Category: Poker

The unstoppable Triton winning machine that is Jason Koon set a new mark for titles on this prestigious series today, taking down the sixth Triton tournament of his career — two more than his closest rival.

Koon’s victory came in the second event of this festival at the Merit Hotel & Resort in Northern Cyprus, a $20,000 buy-in no limit event, for which he banked $663,000. Koon won his fifth title a few months ago in Vietnam, pulling him clear of Mikita Badziakouski, and once again demonstrated why his was a no-brainer pick to be an ambassador for the Triton Series.

The 35-year-old from Las Vegas pushed his career earnings past $44 million, consolidating his position in fifth on poker’s all-time money list. There were 138 entries in this event, but none could stop Koon.

“I love it, man,” Koon told Ali Nejad on the Triton live stream, shortly after securing victory, and asked what keeps him coming back. “I absolutely love the game…I just really, really love poker and I love the atmosphere here. I don’t travel for poker anymore unless it’s a Triton really. So these are all my friends. It’s fun to come compete. I just love it here.”

Asked how he continues to rack up such incredible results, Koon said: “I have obviously run well, but I have a lot of experience. I think one of the biggest things is that I’ve been doing it for a very, very long time. I’ve been playing with the same player pool for a very long time. There are some new faces in this smaller event, but I’ve played with the same competition for years and years. You start to download good information about people and you can make good decisions.”

As always on the Triton Series, this was a super-tough field, and a mightily difficult final table, also featuring Stephen Chidwick, Adrian Mateos, Artur Martirosian and Sean Winter — all high roller crushers themselves. But the most determined competition came from local player Kanan Taherkhani, who Koon beat heads-up.

Taherkhani was playing his first Triton event and took $451,200 for second. However he was powerless to stop Koon and lost after a brief heads-up battle, committing the last of his chips with two pair. By that point, Koon had a winning straight.

The result had seemed inevitable ever since Koon won a pivotal cooler at the final table against Martirosian — kings beating queens. But he still had to finish it off, which he did, of course, in characteristic style.

The banner that showed Koon as a five-time champ already needs updating, just two days after it was unveiled. With more than 10 tournaments still to play here, Koon might not be done just yet.

BLOW-BLOW-BLOW ACTION

There were 28 players returning overnight, from that starting field of 138 (including 44 re-entries). Martirosian was chip leader; Biao Ding was the short stack. The former was heading for the final table; the latter perished before the money.

The bubble this time was a roller-coaster of emotions for Nikolay Losev, ending with the lowest low. With 21 players remaining (20 due to be paid), Losev was in the big blind with pocket 10s and watched Viacheslav Buldygin open-shove from the button.

Losev called for his last five blinds, saw Buldygin roll over pocket fives, and then saw five blank cards on the board secure his double up.

On the very next hand, it seemed to get even better. Losev saw Sean Winter open from early position, and then peeked at his own cards to discover pocket queens. He three-bet. Winter, however, put it all-in, covering Losev, but those queens were good enough to justify another flirtation with disaster.

Winter made it even bleaker when he tabled his pocket kings. Once again the board was blank, and this time Losev had to take the walk. He missed out on what would have been his first cash on the Triton Series.

With some kind of payday now assured, the characteristic wave of eliminations carried away some of the game’s biggest stars: Isaac Haxton, Patrik Antonius, Tom Dwan and Hossein Ensan were all knocked out as the field thinned towards its final.

Such was the quality of the field, however, that the last nine still featured the all-time money-list leaders from the UK and Spain, the only player with five Triton titles, and Russia’s undisputed form player. The final nine lined up like this:

Stephen Chidwick – 61 BBs
Artur Martirosian – 46 BBs
Jason Koon – 43 BBs
Adrian Mateos – 36 BBs
Eduard Barsegian – 29 BBs
Sean Winter – 24 BBs
Kanan Taherkhani – 19 BBs
Ian Bradley – 17 BBs

Things had been going very well for Winter since he knocked out Losev on the bubble. The American reg was making a first appearance on the Triton Series, but clearly had the experience from the U.S.-based high roller tournaments to feel instantly at home.

However, he was quickly roughed up at the final table and became the first to be knocked out. He lost a pivotal hand to Kanan Taherkhani, when Winter’s pocket eights were no match for Taherkhani’s queens, and then Chidwick finished the job a couple of hands later.

In the final match-up, Chidwick raise/called Winter’s shove with and ended the hand with two pair. Winter’s did not improve on the board. He took $85,500 for eighth.

Ian Bradley was another player sampling life on the Triton Series for the first time here in Northern Cyprus, and after a whiff in the $25K curtain-raiser, he was sitting pretty at a final table on his second attempt.

Although he was now the tournament short-stack, he found a spot to get his chips in with on the button. Artur Martirosian called in the big blind with pocket fives, and Bradley would have been delighted to see a queen land on the flop. That delight turned to despair when Martirosian hit his two outer — the landed on the river.

Bradley recently took his lifetime poker earnings past $1 million, mostly from smaller buy-in tournaments in Europe. He added $115,900 to his tally for this maiden Triton cash and he’ll hit $2m pretty quickly if he keeps this up.

In case anyone was under the impression that these final tables are merely a series of all-in pre-flop flips, this next hand should dispel the notion. Mateos and Chidwick got involved in a major skirmish that showcased both their nerve and skill — with Chidwick this time coming out on top.

Chidwick opened with a min-raise from under the gun and Mateos called in the big blind. The pair saw a flop of . Mateos checked, Chidwick bet a little more than one big blind, and then Mateos check-raised. Chidwick called.

The came on the turn and Mateos now bet 400,000 (blinds were 75K/150K). Chidwick, with the covering stack, moved all-in. Mateos snap-folded. But what did they have?

We needed to wait an hour before it hit the Triton live stream, at which point we discovered Mateos had for a flush draw. Chidwick had one of those too, but his , coupled with his position, was stronger. It left Mateos on the ropes.

With Mateos sitting with a sub 10 BB stack, few would have forgiven the others to sit back and wait it out. But then Koon found pocket kings with which to go to battle against Artur Martirosian, and the good news for Koon was that his opponent found pocket queens.

The pair had decent-sized stacks and they put them all on the line, with the bigger pair holding. That catapulted Koon to the top of the counts and left Martirosian now struggling. Mateos scored a quick double, which left Martirosian rock bottom.

He got his last handful of blinds in with another pocket pair — threes — but once again his nemesis Koon had him out-pipped. Koon’s pocket fours stayed good through the full board and Martirosian had to leave.

The Russian picked up $154,400 for this result, while Koon remained focused on that new title mark.

Mateos had laddered one spot thanks to Martirosian’s demise, but he couldn’t build back a stack big enough to challenge. He got his last chips in pre-flop with and managed to find himself in a position to potentially triple up. Both Taherkhani and Barsegian called from the blinds.

They had and , respectively, and Mateos was far from down and out. But after an ace flopped, he could only sit helpless and watch his two opponents play out a side pot. He knew he would have to make do with $197,300 for fifth.

There was an interesting dynamic in the final four. Two of poker’s most recognisable figures — Chidwick and Koon — sat alongside two rookies — Eduard Barsegian and Taherkhani. The former pair were the obvious favourites, but Taherkhani put himself in a great spot to challenge by knocking out Barsegian.

Barsegian had been ticking along fairly evenly, but the blinds were now catching him up. He then called from the big blind with after Taherkhani made a small button raise. The flop came , and the flush draw was enough to persuade Barsegian to stick his last chips in.

Taherkhani didn’t have a pair either, but he called for five blinds with . The turn and river bricked and the ace high won it for Taherkhani. Barsegian was out in fourth, taking $245,500.

Koon still had a comfortable chip lead, while Taherkhani and Chidwick were all but level. Until Koon set to work nullifying the threat of Chidwick, thanks in no small part to a pot in which his made a four-flush in hearts to beat Chidwick’s pocket tens. Shortly after, Koon’s pocket deuces stayed good against Chidwick’s .

That cut Chidwick to shreds and his final chip went to Taherkhani. Chidwick won $298,000, plus a chunk more POY points to keep him ahead in that race.

Koon had a big lead going into heads-up — about three-and-a-half to one — and even though his opponent had more than 20 big blinds, and won the first few small pots during heads-up, there was practically nothing Taherkhani could do to halt a great player running well. That final hand said it all: Koon had to Taherkhani’s . They bet on every street as the board ran .

Koon had his straight on the turn, while the queen on the river gave Taherkhani the reason to move all in. Call. Done. That’s how six-time champs do it.

“I ran really well, man,” Koon admitted, before adding that he felt in good form to do even more damage. “I feel great this trip. The last couple of Tritons have gone really well for me, but I was in bad health for both of them. I just happened to get sick travelling and had to grind through them. But this Triton in particular, I’m in the best shape I’ve been in in multiple years. I feel great. So I know I’m going to play really well this trip.”

He’s a man of his word.

