Elton Tsang Evolves from "Tournament Fish" to Triton Champion; Tom Dwan Reels in $400K Score
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Triton Poker Jeju is in the tail end of its No Limit Hold'em Events, with only the $100K Main Event left to play out.
There have been several high-profile winners across the festival, with plenty of seven-figure scores handed out but those paydays pale in comparison to the figurative treasure chest Elton Tsang just unearthed in South Korea.
After 71 bites of the cherry, the Hong Kong cash game specialist finally bagged his maiden Triton title after reigning supreme in the biggest event of the series, Event #9 �C $150K NLH 8-Handed for $4,210,000.
Tsang, who'd made 11 Triton final tables prior to the triumph, employed the help of a poker coach after noting himself to Triton media as a "tournament fish." His investment immediately paid dividends as he overcame a stacked final table and Biao Ding in heads-up.
Event #9 �C $150K NLH 8-Handed Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elton Tsang | Hong Kong | $4,210,000 |
| 2 | Biao Ding | China | $2,870,000 |
| 3 | Mike Watson | Canada | $1,895,000 |
| 4 | Liang Xu | China | $1,563,000 |
| 5 | James Chen | Taiwan | $1,254,000 |
| 6 | Alex Kulev | Bulgaria | $983,000 |
| 7 | Wang Ye | China | $737,000 |
| 8 | Sean Winter | United States | $544,000 |
| 9 | Sam Grafton | United Kingdom | $422,000 |
Event: $150K NLH 8-Handed
Entries: 117
Prize Pool: $17,550,000
Winner: Elton Tsang ($4,210,000)
Paid Places: 20
Click here for a full list of payouts
Tsang's Route to Victory
The FT of nine was formed on Day 2, with play stopping when six remained. The late-night eliminations of Sam Grafton, Sean Winter and Wang Ye confirmed the player list for the finale.
Tsang was in pole position for the end stage of the tournament, with Ding and Liang Xu as his closest rivals, while Alex Kulev, two-time EPT champion Mike Watson and James Chen rounded out the bottom half of the counts.
Kulev, who has been a breakout star on the high roller circuit over the last 12 months, bowed out in sixth-place after his ace-jack was straightened out by Watson's ace-ten after the chips piled in preflop. The Bulgarian has had another impressive showing with poker's elite, with $1,332,500 added to his live earnings across his three cashes in Jeju.
Watson found good fortune again with ace-ten, as he flipped out Chen after the latter moved in preflop with pocket nines. Ding then made it three-handed play after his aces remained best against Xu, who check-jammed with top pair on a king-high flop. Chen and Xu both received $1m+ payouts with $1,254,000 and $1,563,000 going into their respective pockets.
Despite securing two knockouts, Watson was the short stack at three-handed play, and even with receiving a double-up from Tsang, the eventual winner ended the Canadian's hope of a third Triton title.
Tsang looked down at ace-queen and raised from the button. He then called when Watson shoved with his dominated ace-deuce. A drama-free runout for Tsang confirmed that he and Ding would battle it out for the winner's spoils.
Tsang and Ding traded pots, with little separating them until Ding put on his cape at the wrong time and hero-called with king-high after Tsang rivered a pair of aces in a tournament-defining pot.
Ding ended up being forced all-in from the big blind, and his ten-three failed to hold against Tsang's seven-high, who flopped a pair and held out to see his arm raised after the bell rang.
Ivey's Aces Cracked on Final Table; Punsri Runs Hot for $2M Payout
Smith Edges Coleman; Dwan in the Spotlight
Dan Smith added his name to the series' list of winners after he took down Event #10 �C $50K NLH Turbo $15K Bounty Quattro. He defeated David Coleman in heads-up that saw him bank the $951,000 up top along with another $300,000 in bounties.
From the 108 entries, 17 places were paid a portion of the $3,780,000 prize pool, which saw the likes of Seth Davies and Tom Dwan reel in significant scores. Davies' run ended in third-place while "durrrr" received $406,000 for his fourth-place finish.
Event: $50K NLH Turbo $15K Bounty Quattro
Entries: 108
Prize Pool: $3,780,000
Winner: Dan Smith ($1,251,000 inc. bounties)
Paid Places: 17
Click here for a full list of payouts
It's been an eventful few weeks for Dwan, who has been put on blast over alleged unpaid debts to Peter Jetten and Haralabos Voulgaris. In a 45-minute interview with PokerNews, Dwan addressed his accusers and tried to shed light on the list of events. However, some viewers found themselves with more questions than answers from the conversation.
But there does appear to be some movement in the fiasco as Jetten posted on X (formerly Twitter) "Tom has agreed to escrow the money and go to arbitration! Thanks everyone for the support."
Event #10 �C $50K NLH Turbo $15K Bounty Quattro Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Payout | Bounties | Total Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dan Smith | United States | $951,000 | $300,000 | $1,251,000 |
| 2 | David Coleman | United States | $642,900 | $300,000 | $942,900 |
| 3 | Seth Davies | United States | $418,000 | - | $418,000 |
| 4 | Tom Dwan | United States | $346,000 | $60,000 | $406,000 |
| 5 | Sirzat Hissou | Germany | $279,000 | $120,000 | $399,000 |
| 6 | Punnat Punsri | Thailand | $220,000 | $240,000 | $460,000 |
| 7 | Webster Lim | Malaysia | $168,000 | $120,000 | $288,000 |
| 8 | Tom Heung | China | $126,000 | $60,000 | $186,000 |
| 9 | Damir Zhugralin | Kazakhstan | $94,500 | $120,000 | $214,500 |
Photo credit: Triton Poker/Joe Giron
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