The charming 15th century Baltic coastal town of Talinn (population 400 000) is proving to be something of a magnet for European gambling groups and poker competitions, it seems.
Major upcoming tournaments planned for this Spring are:
March 24-26 2006 : William Hill Baltic Open
William Hill has announced its first Baltic Open, to be held in the beautiful city of Tallinn, Estonia between 24th-26th March 2006.
The main event will have a prize pool estimated to be around Euro 240 000, to which William Hill Poker will be adding Euro 25 000, and the tourney counts as a ranking event toward the European Poker Rankings.
Online satellites will guarantee at least 20 packages, each winning a Euro 2 200 seat and Euro 1,000 expenses.
Then, on May 19-21 2006 : the Ladbrokes Tallinn Challenge 2006
Ladbrokes Tallinn Challenge 2006 will be played on the 19th- 21st of May. After the success of the previous Tallinn Challenge in December, Ladbrokes has decided to go bigger, better and Nordic this time. The prize pool is $300 000 based on maximum participants of 150.
The venue will again be the Reval Park Hotel and Casino and Ladbrokes has added a $36 000 seat sponsorship that will take the winner to the Ladbrokes Poker Million Final.
The Tallinn Challenge package players receive for winning the weekly Monday final includes a $2 000 freeze out tournament buy-in, two nights accommodation for two, entertainment, breakfast and dinner buffet. In addition to the main event a wide range of cash games and side-tournaments will be offered. The maximum number of entries to the main event is 150.
How did a city like Talinn, which is smaller than Fresno, Calif., and was once in a former Soviet backwater explode into a hot spot whose “Hedonist Guide” companions include the likes of Madrid and Miami?
The dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 and Estonia’s integration into the European Union in 2004 have done much to open the nation of 1.4 million to the West. Budget airline flights connecting Tallinn with Western European capitals have played a role in this, too.
Just 50 miles across the Gulf of Finland from Helsinki, Tallinn gets plenty of action and cash from the more than half-million Finns who visit every year – frequently on multiple daily “booze cruises” to exploit Tallinn’s significantly cheaper alcohol.
The coastal town is reputed to have many beautiful women, and motivated pleasure-seekers can smoke Cuban cigars at La Casa del Habano; watch rugby over a pint at Scotland Yard; sip cocktails in the Scandi-chic interiors of R.I.F.F; boogie at the huge Club Hollywood or elite Club Prive and lose their shirts at Ballys Casino!