$100,000 NLH Main Event
Day 1 Completed
$100,000 NLH Main Event
Day 1 Completed
An action-packed opening day of the $100,000 NLH Main Event has come to an end inside LES A Casino, with 73 players successfully making it through to the end of the day.
As expected, the marquee event of the Triton Super High Roller Series Jeju II attracted a star-studded field, with 160 entries already recorded and a $16,000,000 prize pool created. With registration remaining open until the start of Day 2, both figures are set to grow before the cards are back in the air.
Danilo Velasevic was never far from the top of the counts throughout the day and ultimately finished as chip leader, bagging 1,864,000 to take the overnight lead into Day 2.
Just behind the chip leader is 2025 Poker Hall of Fame inductee Nick Schulman, who joined the field late after spending much of the day running deep in the $50,000 event. After locking up a runner-up finish in that event for $810,279, he jumped straight into the Main Event. Getting to work quickly, his ascent to the top of the leaderboard was aided by eliminating another poker legend, Patrik Antonius, before going on to bag 1,381,000 to claim second place on the leaderboard.
Completing the overnight podium, Malaysia's Lun Loon ended the day with 1,350,000.
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Danilo Velasevic | Serbia | 1,864,000 | 186 |
| 2 | Nick Schulman | United States | 1,381,000 | 138 |
| 3 | Lun Loon | Malaysia | 1,350,000 | 135 |
| 4 | Jean-Noel Thorel | France | 1,236,000 | 124 |
| 5 | Chahnhoon Jung | United States | 1,185,000 | 119 |
| 6 | Alex Foxen | United States | 1,173,000 | 117 |
| 7 | Jingyao Yan | China | 1,096,000 | 110 |
| 8 | Quan Zhou | China | 1,018,000 | 102 |
| 9 | Hannes Jeschka | Germany | 868,000 | 87 |
| 10 | Danny Tang | Hong Kong | 810,000 | 81 |
Just missing out on the top three, Jean-Noel Thorel seized the tournament chip lead early and never strayed far from the top spots. Thorel has two runner-up finishes in Triton Main Events and got off to the best start possible, as he looks to go one spot better. In one of the day's highlight hands, he clashed with Nick Petrangelo and made quads to crack Petrangelo's aces, sending him to the rail. Thorel ultimately ended the day with 1,236,000, while Petrangelo failed to bag any chips after re-entering.
Four-time Triton champion Alex Foxen sits just outside the top five, having bagged 1,025,000 to put himself in a strong position heading into Day 2. Just a couple of spots behind him is Danny Tang, the most recent Triton $100,000 Main Event champion, who will look to follow up his Montenegro victory with another deep run in Jeju.
Loitering outside the top ten, Isaac Haxton (801,000) and Patrik Antonius (798,000) are both well placed, with the latter running up a stack after re-entering following his collision with Schulman. Ben Tollerene (775,000), Stephen Chidwick (742,000), Matthias Eibinger (721,000) and Daniel Dvoress (672,000) also showed. Eibinger and Dvoress both bring seven Triton titles to the table, underlining the quality still left in the field.
Further down the counts, Jesse Lonis (550,000), Seth Davies (515,000), Phil Ivey (438,000) and Biao Ding (428,000) remain firmly in contention, while Ben Heath (184,000) and Sam Greenwood (176,000) also punched their tickets to Day 2, albeit a little further down the counts.
Day 2 kicks off on Tuesday, September 15, at 1:00 p.m. local time, with play resuming on Level 11, with blinds of 5,000/10,000 and a 10,000 big blind ante. The plan for the day is to play through 13 more levels, with a 15-minute break scheduled after every two levels and a 45-minute dinner break coming at the end of Level 16.
Fans can follow the action with live coverage streamed on YouTube from the start of Day 2, with a one-hour delay. To avoid spoilers, PokerNews coverage will follow the same delay.
Keep it locked in to PokerNews, as we bring all the action live from the felt until a Triton Main Event champion is crowned.
The final hands have been dealt, and Day 1 has come to a close. Of the 160 entrants, just 73 survived to put chips into a bag and will each return tomorrow for Day 2 at 1 p.m. local time.
Stay tuned for the full chip counts and recap of the day's action.
Byron Kaverman raised to 16,000 from middle position, and Mike Watson three-bet to 44,000 from the hijack. Jamil Wakil called, putting his remaining 34,000 into the middle. Kaverman then four-bet shoved for 230,000, and Watson called.
Jamil Wakil: 10♦9♠
Byron Kaverman: A♠Q♥
Mike Watson: A♥K♥
The best hand preflop retained its lead across the 4♥2♠7♦K♦9♦ board, sending two to the rail.
After a raise to 16,000 and a call ahead of him, Nick Schulman three-bet to 68,000 from the small blind. The original raiser folded, but the caller, Raul Lozano, moved all-in for 382,000. Schulman called, and the cards were revealed.
Raul Lozano: A♦K♥
Nick Schulman: J♦J♣
The 2♣Q♦8♣10♣4♠ board kept Schulman's pocket jacks in the lead, as Lozano was eliminated in the final few hands of the night.
The tournament clock has been paused, and the dealers have been instructed to deal four more hands. Once completed, the remaining players will bag their chips and advance to Day 2.
Biao Ding raised to 18,000 on the button, and Patrik Antonius called in the small blind. Sam Greenwood three-bet to 70,000 from the big blind, which removed Ding from the equation, but Antonius called.
Antonius checked to Greenwood on a 6♠2♣2♠ flop, and Greenwood continued for 32,000. Antonius check-raised to 85,000, and Greenwood called.
Antonius moved all-in for 183,000 on the 6♥ turn, and Greenwood called.
Patrik Antonius: A♠9♠
Sam Greenwood: K♥K♣
Antonius's semi-bluff had run straight into the pocket kings of Greenwood, but it mattered not, as the 10♠ river bailed him out, as he improved to a flush to double up.
Elton Tsang raised to 16,000 from the hijack, and Emilien Pitavy called on the button. Joao Simao then three-bet all-in from the big blind for 232,000. Tsang called, but Pitavy folded.
Joao Simao: 6♠6♣
Elton Tsang: 8♠8♥
Fresh off winning the $200,000 Triton Invitational for $7,250,000 earlier this evening, Simao hopped straight into the Main Event. Unfortunately for the Brazilian, he ran into Tsang's overpair, and when the 5♣2♦9♠Q♦Q♣ runout offered no help, Simao's first bullet was done and dusted.