On Thursday, the 6th edition of the Battle of Malta will begin.
And what a battle it’s going to be.
This year the Battle of Malta has grown into a full-fledged poker festival with 9 different tournaments (including the Main Event, Siege of Malta 2nd Chance and Grandmaster High Roller), 4 player parties and more value than ever before.
It all starts at 2 pm tomorrow from the Grandmaster Tournament Room and we'll be slinging up-to-the-minute updates at you over in the Battle of Malta 2017 Live Coverage section!
In the meantime, though ... a preview
The 3 Pillars of BoM 2017
The main focus of BOM 2017 will, of course, be the main event. We’re staying true to the legacy of our signature poker event so the buy-in will stay at €550 with one re-entry allowed.
We are also keeping the €500,000 guarantee for the prize pool - but if history serves that will be close to doubled.
There are 3 starting days again this year – Day 1A on Thursday at 2 PM, Day 1B Friday at 2 PM and Day 1C Saturday at 2 PM.
We’ll play down to the final table on Tuesday and it'll be accompanied by a cards-up live stream on an appropriate delay.
Our signature side event - the Siege of Malta - is also back and is now a three-day event starting on Sunday, Nov 5, at 4 PM. Buy-in is the usual €220+€25.
The Grandmaster High Roller runs on Monday/Tuesday Nov 6/7 and will have a buy-in of €1,320. Watch out for the High Roller satellite on Sunday, the day before the event, where 1 in 10 players will get a ticket to play.
Side Events Galore
Our growing list of side events now also includes the following:
€330 NLHE Deepstack Turbo €220 PLO Knight Crusader €110 NLHE Win the Cross €220 IPC After Battle TurboTwo brand new events are also in the line-up:
PLAY2CARE Charity €165 Crazy Pineapple €110 Ladies EventBy popular demand we’ve also brought back the Blackjack tournament and we’re raising the number of players to a cap of 25.
If you want in, be early!
Find the complete Battle of Malta event schedule here.
All Tomorrow's Parties
A major part of BOM has always been to ensure the players have a good time and with that good time usually comes a few adult beverages.
In fact, at the Battle of Malta, there’s a party every day! Join us for the Opening Cocktail Party, All-in Friday, the Official BoM VIP Players Party, the Prosecco Breakfast, the Hilton Pool Party, and/or the Thirsty Barber Speakeasy Drinks.
The party never stops if you don't want it to, basically. Check the full list of when and where the parties happen on the schedule page.
By the way ... here's the weather forecast for BOM 2017. Feel free to compare with your place.
Kudos to Liv Boeree, Per Hildebrand & Espen Uhlen Jørstad
The winners of the 2017 PokerListings Spirit of Poker Award were announced last month and we'll have a SOPA award ceremony to honor them at BoM 2017.
(Y)our winners:
Liv Boeree – Most Inspiring Player Per Hildebrand – Living Legend Espen Uhlen Jørstad – Rising StarThe 2017 SOPA Awards will be handed out during the Opening Cocktail Party on Thursday at the Quarterdeck of the Hilton.
Host of the ceremony (and the Battle of Malta) will be, for the first time, Gaelle Garcia Diaz.
She’s been a player at BOM and now she’s taking over from Maria Ho as the host.
Welcome Gaelle! it’s a pleasure to have you with us.
And players ... please come and say hello to her.
Battle of Malta Live Satellites
As mentioned above there’ll be a Super Satellite to the Grandmaster High Roller event for €132+€18 on Sunday, Nov 5 at 9.30 PM.
It’s capped at 100 players and it’ll be full, so ask at the reception soon to secure your ticket.
We’ll also host last chance satellites to the Battle of Malta Main Event. The satellites run on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday at 7 PM downstairs in the Portomaso Casino. The buy-in will be €55+€5, and 1 in 10 players get a ticket to the main event.
Again, the number of players is capped for each of the satellites, as there is limited space available, but we’ll give you a chance to re-enter and register late.
Prepare for battle. It is nigh.
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