Nicolas Bokowski Wins EMPC 2026 Player of the Series as Tallinn Festival Closes

Germany’s Nicolas Bokowski is the 2026 European Mixed Poker Championship (EMPC) Player of the Series. He earned the title through steady results across the week at Olybet’s Olympic Park Casino in Tallinn, Estonia. England’s Seun Oluwole finished second on the leaderboard and Germany’s Philipp Krieger third.

Bokowski cashed five times in the 12-event schedule and finished on 809.5 points. His week included a win in the €300 Nordic Special Mix and second place in the €1,500 S.O.R.B.E.T. High Roller. Oluwole ended on 702 points. Krieger won the festival’s last event, which lifted him 16 places into third.

The 12 events drew 856 entries and €371,070 in combined prize pools. Finland’s Tapani Pulkkinen won the €800 8-Game Main Event and the festival’s biggest first prize, €22,250.

Consistency Carries Bokowski to the Title

Bokowski’s first mixed-game trophy came early. He beat Slovenia’s Blaz Zerjav heads-up in the €300 Nordic Special Mix for €6,150. Zerjav won both the Main Event and Player of the Series in 2025, so this was a big scalp.

Bokowski nearly won a second event in the €1,500 S.O.R.B.E.T. High Roller. His heads-up match with Canada’s Patrick Stacey lasted about three and a half hours before Stacey won it for €20,230. Bokowski took €12,830 for second.

He also finished third in the opening €300 Big Bet Mix and cashed twice more, which put him well clear of the rest of the leaderboard.

Oluwole and Krieger Complete the Podium

Oluwole was the closest challenger, with three final tables during the week:

• 4th in the €200 S.O.R.B.E.T.
• 2nd in Senkel’s Paradise Pick’em
• 3rd in the Main Event, for €10,930

Krieger, who calls himself a recreational player, saved his best result for the last event. He beat Estonia’s Heiti Riisberg heads-up in the €200 Omaha Dealer’s Choice for €3,004. It was his fifth cash of the week and took him from 19th to 3rd in the standings.

EMPC 2026 Player of the Series: Top 10

Rank	Player	Country	Cashes	Points
1	Nicolas Bokowski	Germany	5	809.5
2	Seun Oluwole	England	4	702.0
3	Philipp Krieger	Germany	5	582.5
4	Robin Panholzer	Austria	4	574.1
5	Tapani Pulkkinen	Finland	2	534.7
6	Raymond Forsland	Norway	3	491.2
7	Patrick Stacey	Canada	2	471.2
8	Thor Morstol	Norway	5	468.5
9	Sampo Ryynanen	Finland	3	462.7
10	Eirik Kristiansen	Norway	4	456.8

Pulkkinen Takes the €800 8-Game Main Event

The €800 8-Game Main Event drew 146 entries and a €97,090 prize pool. Pulkkinen started the final table second in chips behind England’s Wantao Tang. He went on to beat Denmark’s Christian Elgstrøm heads-up for the title.

“It’s great. It’s crazy,” Pulkkinen said after his win. He kept his strategy for the eight-game format simple: “I was just trying to do what I think seems smart, and run good.”

Before the final table, Pulkkinen said Pot-Limit Omaha was his best game and the one where he planned to build his stack. The last hand of the tournament was dealt in PLO.

Elgstrøm took €15,070 for second and Oluwole €10,930 for third. Defending champion Zerjav was knocked out by Oluwole in 22nd place, three spots short of the money.

Pulkkinen also praised the festival and said he expects mixed games to keep growing. He said he “had a ton of fun” and called the atmosphere in Tallinn great.

EMPC 2026 Main Event Final Table

Place	Player	Country	Prize
1	Tapani Pulkkinen	Finland	€22,250
2	Christian Elgstrøm	Denmark	€15,070
3	Seun Oluwole	England	€10,930
4	Wantao Tang	England	€8,590
5	Erik Sønsteby	Norway	€6,730
6	Jerry Ödeen	Sweden	€5,260
7	Ilkka Heikkila	Finland	€3,840
8	Andres Korn	Argentina	€2,830
9	Kayan Intwala	England	€2,830

EMPC 2026: Every Event Winner

Buy-ins at the festival ranged from €200 to €1,500, across a wide mix of game formats.

#	Event	Entries	Prize Pool	Winner	Prize
1	€300 Big Bet Mix	104	€17,108	Christophe Stammet	€3,417
2	€555 Lowball Draw Mix	63	€29,327	Thor Morstol	€9,967
3	€300 Nordic Special Mix	84	€20,530	Nicolas Bokowski	€6,150
4	€700 Dealer’s Choice	69	€42,683	Robin Panholzer	€12,093
5	€200 S.O.R.B.E.T.	95	€19,650	Raymond Forsland	€4,051
6	€800 T.O.E. Turbo	33	€23,118	Sampo Ryynanen	€8,072
7	€1,500 S.O.R.B.E.T. High Roller	45	€58,320	Patrick Stacey	€20,230
8	€300 Senkel’s Paradise Pick’em	65	€15,886	Eirik Kristiansen	€4,766
9	€800 8-Game Main Event	146	€97,090	Tapani Pulkkinen	€22,250
10	€300 6-Game	70	€10,108	Marius Toverud	€3,028
11	€1,500 6-Game High Roller	21	€27,216	Alexander Aaneland	€10,886
12	€200 Omaha Dealer’s Choice	61	€10,034	Philipp Krieger	€3,004

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