RESULTS

Event #2 – $20,000 NLH 7-Handed
Dates: May 11-12, 2023
Entries: 138 (inc. 44 re-entries)
Prize pool: $2,760,000

1 – Jason Koon, USA – $663,000
2 – Kanan Taherkhani, Turkey – $451,200
3 – Stephen Chidwick, UK – $298,000
4 – Eduard Barsegian, Russia – $245,500
5 – Adrian Mateos, Spain – $197,300
6 – Artur Martirosian, Russia – $154,400
7 – Ian Bradley, UK – $115,900
8 – Sean Winter, USA – $85,500
9 – Viacheslav Buldygin, Russia – $66,200

10 – Punnat Punsri, Thailand – $55,200
11 – Kiat Lee, Malaysia – $55,200
12 – Samuel Ju, Germany – $48,400
13 – Hossein Ensan, Germany – $48,400
14 – Tom Dwan, USA – $44,200
15 – Alexey Tsessarsky, Russia – $44,200
16 – Patrik Antonius, Finland – $40,000
17 – Andriy Lyobovetskiy, Ukraine – $40,000
18 – Henrik Hecklen, Denmark – $35,800
19 – Isaac Haxton, USA – $35,800
20 – Axel Hallay, France – $35,800

Photography by Joe Giron/Poker Photo Archive

There are few players in world poker who have wanted a Triton Series title more than India’s Santhosh Suvarna. Ever since he took his first steps onto the scene last year, he has been the most enthusiastic presence at every table, also joining in the huge cash games that take place when the tournament day is done.

Tonight, Suvarna is wearing the biggest smile in poker, about as wide as the Crystal Cove bay outside the Merit Casino and Resort in Northern Cyprus. That’s because this 43-year-old realtor and amateur poker enthusiast from Bangalore got his wish, winning the $25,000 buy-in GG Poker Super Millions event.

This, the opening tournament of Triton’s third visit to Northern Cyprus, boasted a field of 158 entries and it gave its champion $700,000. Suvarna strapped a Shamballa Jewels bracelet around his wrist, and will need to find space in his luggage for two trophies: the regular Triton one and one from GG Poker too.

“I’m so happy,” Suvarna said, struggling through the emotions to find any words. “Finally, I won this tournament.”

Suvarna will take whatever he can get in the way of silverware. He was the chip leader three-handed and was prepared to give up a sizeable portion of his projected prize money to ensure he could be called the champion.

Although that pushed the tournament’s conclusion into something of a grey area, the three players agreed a deal that all but guaranteed everyone got their wishes. Nicolas Chouity and Salahaddin Bedir, also involved at that stage, took more than $600,000 as well, while Suvarna prepares to see his face on the winners’ banners decorating the venue.

It was a hugely popular success, cheered by all in the room. Many of those players elsewhere, all of whom had fallen by the wayside, had been Suvarna’s inspiration for this victory.

“This tournament, big big pros are playing,” Suvarna said, when asked how he had improved his game so much recently. “I’m easily learning, actually. I am watching Triton videos.”

He added: “Triton is the best.”

BLOW BY BLOW ACTION

After a long opening day, the starting field of 158 entries had become only 29, so the first order of business on Thursday was the bubble. It’s always possible that it goes on forever, but sometimes it passes in a flash.

The latter was true this time, as with 25 players left (and 23 due to be paid), both Ben Heath and Seth Davies were all-in pre-flop and called by covering stacks. And both were knocked out simultaneously, to take us through that bubble.

Heath had only a short stack, but was still pretty unlucky to lose it with against Henrik Hecklen’s . There were two sevens on the flop. Davies, meanwhile, had a bigger stack and a bigger hand — — but had the misfortune to slam into Karim Rebei’s pocket kings.

Davies was the official bubble boy, but everyone else locked up a minimum $45,800.

Rebei was an enormous chip leader at this stage. The Triton newcomer, representing Algeria, had close to double the stack of his closest challenger and seemed like an absolute lock for the final, if not the title itself.

However, as he later related to friends on the rail, he went card dead for three hours – yet also took his job as chip leader seriously and attempted to knock out short stacks. The result was that he hit the rail in 11th, swept away before the final alongside other newcomers Stoyan Madanzhiev, Dylan Linde and Enzo Vito, as well as Triton stalwarts including Mike Watson, Adrian Mateos and Henrik Hecklen.

When Orpen Kisacikoglu busted in 10th, we hit the final table.

AS is typical in these events, only a handful of players had stacks at this stage that could be considered comfortable, while most had fewer than 20 blinds. Yaroshevskyy was bossing, with Chouity close behind, and the POY-chasing Sam Greenwood in third.

At the other end, the final table short stack was Christopher Putz, and although he managed to chip up slightly, he was still the first out. He he lost the vast majority of his remaining chips when Alex Boika doubled up with a full house, and the remaining crumbs went to Chouity. Putz’s debut Triton score was worth $91,600.

Boika’s bounce didn’t last all that much longer. The Belorussian player, also making his first appearance on the Triton Series, hit the rail in eighth after losing a flip against Greenwood. Greenwood opened his button with and Boika pushed for 15 BBs from the small blind with pocket threes.

Greenwood missed his overcards, but the board was smothered in diamonds, and Boika was flushed away. He marks his new Triton card with a $115,000 score.

A third debutant, Tobias Schwecht, hit the rail in seventh. His elimination hand played out with a degree of drama as it required a showdown of three hands. Greenwood open-shoved his button, with . He had two tiny stacked players in the blinds, so it was a predictable play.

Schwecht looked down at and committed his four big blinds. That might have been it had Salahaddin Bedir, in the big blind, not found pocket kings, with which he was more than happy to risk his last 10 blinds.

Those kings held, which sent Schwecht out, earning $156,400, and put a dent in Greenwood. Bedir, meanwhile, more than doubled up.

Bedir’s newfound wealth allowed him to take a backseat as Greenwood set about chipping up again. He did so thanks to the demise of Robert Heidorn, who perished in a way that every other poker player would have perished, given the cards.

Heidorn had and raised from the cutoff. Greenwood called on the button with . After an all-heart flop — — the remainder of Heidorn’s chips went in. Greenwood called.

There were no more hearts to be seen, however, nor an ace. It meant that this one went to Greenwood, while $211,300 went to Heidorn.

As further indication of how shallow this was playing, Greenwood now moved into second in the chip counts, but also then moved next out the door. Greenwood lost a massive pot in doubling up Santhosh Suvarna after Suvarna opened with red pocket eights and Greenwood shoved from the small blind with .

The flop couldn’t have been much better for Greenwood without giving him the win. It cam . But it way maybe a case of too-many-outs syndrome after the turn and river bricked and vaulted Suvarna to the chip lead.

Greenwood had one big blind left and Chouity took that two hands later. Greenwood banked $272,500 and a healthy chunk of Player of the Year points. However, registration was closed on Event 2, so he wandered into the night for a rare night off.

With four left, the stacks had evened out. No one had more than 40 blinds; no one had less than 29. Any pot that went to a flop changed things at both top and bottom of the counts.

This was a great time for Suvarna to find another gear. Having weathered the early storms, the Indian player suddenly became the dominant force and watched his chip graph trend upward and upward. He took a massive pot from Yaroshevskyy when the Ukrainian bet on every street looking at a board of . Suvarna called all the way, until he raised the river. Yaroshevskyy nodded his head and folded.

The reason for all this? Suvarna flopped two pair with his and filled up on the river. Yaroshevskyy was bluffing with his .

Yaroshevskyy didn’t have the option of a dignified retreat on the next hand, however, when he shoved with pocket sixes and Suvarna called with . There was a jack on the flop and a king on the turn and Yaroshevskyy was done.

He earned a tidy $339,500 from his first try at the Triton Series, but it ended there.

With only three players remaining, none of whom had been in this kind of position in a Triton event before, they asked tournament staff what they could do to remove some of the variance. The players seemed happy to agree to a deal they had negotiated personally and let Suvarna take the trophy. But with two trophies actually on the line (the regular one and the GG Millions trophy), as well as the Shamballa Jewels bracelet, they learned that they couldn’t just finish things there and then. They needed to leave a significant amount to play for and play it out.

They looked at the official even so, and after some friendly gesticulating agreed speedily on how they would chop it. It was neither ICM nor a chip-chop, and was more than slightly controversial. Suvarna was an enormous chip leader, but agreed to lock up $630,000. Chouity, was the most experienced player, and earned himself $636,000, while Bedir was guaranteed $620,000.

There was $70,000 and all that bling still to play for.

Suvarna wore a huge smile despite having given up quite a lot of money; Chouity was keen to get back to it; and Bedir banged his chest, Tarzan-like, and called over to his friends in another tournament. Everyone seemed very happy indeed.

Players had intimated at this point that part of the deal meant they were happy to let Suvarna have the trophy. He desperately wanted it, and had apparently given up such a large portion of his equity to guarantee it. Bedir and Chouity seemed less concerned about that and were content to let the chip leader get what he wanted, handing him the chips if necessary.

Tournament director Luca Vivaldi explained that it wasn’t really something the series wanted. Triton titles are prestigious and worth fighting for, and he encouraged the last three to play in the spirit of the game, while admitting he was powerless to stop them doing whatever they wanted. He repeated in public that he thought the deal was not strictly fair. His concerns were listened to, the players thanked him, but then got on with their plan.

Within two hands, it was done. Suvarna had and made a flush on a board of . Bedir and Chouity got their chips in but they couldn’t beat that flush.

With that, this festival is up and running. Congratulations Santhosh Suvarna: India’s first Triton champion.

