button in SafariJohn Caridad Wins the VPC Hyper ($6,900)
Many congratulations to John Caridad, who took down the one-day VPC Hyper for $6,900, topping a field of 52 entries.
A veteran of the Aussie poker scene, with cashes dating back almost two decades on The Hendon Mob, Caridad has now moved past 20 live tournament victories with his latest success at the 2026 Victorian Poker Championships.
Caridad sealed the deal when he got king-nine all in preflop against the Netherlands' Ruben de Boer's queen-nine, with the runout bringing no nasty surprises.
Victorian Poker Championships 2026 $500 Hyper Results
| Position | Player | Payout |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | John Caridad | $6,900 |
| 2nd | Ruben de Boer | $4,400 |
| 3rd | Christos Andreadis | $2,900 |
| 4th | Bobby Inoparaocha | $2,200 |
| 5th | Cato Atkins | $1,800 |
| 6th | Dale Code | $1,500 |
| 7th | Sam Nguyen | $1,300 |
| 8th | Yixian Wang | $1,100 |
Catching up with PokerNews after his victory, Caridad explained that the fast-paced format was what drew him to the event.
“I don't normally play Hold'em, so I only played it because it was super fast. I like the Hyper and I hate Hold'em.”
During heads-up play, Caridad made it clear that he wanted to play for the trophy and when asked if winning tournaments outright meant a lot to him, he explained “It didn't, but then once my son got old enough and started appreciating the trophies, I tried to collect them for him, yeah.”
Caridad is no stranger to battling some of the best players in the world and the biggest score of his career came back in 2010 at the Bellagio Cup VI, where he finished fourth for $237,902, just behind none other than Phil Ivey.
After years of grinding, however, his relationship with the game has changed, and he now takes a more selective approach to the tournaments he plays.
“I used to love it a lot more, and now I've, I guess like most people, played it enough that you start to get over it. I used to play Hold'em exclusively, and now I can't stand Hold'em. I just play Omaha and mixed games, so yeah, I'm a lot more selective now in what I play,” he added.
That said, Crown Melbourne remains a very popular stop for players on the Aussie circuit, and Caridad said he was happy to return to the VPC after enjoying his visit for the Aussie Millions earlier this year. He'll certainly be enjoying it even more now.