Kick Off

Following a twelve hour Day 2 grind, the 71-survivor Kick Off field has finally found a champion with Nguyen Van Nam shipping the victory for NT$ 709,500 (~US$ 22,110). The Vietnamese runner entered the final games with the lead and found himself in for a roller coaster ride ahead. Nguyen reclaimed the advantage after eliminating Li Wei Wang in 5th place, and arrived at the final duel as a huge favorite. Yumi Ogose however, managed to even out the field, up until the final hand saw her queens get outdrawn by Nguyen for the win.

Nguyen related that he is very happy and that this victory is his first major win to date.

Kick Off Review

Date/s: October 25-26, 2024

Buy in: NT$ 10,000 (~US$ 310)

Guarantee: NT$ 3,000,000 (~US$ 93,500)

Entries: 462

Prize Pool: NT$ 3,943,700 (~US$ 122,980)

ITM: 71 players

Kick Off Final Table Results

Yumi Ogose opened to 600,000 on the button and saw Nguyen Van Nam come along on flop J♠ 9♣ 5♥ . Ogose continued for 400,000, check raised by Nguyen to 800,000. Ogose answered with an all-in and Nguyen makes the call with J♥ 4♦ . Ogose is way ahead with Q♠ Q♥ , but settled for a runner up finish as runout 6♦ 4♥ landed her opponent two pair for the final victory.

Nguyen Van Nam opened to 600,000 and called off for his remaining 2,900,000 following an all-in from Yumi Ogose. Slightly behind, Nguyen holds on, having spiked top pair on board Q♥ 6♠ 5♦ 3♥ 2♥ .

Nguyen Van Nam raised all-in on the button and saw Yumi Ogose make the call for her entire 4,400,000. A huge favorite, Ogose cruised to victory once more as board Q♦ T♥ 5♦ Q♥ 2♥ felted no aces.

Button Nguyen Van Nam opened to 1,000,000 and called off 1,300,000 more after Yumi Ogose moved all-in. In for a race, the board A♦ 5♣ 7♣ J♥ 6♥ left Ogose in no sweat with two pair right on the flop to secure the double up.

Folded to Fu Chun Wei on the button, he shoved for 1,800,000 (12 BB), called by Nguyen Van Nam. Up against a monster pair, Fu found his dreams of the title crushed as board 3♥ 9♥ 9♦ K♦ 2♦ ran a boat for his opponent.

Fu Chun Wei defended his big blind against Nguyen Van Nam's button open and went on to lead 275,000 on flop 6♥ 4♦ 3♠ . Fu barreled another 500,000 on turn 8♠ yet check folded on river K♠ after being faced with a final bet of 1,300,000 from Nguyen.

Nguyen Van Nam opened to 400,000 on the button, joined by big blind Fu Chun Wei. On board 7♦ 2♠ 5♣ 2♦ 6♦ , Nguyen barreled two streets - 200,000 and 350,000, with Fu check calling both bets. River saw no more bets pile in, revealing Fu's trips Q♥ 2♣ against Nguyen's T♥ 7♣ for the win.

Button Nguyen Van Nam opened to 425,000 and called off Yumi Ogose's all-in for 1,400,000 total. A crucial flip, Ogose continues to be in contention having landed a boat on board K♣ T♠ 6♥ K♦ 2♣ against his opponent's trip kings.

Manlok Chan open shoved his last 825,000 in and was called by Fu Chun Wei on the big blind. Flipping for his tournament life, Chan exited the final table arena after his opponent paired up on board 4♦ 9♥ 5♦ K♠ Q♦ for the win.

Fu Chun Wei opened from utg and called off 800,00 more following an all-in from Yumi Ogose. Slightly ahead, Ogose secured the double up as board T♦ 5♦ 5♠ 9♣ 8♣ failed to pair up her opponent.

Small blind Manlok Chan pushed all-in for 1,300,000, called behind by chip leader Nguyen Van Nam. A favorite to win, Chan remains in contention having landed top pair on board T♠ 8♦ 6♣ Q♠ 5♥ to earn the double up.

