Inaugural USOP: Poker2U Taiwan Series pays out massive $1.6M; next stop Hanoi, Vietnam over $1 Million in guarantees

 

The first ever U Series of Poker live festival sponsored by Poker2U concluded its ten-day run at the Chinese Texas Hold’em Poker Association (CTP Club) in Taipei City, Taiwan. Running from February 10 to 19, 2023, the event was a roaring success with players from around the world converging to be take part in the inaugural series. At the close, records were broken, guarantees were shattered, and a grand prize pool of TWD 48,718,400 (~$1,6065,700) was amassed across 23 tournaments. Here are the highlights.

Festival review

Grand prize pool: TWD 48,718,400 (~$1,6065,700)
Entries: 3,802
Record breaker: Main Event – 1,043 entries
Main Event prize pool: TWD 18,210,800 (~$600,200)
Main Event champion: Edwin Dela Cruz “Hit D Heat” – TWD 3,060,000 (~$100,800)
Multi-champions: Ching Chia Wang (2), Zong Chi He (2)
Trophy winners: Taiwan (15), Malaysia (3), Philippines (2), Hong Kong (1), USA (1), Belgium (1)

Up next, the USOP heads to Hanoi, Vietnam featuring ₫25 Billion, that’s over one million US dollars in guarantees. This is the richest Vietnam guarantee ever announced. Games take place at the Crown Poker Club. The event runs from April 14 to 24, 2023. Mark your calendars!

During the official ceremony and ribbon cutting of the inaugural USOP live series on February 15, 2023, USOP’s Alex Wong delivered a short speech,

“Thank you for all the support! We will be hosting the next event in Hanoi, Vietnam. That will happen on April 14 to 24. I hope to see all of you guys there and bring along your friends!”

Festival winners

Champion	姓名	Flag	Tournament	Entries	Prize Pool	Payout
Edwin Dela Cruz		Philippines	MAIN EVENT	1,043	18,210,800	3,060,000
Ching Wei Chen ‘Carter’	陳靖惟	Taiwan	Kick Off	375	2,619,000	547,000
Zong Chi He	何宗奇	Taiwan	Turbo NLH	85	222,600	71,800
Kuan Han Chen	陳冠翰	Taiwan	Mystery Bounty	534	4,661,900	450,000
Chung Yi Ho	何崇義	Taiwan	Hyper Turbo	137	358,800	100,400
Tzu Yuan Fu	傅子袁	Taiwan	Bubble Rush	26	166,500	68,300
Isaac Phua		Malaysia	Turbo NLH	142	371,900	66,600
Cheng Chieh Wang	黃政傑	Taiwan	Bounty Hunter	130	971,900	274,600
Hon Cheong Lee		Hong Kong	Mini High Roller	45	1,309,500	412,600
Ching Chia Wang	王淨加	Taiwan	Short Deck	64	167,600	60,300
Chris Chen		Taiwan	7-Max Shot Clock	60	942,800	339,500
Chih Wei Fan	范植威	Taiwan	High Roller	66	3,905,200	1,142,200
Ching Chia Wang	王淨加	Taiwan	PLO KO Bounty	85	633,500	204,900
Shuin Lee	李書吟	Taiwan	Ladies Event	54	310,800	115,000
David Erquiaga		Philippines	Pot Limit Omaha	105	550,000	165,000
Duy Ho		USA	Single Day High Roller	69	2,677,200	743,000
Chin Hao Weng		Taiwan	Run It Twice	140	597,500	167,000
Richard Lee Ling	劉李鈴	Taiwan	Hyper Turbo	78	204,300	69,500
Patrick Liang		Taiwan	Megastack	288	3,771,400	831,400
Lun Loon		Malaysia	Super High Roller	46	4,194,300	1,321,200
Kevin Ang		Malaysia	NLH Crazy 10	109	543,100	120,500
Zong Chi He	何宗奇	Taiwan	Short Deck	23	301,200	150,600
Kristof Segers		Belgium	The Closer	98	1,026,600	313,100

Main Event: EDWIN DELA CRUZ

Filipino player Edwin Dela Cruz emerged as the first ever USOP live festival Main Event champion and pocketed a career high TWD 3,060,000 (~$100,800). The festival headliner hauled in a record breaking 1,043 entries, the largest international field ever brought together in Taiwan. In turn, it ripped past the advertised TWD 10M guarantee for a huge TWD 18,210,800 (~$600,200) prize pool.

