Coolbet Open Main Event | Petter Berg staged a short-chip comeback to win the title, setting a new record with 753 entries and taking home €65,415.

The 2026 Coolbet Open Main Event officially concluded in Tallinn, Estonia. After a three-year hiatus, the event returned to the same venue where it was first held in 2018—the Olympic Park Casino within the Hilton Tallinn Park—and immediately set a new record for participation.

This year's €550 Main Event attracted 753 participants, creating a total prize pool of €357,675. After three days of competition, Norwegian player Petter Berg emerged victorious, defeating former Georgia MP Sergi Kapanadze to claim the €65,415 grand prize.

This was Berg's first time entering the money in Coolbet Open, and he turned that first cash into a championship.

A record 753 entries were recorded, bringing the main event prize pool to €357,000.

Coolbet Open returned to Tallinn after three years of hosting events at different venues, and received a positive response from players.

The key statistics for this main match are as follows:

The 753 entries not only broke the Coolbet Open record for this year's main event, but also made for an impressive debut for the tournament in Tallinn.

Berg surged from outside the top ten on Day 3 all the way to the top spot.

A total of 54 athletes returned to the competition on the final day.

Petter Berg didn't start the tournament in the top ten, but his rise was quite rapid. After the first three levels of Day 3, more than half the players had been eliminated, and Berg had risen to number 3 on the leaderboard by the first break.

With only two tables remaining in the tournament, he became the chip leader for the first time.

Berg then had a major showdown with Oystein Stai, ultimately eliminating the latter in 12th place and increasing his own score to about one-fifth of the total on the field.

Defending champion Guillermo Gordo finished in 11th place.

Last year's champion, Guillermo Gordo, also completed the deep run this year.

However, he failed to reach the Final Table for two consecutive years, being eliminated by Sergi Kapanadze in the final two tables, finishing in 11th place and earning €4,820.

Shortly after, Kapanadze eliminated Atte Franssila, and the 10th place finisher also earned €4,820, officially forming a 9-player final table.

Kapanadze dominated the early stages of the final table.

By the time they entered the Final Table, Berg and Kapanadze were already the two main scoreboard leaders.

But Kapanadze was the one who truly controlled the game in the first half.

He was eliminated one after another:

• Roar Wang

• Jarno Jokiniemi

• Rene Lazaro

With four players remaining in the game, Kapanadze once held nearly half of the scoreboard.

Meanwhile, Berg allowed his opponents to double up in several hands, his chip stack continued to shrink, and he eventually fell to the bottom of the table.

In a life-or-death battle involving approximately 10 blinds, K9 defeated A9.

Berg's most crucial turning point came when he had only about 10 blind men left.

He held:

K9

To Tomi Bondarew's:

A9

Berg was under pressure pre-flop, and if he lost this hand, his championship run would likely be over.

But the flop came up with a King, giving Berg the lead and a crucial double-up.

This hand, which only had a few draws to save him, became the most important turning point in his entire Final Table game.

After doubling in size, Berg quickly rebuilt its operational space and gradually returned to the leading group.

After eliminating Bondarew and Olaisen, Berg entered the head-to-head match with a 3-1 lead.

After returning to the deep-seated scoring system, Berg began to regain control of the tempo.

He was eliminated in succession:

• Tomi Bondarew, 4th place

• Kenneth Olaisen, 3rd place

These two eliminations put Berg close at the start of the one-on-one duel:

Leading 3 to 1 on the scoreboard

Their opponent is Sergi Kapanadze, who has also been performing strongly throughout the tournament.

After a brief comeback in the one-on-one fight, Kapanadze fell to 9 big blinds.

At the start of the Heads-Up, Kapanadze briefly recovered some scorecards.

But Berg quickly regained control of the situation.

A crucial pot won with two consecutive backdoor cards, coupled with a hand that successfully caught Kapanadze's large bluff, left Kapanadze with only:

9 Great Blinds

The situation in the game has now shifted significantly in Berg's favor.

In the final pre-flop all-in, Berg entered the showdown with a slightly ahead starting hand and maintained his advantage until the river, officially securing the championship.

Petter Berg wins the championship on his first cash game.

This was Petter Berg's first time winning a prize at Coolbet Open.

But Berg is not lacking in championship experience.

He has championship records in various poker formats, including the Norwegian Heads-Up Championship, and is highly regarded among his peers.

After a grueling 13-hour final day, Berg briefly stated their victory:

"Getting first place is always a good thing."

In contrast, runner-up Sergi Kapanadze's €43,060 is the largest single live tournament prize of his career to date.

2026 Coolbet Open Main Event Final Table Results

The Norwegian team swept the championship and third place.

Norwegian players performed exceptionally well at this year's final table.

Besides Petter Berg's eventual victory, Kenneth Olaisen finished third, earning €30,750, while Roar Wang finished eighth.

Berg's remarkable comeback after falling to around 10 big blinds midway through the final table, ultimately rebuilding his lead from a short stack and winning the championship, became one of the most representative championship stories of this year's Coolbet Open.

Coolbet Open's return to Tallinn sets a new record.

When Coolbet Open returned to Olympic Park Casino in 2026, the main event immediately broke the all-time record with 753 entries.

From 54 players on Day 3 to a 9-player Final Table, and then to Berg and Kapanadze's final head-to-head match, this year's Main Event not only set a new record for the number of participants but also left a new champion name for Coolbet Open.

For Petter Berg, winning the title on his first appearance in the prize money of this series is undoubtedly the ideal outcome; and for Coolbet Open, the record-breaking scale of participation sets a new standard for the next event.

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