TMT Main Event F - Turbo

Another bustling day at the Arena has wrapped up with two TMT Main Event flights playing down to completion. The later heat, Day 1F attracted an additional 623 entries and saw the mammoth NTD 32,500,000 (~USD 1,000,000) guarantee breached within the first two hours of play. Only 50 runners survived tonight's carnage with South Korea's In Hwan Lee holding the lead over the field.

Lee capped the day with an impressive 1,144,000 chip count onto Day 2 and stands to be the sole runner across the round to crack the one million mark. Lee's rise came by the stroke of midnight and extended even further all the way through the next seven levels. Compatriot Kiyoung Kim stacks just below Lee at quite a distance with 769,000, followed by local runner Pai Kuei Lin with 716,000 to round up the top three spots.

Other international notables joining the list include South Korea's Jee Weon Kim (613,000) and Soo Jo Kim (376,000), Hong Kong's Ka Shun Tsang (200,000), and Philippines' Marc Rivera (144,000).

All Day 1F contenders will have a day to recuperate before they make a return for the Day 2 battle this Sunday, January 19th. Two final heats remain on the agenda, leaving this Saturday's games ultimately the last chance to qualify. Don't miss the action and stay tuned to Somuchpoker for all the latest!

TMT Main Event 17

Date/s: January 12, 15-20, 2025

Buy-in: NTD 9,000 (~USD 280)

Guarantee: NTD 32,500,000 (~USD 1,000,000)

Starting stack: 25,000

Day 1A - Early Bird: 901 entries, 136 ITM / 73 qualified

Day 1B Turbo: 400 entries, 60 ITM / 32 qualified

Day 1C: 662 entries, 100 ITM / 53 qualified

Day 1D: 618 entries, 93 ITM / 49 qualified

Day 1E: 769 entries, 116 ITM / 62 qualified

Day 1F Turbo: 623 entries, 94 ITM / 50 qualified

Day 1G: Saturday, January 18

Day 1H Turbo: Saturday, January 18

Day 2: Sunday, January 19

Day 3/ Final: Monday, January 20

Ting Wei Kuo on the small blind, stuffed his 122,000 stack against a button open, and was surprised to see Lu Shaotang behind push likewise. Button raiser opted out, leaving the two to showdown.

Ting at risk, fell one spot shy of Day 2 after missing to connect with board J♠ 4♥ K♦ 9♥ A♠ entirely.

Wun Jie Wu called off his last 24,000 with K♦ K♣ and faced raiser Wei Jen Wang's A♥ J♠ .

At risk of being the stone cold bubble, Wun continued to hang on after board 4♥ 9♥ 5♠ 5♦ 6♠ felted no aces.

Weilin Tsai raised all-in for his last 105,000 and was called by initial raiser Ho Man Tsun.

Drawing slim, Tsai was in luck to find trip jacks on board J♦ 8♦ 5♠ A♦ J♣ , eliminating Tsai two places short of making Day 2.

Edward Yao pushed all-in utg for his remaining 105,000 and was looked up by Pai Kuei Lin behind.

Dominated, Pai had a whiff of the win as turn 9♠ 3♠ 5♦ J♥ paired up his jack, up until the river Q♦ shifted the advantage back to Yao, keeping the action still on bubble time.

Today's TMT Main Event F games is officially down to bubble time with two more eliminations to go before the flight wraps up. All remaining contenders are already in the money, yet only 50 players are guaranteed a spot into Day 2.

Piying Hsu opened utg+1 and was met with a 150,000 three bet from Tsai Cheng Cheng on the button. Hsu responded with an all-in, risking his entire 267,000 close to bubble time. Tsai took a minute and eventually found a fold.

Ko Chin Yu shoved for 72,000 on the button and faced Chou Chien Hu's suited broadway for a race.

Slightly ahead, Ko kept his advantage all the way through board J♣ 3♦ 8♦ 5♣ 6♣ , earning him the much needed double up with top pair.

Cho Ikseong opened 32,000 utg and called off Jung Miae's all-in for 120,000 total.

In for a race, Jung held on to his seat after board J♥ 6♠ 2♠ 3♠ 3♥ ran dry for both, leaving his ace-high good for the double up.

