

Prior to Šakinis’ downfall, Aleksandras Rusinovas and Mattias Andersson also busted out from the tournament.

Egidijus Matonis: 284,000
Robertas Šakinis: 0

From the hi-jack, Simas Karaliunas went all in for 20,000. Egidijus Matonis asked for a count before raising to 40,000. He successfully isolated the blinds, and the 2 players went to showdown.

Simas Karaliunas: A♠2♥
Egidijus Matonis: 9♣9♦

No help for Karaliunas on the 7♣5♥J♣3♦5♣ board. As he left the table, the tournament director announced a redraw would be made for the remaining 24 players.

Egidijus Matonis: 235,000
Simas Karaliunas: 0

From the button, Paulius Kostickis opened to 10,000. Roman Kulijev decided to defend his big blind.

On the Q♥2♣Q♣ flop, Kulijev check-called a 9,000 bet from Kostickis. Both players checked the J♥ turn and when 4♥ fell on the river, it was now Kulijev who showed initial aggression, betting out 24,000 into the 40,000 pot. After a minutes consideration, Kostickis threw in the chips to make the call.

Roman Kulijev: K♥8♣
Paulius Kostickis: 5♠4♠

Kostickis pair of fives were enough to take home a decently sized pot.

Paulius Kostickis: 320,000
Roman Kulijev: 160,000

Paulius Kostickis raised to 17,000 from the small blind. Big blind player Mantas Jarasiunas wasn’t in the mood of being bullied around and went all in for 60,000. Kostickis asked for a count before he decided to call.

Mantas Jarasiunas: 4♦4♣
Paulius Kostickis: A♣10♥

The board spelled out A♠3♠K♣6♦10♠. Jarasiunas’ pair of fours wasn’t any good; he hit the rail as Kostickis scooped the pot.

Paulius Kostickis: 210,000
Mantas Jarasiunas: 0

Before Level 13 concluded, Robertas Šakinis raised to 10,000 from the cut-off. Roman Kulijev called from the button and after the blinds folded, the 2 players were treated to a flop.

On the 8♦J♣7♠, Šakinis continued for 7,000. Kulijev wasted little to no time before putting in a 16,000 raise. Šakinis folded and Kulijev added to his already impressive stack.

Roman Kulijev: 220,000
Robertas Šakinis: 70,000

From the button, Vladimiras Mečkovskis decided to move ,all in for 43,000. Egidijus Matonis was in the small blind and decided to push his remaining 37,000 to the middle. The big blind folded and the 2 players turned over their cards.

Vladimiras Mečkovskis: A♦5♦
Egidijus Matonis: A♥9♦

Matonis was the player at risk, but he had Mečkovskis dominated. Mečkovskis didn’t get any help from the Q♣A♠8♣2♠6♣ runout and he was left with crumbs.

On the very next hand, action folded to Mečkovskis who committed his last 5,000 to the pot. Vasilijus Piskunovas was priced in to make the call.

Vladimiras Mečkovskis: Q♥9♦
Vasilijus Piskunovas: A♠8♥

As the cards spelled out 4♣7♥2♣8♣8♠, the party came to an end for Mečkovskis.

Egidijus Matonis: 80,000
Vasilijus Piskunovas: 75,000
Vladimiras Mečkovskis: 0

Kęstutis Jungevičius came into the High Roller already with a 2025 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker trophy in hand from earlier in the week and was in second place to start the final day.

He just chipped up after snagging the stack of Michailas Miserkejevas as follows.

Jungevičius defended from the big blind a late position open by Miserkejevas from the cutoff before both players checked the 6♣10♠7♠ flop. Jungevičius bet after the K♣ followed on the turn. Miserkejevas jammed and we arrived to the table as Jungevičius made a call.

Michailas Miserkejevas: 9♥9♠
Kęstutis Jungevičius: A♠K♥

Miserkejevas was unable to hit his two outer after the J♣ river completed the board and still has time to re-enter if he so chooses.

Meanwhile, Karolis Sereika, Egidijus Oleinik and Aleksandras Rusinovas also recently hit the rail. Vasilijus Piskunovas re-entered after his early demise, while Ignas Jasinevicius made his first appearance on Day 2.

Kęstutis Jungevičius – 310,000
Vasilijus Piskunovas – 50,000
Ignas Jasinevicius – 50,000
Egidijus Oleinik – 0
Michailis Miserkejevas – 0
Karolis Sereika – 0
Aleksandras Rusinovas – 0

The board read Q♥7♣10♠ when Aurimas Stanevičius moved all in after a continuation bet from Aki Pyysing. Pyysing made the call and Stanevičius was the player at risk.

Aurimas Stanevičius: A♥Q♠
Aki Pyysing: K♦Q♦

The full board read Q♥7♣10♠6♣A♦, which resulted in a full double-up for Stanevičius.