Li Wei Wang open shoved his remaining 1,100,000 and was called by Nguyen Van Nam behind. In for a race, Nguyen managed to outrun his opponent on board 7♦ 3♣ 8♥ T♦ J♦ to deliver the bust.

Nguyen Van Nam opened from utg and called off for his 1,500,000 stack following an all-in from Manlok Chan. Whilst ahead, Chan continued his descent after an ace high board A♣ 8♥ 9♦ 4♠ J♦ cost him another pot.

Fu Chun Wei limp called on the small blind vs a 325,000 open from Manlok Chan behind. On flop 9♥ 7♠ 9♠ , Fu check called another 300,000 and arrived at turn 5♠ . Both checked it through to river 4♠ where Fu led for 300,000. Chan surrenders and throws in the fold.

Wu Yi Wei shoved all-in for 725,000 against Fu Chun Wei's utg open and saw the latter make the call. In rough shape, Wu was unable to luck out on board 8♠ 8♥ J♦ A♥ 7♠ , eliminating him from the final table.

Fu Chun Wei opened to 225,000 and snap called Che Chun Chu's 1,000,000 all-in from the big blind. Dominated, Che found no help on board 9♣ 7♣ 5♠ 8♣ J♥ , ending his run for the Kick Off title.

Nguyen Van Nam opened from the button and called off Yumi Ogose's 780,000 jam. In for a flip, Nguyen instantly flopped top pair on board A♣ 4♠ 2♠ 8♣ 5♣ , yet took the loss as the river ran a straight to his opponent's threes.

Manlok Chan limp called a 155,000 raise from the small blind and check called for another 125,000 on flop A♦ 9♥ 8♣ . On turn 8♦ , Wu Yi Wei checked back, revealing river Q♠ . Chan leads for 380,000 and ships the pot with A♣ 9♠ against his opponent's Q♥ 2♥ following a call.

Po Chun Liu opened to 100,000 from utg and saw Li Wei Wang make the call on the button. On flop Q♦ T♠ 9♣ , Po continued for 150,000, raised by Li to 420,000. Po answered with an all-in for 660,000 total with A♦ Q♥ , and Li makes the final call with T♥ 9♠. Crushed against two pair, Po exited the final table as turn K♥ and river 5♦ completed the board.

Facing an open and a call, Jia Xian Zhu fired a three bet to 290,000 from the big blind, and saw initial raiser Wu Yi Wei continue to flop J♠ 4♠ 5♦ . Jia led all-in for 555,000 with Q♦ Q♥ , snap called by Wu with J♦ J♠ . Jia, left drawing to two outs, headed out as the first final table table casualty as soon as turn 5♣ and river 6♠ landed on the felt.

Watch the Kick Off final table action LIVE via TMT's official livestream.

Just six hours into Day 2, the 71-survivor field has whittled down to its final nine players led by lone Vietnamese runner Nguyen Van Nam. Each contender has locked in NT$ 74,100 (~US$ 2,310) in winnings, with the NT$ 709,500 (~US$ 22,110) top prize remaining in the horizon.

Blinds will rolled back to Level 24: 20,000 / 40,000 ante 40,000.

Kick Off

Date/s: October 25-26, 2024

Buy in: NT$ 10,000 (~US$ 310)

Guarantee: NT$ 3,000,000 (~US$ 93,500)

Entries: 462

Prize Pool: NT$ 3,943,700 (~US$ 122,980)

ITM: 71 players

Final Table Chip Counts

Remaining Payouts

With a late position open and a call ahead, big blind Shao Fu Wang shoved all-in for 645,000 and saw initial raiser Yumi Ogose reshove for 985,000 total. Button Fu Chen Wei made the final call, tabling a three way showdown. Board 7♥ J♣ 8♠ 3♣ 7♦ , missed to pair all three, leaving Fu and Yumi to split Shao's stack with the better ace high.

Nguyen Van Nam opened to 110,000 on the button and called a 300,000 three bet from small blind Li Wei Wang. On flop Q♣ 7♦ 4♠ , Nguyen raised all-in for 780,000 vs a 300,000 cbet from Li. Li tank folds, and Nguyen stacks up a 14 BB boost.

