Armenia’s Aren Bezhanyan has taken down Event #1 of the Triton Super High Roller Series in Jeju, the $20,000 NLH 8-Handed, for $990,000.

Bezhanyan becomes the first ever champion from Armenia on the Triton Super High Roller Series, and the perfect case study for the Triton ONE pathway. He first played a Triton event at Triton ONE in Jeju last September, then returned this year and cashed six times from nine ONE tournaments before carrying that form into the SHRS.

The 247-entry field generated a $4,940,000 prize pool at the LES A Casino, Shinhwa World, Jeju Island. Bezhanyan defeated Latvia’s number one three-time WSOP bracelet winner Aleks Ponakovs heads-up to claim the title.

The win more than doubled Bezhanyan’s previous career-best of $420,000 and pushed his lifetime tracked earnings past $4.5 million across 172 cashes, per The Hendon Mob.

“I have dreamt of winning such a tournament for such a long time. Many times I got close to winning, but only now I have done it. It’s hard to put into words all the emotions I am feeling.”

Action Recap

The bubble had burst on Day 1, with the unfortunate Aliaksandr Shylko collecting his second bubble of the trip after having aces cracked in the Triton ONE Main Event. This time he was forced in for his final two blinds holding Q 10 and lost to Johannes Straver’s K J.

Thirty-seven players returned for Day 2 and the field thinned quickly. By the time the final table was set, Ponakovs was leading:

Ponakovs’ lead lasted until the first major hand. Wu Jun Hao doubled with A 10 turning a flush to beat Ponakovs’ A Q. Ponakovs opened, Wu jammed for 22 big blinds from the small blind, and Ponakovs called.

After a couple more pots went against him, Ponakovs slipped to the bottom of the leaderboard. But he bounced back when his queens held against Wayne Heung’s A 2.

Heung wasn’t able to recover. His pocket sixes lost to Bezhanyan’s pocket jacks, with Heung’s last three blinds heading away from him. Heung collected $103,000 for ninth.

Li Xinjing stayed largely out of the line of fire in the opening stages. But when he tried to put pressure on the shorter-stacked Bojovic, three-bet jamming K Q, he ran into Bojovic’s A Q and doubled up the Serbian.

That left Li with only one blind. He found one double but was still vulnerable, and got his last four blinds in with pocket nines only to lose to $250K Triton Invitational champion Kayhan Mokri’s A 5 which rivered an ace. Li earned $125,000 for eighth.

With seven players remaining, the average stack was only 18 big blinds. Germany’s Sebastian Gaehl was making his second trip to Triton here in Jeju and had cashed every event he played during the Triton ONE festival.

This wasn’t to be his day. Gaehl called Bojovic’s button shove from the small blind with pocket nines and only six blinds.

Bojovic had pocket tens and held. Gaehl won $170,000 for seventh.

Calvin Lee found A 8 and seized the chance to get his last seven blinds into an unopened pot. Mokri had A K and called.

Neither player paired anything on the runout and the better kicker played. Lee’s sixth-place prize was $231,000.

Six were left, but Wu Jun Hao nearly didn’t make the trip. On the last hand before moving, Wu got his last five blinds in with pocket nines and was flipping against Bezhanyan’s A K. The pocket pair held.

Mokri was the only player with a greater-than-average stack. He shoved relentlessly, but Ponakovs doubled twice through him: A 8 beating J 7, then pocket sixes beating A 7. Just like that, Ponakovs was back in the lead.

That lasted one hand. Mokri polished off Wu in fifth, with Wu’s A J coming unstuck against Mokri’s A 5.

The ace-five made a wheel on a board of 6 4 3 J 7 and Wu was out. Wu won $305,000 for fifth.

Bojovic had got a taste for the Triton Series when he visited Paradise last December. He was in Jeju to play a full slate of Triton ONE, cashing in three out of three tournaments, and was now spinning it up on the SHRS.

His tournament ended in fourth when he called for his last five blinds after Bezhanyan jammed the small blind. Bojovic held 8 7 but lost to Bezhanyan’s J 10. Bojovic won $389,000.

Ponakovs then seized control. A sizeable pot against Mokri, where he showed down top pair of queens and Mokri mucked, gave the Latvian a 32-blind stack. Bezhanyan’s 12 and Mokri’s six looked feeble alongside.

Mokri ended up handing those blinds to Bezhanyan when Bezhanyan jammed the small blind holding pocket fives and Mokri called in the big with A 6. The overcards didn’t hit. Mokri was out in third for $482,000.

After a brief break, they came back to play heads-up with 25 blinds average. Ponakovs had 32 to Bezhanyan’s 18, but the lead didn’t last.

Bezhanyan won the first three hands, all of which went to the flop at least, and then jammed the fourth on the river. He was suddenly 3-1 ahead.

Bezhanyan could sense victory, but an ace on the river allowed Ponakovs to double holding J 10 against Bezhanyan’s Q 9. Bezhanyan flopped a queen, turned another, but the ace gave Ponakovs broadway. Bezhanyan gathered his thoughts and built the lead again, but once more Ponakovs whacked the river card he needed for his 6 8 to beat 10 K.

However, the third time was the last. Ponakovs got his final 14 blinds in holding J 8, calling Bezhanyan’s jam with A 3. The flop of A 4 2 looked like a clincher for Bezhanyan, until the J on the turn cast some doubt.

But the K came clean on the river and Bezhanyan’s pair of aces held. Armenia is on the Triton board.

$20,000 NLH 8-Handed Final Table Results

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