Day 2 in the largest Battle of Malta Main Event in history is officially in the books with just 88 players remaining.

688 players started the day, all guaranteed €1,100 and the remaining players have all locked up €2,260. Day 3 (Monday) is scheduled to play down to a final table, with a whopping €306,205 awaiting the winner - not bad for a €500 tournament!

Notable players through to Day 3 include Ludovic Geilich (pictured above), Dehlia de Jong, Steven van Zadelhoff, Leo Worthington-Leese and Daragh Davey.

Several notable players bust on Day 2 including the early eliminations of Dara O'Kearney (666th - €1,100) who lost out with ace-king against ace-jack.

Other notables to bust in the money include Ana Marquez (649th - €1,100), former Premier League footballer Jimmy Kebe (533rd - €1260), Fraser MacIntyre (494th - €1,330), Jon Kyte (477th - €1,330), Ian Simpson (466th - €1,330), David Lappin (402nd - €1,470), Andy Hills (335th - €1,540), Daiva Byrne (308th - €1,630), Mateusz Moolhuizen (287th - €1,720) and start-of-day chip leader Dario Marinelli (268th - €1,720).

The surviving players will return tomorrow (Monday) at 1 p.m. to play down to a final table. Stay tuned to the official Battle of Malta live updates right here to keep across all of the action.

With the Day 2 action nearing its conclusion, the draw has been made that three more hands will be played. 

The flop fell , and Gal Halevi was all in from the big blind for 450,000 after check-raising. 

Mehmet Ongorur thought for a minute, then called and was ahead. 

Halevi:

Ongorur:

The turn kept Ongorur in the lead, but the river gave Halevi top pair. 

Halevi moved up to 1m despite being on the brink of elimination, and Ongorur was reduced to 1.2m. 

Pasquale Braco was all in, and Marc Mijnheer called.

Braco:

Mijnheer:

Board:

Mijnheer was all set to eliminate Braco when the flop and turn cards fell, but the river saw Braco win with the higher kicker alongside two pair. 

Players are going on their final 20 minute break of the night.

When they return the blinds will be 15,000/30,000 and players will be just 60 mintues

Borislav Shishkov was all in, and Niwa Ichiyo called.

Shishkov:

Ichiyo:

Board:

Ichiyo was way ahead with pocket tens and held to score the knockout ahead of the final break of Day 2. 

Cedric Schwaederle and Pedro Domenech are rising on Table 10. 

Schwaederle is sitting on 2.3m, while Domenech is on 2.4m in level 22.  

Giovanni Calderone was all in, and Paolo Infantino called. 

Calderone:

Infantino:

Board:

There was no way back for Calderone, and he departed during level 22. 

Day 1 of the Battle of Malta High Roller has concluded with 103 of 266 players remaining. John Kyte bagged the chip lead with 206,100 from a 25,000 starting stack.

He is clear of Mateusz Sebastian Wozniak (186,000) in second place before a whole host of players including Itay Ben Mergy (147,700), Yazan Mdanat (144,100) and Hysaj Eljano (143,600).

Other notables through to Day 2 include Andrew Christoforou (131,000), Fraser MacIntyre (92,500), Sandro Pitzanti (86,000), Ian Simpson (79,000), Martin Jacobson (63,900), Mateusz Moolhuizen (54,300), Fabrice Soulier (43,400), Andy Hills (25,000), Dara O'Kearney (24,100), Jimmy Kebe (24,000) and Sofia Lovgren (17,700).

Eliminations on Day 1 included Ana Marquez, Jonathan Therme, Alex Dreyfus, David Lappin, Georgios Zisimopoulos, Fraser Macintyre and Jamila von Perger.

Late registration is open for ten levels, so players will have one more level tomorrow to jump into the High Roller.

Battle of Malta has created a new app – available for both iOS and Android. The app has a host of features including instant notifications, the latest BOM news, the BOM twitter feed, 2020 tournament schedule, and the chance to win a seat for the 2020 edition of the event next year. Players can download the app anytime by visiting the website below:

bom.beezer.com

The flop was down , and Josef Gulas checked from middle position. 