Action folded to Ka Shun Tsang on the small blind, to which he committed 106,000 off his stack, leaving himself with only 8,000 behind. Kun Han Lee right behind raised all-in, and Tsang flicked in the rest.

In for a flip, Tsang immediately landed a pair on board J♥ 8♦ K♣ Q♣ 7♥ , crushing Lee's pocket pair on all streets.

Hasung Lee raised all-in for 120,000 utg+1 and saw Lee In Hwan on the button, rise to the challenge.

Dominated, Lee In Hwan managed to turn the tables in his favor after the board T♥ T♣ 2♥ 4♣ 6♣ offered him a flush to steal the win.

Chen Jung Chou pushed his last 38,000 in the middle and was called by both players on the blinds. On flop K♥ 3♣ 2♦ , Kim Kiyoung bet all-in, isolating Chen to showdown.

Chen Jung Chou 9♦ 7♥

Kim Kiyoung K♠ 3♠

Drawing dead straight away, Chen exited the arena just as turn 8♣ and river 8♦ completed the board.

Cezar Quiambao flicked in his last 28,000, followed by two more all-ins behind from Justin Yang (158,000) and Anton Widjaya.

Board 9♦ 3♥ J♥ J♠ 7♦ ran safe for Yang's pocket pair, earning him a huge boost just as the day is about to close.

Lai Wei Lin moved all-in for 152,000 against an early open and saw Chen Jung Chou on the button, push likewise. Initial raiser moved out of the way, leaving the two to showdown.

Running behind, Chen shot down to a single big blind after failing to catch up on board Q♠ T♣ 4♦ T♠ 3♦ .

Lee Kuan Yuan opened utg+1 and went on to four bet shove his entire 215,000 against Wun Jie Wu's big blind raise. Wun called off with his pocket pair, putting the former at risk.

Board 9♣ 7♠ A♦ 7♦ J♦ ran in favor of Lee's overcards, crippling Wun in the process.

Anton Widjaya limp called Jung Miae's 63,000 all-in on the button and found himself in for a flip.

Board A♠ 8♠ Q♠ 7♥ A♣ connected with both players, with Jung's full house keeping him alive in the Main Event F running.

Pai Kuei Lin delivered a double bust just minutes after the money bubble burst and showed both Seo Yung Kuk and bracelet winner Shiina Okamoto the door. Pai rose to the lead with an 80 big blind stack following the win.

Ma Chun Yu risked his entire 165,000 preflop and faced Piying Hsu's pocket pair for a flip.

At risk, Yu instantly flopped top pair on 5♥ 2♣ Q♠ K♥ J♠ but came crashing as the river rolled a set for Hsu to bust him out.

Tsai Sheng Ming open shoved 80,000, followed by another all-in for a lesser 52,500 from Guan Zhi He. Jee Weon Kim made the final call, making it a three way showdown.

Board T♣ Q♠ 7♣ 8♠ 2♥ ran safe for Kim's pocket pair, knocking both opponents out of the Main Event qualifier entirely.

The tournament clock has been paused to make way for the money bubble! 94 players are due to secure a share of the prize pool, leaving only one more elimination left on the table.

Day's action will close once the field is further down to 8% at 50 players.

Yong Yu Chen sent out a 22,000 three bet against an utg open and saw Kaustubh Mahajani cold call on the button. Action on board 2♣ A♦ T♣ 9♣ J♦ was checked all the way to showdown, revealing Yong's Q♦ Q♣ good for the pot.

Jee Weon Kim opened 13,000 on the button, joined by Yoda Lin on the small blind onto flop 6♠ 2♣ T♣ . Kim continued for 12,000 yet slipped the fold after Lin check raised for 60,000 more.

Cheng Chiao Lu pushed his last 31,000 in and saw Hao Wei Huang two seats behind push likewise.

Running a flip, Cheng's pocket pair remained ahead on board 8♠ J♦ 9♦ 3♥ up until the river A♠ paired up Hao to turn the tables.

A three way all-in situation ensued with Fung Chik Lung covering both Paul Nattapatsiri and Jin Xue.

