Thanks to this year’s extraordinary turnout for mixed game tourneys, the Irish Open is fast gaining a reputation as a haven for mixed game fans. So if you’ve been craving something beyond No-Limit Hold’em and PLO, then the 2026 festival is your chance to have a lot of fun! Next year’s schedule features more non-Hold’Em variants than ever before with THREE mixed game championships plus a wealth of other tourneys.
If you’re a newbie when it comes to Mixed Games, the Irish Open is the perfect place to dip your toes into something new. The massively expanded 2026 schedule will give you the chance to flex your poker smarts across multiple poker variants. And to learn more about the history of mixed games, do check out blogger Barry Russell’s fascinating piece on our news pages.
The 2026 Irish Open is taking place from March 26 to April 6 at the RDS and features a stellar mixed game line-up. The tourneys include a welcome return for the record-breaking €350 buy-in Mixed 8-game Championship and €350 HORSE Championship along with a brand new Mixed 8-Game Championship High Roller. Also on the 2026 schedule are the Big O Championship, HORSE championship, Open Face Chinese Championship and a Deuce to 7 Single Draw event.
What is a mixed game?
If more than one game is spread, it’s a mixed game and many people feel that mixed games are the best judge of a player’s true poker ability. If you feel you need a bit of a guiding hand before launching yourself into the frenetic world of mixed games, there are numerous resources online including helpful guides on PokerStars, PokerNews and The Festival websites. Click any of these links for features on 8-Game / 8-Game, Deuce-to-Seven Triple Draw / Deuce-to-Seven Triple Draw, Big-0, OFC / OFC and HORSE / HORSE. / HORSE. Once again, the mixed games schedule has been put together with the help of Friend of the Irish Open Martin “Franke” von Zweigbergk who has been hosting The Festival – a celebration of mixed games tournaments – for many years.
The 2026 schedule
March 26: €350 Big O Championship – Unlimited Re-entry
The mixed game fun kicks off right at the start of next year’s Irish Open with the €350 Big O Championship taking place on the first day. Think Pot-Limit Omaha High Low, but with a twist—you get FIVE hole cards instead of four. That means bigger hands, crazier action, and even more room to pull off sick bluffs (or get hero-called). If you love Omaha, this one’s a must-play. Irish Open ambassador Chris Dowling scooped the trophy in the debut Big O this year, winning €6,850 after besting a 122-entry field.
March 28: €350 buy-in two-day Mixed 8-Game Championship – Unlimited Re-Entry
The two-day Mixed 8-Game Championship involves switching gears between eight different poker games. It’s the ultimate test of poker adaptability—one minute, you’re grinding Limit Hold’em, and the next, you’re in the wild streets of Razz or 2-7 Triple Draw. Mixed games specialist Bill Mawer took down the record-breaking €350 buy-in Mixed 8-game Championship this year, outlasting a 169-entry field for €11,980, his biggest live score.
March 29: €350 buy-in two-day HORSE Championship – Unlimited Re-Entry
HORSE rotates hands of Hold’em, Omaha Hi/Lo, Razz (Seven Card Stud Low), Seven Card Stud High, and Eight-or-Better (also called Stud Hi-Lo). Each game is unique so to become a good HORSE player, you’ll need to have a good grasp of the optimal strategy needed for all five games. The flop games are Hold’em and Omaha Hi/Lo ie a flop, river or turn is dealt. The other three games are variants of Stud and don’t use community cards. Canada’s David Dongwoo Ko took down the inaugural €350 HORSE Championship this year for €11,000. There were 147 entries creating a €43,292 prize pool.
March 30: €350 buy-in Deuce to 7 Single Draw Championship
Deuce to 7 Single Draw is a lowball draw game in which you’re trying to make the worst possible hand – with 2-3-4-5-7 (unsuited) as the nuts. It’s a ‘draw’ game, meaning that you are dealt five cards and, after the first betting round, can discard from zero to all of your cards and receive the same number of replacement cards. We had a Triple Draw version of it this year, won by Britain’s Mitchell Jones who learned the rules on his way over to Dublin! Jones snagged €7,880 after outlasting the 123-entry field. The prize pool totalled €37,177.
March 31: Mixed 8-Game Championship High Roller – The Mixed 8-Game Championship High Roller debut features a €1,150 buy-in and unlimited re-entries. The tourney is certain to attract big numbers given that over 150 players rocked up for the €350 version this year. With unlimited re-entry, the tournament will feature a 50,000 starting stack and 30-minute levels.
April 1: €350 buy-in Open Face Chinese
While the order of hands remains the same, Open Face Chinese is dealt and played in a totally different way from traditional poker. It’s fiendish, frenetic and totally addictive. This year’s debut Open Face Chinese Championship saw a big turnout with 118 players in full party mood. Congrats to Finland’s Riku Koivurinne who took down the €350 buy-in event for €8,265. Jon Kyte finished third with a total of 17 players taking a share of the €34,751 prize pool.
European Mixed Poker Championship
Dedicated live mixed games festivals are also starting to build steam. JP McCann who co-runs the Irish Open with Paul O’Reilly, has his own cardroom in Dublin and will be hosting next month’s European Mixed Poker Championship (EMPC) which is coming to Dublin for the first time.
The six-day festival, which is taking place from November 4 to November 9 at the JP Poker Club and Maldron Hotel in Dublin, features seven different tournaments including the prestigious 8-Game Main Event.
Please confirm which variant of 2-7 is being played in the 8-game – Triple Draw or Single Draw?