Aurimas Stanevičius: 110,000
Aki Pyysing: 40,000

Finland Jyri Merivirta and Lithuanian poker beast Aleksandras Rusinovas joined the field before the start of the final day to increase the field to 86 entries and counting.

Meanwhile, Vasilijus Piskunovas, who took runner up in the High Roller in the Jacks of June festival last summer, will need to re-enter if he wishes to advance to the final table again as he recently hit the rail as the first casualty of Day 2.

The first hand of Day 2 of the €1,100 High Roller has been dealt. Get ready for an exciting day of live reporting from OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker and Olympic Casino Lithuania.

Late registration closes after the day’s first level, i.e., in 40 minutes.

Welcome to the coverage of the 2025 OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker, taking place at the luxurious Olympic Casino Lietuva, located steps from the iconic Vilnius Old Town. Our coverage at poker.pro will focus on the two largest events of this festival starting with Day 2 of the €1,100 High Roller on Thursday before coverage begins for the €555 Main Event from January 31 to February 2 with the start of Day 1b.

The High Roller already attracted a banner field of 84 entries to create a €80,694 prize pool and counting with late registration open for the first blind level of Day 2, which begins at 1 p.m.

Just 34 players survived the opening day of 12 blind levels of 40-minutes each led by Aivaras Kerušauskas after parlaying his stack of 50,000 in chips to 325,000 for 81 big blinds to start `day 2 with blinds starting at 2,000/4,000 (4,000) and increasing every 40 minutes.

The local player has been recording live cashes at The Hendon Mob dating back nearly a decade with his largest cash recorded at The Hendon Mob coming in 2016 when he won a €1,000 event in France for €16,280. More recently, he found glory at the inaugural Kings of Vilnius where he shipped the €555 OlyBet Special in November 2024 to earn the €13,895 top prize. Kęstutis Jungevičius, who already won a trophy this festival is just behind with 262,000 in chips followed by Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas with 209,000.

The Finnish poker legend Aki Pyysing is also in the mix with 127,000. Pyysing is coming in hot after shipping the €1,120 Helsinki Freezeout Main Event for €37,290 just 2 weeks ago and is no stranger to winning big titles.

The tournament is a 2-day event meaning play will continue today until a winner is crowned. The structure for today looks as follows:

Today is also the day that the €555 Main Event kicks off. Day 1a is scheduled to commence at 4 p.m.. The main priority for today will be focusing on the High Roller before we switch gears into the Main Event on Friday for Day 1b.

Cards are in the air starting at 1 p.m. Stay tuned at poker.pro as we provide you a blow-by-blow recap of the action as it goes down until a winner is crowed in the High Roller. Best of luck to all of the players in their question in becoming the latest OlyBet Showdown Vilnius Ace Breaker champion.

Final Day 1 Chip Counts

Place	Player	Country	Chips	Big Blinds
1	Aivaras Kerušauskas	Lithuania	325,000	81
2	Kęstutis Jungevičius	Lithuania	262,000	66
3	Mindaugas Kriaučiūnas	Lithuania	209,000	52
4	Paulius Kostickis	Lithuania	197,000	49
5	Mantas Jarasiunas	Lithuania	169,000	42
6	Martynas Račinskas	Lithuania	168,000	42
7	Kazimieras Ramaška	Lithuania	166,000	42
8	Jari Mahonen	Finland	161,000	40
9	Raivo Grislis	Latvia	156,000	39
10	Paulius Vaitiekūnas	Lithuania	149,000	37
11	Mantas Kudarauskas	Lithuania	144,000	36
12	Žydrūnas Karčemarskas	Lithuania	143,000	36
13	Mantas Liachauskas	Lithuania	138,000	35
14	Sigitas Raila	Lithuania	138,000	35
15	Mantas Ungulaitis	Lithuania	135,000	34
16	Aki Pyysing	Finland	127,000	32
17	Marius Kudzmanas	Lithuania	112,000	28
18	Stig Andersson	Sweden	110,000	28
19	Linas Bitinas	Lithuania	96,000	24
20	Simas Karaliunas	Lithuania	94,000	24
21	Robertas Šakinis	Lithuania	90,000	23
22	Jokubas Pauliukenas	Lithuania	83,000	21
23	Vladimiras Mečkovskis	Lithuania	78,000	20
24	Michailas Miserkejevas	Lithuania	78,000	20
25	Roman Kulijev	Lithuania	74,000	19
26	Kasparas Drazdauskas	Lithuania	69,000	17
27	Mindaugas Grigaitis	Lithuania	64,000	16
28	Egidijus Matonis	Lithuania	61,000	15
29	Aurimas Stanevičius	Lithuania	55,000	14
30	Modestas Kryžanauskas	Lithuania	53,000	13
31	Egidijus Oleinik	Lithuania	51,000	13
32	Karolis Sereika	Lithuania	44,000	11
33	Vasilijus Piskunovas	Lithuania	43,000	11
34	Jaakko Hotti	Finland	16,000	4