Michel Molenaar Leads King's Debut Day 1A as KPC Poker October Series Begins in Jeju
The highly-anticipated KPC Poker October Series got underway on Saturday, October 10 at LES A Casino in Jeju, South Korea, with Day 1A of the USD 1,000,000 guaranteed King's Debut headlining the opening day.
The first day of the latest KPC festival saw Michel Molenaar bag the King's Debut Day 1A chip lead with 3,295,000, while Houyu Zheng finished as the overall chip leader in the 180,000,000 KRW (~USD 134,100) guaranteed Bankroll Builder after three opening flights.
Molenaar Leads King's Debut Day 1A
The opening flight of the USD 5,000 buy-in King's Debut drew 72 entries. Play continued until the money was reached, with 11 players bagging chips for the Final Day on Monday, October 12.
Molenaar finished on top with 3,295,000, ahead of Xuan Xuan Liu on 2,630,000 and Wei Lin on 2,460,000. Fellow Dutchman Tom Verbruggen also advanced with 1,735,000, along with Renji Mao on 575,000. Red Dragon regular Lei Yu made it through with the shortest stack of 260,000.
Several notable names fell short on Day 1A, including Mehdi Chaoui, Daniel Neilson, Toby Joyce, Matas Cimbolas, Christian Harder, Kiat Lee and Thi Xoa Nguyen.
King’s Debut Day 1A Survivors
Rank | Player | Country | Chips |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 3,295,000 | ||
2 | 2,630,000 | ||
3 | 2,460,000 | ||
4 | 2,225,000 | ||
5 | 2,005,000 | ||
6 | 1,735,000 | ||
7 | 1,340,000 | ||
8 | 1,040,000 | ||
9 | 575,000 | ||
10 | 435,000 | ||
11 | 260,000 |
Highlights from Day 1A
Hugues Girard ran into trouble with pocket kings during the middle stages of the day. Yan Wen Yee shoved for 63,000 from the button with pocket tens, Girard called from the small blind, and a ten on the flop gave Yan a set. The queen on the turn filled him up, and Yan doubled to 134,000.
Late registrant Ren Lin had barely been seated ten minutes when Yang Zhang raised from the hijack with ace-king of hearts. In a move few solvers would approve of, Lin shoved 250,500 from the button with eight-six offsuit, and Zhang called off his 208,000.
An eight on the flop put Lin ahead, a six on the river added a second pair, and Zhang was sent to the rail as Lin collected 441,000.
Neilson raised to 25,000 under the gun with ace-ten, and Nguyen moved all in from the small blind for 86,000 with pocket kings. Neilson called, the board ran out low, and Nguyen’s kings held to score the double.
Zheng Tops Bankroll Builder After Three Flights
The 800,000 KRW (~USD 596) KPC Bankroll Builder ran three opening flights on Saturday, with players starting on 25,000 chips. Houyu Zheng emerged as the overall chip leader after bagging 685,000 in Flight B, more than double the next-best stack in that flight.
Yuwen Pan led Flight C with 382,000, while Haiyang Zhang topped Flight A with 348,000. Junqing Ge, who also played King's Debut Day 1A, advanced from Flight C with 130,000.
Survivors return for the Final Day at 12:00 p.m. on Sunday, with 33 places paid from the 180,000,000 KRW (~USD 134,100) prize pool. The champion will collect 39,000,000 KRW (~USD 29,060).
Bankroll Builder Top 10 Counts
Rank | Player | Flight | Chips |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Houyu Zheng | B | 685,000 |
2 | Yuwen Pan | C | 382,000 |
3 | Haiyang Zhang | A | 348,000 |
4 | Hongbiao Huang | B | 312,000 |
5 | Shaoping Xiao | A | 296,000 |
6 | Shiqi Zhang | A | 270,000 |
7 | Mo Xu | A | 255,000 |
8 | Wei Hong | A | 254,000 |
9 | Weidong Guo | C | 253,000 |
10 | Zhuo Zheng | B | 216,000 |
Tianyu Chen Wins King's Head Hunter Turbo
Tianyu Chen topped the 29-entry King's Head Hunter Turbo to collect USD 19,200. The USD 3,000 buy-in event generated a USD 50,170 prize pool, with Haohui Ma finishing runner-up for USD 12,000 and Wengang Wang taking third for USD 8,000.
Harder bounced back from his King's Debut exit to min-cash for USD 5,000.
King's Head Hunter Turbo Payouts
Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
1st | Tianyu Chen | USD 19,200 |
2nd | Haohui Ma | USD 12,000 |
3rd | Wengang Wang | USD 8,000 |
4th | Xiaoyu Li | USD 6,000 |
5th | Christian Harder | USD 5,000 |
King's Debut Day 1B and KPC Main Event Headline Sunday
Sunday, October 11 brings two more King's Debut flights, with Day 1B starting at 1:00 p.m. and the faster 20-minute Day 1C at 7:00 p.m.
The 1,300,000 KRW (~USD 969) KPC Main Event also gets underway with Day 1A at 1:30 p.m., carrying an 880,000,000 KRW (~USD 655,700) guarantee. The USD 10,000 NLH/PLO Mixed starts at 4:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 11 Schedule
Start | Event | Buy-In | Starting Stack | Registration Closes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
11:00 a.m. | Event #M1 NLH - Morning Turbo | 500,000 KRW (~USD 373) | 20,000 | - |
11:45 a.m. | Event #2 Omaha Mix Championship - Day 2 | 1,300,000 KRW (~USD 969) | - | - |
12:00 p.m. | Event #1 KPC Bankroll Builder - Final Day | 800,000 KRW (~USD 596) | - | - |
1:00 p.m. | Event #3 King's Debut - Day 1B | USD 5,000 | 250,000 | 6:25 p.m. |
1:30 p.m. | Event #8 KPC Main Event - Day 1A | 1,300,000 KRW (~USD 969) | 30,000 | 8:30 p.m. |
2:00 p.m. | Event #9 FL Stud Mix | 800,000 KRW (~USD 596) | 40,000 | 5:45 p.m. |
3:00 p.m. | Event #10 NLH Head Hunter - Big Bounty | 800,000 KRW (~USD 596) | 25,000 | 7:35 p.m. |
4:00 p.m. | Event #63 NLH/PLO Mixed | USD 10,000 | 200,000 | 7:50 p.m. |
5:00 p.m. | Event #11 Deep Stack - Turbo | 600,000 KRW (~USD 447) | 30,000 | 8:45 p.m. |
7:00 p.m. | Event #3 King's Debut - Day 1C | USD 5,000 | 250,000 | 10:30 p.m. |
7:00 p.m. | Event #12 FL Ari99 Turbo | 400,000 KRW (~USD 298) | 20,000 | 10:00 p.m. |
9:00 p.m. | Event #13 NLH - Turbo | 500,000 KRW (~USD 373) | 20,000 | 11:15 p.m. |
10:00 p.m. | Event #14 Fun Game - Best Choice | 400,000 KRW (~USD 298) | 15,000 | 12:15 a.m. |
10:30 p.m. | Event #15 PLO Hyper Turbo | 300,000 KRW (~USD 224) | 18,000 | 12:45 a.m. |
Players can view the complete KPC Series October 2026 schedule on Somuchpoker.
About the Editor
Callum Jury is SoMuchPoker's Live Content and Social Media Specialist, reporting live from WSOP and Asia Pacific poker festivals including the APT and PokerStars LIVE series. Originally from the Lake District in the UK, he has covered the Southeast Asian poker circuit since 2025, combining day-by-day tournament reporting with the social and digital content that brings the action to fans.
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