€13,000 was awarded to the first prize winner, Umur Hatipoglu from Turkey, in the first of the Malta Poker Events calendar of tournaments this year

Malta Poker Events - Malta Chilipoker Open 2009

The Malta Chilipoker Open 2009, hosted by Malta Poker Events attracted 149 players who faced off at the Portomaso Casino, Malta, for the first Maltese tournament ever scheduled to receive local and international broadcast exposure.

The €330 No Limit Texas Hold’em Freezeout took place over three separate days with 70 players registering for Day 1A, the 24th of April 2009 and 79 players registered for Day 1B, the 25th of April 2009. Poker players from various European countries were given 10,000 chips each on their starting day reaching an average stack of over 33,000 by Day 2.

The tournament featured several professional players including celebrity player, WSOP Gold Bracelet winner and two-timeime WPT champion, Ron Rose. Ron had an unlucky run though as he didn’t make it past day one, losing twice holding the best possible pre-flop hand AA. Other professional players included Italian Massimiliano Privitera as well as a host of players from Scandinavian regions who relocated to Malta in favour of their cooler homelands.

Forty five players made it to the final day; betting, checking and folding their way to earn themselves the biggest share of the €44,000 pot. The pot was shared amongst the last eighteen players who made it through the final stages in the tournament.

A golden cup filled with €13,000 was awarded to the first prize winner, Umur Hatipoglu from Turkey, in the first of the Malta Poker Events calendar of tournaments this year.

Umur was followed closely by Massimiliano Privitera, who went back to Italy €8,670 richer, after several bullet dodging sessions with Umur and Simon Legouge, a French poker player and the third finalist, whose skills won him €5,160.

The highest ranking Maltese Poker player, Kenneth Vella, placed 4th, and took home €3,470 for enduring through the highly anticipated Malta Poker Events tournament.

Results - Malta Chilipoker Open 2009 -

• 1st - Umur Hatipoglu € 13,000
• 2nd - Massimiliano Privitera € 8,670
• 3rd - Simon Legougue € 5,160
• 4th - Kenneth Vella € 3,470
• 5th - Gordon Mifsud € 2,800

Malta Poker Events teamed up with the Puttinu Cares charity for this event, and thanks to the generosity of several players, will be donating around 2% of the consenting winner’s prizes for the charitable cause, helping those who need it most.