Robert McAdam Transitions from Satellite to Grand Event Title at Malta Poker Festival Spring 2026

The Fairy Tale Story of the Winner

The main attraction was the €600 MPF Grand Event, which, thanks to a massive 1,451 entries, generated the series' largest prizepool ever at €684,390. The story of overall winner Robert McAdam is the embodiment of a poker dream. The Brit qualified for the tournament via a satellite and, after nearly four days of play, turned this small investment into a phenomenal six-figure reward.

The journey to the title, however, wasn't easy. McAdam entered the final table with a critically low stack of just 10 big blinds. What followed was described by McAdam himself as a "rollercoaster," during which he teetered on the brink of elimination several times, only to eventually become the chipleader.

The turning point came when the final four players agreed on an ICM deal. Although at the time, Frenchman Giuseppe Mazza-Boussemart held a massive lead, the subsequent play for the trophy and an additional €30,000 saw him crash against McAdam. McAdam, with K d K h, flopped a full house on the board K s Q s Q d 9 d 8 c, crushing Mazza-Boussemart’s straight with J d T c.

In the final heads-up, the Brit dispatched Austrian Pascal Inkert when his T c 5 c defeated Inkert's A d ​​​​​​​Q d, thanks to a ten on the flop.

McAdam, a new father to 14-month-old son Alfie, is experiencing a remarkably successful spring, having recently secured second place in the Main Event of the GUKPT in Manchester and third at the WSOP-C in Amsterdam.

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Results of the Final Table of the MPF Spring 2026 Grand Event:

* ICM deal 

Sources: Malta Poker Festival, PokerNews