TLPT Main Event Final 16 Set as Shi Kai Takes Chip Lead

Kai Cocklin is Head of Live Poker at Somuchpoker, where he oversees the platform’s content, coverage, and partnerships across the Asia-Pacific region. He previously worked with PokerNews at major festivals including the World Series of Poker and the European Poker Tour, where he managed live reporting teams and helped develop new writers. He now leads Somuchpoker’s overall content direction, working closely with organizers to deliver consistent, high-quality coverage that connects with players both on-site and online.

Updated: 2026.05.21

Day 2 of the The Lord Poker Tournament Main Event at TLPT Jeju 2026 has come to a close, with just 16 players remaining from the original 968-entry field inside LES A Casino at Jeju Shinhwa World.

The tournament generated a prize pool of KRW 2,100,000,000 (~USD 1,400,000), with the eventual champion set to take home KRW 330,000,000 (~USD 224,085) along with the biggest title awarded so far during the festival.

Shi Kai Leads Final 16 in TLPT Jeju Main Event

Leading the way heading into the final day is China’s Shi Kai, who bagged 4,240,000 chips to become the first player to cross the four-million mark.

Sitting second is Jiawen Xue with 3,580,000, with Xue also standing as the only female player still remaining in contention for the title. Yinchao Shen rounds out the top three with exactly 3,000,000 after scoring the final elimination of the night.

TLPT Jeju - Jiawen Xue — TLPT Jeju – Jiawen Xue

Shen closed out Day 2 in dramatic fashion after his three-deuce cracked the ace-four of Gongtuan Chen, bringing play to a halt with 16 players remaining. Zhihui Zhang (2,850,000), Zheng Wang (2,330,000), and Songlin Li (2,190,000) are the only other players set to return with over 40 big blinds.

Main Event Final 16 Seat Draw

Table	Seat	Player	Country	Chip Count
1	1	Wang Furui	China	1,425,000
1	2	Yu Chenxin	China	1,920,000
1	3	Li Songlin	China	2,190,000
1	4	Li Qin	China	310,000
1	5	Liu Zongxin	China	705,000
1	6	Wang Zheng	China	2,330,000
1	7	Wang Haiyang	China	1,130,000
1	8	Jin Di	China	1,355,000
2	1	Gan Disheng	China	895,000
2	2	Liu Xingyu	China	960,000
2	3	Yang Yi	Taiwan	620,000
2	4	Shi Kai	China	4,240,000
2	5	Zhang Zhihui	China	2,850,000
2	6	Xue Jiawen	China	3,580,000
2	7	Shen Yinchao	China	3,000,000
2	8	Lin Tao	China	985,000

Day 2 Action

The day began with 144 hopefuls returning after surviving one of the five opening flights, all already guaranteed at least a min-cash after the Day 1 flights had already played into the money.

It didn’t take long for the field to drop below the hundred-player mark as eliminations came quickly throughout the afternoon. Among the notable names to fall before the final day were Japan’s Takami Kohei, who lost a race holding pocket jacks, alongside Fujihisa Naoya, Aleksei Sei, Xie Shuchang, Joshua Gebissa , Julie Marriott, Shen Danqiu, Quan Zhou , and Zhang Yirui.

TLPT Jeju Shen Danqiu Chenxin Yu — TLPT Jeju – Shen Danqiu & Chenxin Yu

All remaining players have now locked up KRW 13,400,000 (~USD 9,100), while a final table appearance guarantees at least KRW 26,000,000 (~USD 17,655). Attention is now firmly fixed on the KRW 330,000,000 top prize awaiting the eventual champion.

Cards will be back in the air at noon local time, with 46 minutes remaining in Level 25 on Thursday, May 21. Blinds will resume at 25,000/50,000 with a 50,000 big blind ante. Levels will continue at one hour in length until the final table is reached, where the structure will switch to 21 hands per level.

The plan for Day 3 is to play down to a winner, with fans around the world able to follow the action on a delay via the TLPT YouTube channel. Again, Somuchpoker will be on the floor at LES A Casino in Jeju bringing all the key hands, chip counts, and live updates as the TLPT Jeju Circuits Main Event crowns its champion.

Be sure to check out the Somuchpoker Live Reporting page for all the latest updates.

Free High Roller Satellite Awards Three Seats

The TLPT Jeju Free High Roller Main Event Satellite also played out on Wednesday, drawing a massive 201-entry field as players battled for three seats worth USD 16,050 each into the upcoming TLPT High Roller Main Event.

