It was certainly a high-stakes series to remember as the now finished Triton Super High Roller Series Jeju wrapped up on March 21, 2024. Two weeks of No-Limit Hold’em; Pot Limit Omaha and Short Deck contests saw some of the biggest names in the world of poker compete at the Landing Casino on Jeju island showcase their skills at the tables with non-stop live stream action being offered.
Throughout 17 tournaments in total, the second-richest stop in Triton Poker history generated prize pools of $102,160,000 and recorded 2,555 entries. There were 17 different winners from 14 different countries and the most successful nation was China with three titles followed by Austria with two.
After the attendance record for a Triton Poker event was broken three times in the first nine tournaments, another marquee figure was reached to show just how successful the stop in South Korea really was. The $100,000 Main Event beat the previous biggest tally of 151 in a landslide as 216 entries generated a massive prize pool of $2,160,000 – but more on that shortly.
To put the overall numbers in perspective: Last year’s record-setting WSOP Main Event had 10,043 players for a prize pool $93,399,900 and this figure was all but surpassed after the first 13 of 17 events in Jeju. Once all tournaments had finished, the second-ever Triton Poker stop with more than $100 million in prize money entered the history books of the high-stakes brand.
Only London 2019 had generated an even bigger amount but that comes as no surprise, as the stop back then included the Triton Million for Charity with a price tag of £1,050,000. A total of 54 runners made for a prize pool of £54,000,000 and the entire series including two invitational tournaments resulted in total prize pools of £113,557,000 ($138,042,295).
Key Numbers of the 2024 Triton Super High Roller Series Jeju
Total Number of Events: 17
Largest Field Size: 305 Entries (Event #6 $25,000 GG MILLION$)
Total Entries: 2,555
Average Entries per Event: 150
Total Prize Pools: $102,160,000
Largest Prize Pool: $21,600,000 (Event #11 $100,000 Main Event)
Average Prize Pool per Event: $6,009,412
Average / Total Buy-In all Events (incl. fee): $49,923 / $848,700
Roman Hrabec Wins Record-Breaking Main Event
With three new attendance records under their belt, the expectations for the $100,000 Main Event were high and the flagship tournament of the entire series smashed those anyways. The 216 entries obliterated the previous largest Triton Poker Main Event (151 entries, London 2023) and also became the largest live poker tournament with a six-figure buy-in, surpassing the World Series of Poker One Drop editions from the last decade. With a buy-in of $21,600,000, it also became the second-largest prize pool for a six-figure buy-in as well, only trailing Triton’s very own $250,000 Luxon Invitational (118 entries, $29,500,000 prize pool).
The number of entries ballooned towards the end of the late registration period at the start of Day 2 and several contenders fired multiple bullets without success. A total of 39 spots were paid at least $151,000 and nine players from Asia cashed, but only one of them made it past the final three tables. That was Elton Tsang, who had already won Event #9 a few days prior. This time, he finished in a very respectable third place for $2,105,000 ahead of the likes of Alex Kulev, Chris Brewer, Matthias Eibinger, and Patrik Antonius.
Heads-up play saw French businessman Jean-Noel Thorel versus Czech poker pro Roman Hrabec, who also had a lucky orange on his side as well. Hrabec came out on top for a score of $4,330,000, the biggest single prize of the entire series. For Thorel, the runner-up finish came with a payday of $2,875,000 which plays no significant role for the pharma tycoon.
China Strikes Three Times in Second Half of the Series
Within one week, China went from zero to three titles in Jeju. The only Asian player to finish inside the top 13 spots and in the money of Event #12 $25,000 Pot-Limit Omaha was Quan Zhou, who has been known for deep runs in the four-card variant. This time, he earned a quarter of the $2,000,000 prize pool and padded his bankroll with $530,000.
Two days later, Event #15 $50,000 Pot-Limit Omaha drew 43 unique players and 41 re-entries for a prize pool of $4,200,000. This time, the top 14 spots were paid at least $76,000 and Danny Tang in 10th place ($92,500) as well as Kosei Ichinose in 9th place ($110,000) came up short of the final table. Antonius was back in the mix with a seventh place, followed by Ole Schemion and Stephen Chidwick.