Main Event – Live Updates

Final side event results

LUN LOON rides high at the Super High Roller

Buy in: TWD 100,000 (~$3,300)
Entries: 46
Prize pool: TWD 4,194,300 (~$138,240)
ITM: 7 places

Payouts in TWD

1	Lun Loon		Malaysia	1,321,200
2	Kean Wei Tan		Malaysia	954,200
3	Wai Kiat Lee		Malaysia	608,200
4	Hon Cheong Lee	李翰鏘	Hong Kong	461,400
5	Alan Khoo		Singapore	356,500
6	Anton Lu		Australia	272,600
7	Chijen Chu	朱啟仁	Taiwan	220,200

DUY HO scores a Taiwan title, wins Single Day High Roller

Buy in: TWD 44,000 (~$1,450)
Entries: 69
Prize pool: TWD 2,677,200 (~$88,240) 
ITM: 10 places

Payouts in TWD

1	Duy Ho		USA	743,000
2	Lai Heng Foo		Malaysia	530,000
3	Chia Chaing Ko	柯家翔	Taiwan	349,000
4	Kok Wai Sim		Malaysia	270,000
5	Thananat Therdtakoonrat		Thailand	215,400
6	Lee Kun Han	李昆翰	Taiwan	170,200
7	Tzu Yuan Fu	傅子袁	Taiwan	135,400
8	Lun Loon		Malaysia	107,200
9	David Erquiaga		Philippines	83,000
10	Shao Heng Hsu	徐紹恆	Taiwan	74,000

PATRICK LIANG takes down the Megastack

Buy in: TWD 15,000 (~$495)
Entries: 288
Prize pool: TWD 3771,400 (~$124,300)
ITM: 37 places

Payouts in TWD

1	Patrick Liang		Taiwan	831,400
2	Puyen Fang	方步言	Taiwan	584,600
3	Kok Wai Sim		Malaysia	376,000
4	Shan Hui Chua		Singapore	234,800
5	Yan Jie Wu	吳彥杰	Taiwan	181,200
6	Chien Chih Weng	翁芊智	Taiwan	150,000
7	Lai Xin Hua		Singapore	126,200
8	Jack Lim		Malaysia	103,700
9	Yuanxi Chen		Singapore	83,100
10	Cheng Jing Lim		Malaysia	70,300
11	Seigai Kou		Japan	70,300
12	Ravn Teo		Singapore	70,300
13	Mingchang Hsiao	蕭明昌	Taiwan	59,800
14	Isaac Chern Chze		Malaysia	59,800
15	Peng Sen Wu	吳鵬森	Taiwan	59,800
16	Tong Tan		Singapore	49,800
17	Jacky Wang		Singapore	49,800
18	Huawei Lin	林華瑋	Taiwan	49,800
19	Alex Wong		Malaysia	40,700
20	Norman Leaw		Malaysia	40,700
21	Chi Jen Chen	陳紀任	Taiwan	40,700
22	Wei En Shih	施維恩	Taiwan	32,800
23	Anton Zhen Zhao		Australia	32,800
24	Ki Him Chau		Hong Kong	32,800
25	Zong Chi He	何宗奇	Taiwan	29,000
26	Ang Yang Siang		Malaysia	29,000
27	Hsusheng Wang	王敘昇	Taiwan	29,000
28	Chung Yi Ho	何崇義	Taiwan	25,600
29		蔡政霖	Taiwan	25,600
30	Hsienching Feng	馮先慶	Taiwan	25,600
31	Chengchieh	黃政傑	Taiwan	25,600
32	Lee Kuang Hung	李光紘	Taiwan	25,600
33	Chin Chia Ho	何晉嘉	Taiwan	25,600
34	Chang Ming Lo	羅章銘	Taiwan	25,600
35	Jason Lau		Malaysia	25,600
36	Mei San Ang		Singapore	25,600
37	Feng Wen Chen	陳豐文	Taiwan	22,800

CHIN HAO WENG wins Run It Twice

Buy in: TWD 5,000 (~$165)
Entries: 140
Prize pool: TWD 597,500 (~$18,700)
ITM: 18 places