Fu Chun Wei opened from utg, joined by big blind Yumi Ogose on flop 5♦ 8♥ 9♠ . Fu continued for 100,000, yet folded after Ogose led all-in for 505,000 on turn 7♦ . Fu shows T♠ T♦ .

Wu Yi Wei defended his big blind against button Manlok Chan's open and check called for another 80,000 on flop 3♣ J♣ K♥ . Both players checked down turn 9♥ and river Q♣ , revealing Wu's runner runner two pair for the pot.

Wen Chi Wang raised all-in for 700,000 from utg and was met with another push from Li Wei Wang behind. In for a flip, Wei was crushed to see board 9♠ 6♦ T♠ J♠ A♠ run a one card flush to his opponent's spade for the win.

Wei Ting Chen open shoved 330,000 in and was called by Manlok Chan on the big blind. A crucial flip, Chan quickly landed the advantage on board 8♥ T♦ 4♠ 9♠ 2♦ , eventually sending Chen out of the Kick Off games.

Wu Yi Wei completed his big blind vs a button open from Shao Fu Wang, and check called another 80,000 on flop A♥ J♣ 4♣ . Both checked turn 3♣ to river T♦ where Wu led 250,000. Shao folds, shipping Wu the pot.

Manlok Chan defended his big blind against an open from Wei Ting Chen and went on to check call another 60,000 on flop A♦ J♦ 6♣ . Turn K♣ welcomed no bets, and Chan leads 220,000 on river 2♣ . Wei tanks and eventually puts in the chips, yet mucks as Chan reveals nut flush A♣ 9♣ .

Action folded to small blind Jia Xian Zhu who opened to 80,000, called behind by Wen Chi Wang. On board A♥ 2♠ 9♥ 5♦ T♥ , Jia barreled all three streets - 50,000, 150,000, and an all-in for 415,000, with Wen calling down two bets. Wen tank gave it up by the river as Jia demanded for a final 10 BB.

An all-in preflop situation saw Hung Yu Liao commit his entire 670,000 stack, smack into Po Chun Liu's rockets. A cooler battle, Po's better pair held all the way through board Q♦ 5♦ 2♠ 4♥ 3♦ , sending Hung out in a painful elimination.

Shao Fu Wang opened to 80,000 and was met with two all-ins - Chang Yen Wen (225,000) and Yumi Ogose (225,000). Shao makes the final call and the three run board A♥ 3♦ T♦ Q♥ A♣ . Ogose's pocket pair holds for the win, earning the full triple up.

Wei Ting Chen completed on the big blind against a button open from Manlok Chan and check called another 60,000 on flop J♥ 2♣ K♣ . Turn J♦ went check check, pushing Wei to lead 140,000 on river 4♣ . Chan gives it up and folds.

Wen Chi Wang open shoved 340,000 in and saw small blind Jia Qi Huang call off for his lesser 265,000. A huge underdog, Jia failed to catch up on board Q♠ J♦ 4♠ 9♠ 7♥ , knocking him out of the running.

Shao Fu Wang defended his big blind against Wei Ting Chen's utg open and headed to flop K♠ 8♣ 2♦ . Both checked it through to turn A♣ where Shao led for 75,000. Wei continues to river K♣ and calls another 135,000, only to muck as Shao revealed trips K♦ Q♠ .

Small blind Fu Chen Wei raised all-in and saw Philip King go with Q♦ 5♥ for his last big blind. Fu with 7♦ 2♦ , delivered the elimination having paired up his deuce on board K♥ 5♦ 4♦ 7♣ 8♥ .

A three way raised pot led by Philip King rolled flop 4♠ 8♥ 7♦ . Action was checked to Wei Ting Chen who bet 75,000. King check raised all-in and saw his opponent call off for his entire 458,000 with 4♥ 4♣ . King is way behind with 5♣ 5♠ , and was left crippled as turn 2♠ and river Q♣ sealed the win for Wei.