Triton Poker co-founder Paul Phua scored $401,000 for fourth and Jared Bleznick then departed next. That left Biao Ding to battle with none other than poker legend Phil Ivey for the title and seven-figure top prize. It would be Ding to come out on top for $1,107,000 while Ivey was denied a repeat Triton victory for a consolation prize of $755,000.
The trio of triumphs for China was completed by businessman Tan Xuan, who has become well-known for his very aggressive and fearless playing style. Many of his deep runs had previously come in the Short Deck variant and Event #17 $50,000 Short Deck Main Event seemed very fitting to add another trophy to his cabinet.
A total of 34 players re-entered 33 times to generate §3,350,000 in prize money, which was split among the top eleven finishers. Ivey was first to bust in the money this time with Lun Loon (Malaysia) and new face “P Aorigele” (China) the next two casualties. Aforementioned Quan Zhou finished in fifth place for $261,000 before Triton’s Jason Koon bowed out next.
Three Short Deck specialists battled for the trophy from there on with Dutch player Rene van Krevelen taking home $428,000. Martin Nielsen, who won the $10,000 Short Deck bracelet at the 2023 WSOP in Las Vegas, earned a payday of $655,000 but there was no stopping to Xuan’s aggression as he earned his second Triton title and $922,000 – both victories came in the fast-paced variant.
Further Notable Winners in the Second Half
Jose Ignacio “Nacho” Barbero, a very versatile and experienced mixed game player from Argentina, showed a master class of his own in Event #13 Pot-Limit Omaha Bounty Quattro. There were a total of 84 entries for a prize pool of $1,680,000 with 14 spots paid. Zhou made the min-cash for $30,500 while the final seven players locked up $80,000. Among them was also Ding, going for a second title, but he bowed out in fifth for $127,000.
The unofficial final table was seven-handed and Barbero knocked out all of his six final opponents including a double knockout in the very last hand! 2023 WSOP Main Event fourth-place finisher Jan-Peter Jachtmann had fewer chips and took $236,000 (incl. $40k in bounties) whereas Daniel Dvoress secured $342,000 ($40k bounties). Barbero throned above them all with $763,000 in total, almost half of which came from bounties ($320,000)!
Two-time EPT Main Event champion Mike Watson claimed his third Triton title in Event #16: $25,000 Short Deck. Out of a field of 52 entries, the Canadian burst the bubble to make sure the final nine players all locked up a portion of the $1,300,000. Thai Ha and Xuan were first to cash, Malaysia’s Lun Loon and Wai Kin Yong followed.
Dong Chen was one of two other Asian player in the mix thereafter and took fourth place for $133,000, after which Seth Davies bowed out in third worth $177,500. Ren “Tony” Lin missed out on the title but claimed $273,000 whereas Watson lifted the trophy for the winner shots and then collected $380,000.
Mikita “fish2013” Badziakouski finished fifth in that event, too, to then win Event #18 $100,000 Short Deck soon after. A small but elusive field of 34 entries brought $3,400,000 into the middle with six players cashing including four Asians. China’s Xiao Wu placed sixth for $240,000, Jason Koon was next to fall for $306,000 and Poker Dream co-founder Winfred Yu missed out a spot on the podium as he finished fourth for $391,000.
Sun Ya Qi earned his third live poker cash and first since 2016 with a massive third place for $510,000 before Triton Poker co-founder Paul Phua took on Badziakouski. It was the latter who came out on top for $1,153,000 – the Belorussian is now up to sixth on The Hendon Mob’s all-time money list with almost $53 million in MTT scores. Phua walked away with his usual bright smile and $800,000.
Last but not least, the final trophy of the series went to the UK’s Stephen Chidwick in Event #19 $20,000 Short Deck. There were 42 entries and the top seven shared $840,000 in prize money. Zhou (third for $122,000) and Xuan (second for $191,000) narrowly missed a second title for this stop, because the seventh cash in Jeju for the Brit was the golden one. His second Triton title came with a modest payday of $265,000, as he now nears $57 million in live MTT scores.
Poker fans from all over the world only have to wait one and a half months for the next Triton high-stakes series to take place. From May 12 to 26, 2024, the Maestral Resort & Casino in Budva, Montenegro is hosting the clash of High Roller regulars for the fourth time.
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