The Festival Weekend Tallinn rolled into Day 2 with momentum building across the board, as a packed opening day gave way to champions, storylines, and plenty still left to play for inside Olympic Park Casino. Three winners were crowned on Day 1, while two key events are still underway, setting up a compelling Saturday on the Estonian capital’s poker stage. The buzz was further elevated by the first-ever appearance of Gambledore at The Festival Series, adding a unique layer of entertainment to the proceedings.
Gambledore is the nickname of Vladimir Korzinin, a 69-year-old Estonian inventor and amateur poker player who stunned the poker world with a meteoric rise at the Triton Super High Roller Series Monte Carlo in November 2024. Over the course of one attention-dominating week, he finished runner-up to Patrik Antonius in the $200,000 Invitational for $3.47 million, then returned just days later to win the $150,000 NLH 8-Handed for $4.35 million, vaulting him to the top of Estonia’s all-time money list with nearly $8 million in tournament earnings. After that sensational run, he largely exited the spotlight and the high-stakes scene, making his appearance in Tallinn a rare and notable return to the public eye in poker.
Among the early highlights, Poland’s Krzysztof Grubka emerged victorious in the €200 NLH event, topping a competitive field to claim €4,214. Attila Erdei added some flair to the schedule by taking down the €150 Roulette Tournament, while Norway’s Kjetil Flaaten continued a strong showing for the Nordic contingent by winning the €150 PL Baducey/Badacey. Flaaten wasn’t done there either, carrying momentum straight into the Main Event.
The €555 NLH Main Event Mystery Bounty is now firmly underway, with Lithuania’s Marijus Dirgela bagging a commanding Day 1b chip lead of 1,089,000. Dirgela currently leads the way, with Day 1c beginning on Friday at Noon, passing Day 1a chip leader Jarrod Coughtrie from Australia with 1,001,000.
- Read more: The 2026 WSOP Circuit Tallinn Schedule Features 12 Ring Events
- Read more: The 2026 Festival Weekend Tallinn Schedules Feature More Mixed Games Than You Could Ask For
- Read more: Four Trophies Won on the Opening Day of The Festival Weekend Tallinn
Krzysztof Grubka Wins €200 NLH
The €200 NLH attracted 89 entries, creating a €14,374 prize pool with the top 11 players cashing for at least €380. Many familiar names battled, including poker legends Ranno Sootla and Gambledore.
While these two legends were shut out, many other familiar names were in the payout circles before Poland’s Krzysztof Grubka defeated Sweden’s Maria Ling (second – €2,740) heads-up to win the €4,214 top prize.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Krzysztof Grubka | Poland | €4,214 |
| 2 |  Maria Ling | Sweden | €2,740 |
| 3 |  Sander Juurme | Finland | €1,900 |
| 4 | Ingvar Linne | Sweden | €1,380 |
| 5 | Juha Valkama | Finland | €1,020 |
| 6 |  Erik Põlluveer | Estonia | €770 |
| 7 | Jarno Jokiniemi | Finland | €630 |
| 8 |  Frederico Alves Dos Santos | Brazil | €520 |
| 9 | Katrin Rajasalu | Estonia | €440 |
| 10 | Daniel Gumula | Poland | €380 |
| 11 |  Knut Fjeld | Norway | €380 |
Attila Erdei Wins €150 Roulette Tournament
The casino tournaments continued on Friday with the €150 Roulette Tournament. The event, which boasted nine entries for a €1,112 prize pool, created tons of life before Hungary’s Attila Erdei shipped the bacon for €781. Finland’s Sami Korpela also earned €330 for his runner-up performance.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Attila Erdei | Hungary | €781 |
| 2 | Sami Korpela | Finland | €330 |
Kjetil Flaaten Wins €150 PL Baducey/Badacey
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kjetil Flaaten | Norway | €2,095 |
| 2 | Ola Ellingsen | Norway | €1,350 |
| 3 | Toomas Mäkikokko | Finland | €900 |
| 4 | Jukka Juvonen | Finland | €640 |
| 5 |  Siarhei Narozhny | Belarus | €480 |
| 6 | Jorn Hval | Norway | €390 |
| 7 |  Fabian Bartuschk | Germany | €320 |
€555 NLH Main Event Mystery Bounty Day 1 Chip Counts
The €555 NLH Main Event Mystery Bounty attracted another 56 entries on Day 1b, bringing the total field to 106 entries and counting, with Day 1c taking place on Friday at Noon before players battle for the real money on Saturday’s Day 2.