Three pocket pairs on the table, Fung's nutted pair shot to victory on board K♦ T♦ 3♠ 6♥ T♥ , knocking out two in quick fashion.

Yoda Lin limp called Karen Talamayan's 55,500 all-in on the hijack, putting the latter at risk.

In for a race, both players missed to pair up on board 5♥ T♥ 2♦ 4♥ 4♠ , leaving Lin's ace-high good for the bust.

Tsai Chia Ta stuffed his last 30,000 against an open and saw Karen Talamayan reshove for a bigger 62,000. Initial raiser opted out, leaving the two to showdown.

A huge favorite, Tsai cruised to victory on board 9♦ 5♥ 4♦ 7♥ T♦ , costing Talamayan half her stack.

With a pot of 47,000 set across board 7♥ 9♥ 2♠ 5♠ , utg raiser Hasung Lee threw in a bet of 15,000 and saw Cezar Quiambao bump it up to 50,000. Lee took a minute and eventually found a fold, not before showing A♥ A♣ .

Paul Nattapatsiri completed his big blind vs an 8,000 utg open from Deng Deng Kai and headed to flop 9♠ 7♠ 2♠ . Deng took a stab for 10,000 yet quickly laid it down after Nattapatsiri check raised for 14,000 more.

Cezar Quiambao opened to 8,500 and went on to four bet jam his entire 109,500 against Noh Min Hyuck's raise behind. Noh called off with his pocket pair and found himself in rough shape for a chunk of his stack.

Board 3♠ K♠ 5♦ 5♠ 4♣ offered no help to Noh's demise, shipping the 57 big blind pot towards Quiambao's way.

Jee Weon Kim opened 6,000 utg and was met with a 17,000 three bet from Hoi Man Cheng a seat after. Kim responded with an all-in, and convinced Hoi to save his 19 big blinds behind.

Seo Yung Kuk opened 7,000 utg+1, called behind by Yang Ting Kai along with the big blind. Seo continued for 20,000 on flop J♣ 8♦ 3♠ , followed by an all-in for 36,500 from Yang. Big blind folded, and Seo called the rest with top pair.

Yang Ting Kai A♦ A♣

Seo Yung Kuk J♦ T♣

Crushed against Yang's rockets, Seo booked the loss after failing to improve on runout 8♣ 2♣ .

Vying for 39,000 in the middle across board 5♥ 7♣ 3♠ T♣ , Xin Hong Ren made an attempt for it with a bet of 8,500. Lee Seung Ryong behind put in the call, and paid another 13,500 on river 2♠ for a showdown.

Xin flipped over A♥ Q♠ high, no good against Lee's slightly better A♦ K♦ high.

Player utg pushed his last 12,500 in and was called by both Chou I Hsuan and Marc Rivera on the big blind. On flop K♣ T♣ 5♠ , Chou bet 5,000, enough to push Rivera out of the pot.

Chou I Hsuan K♠ Q♦

UTG T♠ 4♠

Chou ahead, delivered the bust shortly after runout 7♦ J♠ completed the board.

Soo Jo Kim raised the stakes to 20,000 following an open and a call, and saw initial raiser Tsai Chen Cheng come along on flop A♣ 3♣ 5♥ . Kim bet 15,000 and followed with an all-in on turn 6♦ , leaving Tsai entirely unable to continue by the second barrel.

Ko Chin Yu defended his open and called a 13,000 three bet from Chou Chien Hu behind. On flop T♠ 4♠ 9♣ , Chou check called another 11,000, revealing turn 5♠ . Both checked it through to river T♣ , where Ko led for 25,000. Chou surrendered and showed an A♠ before tossing his hand in the muck.

Ma Chun Yu opened 5,000 utg+1, called behind by Yu Jyue Huei. On flop 2♦ 5♦ 9♦ , Ma check called a 6,000 bet from his opponent, yet gave it up after Yu went for another 16,000 on turn K♥ .

Chou Chien Hu opened 5,000 on the button and called off the big blind's 47,000 jam for a flip.

Board 6♥ T♥ 2♦ 7♠ 6♣ steered clear of the overcards, shipping Chou the boost with his ladies.