RESULTS

Event #1 – $25,000 NLH GG Super Millions Live
Dates: May 10-11, 2023
Entries: 158 (inc. 57 re-entries)
Prize pool: $3,950,000

1 – Santhosh Suvarna, India – $700,000
2 – Nicolas Chouity, Lebanon – $636,000
3 – Salahaddin Bedir, Turkey – $620,000
4 – Igor Yaroshevskyy, Ukraine – $339,500
5 – Sam Greenwood, Canada – $272,500
6 – Robert Heidorn, Germany – $211,300
7 – Tobias Schwecht, Germany – $156,400
8 – Alex Boika, Belarus – $115,000
9 – Christopher Putz, Germany – $91,600

10 – Orpen Kisacikoglu, Turkey – $77,000
11 – Karim Rebei, Algeria – $77,000
12 – Henrik Hecklen, Denmark – $67,100
13 – Kevin Paque, Netherlands – $67,100
14 – Dao Minh Phu, Vietnam – $61,200
15 – Enzo Vito, UK – $61,200
16 – Mike Watson, Canada – $55,300
17 – Sergio Aido, Spain – $55,300
18 – Brian Kim, USA – $49,700
19 – Viacheslav Buldygin, Russia – $49,700
20 – Stoyan Madanzhiev, Bulgaria – $49,700
21 – Patrik Antonius, Finland – $45,800
22 – Dylan Linde, USA – $45,800
23 – Adrian Mateos, Spain – $45,800

Photography by Joe Giron/Poker Photo Archive

The Triton Super High Roller Series’ trip to Vietnam ended tonight with a crazy finish to a madcap turbo and presented Sam Greenwood with a fun and famous victory.

As is customary in turbo events, with rapidly escalating blind structures, the stacks were short and there was plenty of gamble — all of which goes double when it’s short deck. This one cost 20K to enter and presented one last chance to rescue the trip to Vietnam’s east coast.

As it turned out, it actually became a light-hearted investigation into players’ knowledge of push/fold charts, coupled with a good run out for the poker gods. The players were, of course, impeccable, and fate played its part too, delivering double-ups and outdraws aplenty.

But Greenwood had just enough when it came down to it to overcome the challenge of Lun Loon, who lost heads-up. Greenwood’s first Triton title has an asterisk beside it as it came from the tournament that was abandoned in Cyprus owing to the tragic events that occurred there. Greenwood was leading at the time and was declared the winner.

But this time, they went all the way and the Canadian picked up a cheque for 207K alongside the Shamballa Jewels bracelet and the trophy. Loon secured his biggest Triton payday of 143K.

It was a terrific end to a spectacular trip to Vietnam, with many of the game’s leading players returning to the tournament room to drink beer and watch it play out. They were enthusiastic supporters of Greenwood, who claimed some valuable Player of the Year points to take that race into the final stop.

He also revealed that he was “celebrating” his first wedding anniversary, even though his wife was back in Toronto. “At least I’ve come home with a title and I love you Paige, and I’m really excited to see you when I get back,” Greenwood said.

ALL THE ACTION

It was the final day of the series and, with many players already departed, there wasn’t the usual snaking line at the registrations desk when the tournament got started at 4pm. However, by the time registration closed, there were 28 entries including nine re-entries, which made for a prize pool of more than half a million. And this is the smallest event of the week.

The usual suspects came and went, and the tournament condensed down to a single table. With only five places in the money, it became pretty tense, particularly for the short-stacked Lun Loon and Yake Wu.

The button skipped around the table and the antes were peeled from stacks. When blinds went up entering Level 15, Wu had only seven antes left and finally needed to take a stand with his . Seth Davies had and made the call, and the dealer gave Wu hope with a flop of .

Davies, however, held up the ace and pointed to the diamonds on it. He knew. The turn brought a chorus of “GGs”. Yu was flushed out on the bubble.

LOON’S ESCAPOLOGY ACT

With the micro-stack now departed, all eyes were on Loon’s tiny stack. He got it in with and cracked Haxton’s aces to double. And then he got it in again with and chopped a pot with Davies whose ended with the same full house as Loon.

Haxton also doubled up through Wei Hsiang Yeu, with a more typical hold’em match-up: pocket queens beating . Yeu had been the dominant force on the bubble, wielding the big stack with unforgiving menace. But this pot put a stop to it and brought Haxton into contention.

The Main Event had now ended on the feature table, so these five received an unexpected promotion to star under the studio lights. All of them had been there before, but probably not in such rapidly-escalating circumstances, with blinds now flying upward every 20 minutes.

The general trend didn’t change, however. Loon doubled again, with making a straight against Sam Greenwood’s . This time the double put him into the lead.

SHORT STACKS AND DOUBLE UPS

The tournament was beginning to get a little sticky. No one was getting knocked out. Greenwood, having lost the big pot to Loon, now doubled up through Yeu, cracking pocket queens with when the under cards turned a straight.

That pot left Yeu, who had once been so dominant, with only eight antes. And they found their way into the pot very quickly. But true to form he doubled up, not once, but twice. Both times through Loon, and Yeu now retook the chip lead.

However, no one stuck around in the lead for very long, and Yeu took a nosedive once again. Haxton doubled up through him, and then a pot against Greenwood finished him off. It was against and for once the best hand held.

Davies was the next to depart. Another former chip leader dispatched to the rail. Davies got his last chips in with against Greenwood’s .

After the first four cards off the deck were , Davies seemed certain to chop it. “How can I lose?” he said. But then the river was the and Davies was done. He took 65,800 and Greenwood built his stack some more.

GREENWOOD’S SURGE TO THE TITLE

Loon, Greenwood and Haxton were left, with Greenwood nominally in the lead, but any pot changing that. However, Greenwood continued to get the cards to do the most damage, and he next dispatched Haxton to the rail in third.

Haxton shoved with and Greenwood made the call with . There were no further dramas, and Haxton was out in third for 91,000. He still hunts that elusive first Triton win.

Greenwood had 86 antes to Loon’s 19 when they reset for heads-up play.

It wasn’t long, of course, before the chips went in for the first time. Loon doubled with against Greenwood’s .

However, the second time the money went in, Loon’s couldn’t catch up after Greenwood’s flopped a straight on the board. The turn left Loon drawing dead.

Greenwood is another short deck acolyte, keen to encourage others to join the fray. “I just think more people should give it a try,” he said. “I think it’s a really fun game. I don’t think it’s been as solvable post-flop. I think it’s more of a social game because more pots are multi-way.

“At first people might be a little intimidated by it, and at the start you’re going to make some mistakes. But the good thing about short deck is that any mistakes you make can’t be that bad.”

With that, we say goodbye from Vietnam at the end of another spectacular Triton Series festival.

RESULTS

Event #14 – 20,000 Short Deck Turbo
Dates: March 13, 2023
Entries: 28 (inc. 9 re-entries)
Prize pool: 560,000

1 – Sam Greenwood (Canada) – 207,000
2 – Lun Loon (Malaysia) – 143,000
3 – Isaac Haxton (USA) – 91,000
4 – Seth Davies (USA) – 65,800
5 – Wei Hsiang Yeu (Malaysia) – 53,200

Photography by Joe Giron/Poker Photo Archive

When Aaron Zang won the Triton Million — A Helping Hand for Charity tournament in London in 2019, few people had heard of the mild-mannered Chinese player, and in some ways the victory didn’t get the notice it deserved because of a heads-up chop that gave more money to the runner-up, Bryn Kenney.

But Zang didn’t mind in any way. He was used to flying under the radar, and was happy to continue to do so.

But here in Vietnam, Zang popped up again and returned to his disruptive best. Zang is the new Triton Series short deck Main Event champion, beating a field of 49 entries paying 100K apiece and heading home with a second Triton title to his name and an exclusive Jacob & Co timepiece around his wrist.

That and 1.544 million.

Zang closed out the win after beating his near namesake Michael Zhang heads-up, landing the knockout blow with beating after a one-sided heads-up encounter. “He always had it,” Zhang bemoaned afterwards, adding, “Still been a good trip.” He banked 1.115 million after making back-to-back short deck finals.

But thie one belonged to Zang, who has now won two of the biggest events on this tour. He is a force to be reckoned with.

FINAL DAY ACTION

After the first day’s play, there had been 45 entries, 17 players remained and there were four more re-entries. It brought the total to 49 entries and a 4.9 million prize pool — second only to the NLH Main Event from tournaments played at Triton Vietnam.

Almost as predictable as that multi-million prize pool was the name of Michael Zhang at the top of the chip count. Zhang led two other short deck events overnight, although cashed only one of them.

Short deck is a perilous place to be a chip leader, and there were some intense fluctuations as the tournament condensed towards its final table and it bubble. Most dramatically, Daniel Dvoress assumed the chip lead with a massive double up through Aaron Zang when they were 11 handed — pocket aces holding firm against — but the same two players went at it a little later, precipitating Dvoress’s bubble demise.

The second confrontation pitted Dvoress’ against Zang’s , all in pre-flop. But a jack on the flop gave Zang a double big enough to put him back in the lead and leave Dvoress on fumes.

The third skirmish between the two — when Dvoress had and Zang — again when Zang’s way. He ended up with a straight and Dvoress burst the bubble for the second time on this stop in Vietnam.

SEVEN LEFT FOR MAIN EVENT GLORY

The remaining seven now reassembled around the final table, after the last jet-propelled walk on. The line-up was as follows:

Aaron Zang – 5,250,000 (263 antes)
Michael Zhang – 3,380,000 (169 antes)
Paul Phua – 1,735,000 (85 antes)
Jason Koon – 1,375,000 (69 antes)
Kiat Lee – 1,285,000 (64 antes)
Mikita Badziakouski – 1,020,000 (51 antes)
Phil Chiu – 685,000 (34 antes)

There were sub-plot aplenty, even aside from the potential Zhang vs. Zang showdown. Jason Koon and Mikita Badziakouski renewed their personal battle for Triton dominance. Kiat Lee hit the final table yet again, searching for a first win. Phil Chiu was at his third short deck final table out of three attempts. Meanwhile Triton founder Paul Phua’s Vietnam drought was over. Mr Paul was in the money once more.

