Main Event (9,000 NTD)

Day 2 of the TMT 18 Main Event has officially drawn to a close, trimming the massive 8,478-entry field down to just 36 contenders. Each remaining player is now guaranteed a minimum payout of NTD 132,000 (~USD 4,475), but with the lion’s share of the NTD 62,250,500 prize pool still in play, the real battle for the title and the NTD 7,000,000 (~USD 237,320) top prize, begins tomorrow.

Leading the charge into the Final Day is Taiwan’s Chih Han Hsu, who bagged a towering 16,700,000 (67 BB) after a pivotal knockout of Lloyd Fontillas late in the day. Not far behind is En Shyang Wang with 16,025,000 (64 BB), followed by Shih Chen Tai at 11,700,000 (47 BB).

Other notables still in the hunt include Hong Kong’s Dicky Tsang (4,850,000) and Edward Yam (3,850,000), as well as Day 1 chip leaders Kuan Lun Chen (6,425,000) and Hsu Hung Ju (3,800,000).

Cards go back in the air at 11:00 on July 28, where one of these 36 players will walk away with the trophy and a career-defining payday. Stay locked in as SMP continues to bring you all the action straight from the floor!

TMT 18 Main Event

Dates: July 20–28, 2025

Buy-in: NTD 9,000 (~USD 300)

Guarantee: NTD 31,000,000 (~USD 1,000,000)

Entries: 8,478

Prize pool: NTD 62,262,500 (~USD 2,110,880)

Online: 537 entries

Local: 258 entries

Overseas: 171 entries, 28 ITM / 14 qualified

Day 1A: 985 entries, 148 ITM / 79 qualified

Day 1B: 502 entries, 76 ITM / 41 qualified

Day 1C: 628 entries, 95 ITM / 51 qualified

Day 1D: 817 entries, 123 ITM / 65 qualified

Day 1E: 884 entries, 133 ITM / 70 qualified

Day 1F: 958 entries, 144 ITM / 77 qualified

Day 1G: 1,507 entries, 227 ITM / 121 qualified

Day 1H: 1,231 entries, 184 ITM / 98 qualified

Day 2: 673 players, 36 qualified

Final Day: Monday, July 28

With two eliminations left to go, a dramatic four way clash erupted on Table 2. It began with a 600,000 utg open from Fu Lung Tsai, followed by three shoves — Kuan Lun Chen (1,850,000), Yi Chun Yu (550,000), and Xing Jie Chew (1,800,000). Tsai made the final call, putting all three at risk.

The board ran out J♥ 8♣ K♦ T♣ J♦ , giving Chen a full house to scoop the pot and knock both Yu and Chew out in one sweep. With the double bustout, Day 2 officially came to a close, sending the remaining 36 players onto the Final Day.

Yan Jia Zhang committed his remaining 2,775,000 from the small blind and was looked up by cutoff opener Jihwan Kim.

Board Q♠ 3♥ J♥ A♥ 7♣ was a slam dunk win for Kim, eliminating Zhang three spots away from making the Final Day.

Chi Huan Kuo opened to 600,000 and called Yu Xuan Gao's 4,175,000 all-in two seats over, risking two thirds of his stack.

It was a classic flip, and Kuo pulled ahead on board 9♣ Q♠ T♣ Q♣ , until the river A♣ landed a fourth club, giving Gao a flush to scoop the pot and stay alive.

/As the day winds down, just 39 players remain from the massive 8,478-entry field, all vying for a spot in the Final Day. Only 36 are slated to advance, which means only three more eliminations are due before Day 2 wraps up.

En Shyang Wang started the hand with a 400,000 open and quickly called Wong Hon Wai’s all-in for 2,200,000 from the cutoff.

Wang dominated, flopped the nuts on board A♥ J♠ T♣ 2♣ 6♣ , widening his advantage over the field and sending Wong out of the running.

Po Chia Liao pushed his last 2,000,000 in utg and found Yu Cheng Lu joining in a seat after.

Liao at risk, locked in the double as Lu missed to pair up on board 5♥ 3♣ 2♣ 7♠ K♣ . Lu crippled down to three big blinds, was eliminated a couple hands later by Hsu Hung Ju.