Payouts in TWD

1	Chin Hao Weng	翁璟豪	Taiwan	167,000
2	Chih Feng Li	李志峯	Taiwan	105,300
3	Fubang Huang	黃富邦	Taiwan	62,400
4	Ching Chia Wang	王淨加	Taiwan	37,600
5	Eric Chan		Malaysia	29,300
6	Cun Wu Hong	洪春武	Taiwan	24,500
7	Armando Cabardo		Philippines	21,200
8	Yu Tang Hung	洪郁棠	Taiwan	18,900
9	Dissapong		Thailand	16,700
10	Ooi Yang Tzer		Malaysia	14,600
11	Isaac Phua		Malaysia	14,600
12	Chiying Tsai	蔡季瑛	Taiwan	14,600
13	Chingwei Chen	陳靖惟	Taiwan	12,700
14	Cheng Chieh Yang	楊成傑	Taiwan	12,700
15	Tharit Nanthana		Thailand	12,700
16	Ang Yang Yi		Malaysia	10,900
17	Alan Khoo		Singapore	10,900
18	Chian Huang	黃謙	Taiwan	10,900

RICHARD LEE LING wins Hyper Turbo

Buy in: TWD 3,300 (~$110)
Entries: 78
Prize pool: TWD 204,300 (~$6,730)
ITM: 10 paces

Payouts in TWD

1	Richard Lee Ling	劉李鈴	Taiwan	69,500
2	Tzu Yuan Fu	傅子袁	Taiwan	39,800
3	Shu Yih Ng		Malaysia	24,900
4	Duhan Lee		South Korea	16,800
5	Changwon Lee		South Korea	12,800
6	Seong Su Kong		South Korea	10,400
7	Hyun Sup Kim		South Korea	9,000
8	Sheng Wei Chan		Singapore	8,000
9	Tim Yeh Yeh Szu	葉思廷	Taiwan	7,000
10	Tung Yang Lin	林東陽	Australia	6,100

KEVIN ANG wins NLH Crazy 10

Buy in: TWD 4,400  (~$145)
Entries: 109
Prize pool: TWD 543,100 (~$17,900)
ITM: 14 places 

Payouts in TWD

1	Kevin Ang		Malaysia	120,500
2	Murat Yesniyazov		Kazakhstan	74,300
3	Ariuntemvvjin		Mongolia	44,600
4	Daniel Wong		Malaysia	29,100
5	Thomas Wang		Taiwan	22,500
6	Richard Lee Ling	劉李玲	Taiwan	18,500
7	An Deaho		South Korea	157,000
8	Chien Chih Weng	翁芊智	Taiwan	13,700
9	Huawei Weiwei Lin	林華薇	Taiwan	12,100
10	Dorjbal Lkhunrev		Mongolia	10,600
11	Tharit Nanthana		Thailand	10,600
12	Sing Fu Chen	陳信甫	Taiwan	10,600
13	Tzu Yuan Fu	傅子袁	Taiwan	9,500
14	Sanchai		Thailand	9,500

ZONG CHI HE  wins second title at Short Deck

Buy in: TWD 15,000 (~$495)
Entries: 23
Prize pool: TWD 301,200 (~$9,900) 
ITM: 3 places

Payouts in TWD

1	Zong Chi He	何宗奇	Taiwan	150,600
2	Daniel Donohue		Taiwan	90,400
3	Ching Chia Wang	王淨加	Taiwan	60,200

KRISTOF SEGERS lifts last trophy of the festival

Buy in: TWD 12,000 (~$395)
Entries: 98
Prize pool: TWD 1,026,600 (~$33,835)
ITM: 13 places

Payouts in TWD

1	Kristof Segers		Belgium	313,100
2	Max Tay		Singapore	192,500
3	Xing Jie Chew		Singapore	118,100
4	Kuan Han Chen	陳冠翰	Taiwan	77,000
5	Ya Ting Chou	周雅婷	Taiwan	60,100
6	Peng Sen Wu	吳鵬森	Taiwan	48,000
7	Chin Hao Weng	翁璟豪	Taiwan	40,800
8	An Deaho		South Korea	35,400
9	Yew Tong		Malaysia	31,300
10	Jonathan Looi		Malaysia	28,200
11	Daniel Wong		Malaysia	28,200
12	Huawei Lin	林華瑋	Taiwan	28,200
13	Shen Yongxin	傅子袁	Singapore	25,700

That concludes Somuchpoker’s full coverage of the U Series of Poker – Poker2U Taiwan Series at the Chinese Texas Hold’em Poker Association.