The freeroll satellite had been one of the standout promotions of the festival, with players qualifying through participation in select TLPT events earlier in the series.

After a long day on the felt, Taiwan’s Kai Hung Hu secured one of the seats alongside China’s Yang Lei and Yingjiang Luo, with all three players now set to join the USD 15,000 High Roller Main Event later in the week.

Free High Roller Main Event Satellite Results

Place	Player	Country	Prize
1	Hu Kaihung	Taiwan	USD 16,050 Ticket
2	Yang Lei	China	USD 16,050 Ticket
3	Luo Yingjiang	China	USD 16,050 Ticket

Lu Xudong Captures No Limit Hold’em Bounty Title

TLPT Jeju - Xudong Lu — TLPT Jeju – Xudong Lu

#16 No Limit Holdem Bounty (600,000 KRW)

Total Prize USD

$20,210

Total Prize

₩29,760,000

Entries

ITM

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₩4,830,000 $3,280	XL Xudong Lu China	534.36
2	₩3,070,000 $2,085	BL Baicun Li China	377.85
3	₩2,060,000 $1,400	XC Xiaoxiao Chen China	308.51
4	₩1,460,000 $990	MB Myagmardorj Batsukh Mongolia	267.18
5	₩1,100,000 $745	JT Junjie Tao China	238.97
6	₩880,000 $600	YS Yong Shen China	218.15
7	₩750,000 $510	CY Chuangqi Yu China	201.97
8	₩680,000 $460	KE Khangai Enkhbold Mongolia	188.93
9	₩680,000 $460	TL Tao Liu China	178.12

The No Limit Hold’em Bounty drew 57 entries and created both a KRW 15,504,000 regular prize pool and a separate KRW 14,250,000 bounty pool.

China’s Xudong Lu secured the title along with KRW 4,830,000 in prize money after defeating Baicun Li heads-up. Lu also collected eight knockouts during the event, adding another KRW 2,000,000 in bounty rewards to his winnings.

Baicun finished runner-up for KRW 3,070,000 while collecting seven bounties of his own, while Chen Xiaoxiao continued her consistent series form with another podium finish in third place.

China’s Tao Junjie proved especially active on the knockout front, collecting six bounties despite finishing fifth, while Mongolia’s Batsukh Myagmardorj added another final table appearance to his week with a fourth-place result.

Fan Jinsui Wins Freezeout Deepstack

#15 Freezeout Deepstack (950,000 KRW)

Total Prize USD

$54,940

Total Prize

₩80,910,000

Entries

ITM

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₩22,480,000 $15,265	JF Jinsui Fan China	809.18
2	₩14,430,000 $9,800	YC Yu Chen China	572.17
3	₩9,670,000 $6,565	JW Jiahao Wang China	467.18
4	₩6,760,000 $4,590	CJ Chi Jen Chen Taiwan	404.59
5	₩4,940,000 $3,355	XL Xiubo Li China	361.87
6	₩3,790,000 $2,575	AC Ao Chen China	330.35
7	₩3,050,000 $2,070	GW Guanhua Wang China	305.84
8	₩2,580,000 $1,750	BZ Bo Zhang China	286.09
9	₩2,310,000 $1,570	KG Kang Gao China	269.73

Check the 14 Payouts & Results ...

The TLPT Freezeout Deepstack attracted 93 entries on Wednesday, generating a KRW 80,910,000 prize pool as players battled through one of the deeper side event structures of the festival.

China’s Jinsui Fan came away with the title and KRW 22,480,000 top prize after defeating fellow countryman Chen Yu heads-up. Wang Jiahao completed an all-Chinese podium with a third-place finish worth KRW 9,670,000.

Taiwan’s Chi Jen Chen added another deep run to his series with a fourth-place finish, while Li Xiubo, Chen Ao, and Wang Guanhua were among the other players to reach the final table.

What’s Coming Up on Thursday

Attention now turns to Thursday’s schedule, where the TLPT Jeju Circuits Main Event will play down to a champion as the final 16 players return to battle for the KRW 330,000,000 top.

The TLPT High Roller Bounty also gets underway, featuring a USD 5,350 buy-in (USD 5,000 + USD 350) and 35-minute blind levels as another major title enters the spotlight in Jeju.