The first of those sub-plots to end centred on Koon. Having declared he would win two events here in Vietnam, and making it halfway with victory in the 50K NLH Turbo, this was a chance for him to honour his word.

However, he lost a major portion of his stack in a three-way pot against Zang and Zhang, missing a big combo draw with but bluffing that he had it on a coordinated board. However, Zhang had a full house by that point and wasn’t going anywhere.

The remainder of Koon’s chips went to Lee with jacks losing to kings.

A SIX-HANDED SLOWDOWN

Short deck is supposed to be the game full of gamble, with players coming and going in double-quick time. However, when the deck doesn’t cooperate, a stasis can set in with chips being pushed in circles around the table.

After Koon’s elimination, it took about two hours until we saw the next. During that period, Phua, Lee, Badziakouski and Chiu all doubled up, while Zhang reasserted himself at the top of the counts (mainly because Zang was the one paying off most of the doubles).

“There’s been too many double-ups at this table already,” Badziakouski said, when Phua found his chips in the middle one more time, this time in a dominant position against Zhang. Phua’s was a good favourite against Zhang’s , but Badziakouski’s premonition was about to come true.

A ten on the flop was followed by another on the turn, and though Phua had chop outs, he missed on the river. That condemned Phua to a sixth-place finish and 318K. “Mikita, I owe you one,” he said on his way out.

THE ZANG/ZHANG RAMPAGE

Phua quickly exited the tournament room after his elimination. He couldn’t even enter the turbo as registration was long closed over there. However, Zhang soon added Badziakouski’s scalp to his list of victims, picking up the whole of the Belorussian’s short stack with rivering a straight to beat .

It wasn’t one of Badziakouski’s best showings at a Triton stop, but he finished with a 416K payday. It left four players still in with a shout, but Zhang had more than half the chips in play.

However, that changed almost immediately. And the chips went to his near neighbour Zang, who managed an enormous double with pocket kings holding against Zhang’s . That put Zang in touching distance from Zhang, and allowed him to pick up the next elimination.

This time it was Chiu whose tournament came to its end at the hands of Zang. Chiu had pocket kings but lost to when the connected cards made a straight.

Chiu has been on fire in the short deck this week, finishing seventh, fourth and fourth again, the last one for 540K. It has hopefully been a memorable first visit to the Triton Series.

What Zang could do, Zhang could do as well, and on the hand immediately after Chiu’s elimination, another Triton final table stalwart, Lee, hit the rail. Lee had to Zhang’s , and Zhang ended with a full house.

Lee made four final tables on this trip, and cashed another tournament, from only eight tournaments played. It’s surely not long before he has a title, but tonight has to make do with 710K consolation.

ZANG VS. ZHANG FOR THE TITLE

And so here we were: Zhang (Michael) against Zang (Aaron) for the short deck Main Event title. They were both guaranteed more than 1 million already, but there was a Jacob & Co watch and a trophy to scrap over, not to mention the significant bragging rights.

As winner of the Triton Million, Zang had already proved his mettle, but maybe wanted to prove that it was not a fluke. As for Zhang, he had flown into Vietnam purely for the short deck portion of this festival, and this would represent a terrific justification.

They were close. Zhang had 159 antes to Zang’s 135. They resettled and prepared to play heads-up, with the chit-chat not abating one bit.

Most of the major pots went to Zang in the heads-up portion of play. And most of the minor ones too. The players went through the motions in a friendly manner for more than an hour, and when they got it all in, Zhang had the best hand and was looking for a big double.

But after the jack flopped — “Oh!” Zang said — he then instructed the dealer to keep it low. She obliged and the title was his.

RESULTS

Event #13 – 100,000 Short Deck
Dates: March 12-13, 2023
Entries: 49 (inc. 23 re-entries)
Prize pool: 4,900,000

1 – Aaron Zang (China) – 1,544,000
2 – Michael Zhang (UK) – 1,115,000
3 – Kiat Lee (Malaysia) – 710,000
4 – Phil Chiu (Hong Kong) – 540,000
5 – Mikita Badziakouski (Belarus) – 416,000
6 – Paul Phua (Malaysia) – 318,000
7 – Jason Koon (USA) – 257,000

Photography by Joe Giron/Poker Photo Archive

The Triton Super High Roller Series visited Vietnam between March 1-13, 2023. It featured 13 tournaments in no limit hold’em and short deck. You’ll find all you need to know about the event below, including links to completed tournament reports and results.

EVENT 1 – 25,000 GG SUPER MILLIONS LIVE

LIM JOINS MENTOR LEOW AS TWO-TIME TRITON CHAMP
Malaysia’s Webster Lim paid emotional tribute to his friend and mentor, the late Ivan Leow, after winning the first record-breaking No Limit Hold’em event at Triton Vietnam. Lim’s victory means he now has a NLH and a short deck Triton title and put him in the exclusive ranks of the double champions.

Top five finishers:
1 – Webster Lim, Malaysia – 965,000
2 – Roman Hrabec, Czech Republic – 653,600
3 – Chris Brewer, USA – 435,500
4 – Seth Davies, USA – 357,000
5 – Nick Petrangelo, USA – 286,300

166 entries | 4,150,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 2 – 15,000 NO LIMIT HOLD’EM

BARBERO RUNS OVER RECORD FIELD TO EARN FIRST TRITON TITLE
A Triton trophy is heading to South America for the first time after the Argentinian pro Nacho Barbero beat a new record-setting field to win the 15K NLH event in Vietnam. Barbero was playing only his third Triton event, and knocked out seven of eight of his final table opponents, including Triton debutant Jans Arends heads up for the win. Barbero’s title came with a 600K payout.

Top five finishers:
1 – Nacho Barbero (Argentina) – 600,000
2 – Jans Arends (Netherlands) – 406,000
3 – Brian Kim (USA) – 271,000
4 – Kiat Lee (Malaysia) – 222,000
5 – Aleks Ponakovs (Latvia) – 178,000

172 entries | 2,580,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 3 – 20,000 10K + 10K MYSTERY BOUNTY

QUALIFIER RUBBATHAN MAKES DREAM A REALITY IN MYSTERY BOUNTY
Mark Rubbathan was one of a team of streamers and pros sent to Vietnam by the online site Americas Card Room with a bankroll of 100,000 to play on the Triton Series. He enjoyed a dream run to the title in the Mystery Bounty event, banking nearly 400K from the main prize pool and a further 240K in bounties. “This was a really good time to run better than I’ve ever run in anything,” Rubbathan said.

Top five finishers:
1 – Mark Rubbathan (UK) – 396,000
2 – Wiktor Malinowski (Poland) – 268,000
3 – Victor Chong (Malaysia) – 184,000
4 – Daniel Dvoress (Canada) – 150,400
5 – Calvin Tan (Malaysia) – 120,000

179 entries | 1,790,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 5 – 30,000 NO LIMIT HOLD’EM

ARENDS COMPLETES JOURNEY FROM ONLINE TABLES TO LIVE CRUSHER
Best known as one of online poker’s most reliable tournament players, Jans Arends — aka “Graftekkel” — decided on a trip to the Triton Series in Vietnam and picked up a title alongside his biggest tournament score. After a three-way deal, the Dutchman beat Kiat Lee heads up to bank 921,178, plus a trophy and Shamballa Jewels bracelet.

Top five finishers:
1 – Jans Arends (Netherlands) – 921,178
2 – Kiat Lee (Malaysia) – 851,932
3 – Jonathan Jaffe (USA) – 766,890
4 – Brian Kim (USA) – 441,000
5 – Seth Davies (USA) – 353,700

171 entries | 5,130,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 6 – 50,000 NO LIMIT HOLD’EM

PHU LANDS ONE FOR VIETNAM IN HOME-TURF TRIUMPH
He only learnt poker three years ago, but chose to take on the superstars when they came to his home country to play. And then Dao Minh Phu, a 42-year-old amateur, managed to beat one of the toughest fields in the game to record a famous 1.67 million triumph and vault him, in one fell swoop, into the top three in Vietnam’s all time money list.

Top five finishers:
1 – Dao Minh Phu (Vietnam) – 1,670,000
2 – Biao Ding (China) – 1,135,000
3 – Dan Smith (USA) – 750,500
4 – Viacheslav Buldygin (Russia) – 618,000
5 – Patrik Antonius (Finland) – 497,000

139 entries | $6,950,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 7 – 75,000 NO LIMIT HOLD’EM

KISACIKOGLU DOWNS CHIDWICK TO BE TRITON CHAMPION AGAIN
The London-based Turkish businessman Orpen Kisacikoglu has been on a heater than any of poker’s super high roller elite would be proud of, and he managed to overcome the POY leader Stephen Chidwick heads up to win a second Triton title and more than 1.7 million.

Top five finishers:
1 – Orpen Kisacikoglu (Turkey) – 1,753,000
2 – Stephen Chidwick (UK) – 1,245,000
3 – Steve O’Dwyer (Ireland) – 816,000
4 – Santhosh Suvarna (India) – 628,000
5 – Henrik Hecklen (Denmark) – 497,500

85 entries | 6,375,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 8 – 25,000 NO LIMIT HOLD’EM TURBO

LEATHEM TURNS BUBBLE AGONY INTO TURBO TRIUMPH IN 670K TRITON SUCCESS
Andrew Leathem, from Edinburgh, Scotland, became the latest first-time Triton champion on this trip to Vietnam, overcoming the heartbreak of bubbling the first event to emerge victorious from a typically turbulent turbo event. He denied Nacho Barbero and Dao Minh Phu their second victory of the week.

