Poker Dream Vietnam crossed the halfway mark with Day 5 done and dusted at the Grand Hall of Hoiana Hotel & Suites. The inaugural festival is shaping up to be the richest in the region this year with well over $1.1 Million paid out and 15 events still remaining. For those on the fence on whether to make the trip, maybe the numbers will settle that decision. The series runs until October 23 with the ₫10 Billion guaranteed Main Event hitting the felt on October 20.
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Topping the Day 5 headlines were the four new winners Hojin Kim, Jason Kyle Magbanua, Witsarut Ketnanrin, and India’s Kunal Patni who captured a first trophy for the country. Another highlight was the two-day Super High Roller that drew a whopping 79 runners. Malaysia’s Paul Phua bagged the chip lead. If you are looking to join the action, registration is still open, closing at 1pm local time. We’ve got those stories and SHR seat draw for you down below.
Kunal Patni wins Mystery Bounty; Le Ba Phuc draws the biggest bounty
Kunal Patni added India to the trophy board after rising above the final 31 players of the Mystery Bounty. Patni defeated Le Ba Phuc in just one heads up hand to claim the ₫247,750,000 (~$10,130) first prize. The final hand was a failed bluff by Phuc who pushed 
on a board 
. Patni tank-called with 
. In addition to the cash, the new champ collected a total of eight bounties, the most by any player. This fattened up his winnings an extra ₫105,500,000 to walk away with a combined total of ₫353,250,000 (~$14,450).
The Mystery Bounty was a two-day affair that drew 205 entries for a prize pool of ₫1,174,650,000 and a bounty pool of ₫615,000,000. 31 players reached ITM giving them each a chance at the mystery rewards. Specific only to this festival, the top bounty reward worth ₫130,000,000 was reserved for the final table which was drawn by runner up Phuc.
Prior to Patni’s victory, Phuc skyrocketed after knocking out three players simultaneously. This gave him the chip lead entering the final table where he proceeded to dust a few more players that included Low Chooi Loong in 7th place. This particular bust gave Phuc another chance at the bounty draw where he pulled the coveted top prize. In total, Phuc earned ₫177,500,000 in bounties and ₫167,300,000 for 2nd place for a combined ₫344,800,000 (~$14,085).
Buy in: ₫10,000,000 (~$409)
Entries: 205
Prize pool: ₫1,174,650,000 (~$48,060)
Bounty pool: ₫615,000,000 (~$25,160)
ITM: 31 places
Payouts (bounties not included)
| 1st | Kunal Patni | India | ₫247,750,000 |
| 2nd | Le Ba Phuc | Vietnam | ₫167,300,000 |
| 3rd | Nguyen Van Xuan | Vietnam | ₫117,900,000 |
| 4th | Pang Cho Yi | Hong Kong | ₫95,600,000 |
| 5th | Elmer Kalaquian | Philippines | ₫75,700,000 |
| 6th | Yu Sheng Lin | Taiwan | ₫57,400,000 |
| 7th | Low Chooi Loong | Malaysia | ₫41,900,000 |
| 8th | Le Hoai Nam | Vietnam | ₫30,700,000 |
| 9th | Le Huu Long | Vietnam | ₫25,400,000 |
| 10th | Vu Duc Trung | Vietnam | ₫21,500,000 |
| 11th | Nguyen Huu Manh | Vietnam | ₫21,500,000 |
| 12th | Hwang Seokjin | Korea, South | ₫19,300,000 |
| 13th | Chokejindachai Napat | Thailand | ₫19,300,000 |
| 14th | Nguyen Duc Minh | Vietnam | ₫17,400,000 |
| 15th | Nguyen Dich Khanh | Vietnam | ₫17,400,000 |
| 16th | Theppot Natee | Thailand | ₫15,600,000 |
| 17th | Phanchapo Sutthipong | Thailand | ₫15,600,000 |
| 18th | Nguyen Kinh Huyen | Vietnam | ₫13,900,000 |
| 19th | Suksomlert Taragon | Thailand | ₫13,900,000 |
| 20th | Siwat Singhsuttakorn | Thailand | ₫13,900,000 |
| 21st | Jonas Rothmund | Germany | ₫12,700,000 |
| 22nd | Nguyen Dieu Phuong Linh | Vietnam | ₫12,700,000 |
| 23rd | Edgar Asehan | Philippines | ₫12,700,000 |
| 24th | Kevin Kar Wai Ang | Malaysia | ₫11,500,000 |
| 25th | Tran Duy Binh | Vietnam | ₫11,500,000 |
| 26th | David Erquiaga | Philippines | ₫11,500,000 |
| 27th | Nguyen Thanh Hung | Vietnam | ₫11,500,000 |
| 28th | Nguyen Trong Nghia | Vietnam | ₫10,400,000 |
| 29th | Jose Colada | Philippines | ₫10,400,000 |
| 30th | Yee Siew Key | Malaysia | ₫10,400,000 |
| 31st | Ha Duong | Vietnam | ₫10,400,000 |
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HOJIN KIM bests the Filipinos at 6-Handed
One of the cheapest events on the day’s menu was the 6-Handed which saw 79 hopefuls take to the felt. This built a prize pool of ₫413,802,000 (~$16,930) with the top 11 players shaving a portion.
Two spots before the money, Jeffrey Pamplona and Mangkone Sanaphanith eliminated players at respective tables to deny the bubble. Seven and a half hours in, with only four players left, Korea’s Hojin Kim doubled up through Filipino Jose Colada with 
dominating 
. This gave Kim the lead which he held to the finish. Kim faced Filipino Emmanuel Segismundo at heads up and were at par for some time until Kim won a series of pots that gave him a significant advantage. The final hand soon arrived with Segismundo pushing on a flop 
. Kim 
called and was ahead of Segismundo’s 
gut shot. The turn came 
and river 
. Kim pocketed the ₫113,602,000 first prize and gave Korea its second trophy of the series.
