Gods of Poker Jeju 2025 Halfway Highlights: Seunghyun Nam and Eng Loong Choi Secure Prized Gauntlets

The Gods of Poker debut series at LES A Casino in Jeju, South Korea has officially hit its halfway point, and what a five-day sprint it has been. With 80 events packed into the December 5 to 14 schedule and KR₩ 2 Billion (~USD 1.4 Million) in guarantees, numerous players have already risen to glory, claiming coveted GOP Shields, Spartans, and mighty Gauntlets.

As the Eden Awakens festival proceeds into the next half of the schedule, here are bite-sized highlights on what’s gone down so far, the conquests, plus a peek at the battles still waiting inthe wings.

Gods of Poker – Gauntlet Highlights

Gods of Poker Gauntlets are undoubtedly the most coveted prizes of the series. If you haven’t seen these trophies up close, they are magnificent pieces of armor fit for a deity: wearable, heavy, glorious. Only five of these were crafted with two already claimed.

The first Gauntlet champion of the series was Seunghyun Michael Nam, who triumphed in Event #11: Demigods Challenge. As the most expensive tournament on the schedule, it carried a KR₩ 15,500,000 (∼USD 10,500)price tag and drew eight entrants to build a KR₩ 114,266,000 (∼USD 77,750) prize pool. Nam’s road to victory ran straight through Lester Edoc, earning him the KR₩ 71,416,000 (~USD 48,600) top prize and the honor of raising the fearsome Black Gauntlet.

Malaysia’s Eng Loong Choi conquered Event #19: Super High Roller to become the second Gauntlet champion. The event drew 38 runners, each one posting the KR₩ 10,000,000 (∼USD 6,800) buy-in to generate a KR₩ 342,798,000 (∼USD 233,000) prize pool. The inaugural Gauntlet winner, Nam, made a spirited run for a second title, reaching the money before bowing out in 5th place. After a heads up ICM deal, Choi and Hong Jun Zhao battled for the crown. Choi dominated the action to seize the coveted Gold Gauntlet in just eleven hands.

The Rose Gold Gauntlet is up for grabs at Event #37: Titan Stack High Roller which enters its final day with eight players remaining out of the 47 total entries. In prime position to take hold of the trophy and the top prize of KR₩ 82,958,000 (~USD 56,250) is China’s Wenchao Liu who brings in the largest stack. Liu knocked out two players simultaneously at Flight B to emerge as the overnight chip leader with a stack of 1,780,000.

Other players in contention for the title are Rudy Edenata, Meng Ling Lin, Kevin Choi, Harry Halim, Ryan Plant, John Costiniano, and John Tech. For the Titan Stack High Roller details, click here.

Of course the most coveted trophy is the Black-and-Gold Gauntlet reserved for the Gods of Poker Main Event champion. The festival’s crown jewel event is currently underway with the three out of four entry flights already completed. To date, the event has drawn a combined 244 entries with 35 already guaranteed a piece of the KR₩ 1,000,000,000 (~USD 700,000) prize pool.

Leading the way is Hong Kong’s Alan King Lun Lau who bagged up the largest stack at Flight B of 2,027,000. Down one rung is Flight A chip leader, China’s Li Tao, with a stack of 1,857,000. The next two below are Andy Kok with 1,705,000 and Guancheng Wu with 1,568,000. Rounding out the top 5 is Flight C chip leader Jia Xin Wang with 1,526,000.

The last chance to enter is Flight D which kicks off on Wednesday, December 10. Registration runs all day starting at 2:00 PM and closes on the following day, Thursday, December 11 promptly at 12:30 PM. Buy-in for this prestigious event is KR₩ 2,000,000 (∼USD 1,360).

For all of the Main Event information, click here.

The last one is the Silver Gauntlet which awaits the champion of Event #69: GOP High Roller. This event bookends the series, running on December 13 to 14. Buy-in is KR₩ 5,500,000 (∼USD 3,750) with a guaranteed prize pool of KR₩ 170,000,000 (∼USD 115,000).

Other Highlights

Apart from gauntlets, several players have also been crowned with GOP Spartan trophies. The first to claim a gold Spartan was Filipino Vamerdino Magsakay at opening day’s Event #3: Single Day High Roller along with a payout of KR₩ 12,150,000 (∼USD 8,200). Impressively, Magsakay also won the evening’s Event #8: Hyper Turbo High Roller to add a GOP Shield trophy to his day’s collection and a payout of KR₩ 6,220,800 (∼USD 4,200). He became the first player to win two series titles.

On the following day, Vietnam’s Quang Anh Phan emerged victorious at the two-day Event #1: GOP The Opener, outlasting a field of 167 entries. Phan earned a payout of KR₩ 24,040,000 (∼USD 16,300) and the first Silver Spartan trophy.

The second Silver Spartan went in the hands of Danil Karpov after he championed Event #9: Pandora’s Mystery Bounty. Although Karpov did not draw the biggest bounty, he still walked away as the event’s top earner with a payout of KR₩ 27, 730,000 (∼USD 18,800).

The third Silver Spartan was awarded to Filipino Mike Takayama who outlasted the 170 entry field of Event #17: Titan Stack. Along with the trophy, Takayama turned his KR₩ 900,000 buy-in nearly forty times over for a payout of KR₩ 35,770,000 (∼USD 24,000).

Throughout the series, ladies have their own schedule to enjoy with exclusive Aphrodite’s
Events running daily. Japan’s Yuri Ishida was the first to claim one of the GOP Mirror trophies.

Other winners were:

• Arlene Rivera
• Yanqing Wang
• Ferlyn Cabaling

There is also an Aphrodite’s High Roller Event running on December 13 with buy-in of KR₩ 1,800,000 (∼USD 1,200) and it awards a Gold Spartan trophy. Mentioned earlier, Magsakay was the first player to win two titles at the inaugural series. He has since been followed by several players listed below, majority of them winning two GOP Shield trophies:

• Zhun Wang: Event #2 Big O and Event #35: GOP 8 Game Mix (Silver Spartan)
• Alfie Adam: Event #13: PLO Turbo and Event #40: GOP Big Bet Dealers Choice
• Yang Lu: Event #21 NL Single Draw Lowball Mix and Event #26: PLO Double Board Bomb Pot
• Shimizu Kohichi: Event #33: Hyper Turbo and Event #38: Titan Stack Turbo

Still To Come…

There are still plenty of Shields and Spartans up for grabs during the second half of the series. Among the most coveted titles will be Event #59: GOP Mini Main Event which runs from December 12 to 13, 2025 with four flights scheduled. This event features a KR₩ 130,000,000 guarantee and awards a Silver Spartan trophy. Buy-in is KR₩ 700,000 (∼USD 475).

While all of the trophies have multiples of its kind, there is only one Kraken in the lineup. The trophy will be awarded to the champion of the Kraken Stack event which runs from December 13 to 14, 2025 featuring a KR₩ 150,000,000 guarantee. A total of three flights is scheduled with buy-in of KR₩ 1,200,000 (∼USD 800).

Links:
Eden Awakens – News
Eden Awakens – Complete Player Guide
Eden Awakens – Schedule
GOP Eden Awakens – Photo Gallery