Top five finishers:
1 – Andrew Leathem (UK) – 670,000
2 – Nacho Barbero (Argentina) – 460,000
3 – Dao Minh Phu (Vietnam) – 301,000
4 – Matthias Eibinger (Austria) – 245,000
5 – Sebastian Gaehl (Germany) – 196,000

104 entries | 2,600,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 9 – 100,000 NO LIMIT HOLD’EM MAIN EVENT

SHAKERCHI BLAZES TO VIETNAM MAIN EVENT GLORY
There was a record-breaking number of entries and one of the toughest final tables ever assembled on the Triton Series, but British businessman Talal Shakerchi beat them all to record the biggest tournament score of his career — or hobby, depending on who you ask…

Top five finishers:
1 – Talal Shakerchi (UK) – 3,250,000
2 – Michael Soyza (Malaysia) – 2,207,000
3 – Daniel Smiljkovic (Germany) – 1,450,000
4 – Adrian Mateos (Spain) – 1,201,000
5 – Fedor Holz (Germany) – 965,000

135 entries | 13,500,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 10 – 50,000 NO LIMIT HOLD’EM SINGLE-DAY TURBO

JASON KOON TAKES TITLE NO 5 AFTER TURBO
The Triton Ambassador Jason Koon became the only player to have five Triton titles after he beat Artur Martirosian heads-up in the 50K Turbo and add yet another trophy to his bulging cabinet

Top five finishers:
1 – Jason Koon (USA) – 574,000
2 – Artur Martirosian (Russia) – 395,000
3 – Chris Brewer (USA) – 252,000
4 – Punnat Punsri (Thailand) – 182,000
5 – Isaac Haxton (USA) – 147,000

31 entries | 1,550,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 11 – 25,000 SHORT DECK

DANNY TANG TAKES FIRST IN TOP-SPEED SHORT DECK FINALE
The British/Hong Kong pro Danny Tang had suffered a difficult trip to Vietnam until he decided to do everything it would take to cash the first short deck event of the week. His five buy-ins eventually translated to a first, emotional title.

Top five finishers:
1 – Danny Tang (Hong Kong) – 427,000
2 – Stephen Chidwick (UK) – 310,000
3 – Richard Yong (Malaysia) 199,300
4 – Kiat Lee (Malaysia) – 151,000
5 – Isaac Haxton (USA) – 117,000

57 entries | 1,425,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 12 – 50,000 SHORT DECK

MIKE WATSON A CHAMPION AT LAST AFTER CRUSHING 50K SHORT DECK
Mike Watson was an early adopter of short deck and is now its latest champion after overcoming a dominant Michael Zhang, and beating Ike Haxton heads-up, to claim his first Triton title after 14 cashes on the tour.

Top five finishers:
1 – Mike Watson (Canada) – 695,000
2 – Isaac Haxton (USA) – 500,000
3 – Michael Zhang (UK) – 320,000
4 – Phil Chiu (Hong Kong) – 242,000
5 – Jason Koon (USA) – 187,000

44 entries | 2,200,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 13 – 100,000 SHORT DECK MAIN EVENT

ZANG DOWNS ZHANG TO WIN SHORT DECK MAIN EVENT AND SECOND TITLE
The winner of the £1m Triton Helping Hand for Charity tournament, Aaron Zang, proved that victory was no fluke, taking down the Vietnam short deck Main Event for more than 1.5 million and adding a second major title to his collection. It consolidates his position at the top of the China money list.

Top five finishers:
1 – Aaron Zang (China) – 1,544,000
2 – Michael Zhang (UK) – 1,115,000
3 – Kiat Lee (Malaysia) – 710,000
4 – Phil Chiu (Hong Kong) – 540,000
5 – Mikita Badziakouski (Belarus) – 416,000

49 entries | 4,900,000prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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EVENT 14 – 20,000 SHORT DECK

SAM GREENWOOD CLOSES IT OUT AFTER MADCAP TURBO VICTORY
The final event on the Triton Vietnam schedule was a fast-paced, all-action 20K short deck turbo, and the last man clinging to the wreckage was the Canadian pro Sam Greenwood, who wins a second Triton title.

In the money players:
1 – Sam Greenwood (Canada) – 207,000
2 – Lun Loon (Malaysia) – 143,000
3 – Isaac Haxton (USA) – 91,000
4 – Seth Davies (USA) – 65,800
5 – Wei Hsiang Yeu (Malaysia) – 53,200

28 entries | 560,000 prize pool
FULL REPORT AND RESULTS

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Photography by Joe Giron/Poker Photo Archive

Nothing is ever easy on the Triton Series, and you need look no further than the figure of Mike Watson to realise how difficult it is to secure a title on this incredible tour.

A much decorated player, with high-profile titles from across the world in all variants of the game, Watson came to Vietnam still in search of a maiden title despite 14 previous cashes.

However Watson is one of relatively few western players who have embraced short deck, the format of the hold’em that proliferates at the high stakes cash tables of Asia. And this willingness to experiment in poker’s newest tournament format finally unlocked the door for Watson tonight.

The 38-year-old from Toronto, Canada, took down the 50,000 Short Deck event here in Vietnam, banking 695K in the process and strapping a Shamballa Jewels bracelet around his wrist for the first time.

“It feels great,” Watson said of his first title. “I’ve played a lot of these events and had a lot of close calls. These are the biggest tournaments, the best series so it feels good to finally win one.”

On the subject of short deck, he added: “I think if more people played it they would find that they really liked it. It’s a gambling game, especially in cash. It’s a real fun, action game.”

Watson needed to defeat another North American tournament titan Isaac Haxton heads up to win this, but the main threat had previously come from Michael Zhang, who at one point seemed to have an unimpeachable stranglehold on the tournament.

However Zhang and Watson played an enormous pot on the final table that swung the pendulum in Watson’s direction. Zhang’s big pocket pair flopped a set, but Watson’s flopped a bigger one. That proved to be the pivotal pot and Zhang soon went out in third.

All credit to Watson, however, a player who has endured tough spells on the Triton Series, but who backed his talent to turn it around. He is now a winner too — and in great form heading into the short deck main event, which gets started today.

FINAL DAY ACTION

Ten players from a starting field of 44 entries returned after the first day’s play, with only seven set to be paid. They lined up like this to start proceedings:

Day 4 starting stacks

Michael Zhang – 3,285,000 (164 antes)
Jason Koon – 1,740,000 (87 antes)
Isaac Haxton – 1,590,000 (80 antes)
Tan Xuan – 1,340,000 (67 antes)
Phil Chiu – 1,190,000 (60 antes)
Michael Watson – 1,120,000 (56 antes)
Lun Loon – 950,000 (48 antes)
Rob Yong – 795,000 (40 antes)
Mikita Badziakouski – 605,000 (30 antes)
Leo Qin – 585,000 (29 antes)

The rapid departures of Leo Qin and Lun Loon left a couple of short stacks on the stone bubble, with players spread across two tables. Tournament director Luca Vivaldi instigated hand-for-hand play, but it wasn’t necessary. We ended up with a one-hand bubble.

One of those short stacks belonged to Rob Yong. And there’s nothing a short stack wants to see more in the circumstances than pocket aces. Yong got his chips in, and the massive leader Michael Zhang made the call with .

One gruesome run-out of later, and Yong was straightened out the door.

The last seven were therefore all in the money, and Zhang had 263 antes — more than 150 more than his closest rival, Phil Chiu.

FINAL TABLE ASSEMBLES — AND TAN XUAN BUSTS

China’s Tan Xuan survived the bubble with only 17 antes. That earned him a place in the dramatic boxing-style walk on to the final table, but he barely had a chance to get seated before he was knocked out.

Zhang, as ever, was the assassin. The British player just limped pre-flop in late position, and Xuan saw . That was enough to get those antes in, but Zhang had laid a trap with .

There was no miracle for the ragged under cards this time and the aces held, bringing the tournament down to six players and sending Xuan out with 116K.

NINE-TITLE DUO HIT THE RAIL

One of the neat sub-plots coming into the final was the presence of the two Triton tournament beasts Jason Koon and Mikita Badziakouski. Prior to the trip to Vietnam, the pair had four Triton titles each. But Koon’s victory in a 50K NLH turbo a couple of days ago edged him clear.

Badziakouski was on the short side coming into the final, so the prospect of him catching Koon were slim. Koon didn’t have many more chips, so at least Badziakouski could content himself in the knowledge that Koon was an underdog to open a two-title gap.

There were no surprises. Badziakouski and Koon departed one after the other in sixth and fifth place, banking 140K and 187K respectively.

Badziakouski’s chips went to Phil Chiu in an encounter pitting against and the better hand holding. Everything was in pre-flop.

Koon’s elimination was a little more complicated. He limped with and Zhang checked with .

The flop was huge for both of them. It came , giving Koon a straight and Zhang top two pair. Zhang bet, Koon raised, Zhang jammed and Koon called, but then the dealer put the on the turn and the on the river.

Zhang ended up with a flush and Koon was sent packing. He predicted two titles this week in Vietnam, and has two tournaments left to pick up a second.

WATSON TAKES CONTROL

To this point, Zhang had seemed unbeatable. He had the biggest stack and was hitting the biggest hands, relentlessly building to what seemed to be certain victory. But what followed was a reminder of how quickly things can change.

Zhang got involved in a massive pot against Watson, where the pattern of big hands continued, but there was a bigger on in the Canadian’s possession.