Short stacked Chengjin Xie open ripped his last 1,600,000 utg and was looked up by Yoda Lin right on the big blind.

Lin gunning for an ace, instantly found one on board A♦ J♠ 6♣ 5♠ 4♦ , enough to bust Xie out of contention.

The biggest hand of the day came down to a dramatic clash between Chih Han Hsu and Lloyd Fontillas, resulting in a monster pot and one less contender in the hunt.

Hsu opened in early position, and Fontillas flatted in the small blind. On flop 3♣ 2♦ 7♥ , Fontillas went for a hefty 2,500,000 check raise - 5x Hsu's 500,000 cbet, and called off his 5,675,000 behind after Hsu went for the rest.

Hsu 3♦ 3♠

Fontillas Q♦ Q♣

Fontillas was left drawing thin against Hsu's set, and with no miracle queen arriving on either turn 6♣ or river J♦ , his deep run ended straight away, just shy of the Final Day.

Ta Wei Lin defended his open and called a 900,000 three bet from Shih Chen Tai on the button.

On flop A♦ T♥ 3♣ , Lin put in another 500,000, and found himself in a tricky spot after Tai demanded for the rest on turn K♥ . Lin made a last minute call with A♥ 2♥ for his remaining 2,500,000, and was crushed to see Tai reveal a set of kings K♦ K♠ .

Drawing only to a flush, Lin missed to fill up on river 6♠ , busting him out of the Main Event running.

Day chip leader Zeng Chen Wei made it down all the way to the last six tables before seeing his run come to an end.

In a hand against Yoda Lin, Wei called off his remaining 2,725,000 and put his tournament life on the line with A♥ 6♥ . Lin was slightly behind with K♦ T♦ , yet caught up quickly on board T♥ 9♥ Q♦ 3♣ T♠ to knock Wei out.

Jia Lin Luo defended her big blind against Vincent Wong's open, and faced a 200,000 cbet on flop K♦ J♦ J♥ . Luo answered with a check raise to 500,000, putting Wong to the test. Wong completed, but gave it up on turn 6♦ shortly after Luo pulled another 500,000.

With 1,100,000 already in the middle on a flop of T♠ K♠ 3♥ , Kai Qiang Chang fired a chunky bet of 700,000. Cheng Wen Huang check called, and ramped up the aggression, pushing all-in for 2,100,000 on turn 7♣ .

Chang went deep into the tank before making the tough call with Q♦ Q♥ , ahead of Huang’s A♣ Q♠ for an inside straight draw. But fate had other plans as the J♦ landed on the river to complete Huang’s Broadway straight, snatching the pot and a huge chunk of Chang’s stack.

Jihwan Kim kicked off with an open on the cutoff, followed by a 725,000 raise from Hyun You Chung a seat after. Kim tanked, and decided to go for it all, only to run into Chung's Q♦ Q♠ . Kim was behind with A♣ 7♦ , and took the loss, having failed to catch up on board 6♠ K♥ K♦ 9♠ 4♦ .

Chien An Hou risked his last 1,475,000 and was followed by another push from Edward Yam behind. The rest of the table stepped aside, leaving the two to battle it out.

Yam, well ahead, comfortably rode board A♣ Q♠ 3♥ A♥ 3♣ , sealing the knockout and sending Hou to the rail as Yam stacked the pot with a full house.

Hyun You Chung lit up 250,000 on the hijack and was met with a 725,000 three bet from Hsu Shuyi on the button. Chung wasted no time ripping his entire 2,100,000, enough to get Hsu to lay it down.

Jen Li Liu kicked off with an open mid position and called a 1,100,000 all-in from Chien Hsun Wang on the button.

A coinflip, board 5♥ 8♥ A♠ 7♣ 9♠ this time, ran in favor of the overcards, cutting Wang's Main Event run short.

Jheng Sian Li open shoved 975,000 utg+1 and was looked up by Adi Zecharia on the button.

Zecharia ahead, faded the ace on runout Q♠ K♦ 4♠ Q♦ 9♥ , eliminating Li from this season's Main Event games.