Benny Chung went with T♥ 9♥ for his last 104,000 and was called by big blind Wu Yi Wei with K♣ 9♣ . Dominated, Chung crashed out after board A♦ A♠ 5♣ K♥ Q♣ failed to save him from his demise.

Action folded to Lok Chan who shoved for 250,000 (10 BB), called behind by Che Chun Chu. In rough shape, Chan bowed out shortly after missing board T♥ 8♠ 2♦ 4♦ 6♠ .

The 462-entry field Kick Off highlight is down to its final 18 players led by Fu Chen Wei. Two other runners have surpassed the 1 million mark with Shao Fu Wang and Po Chun Liu rounding up the top three spots. Each remaining contender is already guaranteed NT$ 42,500 (~US$ 1,320) in winnings, with all eyes set on the NT$ 709,500 (~US$ 22,110) top prize.

Kick Off

Date/s: October 25-26, 2024

Buy in: NT$ 10,000 (~US$ 310)

Guarantee: NT$ 3,000,000 (~US$ 93,500)

Entries: 462

Prize Pool: NT$ 3,943,700 (~US$ 122,980)

ITM: 71 players

Chip Count Update

Up against a cutoff open, button Lok Chan fired a three bet to 250,000 and saw Chang Yen Wen behind push all-in for 474,000 total. Chan puts in the call and is in for a flip against Chang's overcards. Board K♥ K♦ J♣ K♣ J♠ however, ran a full house, splitting the pot between the two.

Mu Ze Li pushed for 163,000, called by Fu Chen Wei behind. Big blind Liao Chao Kun reshoved for 212,000 total and Fu puts in the chips for a three way showdown. Board ran Q♣ 2♠ 7♦ J♥ Q♠ with Fu scooping it all up with two pair queens and jacks.

Nguyen Van Nam opened to 45,000 from utg, called by two players behind. On flop 6♠ 5♥ J♥ , Nguyen continued for 55,000, and Lok Chan puts in the call. Yun Kun Yang then raised all-in with only Nguyen tank calling off for his entire 291,000. Yun shows two pair 5♣ 6♣ , ahead of Nguyen's Q♠ Q♥ . Lucky for the Vietnamese, the turn Q♣ shipped him the advantage, earning the pot as river A♠ completed the board.

Liao Chao Kun opened to 40,000 from utg and saw button and big blind Manlok Chan come along on flop 2♠ 3♦ 4♥ . Liao continued for 50,000 and called a 100,000 check raise from Chan. On turn 7♣ , Chan pulled the trigger and Liao gives it up.

With 200,000 already in the pot on board 8♣ 2♣ 4♦ Q♣ , action was seen on Nguyen Van Nam firing a bet of 100,000. Button Shao Fu Wang makes the call and gets to showdown after river 2♦ saw no more bets. Nguyen shows A♣ T♦ , no good against Shao's J♠ 8♠ .

Jun Zhong Wang open shoved his remaining 222,000 in and saw Jia Xian Zhu make the call on the big blind. At risk, Wang's pocket pair failed to hold up as board J♣ T♦ 3♠ Q♦ 9♠ landed the nut straight for his opponent.

A four way raised pot led by Wei Ta Wei revealed flop 8♣ J♦ 7♥ . Action was checked to turn 4♣ where Wei sent out 40,000. Li Wei Wang right behind, put in a raise to 150,000 and saw both big blind Benny Chung and Wei continue to river Q♥ . Li fires 80,000 and ships the pot as both opponents folded, Li shows 4♦ 4♠ .

Che Chun Chu opened to 30,000 and tank called for his 251,000 stack after Kung Yuan Li raised all-in. A crucial flip, the board K♦ J♥ 5♠ 5♣ T♥ ran in favor of the overcards, earning Che the double up.

Po Chun Liu opened to 31,000, called by Li Wei Wang on the button along with the big blind. Action on flop A♦ Q♣ 4♠ was checked to turn 7♦ , where Po sent out 40,000. Li continues to river 3♣ and calls a final 125,000 bet, only to muck after Po revealed two pair A♣ 7♣ .

