EMPC 2026 Tallinn: Bokowski, Forsland and Ryynänen Claim Mixed-Game Titles

If you think poker begins and ends with Texas Hold’em, this week in Estonia is proof otherwise. The European Mixed Poker Championship (EMPC) 2026 is under way at Olympic Park Casino in Tallinn, and it’s built entirely around the games most players never try: Razz, Badugi, Stud, 2-7 Triple Draw and more.

On Wednesday, three more champions were crowned. A German mixed-game specialist, a Norwegian grinder and a Finnish player each took home a title in three very different formats.

Festival at a Glance

• Dates: October 26–31, 2026
• Venue: Olympic Park Casino (inside Hilton Tallinn Park), Tallinn, Estonia
• Partner: OlyBet Poker
• Championship events: 12
• Headline event: €800 8-Game Main Event (October 30–31)
• High rollers: €1,500 S.O.R.B.E.T. High Roller and €1,500 6-Game High Roller
• Founders: Norway’s Frode Fagerli and Tobias Leknes

Event #3: €300 Nordic Blood Mix – Nicolas Bokowski 🇩🇪

This event lived up to its name. The Nordic Blood Mix rotates through four fixed-limit games, two of which most players outside Scandinavia have probably never seen:

• Østfold Razz: A Nordic twist on Razz, where the lowest hand wins.
• Sviten Special: A Scandinavian stud-style variant.
• Stud: Classic seven-card stud.
• 2-7 Triple Draw: A lowball draw game where the best possible hand is 7-5-4-3-2.

84 players bought in for €300, creating a €20,530 prize pool, and nine places were paid.

Germany’s Nicolas Bokowski came out on top for €6,150. His heads-up opponent was no pushover: Slovenia’s Blaž Žerjav is the reigning EMPC Player of the Series and 2025 Main Event champion.

Bokowski’s edge in the newer games was no accident. He has spent plenty of time playing Østfold Razz with Scandinavian friends, so an unusual variant that tripped up others felt familiar to him. Last year he cashed four times at the EMPC for €10,890. This week he had already finished third in the Welcomer Big Bet Mix before this win, putting him firmly in the race for Player of the Series.

Place	Player	Country	Prize
1	Nicolas Bokowski	Germany	€6,150
2	Blaž Žerjav	Slovenia	€4,100
3	Jarno Malinen	Finland	€2,880
4	Antoine Profit	France	€2,100
5	Philipp Krieger	Germany	€1,530
6	Ylva Thorsrud	Norway	€1,260
7	Robin Panholzer	Austria	€1,030
8	Gunnar Wedde	Norway	€820
9	Jonas Grusnius	Lithuania	€660

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Event #5: €200 S.O.R.B.E.T. – Raymond Sevje Forsland 🇳🇴

The cheapest buy-in of the day drew one of the biggest fields: 95 players at €200 each, with 13 places paid.

S.O.R.B.E.T. is an acronym for the six games in the rotation:

Letter	Game	Type
S	Limit Stud	Stud, high hand wins
O	Fixed-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better	Split pot, high and low
R	Fixed-Limit Razz	Stud, lowest hand wins
B	Fixed-Limit Badugi	Four-card draw lowball
E	Fixed-Limit Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better	Split pot, high and low
T	2-7 Triple Draw	Lowball draw

The final came down to an all-Norwegian heads-up. Raymond Sevje Forsland beat Frode Fagerli, who co-founded the EMPC itself, to take the title and €4,051.

Place	Player	Prize
1	Raymond Sevje Forsland	€4,051
2	Frode Fagerli	€2,800
3	Andres Aro	€1,920
4	Seun Oluwole	€1,400
5	Tor A. M. Welo	€1,070
6	Kjersti Elizabeth Grini	€870
7	Tobias Leknes	€690
8	Antoine Moana Profit	€560
9	Walter Stefan Tischhauser	€440
10	Alexander Freund	€360
11	Siddharth Sudunagunta	€360
12	Kayan Vandan Intwala	€330
13	Krzysztof Andrzej Kozlowski	€330

Worth noting: Both EMPC founders made this final table. Fagerli finished second and Tobias Leknes finished seventh. Antoine Profit also cashed for a second time in the same day, after his fourth place in Event #3.

For Indian readers: Two players with Indian heritage, Siddharth Sudunagunta and Kayan Vandan Intwala, cashed in 11th and 12th. Sudunagunta won the partypoker Tour Sheffield Main Event earlier this year.

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Event #6: €800 T.O.E. Turbo – Sampo Kalervo Ryynänen 🇫🇮

The highest buy-in of the day was also the fastest. T.O.E. combines three fixed-limit games:

• T: 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball
• O: Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better
• E: Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better

The turbo structure meant blinds rose quickly, so players had to make decisions fast. 33 players entered, and only five were paid.

Finland’s Sampo Kalervo Ryynänen won it for €8,072, the biggest single prize of the day.

Place	Player	Prize
1	Sampo Kalervo Ryynänen	€8,072
2	Andrew Kelsall	€5,650
3	Didier Rabl	€4,050
4	Jens Vörtmann	€2,770
5	Matthew Robert Grapenthien	€2,030

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Comparing the Three Events

Event	Buy-in	Entries	Places Paid	% Paid	Winner’s Prize
#3 Nordic Blood Mix	€300	84	9	10.7%	€6,150
#5 S.O.R.B.E.T.	€200	95	13	13.7%	€4,051
#6 T.O.E. Turbo	€800	33	5	15.2%	€8,072

What the numbers show:

• The cheapest event drew the biggest field. The €200 S.O.R.B.E.T. pulled 95 players, which shows how strong grassroots interest in mixed games is.
• The best return on investment came from the cheapest event. Forsland turned €200 into €4,051, more than 20 times his buy-in. Bokowski made about 20 times his money too.
• The €800 Turbo had the smallest field but the biggest prize. Higher buy-ins attract fewer players, but the rewards are larger for those who go deep.

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Why Mixed Games Are Worth Learning

Mixed games are growing fast across Europe, and festivals like the EMPC are a big reason why. If you mainly play Hold’em, here’s why it’s worth trying them:

1. Softer fields. Most players are specialists in one or two games. If you’re competent across several, you’ll often have an edge in at least part of the rotation.
2. Lower variance in fixed-limit games. Bets are capped, so you’re far less likely to lose your whole stack in a single hand.
3. Better overall skill. Lowball games like Razz and 2-7 Triple Draw teach you to think about hand strength in completely new ways, which can make you a sharper Hold’em player too.

Beginner tip: Start with Razz or 2-7 Triple Draw. The rules are simple (lowest hand wins), and you’ll quickly understand the logic behind most lowball formats.

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What’s Next at EMPC 2026

The festival builds to its headline event this week:

Date	Event	Buy-in
October 30	8-Game Main Event – Flights 1A and 1B	€800
October 31	8-Game Main Event – Day 2 (final)	–
October 31	6-Game High Roller	€1,500

Keep an eye on Blaž Žerjav, the defending Main Event champion. After his runner-up finish in Event #3, he’s clearly in form. Nicolas Bokowski will also be one to watch as he chases the Player of the Series title.

We’ll update this page with the Main Event results.

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