Zhang had pocket jacks and limped. Haxton called and Watson looked down at pocket queens on the button. He raised and only Zhang called.

This being short deck, the flop was full of possibilities. It came and the fireworks went off. Zhang checked, Watson bet, Zhang raised and Watson called. That brought the on the turn. Oh boy.

Zhang jammed for his last 3.2 million, covering the 2.3 million Watson had in his stack. Watson called off and his bigger full house earned him the full double. It vaulted him to the top of the counts and put Zhang to the bottom.

Watson only consolidated his chip lead when he sent Phil Chiu to the rail in fourth. This started out as a flip, when they got it in pre-flop and Chiu had pocket queens to Waton’s . However, Chiu went further ahead after the flop. And that made it all the ore brutal when the next two cards out were and .

Watson made the straight and Chiu departed with 242K.

Watson now had more than two thirds of the chips in play and was in cruise control three-handed.

ZHANG BECOME’S WATSON’S LATEST VICTIM

After the enormous cooler between Watson and Zhang, the latter might have been forgiven for capitulating and vanishing quickly. But a quick double up through Watson — beating — bought Zhang some time to try to get back into it.

However, the deck was no longer co-operating with Zhang and he trod water for an hour or so before Watson applied the finishing touch.

On what turned out to be Zhang’s final hand, he raised with and then watched Watson move all in, with . Zhang called but only saw Watson hit a set on the flop and never lose the advantage.

Zhang’s turbulent race was run. He hit the rail in third for 320K.

Watson was still in total command. His stack was 10.4 million (209 antes) to Haxton’s 2.7 million (55 antes), but the job still needed to be finished. Before today, Watson had cashed 14 times on the Triton Series without ever recording an outright win, so this was far from a foregone conclusion.

Perhaps the only salvation was the fact that Haxton had cashed 21 times without ever getting his hands on a trophy. So one of these long winless records had to come to an end.

They certainly didn’t keep us waiting.

On only the third hand of heads-up play, Watson open-jammed and Haxton made a mandatory call with . The board then ran and that cast-iron cooler put the winner’s tick finally beside Watson’s name.

It was as smooth a ride to the title as Watson could have possibly hoped for — and more may now be to come.

RESULTS

Event #12 – 50,000 Short Deck
Dates: March 11-12, 2023
Entries: 44 (inc. 19 re-entries)
Prize pool: 2,200,000

1 – Mike Watson (Canada) – 695,000
2 – Isaac Haxton (USA) – 500,000
3 – Michael Zhang (UK) – 320,000
4 – Phil Chiu (Hong Kong) – 242,000
5 – Jason Koon (USA) – 187,000
6 – Mikita Badziakouski (Belarus) – 140,000
7 – Tan Xuan (China) – 116,000

Photography by Joe Giron/Poker Photo Archive

After all the Triton marathons, today we saw the sprint.

Danny Tang won the first Triton Series title of his career in Vietnam this afternoon — yes, this afternoon — after closing out the final table of the 25K short deck event in record speed.

The tournament played from its final seven to a champion in around three hours, with Tang defeating Stephen Chidwick heads-up to claim a 427,000 first prize and translate his 10th final table appearance into his first win.

Tang blitzed through this final, winning a major pot against the overnight leader Kiat Lee to put his stack in a controlling position, and then never being in trouble from that point on. He even managed to steam-roller Chidwick heads-up, forcing the British pro to accept a second runner-up finish of the week.

Tang had whiffed everything to this point in Vietnam, coming down with a cold during the first week and struggling at the tables through nine previous cashless tournaments. But he came good when it lasted and will find his face now on the board of Triton champions after this whirlwind finish.

“I’ve had a really rough week,” Tang told Ali Nejad in the post-tournament ceremony. “It’s the first stop I hadn’t cashed at all.”

He added: “I bought into this five times, so I had to finish fourth or fifth, but yes, the monkey is off my back.”

The tournament was wrapped before 3.30pm local time, and just as the second short deck of the event was getting started. Tang, who represents Hong Kong but who also has roots in Manchester, UK, is one of the most popular players on the circuit and said that he wants to have “left a mark in the sport once I’m done with it for good”. He just went a long way to achieving that.

He also paid tribute to his friend, the late Ivan Leow, who had mentored so many players on the Triton Series. “I think about him every day,” Tang said. “Every single day…This is definitely dedicated to him.”

This tournament was the first short deck event on the Triton Vietnam schedule and had 57 entries. The prize pool was 1.425 million. Like Tang, many of the entrants fired multiple bullets, including Karl Chappe-Gatien, who won the last short-deck event at Triton Cyprus.

But Chappe-Gatien bubbled this one late last night, taking the field down to eight. Justin Bonomo also bust, to Chidwick, at the end of day one, leaving seven returning today.

Final table stacks:

Kiat Lee – 7,905,000 (198 antes)
Danny Tang – 3,825,000 (96 antes)
Mike Watson – 1,805,000 (45 antes)
Stephen Chidwick – 1,330,000 (33 antes)
Isaac Haxton – 1,015,000 (25 antes)
Richard Yong – 685,000 (17 antes)
Phil Chiu – 540,000 (14 antes)

FRANTIC ACTION FROM THE START

These players had played against one another for long periods yesterday (not to mention at other Triton stops) and there was no period today where they took things easy to size each other up.

Richard Yong was the main beneficiary, doubling up three times in the early stages. The first was then his pocket kings beat Mike Watson’s , rivering a straight. The second was through Watson too, when beat Watson’s .

The third time, Yong’s beat Kiat Lee’s , and that put Yong over the average stack for the first time today.

There was no such luck for the other overnight short stack. Phil Chiu became the first to hit the rail today, steadily dipping until the last of his chips went in with and Danny Tang’s made a straight.

Chiu has played a full schedule here in Vietnam and only had one bubble to show for it. So the 72,500 he picked up for seventh will be welcome indeed.

NORTH AMERICANS FEEL THE HEAT

Watson is one of the north Americans who enjoys short deck more than most and has decent results in this format in both the live and online environments. But there is only so much doubling up any one can do without feeling the pressure, and Watson’s stack couldn’t sustain much more.

He did manage to double back through Yong at one point, but his graph was otherwise on a steady downward tilt. And then he found pocket aces, got it in against Lee’s pocket jacks, only for Lee to flop another one.

That spelled the end of Watson’s tournaments and he departed in sixth for 91,200.

Haxton hadn’t enjoyed much better fortune than Watson at the final, although he kept his line more steady by mainly steering clear of significant action. But he eventually got his stack of 1.6 million in from the button after Chidwick open-jammed the hijack.

Haxton had the slightly smaller stack, and when his lost to Chidwick’s , Haxton was out, picking up 117,000 for fifth.

MALAYSIAN CHALLENGE ENDS

Lee was sitting at his fifth final table of this trip to Vietnam, and had come into this one as chip leader. It was the perfect spot from which to launch his bid for a maiden title.

However, his stack took a massive dent in a pot against Tang, the kind of short deck skirmish that can win or lose tournaments. Tang limped with and Lee, with made a standard raise. Tang called as all the other left them to it.

The flop of gave Tang top set, while Lee had an open-ended straight draw. It was perfectly good for both of them to get everything in.

This time the draw bricked and Tang improved after the turn. It gave Tang a massive double, and pegged Lee back into the pack. He never really recovered and was only treading water until Tang finished him off.

This time it was pocket jacks for Lee and for Tang. Tang flopped a flush draw and hit a decisive queen on the river. Lee’s search for a trophy continues but he puts another 151,000 in the fund.

Yong was now somehow in the final three having started with a tiny stack. But he couldn’t get any further, with his quest for a second Triton title ending in third. Yong open-shoved but ran into Chidwick’s .

Yong flopped a queen, but the full board ran and Chidwick ended with a seven-card straight. Yong was out of the door, with 199,300 to his name. The Malaysian challenge was over.

DEEP HEADS-UP

The rate at which the tournament had progressed to heads up took everyone by surprise. They had barely played for two hours on the final day and five players were already out.

It did mean, however, that stacks were pretty deep when Chidwick and Tang prepared for a heads-up battle. Chidwick had 4.7 million (78 antes) to Tang’s 12 million (200 antes), and the possibility remained that they could eke out a long finale.

It was, however, one-way traffic. Chidwick barely won a pot of note in the heads up duel, with Tang chip, chipping away and then snatching it all when Chidwick was all-in for the first time.

That occurred when Chidwick had and Tang had . As is always the case in short deck, the flop brought possibilities. It fell .

“Jack!” shouted one of Tang’s supporters, prompting Tang to tell her that’s the last thing he needed.

The turn and the river were blanks, however, and Tang was triumphant. It was still daylight outside!

RESULTS

Event #11 – 25,000 Short Deck
Dates: March 10-11, 2023
Entries: 57 (inc. 23 re-entries)
Prize pool: 1,425,000

1 – Danny Tang (Hong Kong) – 427,000
2 – Stephen Chidwick (UK) – 310,000
3 – Richard Yong (Malaysia) 199,300
4 – Kiat Lee (Malaysia) – 151,000
5 – Isaac Haxton (USA) – 117,000
6 – Mike Watson (Canada) – 91,200
7 – Phil Chiu (Hong Kong) – 72,500
8 – Justin Bonomo (USA) – 57,000

Photography by Joe Giron/Poker Photo Archive

The Triton Series exists to bring together two sections of the poker-playing community: the elite pros, likely schooled in online poker, and high-wealth businesspeople, keen to play their favourite game for stakes that mean a lot even to them.