Yumi Ogose committed his last 99,000 with Q♦ J♦ and faced Manlok Chan's A♠ K♣ behind. At risk, Ogose faded elimination having spiked a pair on river 8♦ 7♦ 4♣ 5♣ J♣ to survive through.

Wu Yi Wei opened to 25,000 and happily jammed for his tournament life for 388,000 total after being faced with a 75,000 three bet from Wei Cheng Lin. Lin calls off and bags the loss as board Q♥ 2♠ 5♣ T♣ 6♥ missed to spike his two outer.

Po Chun Liu defended his utg open and called a 68,000 three bet from big blind Nguyen Van Nam. On flop 7♣ 7♠ 4♦ , Po called for another 26,000 and headed to turn A♦ . Both players checked it through to river 6♠ , where Nguyen led for 77,000. Po tanked and fired a raise to 165,000, Nguyen with a final call. Po shows rivered boat 6♦ 6♥ and soars to the lead as Nguyen tabled A♥ Q♣ .

An all-in preflop situation saw Wei Ta Wei commit his entire 203,000 with Q♥ Q♦ and was in a great position to double up against Benny Chung's 8♣ 8♥ . Board ran 6♣ 4♦ K♥ 4♥ 5♦ ran safe for Wei, securing him the pot.

Yuting Chen open shoved 105,000 in and was called by Nguyen Van Nam on the big blind. In for a race, Nguyen bagged the win as board J♠ J♥ 6♦ 4♦ 6♠ missed to pair up either player, leaving his ace high good for the take down.

Lok Chan opened from utg+1 and called off Guy Sun's jam for 151,000 total. In search of an ace, the board Q♥ T♣ 7♠ 8♣ 6♣ felted none, earning Chan the boost.

Kung Yuan Li opened to 24,000, joined by Yun Kun Yang and Fu Chen Wei on flop 4♦ 5♣ 5♦ . Kung continued for 55,000 and saw Yun put in a raise to 110,000. Action back to Fu, he check raised all-in for 395,000 total and shipped the pot following two folds.

Big blind Chao Chi Hsu raised all-in for 68,000 against a cutoff open from Wen Chi Wang and saw the latter call off. Dominated, Wen delivered the elimination having spiked a full house on board T♦ Q♦ 5♥ 9♠ 9♦ .

First break sees only 33 players remain in the running out of the 71 survivors into Day 2. Po Chun Liu currently stands in the lead, stacking over 900K as he nears the seven digit mark. Action will play down to a winner where the NT$ 709,500 (~US$ 22,110) is deemed to be claimed.

Top Chip Counts

Erwin Ng open shoved for 72,500 and was called behind by Nguyen Van Nam for a flip. At risk, Ng headed out as board K♣ Q♦ 7♥ T♣ 2♦ ran a straight for his opponent.

Wei Cheng Lin opened from utg, called by Shao Fu Wang. On flop 3♦ Q♠ 6♠ , Shao called for another 20,000 and headed to turn 5♦ . Both players checked it through to river J♠ , where Wei led for 95,000. Shao tank calls with T♠ T♣ and ships the pot as Wei turned over bluff A♥ K♦ .

Facing a late position open, Chih Hsuan Chang moved all-in for 128,000 and saw big blind Nguyen Van Nam push likewise. Initial raiser gets out of the way and the two run board 7♣ 6♥ J♦ 4♠ 8♥ . Both miss to pair up, leaving Nguyen's better ace good for the win.

Hoong Yong shoved 138,000 in against Nguyen Van Nam's 20,000 open and saw the latter call off with a pocket pair. In for a flip, Yoong was eliminated as his opponent landed a set on board 4♣ 5♠ Q♦ T♦ K♥ .

Chang Yen Wen opened to 16,000 and was priced in to call Chien Te Lee's all-in for 56,000 total. At risk, Chien remained ahead with a straight on the turn K♣ 4♣ J♥ T♥ 9♣ , but was left in pieces as the river filled up Chang's flush to take it down.