Lithuania’s Marijus Dirgela bagged the overnight chip lead among the 13 players to find a bag thus far, including the seven on Day 1b after parlaying his 50,000 opening stack into 1,089,000 in chips to become the second chip millionaire.
| Position | Player | Country | Chips |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Marijus Dirgela | Lithuania | 1,089,000 |
| 2 | Hampus Grönström | Sweden | 955,000 |
| 3 | Kambiz Kashi | Sweden | 240,000 |
| 4 | Maria Ling | Sweden | 157,000 |
| 5 | Jan Michael Karlsson | Sweden | 136,000 |
| 6 | Teppo Osaari | Finland | 127,000 |
| 7 | Ville-Matti Keränen | Finland | 96,000 |
Kjetil Flaaten Leads €555 Mixed Games Main Event – TORSES
The €555 Mixed Games Main Event TORSES saw 52 mixed-game enthusiasts create a €24,700 prize pool on its opening day. Norway’s Kjetil Flaaten and the United Kingdom’s JJ Hazan lead the way and have at least one thing in common: they both commentate on poker.
Flaaten has been involved with Norwegian media for years and is often seen alongside another gem in the poker industry, Stig Moen, at events such as the Norwegian Championships. Meanwhile, Hazan not only has spent countless hours talking about poker to the masses but has also founded the PLO Masters Series, which has proven popular in the Omaha poker community.
| Position | Player | Country | Chips |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kjetil Flaaten | Norway | 168,000 |
| 2 |  JJ Hazan | United Kingdom | 130,000 |
| 3 | Toomas Mäkikokko | Finland | 121,000 |
| 4 | Erik Põlluveer | Estonia | 113,000 |
| 5 | Riku Koivurinne | Finland | 102,000 |
| 6 | Henrik Puija | Estonia | 99,000 |
| 7 | Lasse Melby | Norway | 86,500 |
| 8 | Morten Antonsen | Norway | 76,000 |
| 9 |  Alexander Freund | Austria | 70,000 |
| 10 |  Carlo Braccini | Italy | 68,500 |
| 11 | Pasi Trollhjärta | Sweden | 68,500 |
| 12 | William Mawer | United Kingdom | 66,000 |
| 13 | Mikael Koistinen | Finland | 63,000 |
| 14 |  Raimonds Svans | Latvia | 61,000 |
| 15 | Timo Lämsä | Finland | 49,000 |
| 16 | Vijar Tejapaibul | Finland | 47,500 |
| 17 | Jari Mähönen | Finland | 38,000 |
| 18 | Marc Gork | Germany | 37,500 |
| 19 | Olli Muukkonen | Finland | 35,000 |
| 20 | Ilkka Heikkilä | Finland | 31,500 |
| 21 | Mika Hällström | Finland | 24,000 |
| 22 | Mikko Aro | Finland | 11,000 |
The Festival Weekend Tallinn Schedule (July 3)
| Time | Event |
|---|---|
| 11:30 | Event #6: €555 Mixed Games Main Event T.O.R.S.E.S. Day 2 (Final Day) |
| 12:00 | Event #2: €555 Main Event (Mystery) Day 1c |
| 13:00 | Event #10: €350 Open-face Chinese Pineapple |
| 14:00 | Event #11: €150 Sportsbook |
| 17:00 | Event #12: €1,1000 10-Game Day 1 |
| 19:00 | Event #13: €200 NLH PKO |
| 21:00 | Event #14: €150 OmahaJack |
WSOP Circuit Tallinn Just Around the Corner
While The Festival Weekend Tallinn is already delivering plenty of action at Olympic Park Casino, the spotlight will soon shift to one of the biggest highlights of the Baltic poker calendar.
The 2026 WSOP Circuit Tallinn returns from July 23 to August 2, bringing 12 WSOP Circuit ring events and a packed schedule that is expected to attract players from across Europe and beyond. With a mix of marquee tournaments, accessible buy-ins, and strong local turnout, the series continues to cement Tallinn as a key destination on the live poker map.
Many players competing this week are expected to stick around or return later in the month, making The Festival Weekend Tallinn a perfect warm-up for what promises to be another record-breaking WSOP Circuit stop.
- Article originally produced by Jason Glatzer at poker.pro.
- Photos taken by Mairo Toom courtesy of The Festival Series.
