Korea’s Minsoo Hwang Lifts the Trophy in Mini Main Event & Frontrunners in the Penultimate Day of USOP Osaka 2025

Korea’s Minsoo Hwang made a triumphant debut at the USOP Osaka 2025 Mini Main Event, held inside the grand Dojima River Forum, by outlasting a 634-entry field to claim the title. Entering the final table as one of the shortest stacks, Hwang displayed remarkable resilience and composure, scoring six eliminations en route to victory.

It was truly a test of wit and grit in the heads-up duel; it took Hwang more than an hour to etch his name into the USOP history books, with China’s Xiaolei Zhang finishing as the runner-up.

Reflections from the Last Two Standing

“I’m really happy to be here in Japan and join this festival, playing with players from all over the world. It’s been a wonderful experience for me,” Zhang said when asked how she felt after the event.

“My boyfriend actually brought me here; I originally came just to accompany him, to be honest,” she added with a laugh. “But now, I think I’ll use the prize money to play in more poker tournaments.”

“Even though I feel a bit sad about busting out of the Main Event, I’m still really happy with this triumph in the Mini Main Event,” Hwang said when asked by the host to share his thoughts. “Next time, my goal will be to take down the USOP Main Event.”

At the end of his interview, Hwang rallied the crowd with a cheerful shout, “Chinese, Japanese, Korean, you’re the one!” calling everyone to win together.

Hwang Minsoo’s Way to the Mini Main Event Trophy

The first to leave the felt was Japan’s Kuryu, who found himself all in with ace-four suited against Hwang’s pocket nines. The board ran out in Hwang’s favor as his hand boated up on the river, sending Kuryu out in a rather satisfying fashion.

It took Hwang only one level to work his way to the chip lead. However, his momentum briefly stalled when he called Haoyi Chai’s shove with pocket queens, only to see Chai’s king-deuce suited connect on the river, trimming a chunk from Hwang’s stack.

Undeterred, Hwang quickly regained control. He picked up queens and made the call against Seungmin Chae’s shove with ace-eight , holding through a clean board to score another knockout. The very next hand, Hwang rivered a straight and jammed , earning a call from Fukuchan’s top pair to add even more ammunition to his stack and firmly tightening his grip on the chip lead with roughly 60% of the chips in play.

Like a raging fire, Hwang’s momentum only grew stronger. The next to fall victim to his blazing run was Mxx, who moved all in with ace-queen against Hwang’s ace-nine. The deck quickly showed its favor on the flop, pairing Hwang’s nine and sealing Mxx’s fate as he was burned out of the tournament by Hwang’s heat.

Following Mxx’s footsteps, Chai was the next to hit the rail when his jack-five suited ran head straight into Hwang’s pocket eights and found no help from the board.

With Chai’s elimination, the stage was set for the final duel between Hwang and Zhang. Zhang fought valiantly, trading blows and trying to turn the tide in her favor, but Hwang’s blaze was not easily put out. In the end, his fire found a crack in her defense, burning through her turned pair of sixes with a rivered trip jacks to claim the eventual champion.

Mystery Dragon Chip Leaders

Matching the brand of this grand festival, the U Series of Poker x Japan Golden Dragon, Mystery Dragon Day 1A & 1B unfolded today. After fifteen 25-minute levels of play, it was Japan’s Dots who topped the leaderboard with a commanding stack of 476,000.

Chasing closely behind was Japan’s Nakai with 455,000 in chips, while Kazuki rounded out the top three after bagging a healthy stack of 395,000.

Following the tense atmosphere of Flight A, more hopefuls joined the action in Flight B. The second opening flight wrapped up with Japan’s Sojiro emerging as the chip leader, building a stack of 627,000 after nearly seven hours of play.

Hot on Sojiro’s heels was Maasa, who bagged 511,000 to secure a spot in Day 2. Duy Manh Ho closed out the top three with 433,000, setting up a strong start for the final day tomorrow.

China’s Yuxin Niu Captures SE7EN Dragon – Asia Championship Triumph

Newly introduced on a nationwide scale, the SE7EN Dragon – Asia Championship brought together players from across the region to put their skills to the test and battle for the freshly designed signature trophy.

With poker talents from around the world taking their seats in this unique event, a 55-entry field was formed, and by the end of an intense day of play, it was China’s Yuxin Niu who emerged victorious, outdueling Singapore’s Kei in the final heads-up to claim the title and the trophy.

The final table showcased true regional diversity, featuring nine finalists representing Korea, China, Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, and Singapore, each proving their strength in this international face-off.

The SE7EN Dragon – Asia Championship not only celebrated competitive spirit but also embodied the unity and passion shared among Asian poker communities. With Niu’s triumph marking the event’s first-ever champion, the stage is now set for even greater battles in editions to come.

As the penultimate day of USOP Osaka 2025 came to a close, the Dojima River Forum was alive with excitement, marking yet another chapter of fierce competition and unforgettable moments. From Minsoo Hwang’s fiery comeback in the Mini Main Event to Yuxin Niu’s international triumph in the SE7EN Dragon – Asia Championship, the festival once again showcased the diversity and passion that define Asian poker.

With champions crowned and more stories unfolding, all eyes now turn to the grand finale, where the Mystery Dragon champion will rise to etch their name into USOP history.