Following a tense back and forth, Lloyd Fontillas made a gutsy call against a four bet jam, creating a massive 5,500,000 pot in a classic flip for his tournament life.

Fontillas 7♦ 7♣

HJ A♠ K♥

50-50, Fontillas’ pocket pair stood strong across board J♦ 3♦ 8♠ 8♦ 3♣ , vaulting him among the top stacks deep in the game.

Wong Hon Wai opened in the hijack and was priced in to call Yoda Lin's 775,000 all-in right behind, putting the latter at risk.

Board 5♣ 8♥ 2♠ 3♦ J♣ ran dry for both, leaving Lin's ace-high good for the takedown.

A massive cooler unfolded on Table 9, where Cheng Wen Huang raked in a monster pot of over 4,000,000 after his K♦ K♠ spiked top set on a board of J♠ K♣ 7♦ 6♠ 9♠ , brutally cracking Kuan Ying Chen’s A♦ A♠ and sending him to the rail in disbelief.

Just a couple of hands later, Huang was back in action, finishing off another short stack to further boost his stack to 53 big blinds.

A three bet pot between Jen Li Liu and Yan Jia Zhang built a towering 800,000 in the middle by the time the flop landed J♠ 3♣ 8♠ . Both players checked to turn T♣ , where Zhang fired 300,000. Liu made the call right behind, and arrived at showdown shortly after river 6♦ collected no more bets. Zhang revealed A♣ K♦ high, no good against Liu's pair of tens T♠ 7♠ .

Xing Jie Chew kicked off the action with a 160,000 open from early position, only to face a 520,000 shove from Tsun Jen Yang on the hijack. Cai Xin Wong cold called, and Chew came along to set up a three-way collision.

Flop came 8♦ 6♣ 9♥ , and Wong led right into it with a 225,000 donk bet, but quickly folded when Chew jammed for his remaining 1,455,000.

Chew 8♥ 8♠

Yang A♠ A♣

Yang was in big trouble, and packed up his things as the 7♣ turn and 3♣ river confirmed the inevitable, cutting his run short entirely.

Action was picked up on turn A♦ A♠ 6♣ 7♣ with over 400,000 already in the middle. Jia Lin Luo kept the pressure on with a 250,000 bet, and finished with a final 650,000 in an attempt to push his opponent out of the pot. But Kai Qiang Chang stood tall, making the call with a full house T♣ 6♠ , exposing Luo's bluff 9♣ 4♣ .

With 400,000 already in the middle on a 4♥ 9♦ K♥ flop , Peng Yang Wong check raised to 400,000 over Zhong You Chen’s 150,000 bet. But the heat dialed up quickly as Chen moved all-in for 1,445,000 total, putting the pressure back on Wong. Wong went into the tank and eventually laid it down after some thought, conceding the pot to his opponent.

Up against an early open and a call, Lau Siu Chung squeezed for 1,085,000 in the small blind and was challenged by initial raiser Seo Jihyun.

But the sweat was short lived for Chung, who flopped a set and cruised through board Q♣ 3♣ 6♣ 7♥ 8♠ to score the double and stay in the mix.

A four-bet clash between Yun Sang Woo and Yi Chun Yu built a massive 1,700,000 pot heading to a flop of 5♥ 6♣ T♣ . Woo kept the pressure on, jamming his remaining 1,095,000. After a deep tank, Yu eventually called with J♦ J♥ , only to find himself behind Woo’s K♦ K♣ .

But fortune flipped fast as the 2♥ J♠ runout gave Yu a set on the river, cracking kings and sending Woo to the rail. With that knockout, Yu surged into the overall chip lead with just 110 players left in the hunt.

Cai Xin Wong put her tournament life on the line with 9♥ 9♣ , all-in for 715,000 against cutoff Tsun Jen Yang’s A♥ 8♥ . Clinging to her lead, Wong faded all danger as the board ran out 3♠ 8♠ K♥ J♠ J♦ , securing a much needed double up deep into the tournament.

Folded to Cohen Dorel on the cutoff, he open ripped 1,400,000, and was easily looked up by Yuan Jui Chang in the small blind.