With 24,000 spread out across board T♠ J♣ 2♦ 9♥ , Pojui Chen led out for 13,000, and followed with a final 25,000 on river J♠ . Opponent behind, called down, only to muck as Chen revealed trip jacks A♠ J♥ .

Another three way all-in saw two players at risk - UTG+1 (22,100) and Hungyu Liao (54,100), against Woojin Kim.

Board Q♥ J♣ 7♠ 7♣ 4♠ ran in favor of the overcards, sending both pocket pairs bound for the muck.

A three way all-in preflop ensued with Chou Chien Hu covering both opponents' roughly twenty big blind stacks.

Board 7♣ 6♦ 6♣ T♠ 3♥ missed to pair up either player at risk, allowing Chou to scoop it all with two pair.

Facing an early open and a three bet, Hasung Lee cold four bet for 14,500 and called off initial raiser's all-in for 14,500 more.

A cooler situation, Lee's rockets zoomed to victory as board 4♦ 5♦ 8♥ Q♣ 7♥ delivered no bad beats.

Chen Peng opened 4,000 on the button and was joined by Yi Chen Chan on the small blind. On board J♣ 6♥ 3♦ 3♥ , Chen double barreled 3,400 and 10,000, leaving Yi unable to continue by the turn.

Ki Bum Park opened utg+1 and went on to four bet jam 29,600 in against a raise from Wei Jen Wang on the big blind. Wei called off, and found himself in rough shape for two thirds of his stack.

Board K♦ 7♦ 4♥ K♠ 6♣ failed to save Wei from his demise, sending him plummeting down once more.

Facing an open and a call, player on the big blind squeezed all-in for 13,700, and saw initial raiser Wu Yu Hao push likewise for 16,000. Guan Zhi He made the final call, running a three way showdown.

Board ran A♦ 4♥ J♠ 2♥ 2♠ , earning Wu the entire pot with two pair.

Zong Chi He raised all-in utg and saw a player behind call off for his lesser 25,000 stack.

Running a flip, window card on Q♣ J♥ 3♦ 2♠ 7♥ came a queen but rolled a set for Zong just shortly to serve the elimination.

CTP Asia Poker Arena has been drawing in a crowd day after day with today's TMT Main Event F heat just like the rest. A total of 623 entries have been recorded across nine levels of registration with only 363 players currently remaining in their seats. Of the field, 15% at 94 players will be a guaranteed a minimum payout, only 50 of which will advance to Day 2.

Wei Jen Wang open shoved 30,500 in and saw Yeung Chi Ho on the small blind, take the spot.

Running a flip for a 63 big blind pot, Yeung instantly spiked a set on board A♠ 9♣ 5♣ J♣ 7♦ to deliver the bust.

Hyunsup Kim raised all-in on the hijack and saw Kim Chung Sik call off for his lesser 13,300 on the small blind.

Looking to pair up, Kim Chung Sik immediately did so on board J♦ 2♥ 8♥ 5♠ 2♣ , leaving Hyunsup down short and out the next deal.

Vying for 6,200 in the middle across flop Q♦ K♦ 5♥ , Liu Kai Ray made an attempt for it with a bet of 3,000. Yin Ye Chen on the small blind, check raised for 7,000 more, and followed with another 18,000 on turn 9♥ . Liu surrendered by the turn, shipping Yin the boost.

Ka Wai Ng opened 2,300 on the hijack, called behind by Sokteng Lai and the big blind. On flop K♠ 5♦ 9♦ , opponent led for 1,600 and saw both Ka and Lai move on to turn 2♦ . Action this time, was checked to Lai, who bet 3,500. Big blind folded while Ka called once more, revealing river 2♠ . Ka shot out an 8,200 bet, leaving Lai to tank fold.

With a pot of 31,000 centered around board A♦ T♠ 9♣ 8♠ 3♦ , three way action saw Philip Wang bet 8,000. Kang Jia Jie behind, raised all-in and picked up the pot uncontested.

Wang showed two pair A♠ T♣ , allowing Kang to return the favor as he showed a mere pair of eights 8♦ 6♠ .

Taeng Chun Hao defended his big blind against Chen Hsing Lin's 2,100 open, and headed to flop T♦ 9♦ Q♣ . Action checked round to turn J♠ , where Chen bet 4,000. Taeng check called, yet folded on river K♦ after Chen pulled a final 5,800.