Talal Shakerchi, from London, UK, could comfortably sit in either camp. And now Shakerchi has once again proved his enormous talents with victory in the 100K Triton Vietnam NLH Main Event — a tournament that brings with it a prize of 3.25 million.

That is Shakerchi’s biggest poker score, even if we factor in his major successes in the online game. And it came on the biggest stage, against the toughest field. But it should come as no surprise: Shakerchi is as exceptional a poker player as he is hedge fund manager.

That’s where Shakerchi made his name and built his bankroll. But the 59-year-old has long been taking on and beating poker’s elite too. This just underlines it further.

“Poker is my hobby and I want to play the best players,” Shakerchi said. “That’s how you get satisfaction out of any activity that you do. Challenge yourself and try to do the best you can.”

But he pushed back against claims he could be called a poker pro. “Don’t start moving me into the other zone!” he told Ali Nejad in the winner presentation. “I’m not a professional player. I spend quite a lot of time playing poker. It’s my main hobby. But I’m definitely not a pro.”

Shakerchi came into today’s nine-handed final table as the chip leader, but with the likes of Adrian Mateos, Fedor Holz and Timothy Adams also alongside him, there was nothing that could be taken for granted. However, Shakerchi was only ever out of the lead for brief moments, usually when Malysia’s Michael Soyza was on a charge.

But Shakerchi beat Soyza in an adrenalin-fuelled heads-up battle, winning the pots that mattered most in their brief two-handed duel, and sealing the deal with against Soyza’s .

Soyza, whose took a turbulent route to second, wins more than 2.2 million, his biggest career cash as well.

But the Jacob & Co timepiece goes around the wrist of Shakerchi, who is also paying for extra baggage on his flight home to London to accommodate the huge Triton Main Event trophy. This is a stunning victory from one of poker’s standout stars, all wrapped up on the final day in less than six hours.

TOURNAMENT RECAP

At three days, this was the longest event on the Triton Vietnam schedule, and the word “Main” in the title also points to its prestige. All the very best no limit hold’em players in the world had sat down, building a new Triton Main Event record of 135 entries. That put a staggering 13.5 million into the prize pool.

While the tournament’s first day was all about the field expanding, registration closed on Day 2 and the contraction began. They fell at a speedy rate until the bubble loomed into view, preparing to burst when the 21st finisher was eliminated.

That ignominy fell to Kahle Burns this time, the usually talkative Australian silenced by Shakerchi, whose beat Burns’ . Burns shoved for 12 big blinds from the small blind, but the fearless Shakerchi called and was good.

Everyone still involved thus guaranteed themselves 175K minimum, with an incredible succession of superstars taking the fall. Between 20th and 16th, we lost Mike Watson, Sam Greenwood, Erik Seidel, Bryn Kenney and Sam Grafton, in that order.

The next major target was reaching the final, which would end the day. Johannes Straver, Brian Kim, Wiktor Malinowski, David Yan and Seth Gottlieb hit the rail, before Lun Loon’s elimination in 10th reached that landmark.

Loon has been in great form here in Vietnam, cashing the 50K and 25K Turbo, and although his finish here denied him the chance to play on the final day, he picked up his biggest career cash of 270K.

That brought us to today’s final, where they lined up with the following stacks:

Talal Shakerchi – 7,400,000 (74 BBs)
Adrian Mateos – 7,050,000 (71 BBs)
Daniel Smiljkovic – 5,325,000 (53 BBs)
Fedor Holz – 3,925,000 (39 BBs)
Winfred Yu – 3,100,000 (31 BBs)
Timothy Adams – 2,450,000 (25 BBs)
Michael Soyza – 2,275,000 (23 BBs)
Nick Petrangelo – 1,800,000 (18 BBs)
Roman Hrabec – 525,000 (5 BBs)

THREE QUICK ELIMINATIONS

Reaching the final table was obviously a notable success for anybody, and Roman Hrabec can feel hugely satisfied with his debut appearance on the Triton Series. He was the runner up in the first event he played, then made the last day in his first 100K — even if he knew he’d need a miracle to spin up his five big blind stack.

That miracle did not occur. The final table was only about an orbit old when Hrabec found pocket threes in the hijack. Adrian Mateos min-raised ahead of him, and Hrabec moved in for less than a blind more. Everyone else left them to it.

Mateos had and ended with a straight, forcing Hrabec out the door. He bowed gently, just enough to make his traditional Vietnamese hat wobble a little. He took 324,000 for ninth, bringing his week’s total cashes to just shy of 1 million. He’ll have warm memories of Vietnam.

If Hrabec’s quick elimination was only to be expected, the next two took everyone by their surprise. Winfred Yu is well-known for his abilities to move silently through poker tournament fields, flying below the radar until it’s too late to stop him.

However, Yu’s incredible laddering skills couldn’t help him through a three-way skirmish that also happened to put Michael Soyza on a remarkable surge up the counts. Yu, with 12 big blinds, found and moved all in from the hijack. But then Fedor Holz, in the cutoff, looked down at . He reshoved for 5 million, which covered the player behind him, Soyza and Tim Adams.

Soyza found and reasoned this was the right spot for his 17 bigs to go in too.

Holz, then, was way ahead, in terms of both chips and holding. But an ace on the flop changed all that. It relegated Holz to third in the coup, with Soyza getting Yu’s chips as well as a full double through Holz. Yu took 418,400 but continues to seek his third title.

Nick Petrangelo was now the table’s short stack, but he doubled up with through Shakerchi’s pocket tens. It might have been the springboard for Petrangelo to put together a hunt for his long overdue first title, but instead his chips just ended up being added to Soyza’s new-found wealth.

Only two hands after landing the double, Petrangelo was gone. He had pocket jacks and raised. Soyza three-bet. Petrangelo jammed and Soyza called. This time Soyza had found aces and there was no getting out of the corner for Petrangelo. Instead, he took 566,800 for seventh.

His cash hoodoo is over — he somehow hadn’t cashed on the Triton Series before this trip to Vietnam — but he still isn’t yet a champion.

A CONSOLIDATION, BEFORE ADAMS DEPARTS

Things did slow down for a bit now. But not for long. Soyza went on a slide, losing two big pots to, first, Holz and then Smiljkovic. In the former, Holz made a flush with to beat Soyza’s . They both hit their kicker on the flop, but the turn and river were both diamonds.

There was already 3.8 million in the pot and Holz checked, inducing Soyza to move all in. Holz called with the nuts and hit 12 million, with Soyza cut right down. And on the very next hand, Soyza open-shoved his small blind with and Smiljkovic, in the big blind, calmly peeled pocket aces and called.

Smiljkovic doubled to 6 million, but Soyza was now back down to around 3 million.

Uncharacteristically, Tim Adams had barely had a say during all this action at the final. But he then played three hands that ended with his elimination. On the first, both he and Shakerchi flopped top pair queens, and bet through flop and turn. They slowed down to a check after the king on the river, but the 1.6 million pot still went to Shakerchi thanks to his bigger kicker.

Adams won a good chunk back on the next hand, when his hit three of a kind. But shortly after, he lost an even bigger pot with to Shakerchi’s — and that was the end of that for Adams.

The richly decorated Canadian banked 756,000 for this sixth-placed finish.

HOLZ AND MATEOS NEXT TO PERISH

There are many players in the world game with resumes quite like those boasted by Adrian Mateos and Fedor Holz. They are the leading lights of two of Europe’s powerhouse poker nations, with young Spaniards wanting to be just like Mateos and countless Germans modelling themselves on Holz.

Some of the latter — namely Matthias Eibinger and Mario Molboeck — were in the audiences for the Main Event this afternoon, watching their friend and icon Holz take on this 100K final table. But they ended up having to be there only to console him after a fifth-place finish.

Holz had trundled along as a medium stack in the final, but for the second time today fell victim to the curse of the pocket kings. This time when Holz had them, and four-bet jammed in a pot against Smiljokovic, the cowboys were downed by .

There was an ace on the turn and the near 5 million pot went to Smiljkovic. Holz’s first cash of the week was worth 965,000 — the last man to depart without a million.

The first man to depart with a million turned out to be Mateos. He was third in chips with four remaining, but picked the wrong time — or, more accurately — the wrong person to face when trying to steal a big blind with a small blind shove.

Mateos had 3.725 million and . (Blinds were 125K/250K/250K.) Soyza, in the big blind, had 3.1 million and . Soyza is not one to back down from a confrontation, and the ace was enough to persuade him to gamble for his tournament life.

The ace stayed good and Soyza doubled, leaving Mateos on fumes. The little he had left went to Shakerchi soon after, when Mateos’ fell to Shakerchi’s .

THREE BECOME TWO

Daniel Smiljkovic was visiting the Triton Series for the first time and, having cashed in 16th in the opening event of the series, hadn’t managed another payday since then. However, the German player had demonstrated his abilities in this Main Event, translating some of his online form to the live tables.

He played a lot of pots and had the jagged graph to underline it, but was unable to arrest a pretty steep decline as the tournament grew short-handed. He ended up getting involved in a big pot against Shakerchi with , flopping top two pair.

But there were also two hearts on the flop and Shakerchi had . Two more hearts came on turn and river, by which point all the money was also in the middle. Smiljkovic perished in third, picking up a career-best 1.45 million.

The stage was now set for what could have been a long heads-up battle — Shakerchi had a two-to-one lead — but in keeping with what we’d seen to this point, there was drama.

On the very first hand, Shakerchi’s turned a straight on the board of . Soyza had an ace, but his huge aggression persuaded Shakerchi that he had the flush.