Dorel drawing slim, bid his Main Event dreams goodbye as board J♣ 5♠ 8♠ A♦ 9♣ offered him no salvation.

Lemmor Patulot opened to 105,000 from early position, with Po Chia Liao flatting on the cutoff. Sing Wen Chen, sitting in the big blind, sprung into action and squeezed all-in for 980,000. Patulot reshoved for more—1,480,000 total, and Liao, already holding the goods, snap-called with both covered.

None could crack the rockets on board 2♠ J♠ 2♦ Q♠ 6♦ , shipping Liao the massive boost while knocking two off the counts.

Kotaro Arakawa made the final call from the small blind after facing two shoves ahead, sitting on what looked like a dream setup.

Adi Zecharia 8♥ 8♠

Arakawa K♠ K♣

UTG Q♠ T♠

But dreams quickly faded as the flop came down 8♣ Q♥ 2♥ , vaulting Zecharia into the lead with a set. The runout 9♠ 4♥ sealed his win, rescuing the Israeli from the brink and sending his stack soaring back up.

Two short stacks, Shu Shin Chiu and Jui Wen Lee, got their last ten big blinds in preflop, both chasing a much needed double up.

The board ran out A♦ 2♥ J♥ 6♠ 4♣ , holding Chiu's lead from start to finish and leaving Lee crippled with just a single black chip to his name.

Running hot, Chih Hao Hu opened once more mid position and gladly risked 650,000 of his towering stack following an all-in from Kwok Ho Tang in the big blind.

Tang dominated, bowed out shortly after missing to get lucky on board 5♣ 4♠ 4♦ 8♣ 7♠ .

Action was picked up on a tense turn with the board showing 4♣ 9♠ 8♠ A♥ and nearly 1,500,000 already in the pot. Hsu Shu Yi led out for 200,000, only to face a 500,000 check raise from Wei Hsiang Wang. Hsu made the call, and both players checked the river 6♣ , taking it to showdown.

Hsu tabled 8♦ 8♥ for a set of eights, more than enough to beat Wang’s busted draw, pair of sixes 6♠ 5♠ .

Lloyd Fontillas opened utg and called Gilbert Fook's 340,000 all-in, tabling a flip for a 20 BB pot. Board Q♠ K♦ 6♣ 3♠ 6♠ steered clear of Fontillas' overcards, shipping Fook the much needed double up.

Kuang Ying Tang opened from the hijack and was quickly three bet to 200,000 by Sanghyun Kang on the button. Ota Naoki, two seats over, called all-in for his last 180,000, prompting Tang to escalate further to 500,000. Kang gave it up, letting the two battle it out.

The board ran 6♠ 7♥ 8♠ 9♣ 4♥, giving Tang a straight and leaving Naoki’s pocket deuces headed for the muck.

Chi Huan Ko defended his big blind against Gimo Ng’s open and stayed sticky all the way through, check-calling bets of 110,000 on the flop and 200,000 on the turn with the board showing 4♣ 6♣ Q♠ A♥ .

On river 9♦ , Ko checked a third time, and Ng decided to take it to showdown. Ko tabled top pair A♣ T♠ , good enough to take the pot as Ng quietly mucked his hand.

Dong Chin Yu fired a 200,000 three bet from the button over an open and a call, and saw Jyun Wei Guo, sitting short, go for it, pushing all-in for just 35,000 more. Yu made the call, setting up a showdown.

Guo fearing elimination, had his prayers answered as the board 4♦ 2♥ J♦ T♣ 6♠ rolled him a pair of sixes to survive the race.

With just around 130,000 in the pot and the board reading 8♦ 5♣ 6♣ 6♠ T♠ , Cheng Im went for a bold river shove, jamming his remaining 500,000+ after Giang Bui checked to him. But Bui didn’t flinch, snapping him off with 6♥ 3♥ for trip sixes, quickly exposing Im’s A♠ T♥ to send him packing.

A blind vs blind clash saw Jui Wen Lee go with K♦ T♦ for his last 330,000 and was up against Suwei Ku's T♥ 9♥ . Board 5♣ K♥ A♥ 7♠ 7♣ kept Lee ahead all the way, earning him more room to breathe as the day progresses.

