Maikel Homin Wins Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown €555 Championship

The vibe and poker action have been equally amazing at the 2023 Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown at Olympic Park Casino and the Hilton Tallinn Park. Wednesday boasted many big cash games and events including the start of the €1,100 Main Event and the conclusion of the €555 Championship, which established a new gold standard at the Kings of Tallinn with 573 entries creating a €269,310 prize pool.

Maikel Homin dazzled both his opponents and spectators alike to win the event for the record-breaking €56,900 top prize. He began the final day of 14 players with the second shortest stack and was in the middle of the pack by the time the final table began. On the flip side, Henri Antikainen began the final day with one of the biggest stacks alongside Juho Heiska and Raivo Pinsel and led the way most of the final table.

The heads-up affair against Antikainen spanned a few hours with the lead change going back and forth. Homin noticed his opponent changing up his style, and it was one of the more entertaining heads-up matches to follow in recent history.

“I’m very happy about the win,” said Homin before taking his winner’s photo. “Although I would have to win two or three more similar events to consider moving up stakes.”

From an observer’s point of view, it appeared that Homin didn’t make any mistakes, at least any major ones. This was a concern of his at the start of the day, especially with a short stack.

“In my head, I understood I can’t be making the same mistakes I make sometimes while playing online poker,” Homin shared. “I often make silly moves when running deep.”

Poker media guru Jason Glatzer reported the action. Head to our live blog to read a detailed report featuring all of the key hands from the final day.

Event #9: Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown €555 Championship
573 entries, €269,310 prize pool
1. Maikel Homin (Estonia) – €56,900
2. Henri Antikainen (Finland) – €38,450
3. Simon Forendal (Sweden) – €22,760
Full Results HERE

The €1,100 Main Event was off to a rocking start with 188 entries already in action making this a lock that this will be the largest Main Event in Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown.

Finnish poker powerhouse Feras Abid led the way by parlaying his stack of 30,000 in chips to 221,000 to lead the 75 Day 1a survivors. Thursday will boast two more opening flights at 12 p.m. and 9 p.m. with all surviving players battling it out for three more days until a winner is crowned on Sunday. Players can still late register and re-enter during the first two blind levels of Friday’s Day 2 in what promises to be a fun and excited event.

Head to our live blog to follow the action on Day 1b of the 2023 Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown Main Event.
Event #23: Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown €1,100 Main Event Day 1a
188 entries, 75 survivors
1. Feras Abid (Finland) – 221,000
2. Jargo Alavali (Estonia) – 213,000
3. Tapio Aaltonen (Finland) – 212,600
Full Results HERE

Event #25: €250 NLH/PLO/PLO5 proved to be popular with 111 entries creating a €22,955 prize pool. The Finnish poker community dominated this event with eight of the top 10 players including eventual champion Mikael Haapaniemi winning the title. The title could have stayed home as the sole Estonian that ran deep in Paul Koppe came one player shy of the title.

Event #25: Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown €250 NLH/PLO/PLO5
188 entries, 75 survivors
1. Mikael Happaniemi (Finland) – €6,110
2. Paul Koppe (Estonia) – €4,230
3. Roope Tarmi (Finland) – €2,900
Full Results HERE

Event #27: €350 8-Game created quite the buzz and was the biggest of its kind in recent memory with 110 entries creating a €32,571 prize pool.

Mixed game experts Aki Pyysing (second – €6,040), Sascha Manns (third – €4,300), and Tobias Leknes (fifth – €2,120) all rose to the occasion as did hold’em crusher Markku Koplimaa (fourth – €3,021) all ran deep at the final table but it was Tobias Napel outshining them all to win the title and the €9,150 top prize.

Event #27: Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown €350 8-Game
110 entries, €32,571 prize pool
1. Tobias Napel (Finland) – €9,150
2. Aki Pyysing (Finland) – €6,040
3. Sascha Manns (Germany) – €4,300
Full Results HERE

Meanwhile, Ireland’s James Noonan, who calls Tallinn his home, also has plenty of reasons to celebrate as he defeated the formidable Dutch poker pro Michal Molenaar heads-up in Event #29: €555 6-Handed for €14,500.

The event was a huge hit with 116 entries creating a €54,520 prize pool with many of the players in the field sharing they planned to play the €1,100 Main Event on Thursday.

Event #29: Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown €555 6-Handed
116 entries, €54,520 prize pool
1. James Noonan (Ireland) – €14,500
2. Michel Molenaar (Netherlands) – €9,700
3. Henrik Veldhoen (Germany) – €6,600
Full Results HERE

We expect even bigger action on Thursday with more players coming in for the weekend. The focus of the day will primarily be the final two opening flights of the Main Event, but, of course, there is plenty of other tournaments, satellite, and cash game action.

Check out the full schedule for the day and we wish all our players the best of luck.

To experience the thrill of Kings of Tallinn Summer Showdown 2023 in real-time:

• Tune in to our live-TV stream here (starting from 28.07).
• Check out our captivating photo gallery.
• Stay connected and never miss a moment of the action in our daily recaps.
• Keep track of your favorite players’ journeys with up-to-date poker tournament results.
• Don’t miss a beat and stay updated with our live blog in both Estonian and English!