The Festival brought its mixed game culture to the Portomaso Casino (pictured) in Malta this month. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

My first Festival

Although I had heard much about The Festival Series, the brainchild of Martin “Franke” Von Zweigbergk, the event that just finished in Malta was actually my first to attend. I had heard the atmosphere at the poker festival was pretty unique, and having now partaken in one, I can confirm this.

there’s a roulette tournament, a blackjack tournament, a sports betting tournament, and even a slots tournament

There are a few things that set this event apart. First of all, there’s a real mixed game culture, with Hold’em events making up the minority rather than the majority. This diversity extends even further to non-poker gambling games: there’s a roulette tournament, a blackjack tournament, a sports betting tournament, and even a slots tournament. Even though I have not yet joined the mixed game cult, and don’t possess the gambling gene (in the sense that I derive zero pleasure or thrill from gambling: quite the contrary in fact, even the thought of making a minus Ev gamble as innocuous as buying a lottery ticket causes me considerable emotional distress), and as such neither of these two features should appeal to me, yet it is undeniable that both engender a lot more fun among participants than your typical Hold’em tournament, and this fun spills over the entire festival creating a uniquely convivial atmosphere.

I flew there straight from European Poker Tour (EPT) Barcelona on very little sleep, with a suitcase full of dirty clothes. My hosts for the week, David Lappin and his lovely partner Saron, took care of my laundry while I slept the afternoon away before heading with David to late register my first event, the Hendon Mob championships. That ended with a near bubble experience, the first of many during the week, including the Main Event where a visibly tilting A3o shoved from early position got there against my AT for eleven big blinds (we both had exactly the same stack) close to the bubble. I won’t bore you with the other bad beats but I did manage one final table and cash in a nightly turbo called Madness.

Cashing in Madness

Madness would be a charitable description of my feelings when I learned on the bubble that having been crippled on the bubble when an optimistic pair of fours called off my under the gun plus one shove, and was doubly lucky to both find himself in a race, and win that race. Left with less than a big blind, I folded my well below average hand under the gun next hand on the assumption that it was big blind taking priority over big blind ante, only to be told to my horror by the dealer next hand it wasn’t, so all I could win now was my partial ante back. I asked for the floor who insisted:

It’s always big blind ante first in this casino.”

When I insisted this was clearly not true as I’d actually witnessed the same situation in the Hendon Mob Championships earlier that day and it was ruled big blind first, it fell on deaf ears. Obviously had I known, I’d have shoved the previous hand. In any case, lesson learned: always ask what the rule is in a tournament if it becomes relevant, and don’t just assume that because the rule was one thing in another tournament in the same place on the same day, it will be the same.

In the event I survived the next hand to win back my partial ante, and spun it up to the point that I got it in for chip lead with five left blind on blind.

Catching up

As ever, one of the highlights was catching up with old friends, like Julie Whitworth who I hadn’t seen in ages. Julie marked her return to the felt with a deep run in the Main Event, bubbling the final day when she finished 17th. Another lady who had an amazing festival was the charismatic and talented Canadian Haven Taylor. She was on my table when I bust the high roller, and went on to final table it, coming eighth in an event which came down to two Scottish friends Lewis Aikman and Stephen McCabe getting headsup. Ultimately, it was Lewis who claimed the victory.

She came to the final table as chip leader but ultimately came up just short

Haven went six spots better in the Main. She came to the final table as chip leader but ultimately came up just short to talented Spanish online cash player Victor De-Houting. Victor was to my immediate left for all of Day 2 and spun up his short stack with remarkable patience and discipline. It was only his second live cash ever and his first live outing in ten years! It was also his first time on a plane in a decade. Originally from Spain, he relocated to Andorra to continue his career as an online cash player.

One can’t help but feel this win will ignite the tournament bug in him and it won’t be another decade before we see him at the live felt again