Three players clashed on a flop of 8♦ T♣ K♠ with 190,000 already in the middle. The initial raiser fired 65,000, quickly called by Jheng Sian Li. Action then swung to Po Jui Chen in the big blind, who ripped in his 450,000 stack. After some thought, Li made the call and cards were on their backs.

Chen K♦ Q♥

Li T♦ T♥

Down to only a runner runner, Chen missed on a miracle runout on 5♦ 4♥ , shaving a chunk off his stack.

Yu Zhe Zheng defended his big blind against Gilbert Fook's 75,000 cut off open, and donk bet 100,000 on flop J♣ A♠ T♣ . Fook responded with an all-in for 165,000 more, snapped by Zheng for a showdown.

Fook K♦ Q♠

Zheng A♦ J♥

Zheng doomed against Fook's flopped straight, accepted his fate as turn 3♠ and river T♥ completed the board.

Chien An Hou limped in the small blind, pushing Alan King Lun Lau right behind to shove 400,000 in. Hou snapped, barely covering his opponent.

Lau in rough shape, stepped off the floor, having failed to catch up on board 6♥ J♦ K♣ 2♣ 3♥ .

Vincent Wong led the action in a four-way raised pot and kept the pressure on with a 100,000 cbet on a flop of 2♣ Q♦ 8♦ . Only Yi Chun Yu stuck around to see the turn 4♥ , where Wong jammed for 365,000.

After a long tank, Yu called it off with Q♣ 9♣ but was outkicked by Wong’s A♣ Q♥ . The river 3♣ didn’t change a thing, sending the full double over to Wong.

Facing an early open, Kai Yuan Han fired a 102,000 three bet in the cutoff and was followed with a shove from Boris Law in the small blind. Initial raiser called off his 365,000 stack, and so did Han for his remaining 330,000, making it a three way showdown.

Law T♦ T♣

Han Q♦ Q♠

UTG+1 A♠ K♣

Board ran K♦ 4♣ 2♦ 8♦ Q♥ , shipping Han the massive pot with his rivered set of queens.

Yan Jia Zhang opened K♣ T♣ in the hijack and called a short stack jam from the big blind. Opponent tabled A♣ K♥ , leaving Zhang dominated.

The board T♦ Q♥ 2♦ 8♥ 5♥ however, offered Zhang a pair of tens to deliver the bust and pick up the boost.

A three way raised pot dealt a flop of 5♣ 6♣ 4♦ . David Erquiaga in the big blind, led out 65,000, and was called by Chee Hong Loh three seats after.

On turn T♦ , Erquiaga went for another 110,000, and followed with an all-in on river J♣ , putting Loh to the test. Loh gladly called off with a flush K♣ Q♣ , taking the seven-figure pot away from Erquiaga as he tabled a mere pair of fives A♣ 5♥ .

A button vs blind cash led Teng Chang to commit his last 263,000, only to be met with bad news as Yoda Lin tabled the best hand in the deck.

Board 8♥ J♠ 5♠ 7♦ T♦ offered no surprises, quickly sending Chang out of the Main Event games.

Action folded down to the blinds, where Tae Gyeong Han lit up with a 46,000 open. Cheng Chun Chen right behind, made it 126,000 to go, and Han completed.

On flop 4♠ 9♠ 6♠ , Han pulled a 200,000 check raise against Chen's 58,000 bet, and committed his remaining 195,000 after his opponent moved all-in.

Chen 5♦ 5♠

Han T♥ T♣

Turn 5♥ instantly left Han drawing slim, with the river 2♥ sealing his exit just right before the first break of the day.

Soo Jo Kim pushed his last fifteen big blinds against a hijack open, and was challenged by Lee Ni Hon right behind for a flip.

Kim nearly sealed the win across board 4♠ A♠ J♥ 4♦ , up until the river 9♣ landed Lee a full house to take it down.

En Hao Chan got his last 190,000 in good against Sang Gum Kim and was in high hopes of a double up. Unfortunately for Chan, his run came to an abrupt end as board 4♥ 3♦ 9♥ 9♣ Q♥ landed Kim a full house to take the win away.