Wen Chi Wang opened to 16,000 and was met with a 42,000 three bet from small blind Wu Yi Wei. Wen answered with an all-in for 172,500 total, and Wu folds. Wen shows Q♣ Q♠ .

Hoong Yong shoved his last 52,500 in and was called by Hsiao Yun Chang on the big blind. Slightly ahead, Yong quickly landed the advantage on board A♣ J♣ 2♠ 7♥ 3♥ for the full double up.

With an early open and two calls ahead, Wen Chi Wang squeezed all-in on the big blind for 120,500 total and picked up the pot uncontested.

Nobuaki Sasaki opened to 17,000, called behind by Jia Xian Zhu. On flop Q♥ 8♥ 4♣ , Sasaki continued for 40,000 and went on to call off for 150,000 more after Jia raised all-in. Jia shows A♠ A♦ , leaving Sasaki's A♥ Q♣ headed towards the muck as turn K♦ and river 4♠ completed the board.

On their third back-to-back clash, action folded to Hungte Lee on the small blind who pushed all-in for 64,000. Yun Kun Yang made the call and finished Lee in quick fashion with top pair on board K♥ 9♥ 3♣ 7♦ 6♠ .

With 150,000 in the pot on board 2♣ 5♥ K♠ Q♦ 6♣ , utg Hungte Lee was seen leading out for 110,000. Yun Kun Kang right behind slammed his entire 253,500 in and took it down after Lee tank folded.

Huang Kai Ming opened to 12,000, joined by big blind Erwin Ng on flop K♥ 5♦ 4♣. Huang continued for 11,000, check called by his opponent. Both players checked 4♥ through to river 9♠ , where Ng led for 32,000. Huang answered with an all-in for 109,500 total, and Ng tank folds.

Po Jui Chen open shoved 55,500 in from utg and saw Bosco Cham right behind call off for his lesser 33,500. In for a race, Cham was spared from elimination as river 5♠ 4♥ 5♦ 4♦ 9♣ paired him up for the win.

Button Che Chun Chu fired a 22,500 three bet against a late position open and saw Polun Chao cold call from the big blind. Action on board A♦ K♠ 3♥ 3♣ J♠ was checked down to the river where Chao check called a 25,000 bet from his opponent. Che shows J♦ J♣ and Chao mucks, showing A♠ .

With 130,000 in the middle on board A♠ 9♠ 5♠ Q♣ , action was seen on button Liao Chao Kun with a bet of 80,000. Big blind Che Chun Chu check raised all-in and saw his opponent call off for his remaining 88,000. Che is ahead with two pair A♥ 9♥ against Liao's Q♥ T♦ , but was crushed to see the river Q♦ land trips for Liao to turn the tables.

Shun Yi Zheng defended his utg open vs a 30,000 three bet from Hoong Yong and led all-in for 36,000 on flop 5♦ 7♥ 8♣ . Yong snap calls and ships the pot with K♣ K♦ against Zheng's A♥ 9♥ all the way down to turn J♦ and river 3♥ .

Manlok Chan opened to 12,000 and called off 54,000 more following a jam from Zong Yu Liu behind. At risk, Liu missed to improve on board 4♠ Q♥ 5♦ T♦ 4♣ , ending his run entirely.

Kick Off Day 2 action begins, good luck to all the players!

Doors blasted wide open at the inaugural TMT Championship with the Kick Off event drawing in a large crowd to the Asia Poker Arena in Taipei City, Taiwan. Throughout the three available flights a total of 462 took to the felt to breach the NT$3M guarantee for a sweeter NT$ 3,943,700 (~US$ 122,980) prize pool. Out of the field, only 71 players remain in the running, each guaranteed a minimum payout of NT$ 15,000 (~US$ 465). Local runner Chang Yan Wen currently stands in the lead, having brought in the largest stack from the initial flight's games.

Date/s: October 25-26, 2024

Buy in: NT$ 10,000 (~US$ 310)

Guarantee: NT$ 3,000,000 (~US$ 93,500)

Entries: 462

Prize Pool: NT$ 3,943,700 (~US$ 122,980)

ITM: 71 players