Amit Cohen bet 125,000 from the cutoff, and Gulas moved all in. 

Cohen was covered but made the call after a minute in the tank. 

Gulas revealed for two pair, and Cohen showed . 

The turn and river saw Cohen eliminated, and Gulas moved up to 2.4m. 

Shaun De Cesare opened to 65000 and Emiliano Papotto three-bet all in for 380,000. Vytenis Salickas then four-bet all in and De Cesare tanked for four minutes before calling.

Shaun De Cesare:
Emiliano Papotto:
Vytenis Salickas:

The runout caused a swearing Papotto to be eliminated, receiving a warning from the tournament officials on his way to be paid.

As players retake their seats after dinner it is Victor Gonzalez who appears to be in the chip lead with 173 players remaining.

He sits with 2,400,000 in chips and the RedStar qualifier looks to be in a strong position with just three levels remaining in the day.

With 174 players remaining on Day 2 of the Battle of Malta Main Event players are heading off on a 75-minute dinner break. 

When they return there will be three more levels before players bag up ahead of Day 3.

Ludovic Geilich raised to 32,000 from under the gun, and Alessandro Barone called from middle position. 

Josef Gulas raised to 150,000 from the big blind, and Geilich folded. 

With 200,000 behind, Barone went into the tank for over 90 seconds but opted to fold. 

Gulas added to his big stack and moved up to 1.7m. 

Abraham Faraj, playing from the hijack, and Geb Nell, in the small blind, got all their chips into the middle pre-flop with Faraj, the player at risk. 

Faraj:

Nell:

Board:

Nell clenched his fist in celebration when he saw his holding improved to top set on the flop. 

Another player pointed at the jack on the turn to signal Faraj's outs to the straight, and when the queen hit on the river, Faraj had sealed a shock comeback to double. 

Battle of Malta would like to say a huge thanks to Copag, Official Card Provider of both the 2018 and 2019 events. Copag, which is also the official supplier for the World Series of Poker, supplied 1,000 decks to BOM this year.

Cristina Pietricola (pictured above), dealer inspector for Casino Malta, loves Copag cards calling them “absolutely perfect” for both big events and player home games.

The Battle of Malta High Roller is midway through Level 7 with 135 of 253 players remaining.

With an average stack of around 45,000, both Jon Kyte (100,000) and Andrew Christoforou (110,000) are in strong positions. Ian Simpson (55,000) is also sitting on double starting stack.

Ana Marquez sits on around starting stack, with David Lappin (pictured), Dara O'Kearney, Fraser Macintyre and Alex Dreyfus all sitting on shorter stacks.

A reminder that late registration and re-entry is open for ten levels.

Short stack Giovanni Catalfamo was all in, and Karl Ellingsson had called. 

The board was down and in front of Ellingsson was for two pair. 

Catalfamo held for ace-high and hit the rail. 

Chris Da-Silva was on the move and had a chip rack with just a single 1,000 chip. 

On his way to the new table, Da-Silva retold the story of his demise. 

Da-Silva's opponent opened to 27,000 from the hijack and the Brit three-bet to 85,000. 

There was then an all-in for close to 700,000, and Da-Silva called with pocket queens. 

His opponent held , and when the ace hit on the turn, Da-Silva was left with just 1,000 to play with. 

Will he be able to spin it back up? That remains to be seen. 

Terje Humio Brenseth opened to 31,000 and Domenico Pino defended his big blind.

Pino checked the flop to his opponent who continued for 31,000. Pino check-raised to 77,000 and Brenseth called.

The turn was the . Pino bet 109,000 and after a short tank, Brenseth folded. Both players sit on around average stack which sits at just over 500,000 in chips.

Former England footballer Anthony Gardner has recently hit the rail alongside Priti Patel, Shame Dempsey, Clint Sammut, and Daiva Byrne (pictured). 