Buy in: ₫6,000,000 (~$245)
Entries: 79
Prize pool: ₫413,802,000 (~$16,930)
ITM: 11 places
Payouts
| 1st | Hojin Kim | Korea | ₫113,602,000 |
| 2nd | Emmanuel Segismundo | Philippines | ₫80,700,000 |
| 3rd | Jose Colada | Philippines | ₫53,000,000 |
| 4th | Mangkone Sanaphanith | Thailand | ₫40,800,000 |
| 5th | Taekeong Kim | Korea | ₫32,300,000 |
| 6th | Hoang Long Nguyen | Vietnam | ₫25,300,000 |
| 7th | Manh Hung Nguyen | Vietnam | ₫19,900,000 |
| 8th | Chalermporn Nutteecharoen | Thailand | ₫15,600,000 |
| 9th | Chung Yi Ho | Taiwan | ₫11,800,000 |
| 10th | Jeffrey Pamplona | Philippines | ₫10,400,000 |
| 11th | Jun Hee Kim | Korea | ₫10,400,000 |
Jason Kyle Magbanua bags it on his third final table
Jason Kyle Magbanua is on fire! The Filipino player is on his first poker trip outside of home soil and already his results are very impressive. On Day 5, Magbanua reached the final table of the Pot Limit Omaha event, becoming the first player to do so at the series. Magbanua went on to win it, defeating Vietnam’s Quang Hung Bang at heads up. The final hand was a full house over straight. Also finding his way to another final table was 6th placer Tam Lon Tek who finished 3rd at the Short Deck event two days prior.
Magbanua lifted the trophy and the ₫83,800,000 (~$3,420) first prize. He joined fellow countryman William Ysmael in the champions list.
Buy in: ₫10,000,000 (~$410)
Entries: 46
Prize pool: ₫401,580,000 (~$16,400)
ITM: 6 places
Payouts
| 1st | Jason Kyle Magbanua | Philippines | ₫136,300,000 |
| 2nd | Quang Hung Bang | Vietnam | ₫94,400,000 |
| 3rd | David Erquiaga | Philippines | ₫60,300,000 |
| 4th | Chung Yi Ho | Taiwan | ₫46,200,000 |
| 5th | Mike Takayama | Philippines | ₫36,200,000 |
| 6th | Tam Lon Tek | Malaysia | ₫28,200,000 |
Witsarut Ketnanrin bests compatriots at the Bubble Rush
Like in Day 4, Thailand picked up the last trophy on offer. At the evening’s Bubble Rush event, where time slows down after the bubble bursts, four Thais were seen at the final table with three going deep in the top four. Looking to spoil their plans was Korea’s Oh Junseok who was on his second final table, however he fell short in 4th place. A deal was then proposed but rejected. The game proceeded with Prommin Talordpong stopped in 3rd place. This was Talordpong’s second final table having placed 3rd at the previous day’s PLO Turbo. Heads up opened with Witsarut Ketnanrin backed by an intimidating big stack. He went on to defeat Supakit Anukoolpitaknil to claim his maiden live title and ₫97,150,000 (~$3,970). This was Thailand’s second win of the series.
Buy in: ₫10,000,000 (~$409)
Entries: 62
Prize pool: ₫324,756,000 (~$13,290)
ITM: 8 places
Payouts
| 1st | Witsarut Ketnanrin | Thailand | ₫97,150,000 |
| 2nd | Supakit Anukoolpitaknil | Thailand | ₫70,500,000 |
| 3rd | Prommin Talordpong | Thailand | ₫45,500,000 |
| 4th | Oh Junseok | Korea | ₫34,500,000 |
| 5th | Pham Phu Son Lam | Vietnam | ₫26,700,000 |
| 6th | Hwang Soonchul | Korea | ₫20,800,000 |
| 7th | Gai Lax Lim | Malaysia | ₫16,600,000 |
| 8th | Panitan Papoodsri | Thailand | ₫13,000,000 |
Update: Super High Roller
The most expensive tournament in the lineup is the Super High Roller event with buy in at ₫230,000,000 just under $10K. Despite the hefty price, 79 signed up on Day 1 to generate a prize pool of nearly ₫17 Billion. This figure is expected to increase further with registration still open. For those looking to jump in the big game, make sure to do so before 1pm.
44 players will return for Day 2. Well known poker figure Paul Phua is currently the race leader, trailed closely by Ewe Eng Soon and Abhinav Iyer. All three bagged up stacks over 2M. You can catch some of the action and final table via the live stream broadcasted in the Poker Dream fb page. You can also follow the live updates via the PokerNews site.
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Stick with us here at Somuchpoker as we bring you full coverage of the festival from start to finish.
Live Updates page
Poker Dream Player Guide
Daily event pics – Somuchpoker fb page
Article links:
Poker Dream releases Hoi An full schedule
Poker Dream makes landfall in Hoi An, Vietnam
Poker Dream kicks off
Poker Dream: Day 1 recap
Poker Dream: First four trophies awarded
Poker Dream: Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand lift trophies
Tricia David
Tricia David has long experience as a recreational poker player and has been covering poker events since 2010 for numerous outfits in Asia. She spent one year working part time with Poker Portal Asia then became editor and lead writer for all event coverage of the Philippine Poker Tour (PPT). Under the PPT, she overlooked content for their website, and produced live updates on all their events. In addition, she served as the live and online events website content writer for the Asian Poker Tour. Currently, she does live events reporting in Asia for online news site Somuchpoker and is also one of their news contributors.
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