Romain Arnaud Defeats Rui Cao to Win Jeju Red Dragon SHR for $668K
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The PokerStars LIVE Asia Jeju Red Dragon kicked off over the weekend and wrapped the first of three high roller events. The ₩60M ($54,000) buy-in Super High Roller drew 44 runners (30 unique entrants and 14 re-entries), which created a ₩2,508,000,000 (~US$2.23M) prize pool. That set the record for largest ever PokerStars prize pool in Korea.
In the end, 33-year-old Frenchman Romain Arnaud defeated countryman Rui Cao in heads-up play to win a ₩748,000,000 ($668,000) top prize.
Prior to the win, Arnaud had a single tournament cash, which was $207,429 for finishing ninth in the 2016 Triton Poker Super High Roller Series in Paranaque City, Philippines. That’s because Arnaud has been a high-stakes cash game player for over a decade often playing HK$300/$600 ($38/$76) in Macau.
Romain Arnaud's Road to Victory
On his way to victory, Arnaud had to contend with the red-hot Michael Soyza, who won April’s APPT Korea Main Event. Soyza lost a big flip with ace-ten against Cao’s pocket nines and then busted after shipping with pocket deuces and failing to hold against Arnaud’s ace-queen.
Arnaud and Cao then struck an ICM deal heads up that saw both lock up over $600K and play for the trophy and title. They actually didn’t play but agreed to a blind all-in shootout to determine the winner. Ultimately, Arnaud’s K♣8♣ held against Cao’s 10♣2♦ on a Q♣J♦5♣A♥J♥ run out.
"Everyone played well at the final table, and it was nice to end up playing heads-up against my very good friend Rui Cao," Arnaud said after the win. "It's a good feeling, but I'm predominantly a cash game player and that's what I'll be sticking to."
PokerStars LIVE Jeju Red Dragon Super High Roller Results
| Position | Player | Country | Prize in ₩ | Prize in $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Romain Arnaud | France | ₩748,000,000 | $668,000* |
| 2 | Rui Cao | France | ₩694,100,000 | $619,418* |
| 3 | Michael Soyza | Malaysia | ₩376,200,000 | $335,723 |
| 4 | Ivan Seng Yee Leow | Malaysia | ₩288,420,000 | $257,387 |
| 5 | Wai Kin Yong | Malaysia | ₩225,720,000 | $201,434 |
| 6 | Shunu Zang | China | ₩175,560,000 | $156,671 |
*Denotes heads-up deal
Epic Comeback for Jian Guo Chen in Jeju Red Dragon Opener
Prior to the Super High Roller playing out, the Jeju Red Dragon opening event, the ₩450,000 ($400) Kickoff, crowned a winner. Jian Guo Chen bested a 107-entry field to win his first PokerStars LIVE title and a ₩11,100,000 ($9,906) first-place prize.
Chen’s victory came as the result of an epic comeback. With four players remaining, Chen was down to half an ante but spun it up. He entered heads-up play at a slight chip deficit to Malaysia’s Kok Weng Beh but soon seized the lead when the latter got it in holding the A♣6♥ and Chen the K♥Q♥.
Chen flopped two pair and Beh was left with a single big blind. He busted the very next hand.
PokerStars LIVE Jeju Red Dragon Kickoff Final Table Results
| Position | Player | Country | Prize in ₩ | Prize in $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jian Guo Chen | China | ₩11,100,000 | $9,906 |
| 2 | Kok Weng Beh | Malaysia | ₩7,500,000 | $6,693 |
| 3 | Dashsodnom Enkhjargal | Mongolia | ₩4,900,000 | $4,373 |
| 4 | Hideyo Uehara | Japan | ₩3,850,000 | $3,436 |
| 5 | Dong Wang | China | ₩3,210,000 | $2,864 |
| 6 | Masuda Shota | Japan | ₩2,780,000 | $2,481 |
| 7 | Weiju Hou | China | ₩2,355,000 | $2,102 |
| 8 | Jie Sun | China | ₩1,500,000 | $1,339 |
| 9 | Hao Tang | China | ₩1,070,000 | $955 |
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