Cuneyt Sengun was all in for just 15,000 from under the gun, and Flavio Laudani reshoved for 140,000 from middle position, and Daniele Degennaro called from the small blind. 

Sengun:

Laudani:

Degennaro:

Board:

Sengun hit a pair on the flop to win the pot and survive, while Laudani won his flip to double. 

Last year Mateusz Moolhuizen finished eighth in the Battle of Malta Main Event for €30,000, and had already guaranteed himself a cash after making it through to Day 2.

However, shortly before the last break he was eliminated, taking home €1,720.

Another elimination is start-of-day chip leader Dario Marinelli who also takes home €1,720.

The players are now on break. 

There are currently 193 entries in the €1,300 Battle of Malta High Roller. Among those who are competing in after busting the Main Event are MainEventTravel CEO and EPT Madrid runner-up Fraser MacIntyre along with French pro Fabrice Soulier and award-winning podcasters Dara O’Kearney and David Lappin.

Malta-based blockchain entrepreneur and HendonMob Owner Alex Dreyfus (pictured below) is also competing, along with Italian Poker Tour champion Georgios Zisimopoulos, one of Greece’s all time top players.  

Also playing are Crazy 888 champ Kevin Houghton, Andrew Christoforou, Peter Jaksland, Jimmy Kebe, 2018 WSOP finalist Antoine Labat, and Jamila von Perger (pictured above).

Stephen Spiteri, in the big blind, and Jason Roberts, from middle position, were all in preflop for a pot worth 450,000. 

Spiteri:

Roberts:

Board:

Spiteri had Roberts dominated and improved to top set on the flop. 

Spiteri found quad aces on the turn to seal his double up, and Roberts was reduced to 160,000. 

Earler Andy Hills lost a chunk of his chips to Mario Ripepi and he now found himself all in with against the of Petr Tiurin.

The board was giving no help to Hills who was eliminated.

Neville Grech opened from early position and called a shove from Daniel Samson for 93,000.

Neville Grech:
Daniel Samson:

The flop gave Grech a full house and there was no miracle comeback on the runout and Samson was eliminated.

Vladas Burneikis, from the hijack, and Domenico Versace, in the big blind, got all their chips into the middle, with Burneikis, the player at risk. 

Burneikis:

Versace:

Board:

Burneikis found a way to hit the nut flush on the turn to survive, and Versace was left with 10,000.

Just moments later, Versace hit the rail. 

Action was on a river and Jonathan Therme bet 110,000. Patrick Clarke was in the seat directly to his left and snap-called.

Therme confidently turned over for two pair, with Clarke showed for a better two pair having hit his ace on the river.

Mario Ripepi was having a double up counted out with Damir Savio getting to his feet having been eliminated.

Savio held 40,000 with and was way behind the of Andy Hills and the of Ripepi.

The board read and aces held to double to over 700,000 in chips.

Among the recent players to depart are David Lappin (pictured), Lars Gjersvold, and Nassim Bennacer. 

Cristian Ruiu opened to 18,000 and Emiliano Papotto defended his big blind.

The flop came and both players checked. Papotto bet on the turn and Ruiu called.

Papotto bet 34,000 on the river and Ruiu tank-called. Ruiu showed for trip sixes and Ruiu mucked.

Battle of Malta has created a new app – available for both iOS and Android. The app has a host of features including instant notifications, the latest BOM news, the BOM twitter feed, 2020 tournament schedule, and the chance to win a seat for the 2020 edition of the event next year. Players can download the app anytime by visiting the website below:

bom.beezer.com 

A raise to 18,000 came in from Antonio Alba in early position, and Vladas Burneikis called from the next seat. Domenico Versace moved all in for 67,000 after the action folded around, and Alba went into the tank. 

After a minute passed, he folded, and Burneikis called quoting, "Let's have a gamble." 