Vying for 16,000 in the middle on flop 2♠ J♠ 4♠ , action was caught on Yu Chieh Lai with a bet of 6,400. Guan Zhi He check raised to 17,000, and went on to lead all-in on turn 8♣ . Yu completed the initial street yet decided to lay it down after Guan asked for more.

Ho Man Tsun opened on the cutoff and went on to fourbet 8,400 against Edwin Dela Cruz's button raise. Dela Cruz made the call but quickly folded on flop K♣ 6♠ 3♦ after Ho continued for 6,000.

A pot of 6,000 was centered around board 6♠ J♦ T♦ A♥ and saw Shin Seonho make an attempt for 3,000. Ko Chin Yu check raised to 6,000, and bet another 5,000 on river 5♦ . Shin paid the price and mucked after Ko revealed top pair A♦ 2♦ .

Nick Chen opened utg+1 and called off for his entire 10,300 after Jung Miae raised all-in on the button.

In for a flip, Chen's pocket pair held on board 2♦ 5♦ 2♣ 2♠ T♥ , keeping him in the Main Event running.

Another epic showdown is about to hit this season's TMT Main Event showing with already an impressive 4,212 entries in the bag! That means the stakes are about to get even bigger with the prize pool on its way to soaring above the NTD 32,500,000 (~USD 1,000,000) mark. Get ready for more thrills heading your way these next three days!

Two more flights are geared to play down tomorrow, January 18th, where all those who have yet to qualify for Day 2 can put their skills to the test and be part of another historic TMT installment.

Waki Yasuhiro opened and called Jimin Lee's all-in for his last 4,300, putting the latter at risk.

Board Q♣ J♥ 8♦ 6♥ K♦ offered no help for Lee, eliminating him in the Main Event flight.

A preflop back and forth saw Jimin Lee make the final call against Zhongyou Wu's five bet jam for 46,800 total.

In search of an ace, the board 9♠ 7♣ 6♦ 3♣ 8♥ felted none, crippling Lee down to ten big blinds.

Up against an early open and a call, Ha Seong Min on the button, went for a three bet to 3,400. Initial raiser Sokteng Lai responded with an all-in, enough to push both opponents out of the pot.

Bo Sin opened 1,000 utg, called by Ni Yu Jie along with the big blind. On flop 8♦ 5♦ 3♠ , Bo continued for 2,500, followed by an all-in from Ni for 8,500 total. Bo made the call with top pair, slightly behind his opponent.

Ni Yu Jie T♣ 8♣

Bo Sin 9♥ 8♥

Runout 5♠ T♠ offered no chops, earning Ni the full pot with a better two pair.

A fourway raised pot led by Sumin Lim rolled a flop of A♦ 7♦ 3♣ . Lim continued for 2,200, followed by another 3,800 on turn T♠ , with Wei Chen Liao calling both streets. River 4♥ was checked to showdown, exposing Lim's busted flush draw T♦ 9♦ against Wei's top pair A♥ Q♠ for the pot.

With a pot of 11,200 centered around board Q♠ K♥ A♦ T♣ , action was caught on Peng Yi Zhan leading out of the small blind for 3,500. Yang Shih Hsien behind, raised to 10,100, and barreled all-in for another 14,400 on river 8♠ .

Peng called both streets with a set Q♦ Q♣ , only to take the loss as Yang revealed a straight A♥ J♥ .

Marc Rivera sent out a 4,100 three bet against Justin Yang's open, and saw the latter complete. On flop 2♥ 3♥ 6♥ , Rivera bet 2,500 and called 3,500 more following a check raise from his opponent. Both checked turn 6♠ through to river 4♥ , where Rivera paid a final 10,000.

Yang revealed quad sixes 6♦ 6♣ for the win.

Four players in a three bet pot battled on flop Q♠ J♥ 6♦ . Initial raiser Park Jae Kwan led all-in for 7,100, called by Takeomi Miyazawa behind. Action back to Yuan Chih Chen on the big blind, he reshoved 34,000 and was snap called once more by Miyazawa for a three way showdown.