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The Festival Malta Heats Up as Main Event Builds and Dudakov Makes History
- Dmitri Dudakov wins Hendon Mob Championship for a record second time.
- Andreas Mai leads €550 Main Event after two flights (1.25M chips).
- Graham Clarkson claims €550 Mixed Games Main Event; strong field continues.
The Main Event is only just getting into gear, but The Festival Malta has already produced one piece of history.
Dmitri Dudakov has become the first player to win The Hendon Mob Championship twice, Graham Clarkson has taken down the Mixed Games Main Event, and the €550 Main Event has already drawn 252 entries through its opening two flights.
More players are joining them at Portomaso Casino today, with Day 1C underway as the festival heads towards its September 20 finale.
Andreas Mai Leads the Main Event After Two Flights
The early Main Event pace belongs to Denmark’s Andreas Mai.
Day 1B attracted 165 entries, with 21 players surviving to Saturday’s Day 2. Mai bagged 1.25 million chips, making him the first player through the 1.2 million mark.
That moved him ahead of Day 1A leader Serhii Ivanenko, who had finished the opening flight with 1.09 million. Day 1A drew another 87 entries, with 11 progressing.
After the first two flights, 252 entries have been recorded and 32 players have secured Day 2 seats.
| Player | Country | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| Andreas Mai | Denmark | 1,250,000 |
| Serhii Ivanenko | Ukraine | 1,090,000 |
| Alessandro Siena | Italy | 870,000 |
| Argo Garamaga | Estonia | 865,000 |
| Lars Svanbom | Sweden | 761,000 |
Day 1C is running today, with two more flights scheduled for Friday: Day 1D at noon and the Day 1E Turbo at 20:00. The remaining field combines for Day 2 on Saturday before the final 16 return on Sunday.
Dudakov Becomes First Two-Time Hendon Mob Champion
Dmitri Dudakov arrived in Malta with a chance to do something nobody had managed before in The Hendon Mob Championship.
The Estonian topped 456 entries in the €250 event, taking the €15,470 first prize from a €95,304 prize pool. More importantly, the result made him the first two-time winner in the tournament’s history after he previously captured the same title at The Festival Rozvadov earlier this year.
Dudakov began the final day as chip leader and eventually reached heads-up play against Germany’s “Spielomeister.”
The final hand saw Spielomeister shove queen-ten into Dudakov’s ace-seven. A 5-4-3-8-4 board kept Dudakov’s ace high in front and completed the double.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dmitri Dudakov | Estonia | €15,470 |
| 2 | Spielomeister | Germany | €11,400 |
| 3 | Christian Clemens | Denmark | €8,530 |
| 4 | Lars Jensen | Denmark | €6,540 |
| 5 | Joel Fritz | Sweden | €5,020 |
Clarkson Takes the Mixed Games Main Event
Graham Clarkson was late to his seat on the final day of the €550 TORSES Mixed Games Main Event after leaving his phone in a café.
The Scot returned as chip leader and eventually defeated Poland’s Mateusz Szymanski after the pair reached an ICM deal heads-up. Clarkson collected €10,835, with Szymanski taking €8,500.
The tournament drew 87 entries across two flights, making it the largest TORSES Main Event yet staged at The Festival Malta and the second-largest in the series overall.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Graham Clarkson | Scotland | €10,835* |
| 2 | Mateusz Szymanski | Poland | €8,500* |
| 3 | Jens Voertmann | Germany | €5,820 |
| 4 | Thomas Eckerstorfer | Austria | €4,020 |
| 5 | Peter Kepplinger | Austria | €2,950 |
*Heads-up deal.
It was Clarkson’s second Festival Series title, following his PLO High Roller victory in Bratislava.
Hansen Wins the €350 8-Game
Simon Hansen has also put himself firmly into the early Player of the Series picture.
The Dane won the €350 8-Game for €6,270, a result that pushed him to the top of the festival leaderboard with 84 points after three days.
Lars Jensen sits second after his fourth-place finish in The Hendon Mob Championship, while Clarkson is third following his TORSES title and subsequent 8-Game run.
There is plenty left to change those standings. The €350 Mystery Bounty begins today, the €1,100 NLH High Roller is also on the Thursday schedule, and the Main Event still has three starting flights to complete before Saturday’s Day 2.
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