After Soyza shoved, a Shakerchi call would have ended it. But instead, Shakerchi folded. It might have preyed on a lesser player’s mind, but Shakerchi just got on with things again.

It was, in fact, as good as it got for Soyza. Shakerchi won one big pot with , turning another straight. Soyza tried to win it with his pair of jacks, but Shakerchi didn’t buy it this time. He raised with the best hand and Soyza called with a weaker one, losing almost everything.

The next significant pot was the end of it.

The final hand was a little weird. Shakerchi accidentally moved all in out of turn. Soyza was allowed to take this information and make his next move. He decided to limp. Shakerchi now shoved and Soyza called for his last 13 big blinds.

He had those picture cards, but Shakerchi called with his ace. Job done.

Businessman or poker pro? It doesn’t really matter. Shakerchi is superb at both.

Event #9 – 100,000 NLH Main Event
Dates: March 8-10, 2023
Entries: 135 (inc. 45 re-entries)
Prize pool: 13,500,000

1 – Talal Shakerchi (UK) – 3,250,000
2 – Michael Soyza (Malaysia) – 2,207,000
3 – Daniel Smiljkovic (Germany) – 1,450,000
4 – Adrian Mateos (Spain) – 1,201,000
5 – Fedor Holz (Germany) – 965,000
6 – Timothy Adams (Canada) – 756,000
7 – Nick Petrangelo (USA) – 566,800
8 – Winfred Yu (Hong Kong) – 418,400
9 – Roman Hrabec (Czech Republic) – 324,000

10 – Lun Loon (Malaysia) – 270,000
11 – Seth Gottlieb (USA) – 270,000
12 – David Yan (New Zealand) – 237,000
13 – Wiktor Malinowski (Poland) – 237,000
14 – Brian Kim (USA) – 216,000
15 – Johannes Straver (Netherlands) – 216,000
16 – Sam Grafton (UK) – 195,400
17 – Bryn Kenney (USA) – 195,400
18 – Erik Seidel (USA) – 175,000
19 – Sam Greenwood (Canada) – 175,000
20 – Mike Watson (Canada) – 175,000

Photography by Joe Giron/Poker Photo Archive

There’s a a huge story coming out of Triton Vietnam tonight as Jason Koon, the Triton Ambassador and one of the game’s undisputed megastars, took down the 50K Turbo, in the process becoming the first man to reach five titles on the series.

Playing beneath the two banners that show both Koon and Mikita Badziakouski as the only four-time Triton winners, Koon was able to overcome a short stack at the final table to defeat Artur Martirosian heads-up and pick up No 5.

Koon won 574,000, another trophy and a Shamballa Jewels bracelet. As he said as the congratulations began to rain in: “Update the banner!”

One of the most popular players on the circuit, and an absolute beast to play against, Koon was humble and magnanimous in victory, stating that it’s moments like these that help him overcome the home sickness and keep him playing at the top of his game. He has a young son at home, and another new arrival due soon, and is out on the road doing all of this for them.

“The motivation, at the end of the day, is that I’m earning a lot and I want to do that,” Koon said. “I’m leaving my family at home. I wouldn’t do that for prestige. I’m doing it because I know that there’s a short window of time where I have the energy and the passion to be good at this, and I want to make the most of it while I can.”

Making the most of it today meant beating a field of 31 entries, featuring, as you’d expect, the very best in the world (who happened to have bust the Main Event). The final table was as difficult as you’d imagine, with Chris Brewer, Isaac Haxton, Artur Martirosian and Punnat Punsri standing between Koon and the title.

But he hit the cards when he needed, and managed to outthink everyone in a couple of crucial spots.

“I had to fade some all ins,” Koon said. “I was the short stack, but that’s how these things work once in a while. You get to win all the all ins.”

He was keen to pay tribute to the player he now draws clear of on with respect to Triton titles — and extended the praise to the rest of the field too.

“Mikita [Badziakouski] is one of the greatest poker players of all time and all the other people here are legends too,” Koon said. “I was talking with a person who works here and they were talking about observing, being here, and it’s just special to see the best players in the world battle each other. It’s true. You look around and the best players from online, live, whatever, they’re here playing the highest stakes and we’re truly blessed to get to do it.”

And Koon, already a Triton legend, has eyes on even further glories.

“I said before we got here I’d win two on this trip. We still got short deck, so we’ll see if we can do it.”

ALL THE CRUCIAL ACTION

With the Main Event progressing from the close of registration to the final table, the 50K Turbo got started to make sure the eliminated players still had some cards to play. It started on just one table, but expanded gradually as more players, including Koon, arrived.

By the time registration was closed over on this side of the room, there were 31 entries including seven re-entries, with 1.55 million in the prize pool. Five players would be paid.

After that, things contracted quickly and a final table came close.

As the bubble approached, two of the game’s luminaries were in the kind of trouble even they couldn’t wriggle out of. Stephen Chidwick’s three big blinds went to Brewer when jacks lost to queens. Shortly after, Dan Smith’s seven bigs went in the same direction, with Brewer’s undoing Smith’s pocket fives.

That brought them to a stone bubble, with nobody especially short, but where plenty of medium stacks were vulnerable. One of them belonged to Triton newcomer Warwick Mirzikinian. Until it suddenly belonged to Brewer too.

After being raised off the previous hand, when he defended his big blind, Mirzikinian laid a trap for Brewer on the next, when he was in the small blind. Action folded to him, Mirzikinian just called and Brewer moved all in with the covering stack.

Mirzikinian couldn’t call fast enough and tabled . Brewer was dominated with . However the flop of looked dicey for Mirzikinian, and then the turn was even worse.

The river helped no one but Brewer and Mirzikinian was toast. Everyone left earned a minimum of 147K.

They went to the final with the following stacks:

Chris Brewer – 3,100,000
Punnat Punsri – 980,000
Artur Martirosian – 815,000
Jason Koon – 720,000
Isaac Haxton – 560,000

Blinds were still at the 15K/30K/30K level, so there was play left in this one.

Brewer had a lead big enough that he could take some liberties, and he played the bully in the early proceedings to keep the flop of chips coming in his direction.

He took a back seat, however, as Martirosian dispatched the short-stack Haxton in fifth. Haxon opened under the gun, and then called off when Martirosian shoved from the big blind. Haxton’s pocket eights lost the race to Martirosian’s and he took 147K.

That hand spurred Martirosian and he took two big pots from Brewer. The first came about when Martirosian flopped middle pair with his on a flop of . Nobody knew it at the time, but Brewer had the biggest of all combo draws with his and they bet it through flop and turn.

The draw missed, however, while Martirosian hit another 10 on the river and checked. Brewer checked back, then disconsolately tossed his cards in the air, revealing how he had been favourite on the flop.

Not long after, the same two players tangled again, with betting on every street through a board of . Martirosian showed and Brewer mucked. Martirosian was now in the lead.

By this point, Koon had also all but doubled up once, thanks to pocket sixes. He and Brewer checked it down and Koon won, but he had left one or two chips behind pre-flop. Even so, it was enough to keep him going a few more orbits.

It also gave him a bigger stack than Punsri, which was crucial because those two then got it in. Koon raised almost all in again, Punsri shipped and Koon called. Koon’s pocket threes beat Punsri’s . That sent the Cyprus Main Event champion out in fourth with 182,000.

Brewer had now assumed the short stack, with Koon resurgent. And when the two Americans went head-to-head, Koon came out on top. Brewer had and Koon had when they got it all in, and the ace played. Brewer picked up 252K for third after another deep run.

Koon and Martirosian had almost equal stacks starting heads up, and the pair clearly respected one another’s game a lot. By now, a crowd had gathered in an otherwise empty side of the tournament room, sensing Koon’s shot at history.

And then the defining hand took place. Koon limped and Martirosian checked, taking them to a flop of for the minimum.

Martirosian check-called 60,000 from Koon. The came on the turn and it went check-call again, this time for 450K.

The appeared on the river and Martirosian checked for a third time. Koon shoved for 2.2 million, the smaller stack.

Martirosian then went deep into the tank. He burnt through four time-banks before checking with the dealer how many he had used up. She told him, and he burnt another two. And then he dumped the chips forward to call.

Koon tabled for two pair, and Martirosian’s was beaten.

“I knew I had the best hand,” Koon said afterwards, talking through the hand. “It’s a situation where I made a gigantic bet on the river, and the reason why is that I overbet the turn and the river completed the five, which made seven-eight the nut straight. And I can have all the seven-eight that I was bluffing with that made the straight, and he can have none of it.

“And for that reason you get to make an enormous bet. So I bet over 2x the pot. Artur is a great poker player and he identified that he has to call a lot of hands that aren’t very good there, because I could be coming after him. I just happened to have it there.”

That left Martirosian with nine big blinds. He doubled soon after, but within three or four more hands it was over. They got it in with for Martirosian and for Koon.

Once again, the ace held and the tournament was over. Martirosian gets 395,000, but Koon gets his face on the wall, on a whole new banner. Should they start printing No 6 already?

RESULTS

Event #10 – 50,000 NLH Turbo
Dates: March 9, 2023
Entries: 31 (inc. 7 re-entries)
Prize pool: 1,550,000

1 – Jason Koon (USA) – 574,000
2 – Artur Martirosian (Russia) – 395,000
3 – Chris Brewer (USA) – 252,000
4 – Punnat Punsri (Thailand) – 182,000
5 – Isaac Haxton (USA) – 147,000

Photography by Joe Giron/Poker Photo Archive