Burneikis:

Versace:

Board:

The gamble looked to have paid off for Burneikis on the flop when he paired his nine, but when the jack on the river gave both players a straight, Versace lived to fight on. 

Among the recent departures is Ian Simpson. Jon Kyte, Mantas Urbontas, and Nicholas Newport. 

The players are on a 25-minute break. 

Fraser MacIntyrewas short with ten big blinds and picked up from middle position and shoved. The button woke up with and according to MacIntyre"the rest was history."

The flop came giving both players a pair, but there was no extra help as MacIntyrewas eliminated.

"I'm going to jump into the High Roller now," said MacIntyre. 

There are currently 77 entries in the €1,300 Battle of Malta High Roller including Andrew Christoforou, Peter Jaksland, Jimmy Kebe, Antoine Labat, and Jamila von Perger.

Last year’s High Roller was won by two-time Italian Poker Open champion Simone 'Spera91' Speranza for €60,000. The high-speed final also featured Estonian poker legend Henri Kasper. There were a total of 240 entries creating a €279,360 prize pool. 

One year earlier, Serbian player Miroslav Opojevlic snagged a career-best live cash when he won the Battle of Malta High Roller in 2017 for €47,000. Holland’s Kework Besiktasliyan defeated a 103-strong field to win the event in 2016 for €37,370 while Serbia’s Mladen Kratovic won in 2015 for 
€28,900 after he bested a field of 80 entries.

The first ever High Roller at Battle of Malta was held in 2014, the event’s third year. It cost €3,800 to enter and was won by Latvia’s Arsens Sakanjans for €15,300.

Late registration in this year's event is open for ten levels.

The tournament clock shows 485 players remaining meaning that we've lost over 200 players since the start of Day 2.

We're approaching the first break of the day. When players return from that break, the blinds will be 4,000/8,000. The average currently stands at 235,000.

The main Battle of Malta Players Party is taking place at exclusive Paranga Beach, the Intercontinental Hotel’s private beach club, from 8 pm on Sunday (October 20). Hit Maltese band Red Electrick is on the bill, ensuring this will be a night to remember for all Battle of Malta players.

Paolo Infantino was all in for 47,000 from middle position, and Nassim Bennacer called from the big blind.

Infantino:

Bennacer:

Board:

The ace-jack held strong for Infantino, and he secured the double. 

Dara O'Kearney came into the day with around 80,000 and was in need of a spin with the average sitting around 160,000.

However, after losing with against the  of an opponent, he's been eliminated.

Bartosz Meilczarek was all in preflop for 85,000, and Steven Van Zadelhoff called. 

Meilczarek:

Van Zadelhoff:

Board:

Meilczarek had the lead pre-flop and held to double up. 

The action started half-way through level 15, the earliest point one of the Day 1 starting flights, begun.

The first break will come at the end of level 16.  

Just 688 players return for Day 2 of the 2019 Battle of Malta Main Event from a record-breaking field of 4,657.

All players are in the money, with prize pool and payouts set to be confirmed early on Day 2.

The schedule for Day 2 is to play eight 60-minute levels once cards get in the air at 2 p.m. local time.

Leading the way is Italian Dario Marinelli who is the only player over 600,000 in chips. He has $177,403 total live cashes with his biggest coming earlier this year when he finished 132nd in the WSOP Main Event for $59,295.

Behind comes Petr Tiurin (575,000), €5,000 Mega High Stack champion Hassan Sey (575,000), Niko Pakalen (571,0000), Gabriele Re (566,000) and Flaviano Cammisuli (555,000).

Notables in the Day 2 field include Patrick Clarke (400,000), Andy Hills (315,000), Steven van Zadelhoff (280,000), Mateusz Moolhuizen (239,000), David Lappin (120,000), Dara O'Kearney (85,000), Ian Simpson (69,000) and Ana Marquez (61,000).

Stay tuned to the Battle of Malta Main Event as the field grows even smaller ahead of Day 3.

The Day 2 action is underway at Casino Malta.