Thi Minh Hong Pham Tops 1,520 Entries to Become USOP’s First Female Main Event Champion

The U Series of Poker (USOP) Vietnam 2026 Main Event champion has finally been crowned at the luxurious InterContinental Ha Long Bay Resort , with Vietnam’s Thi Minh Hong Pham emerging victorious after an incredible performance to capture the title and a massive VND 6.2 billion (~USD 235,105) top prize.

Thi Minh Hong Pham Wins USOP Vietnam 2026 Main Event

The USOP Vietnam 2026 Main Event featured a VND 30 million (~USD 1,100) buy-in and built a total prize pool of VND 39,019,520,000 (~USD 1,479,620). Outlasting a field of 1,520 entries, Pham won all the chips after defeating fellow Vietnamese player Minh Thang Tran in the final heads-up match.

This victory makes her the first woman to win a USOP Main Event championship. This win is a meaningful milestone for Pham because her parents were present to watch her win the title.

More Than a Poker Victory

In Asian culture, it can sometimes be difficult for families to support a woman playing poker, but Pham stayed dedicated to her passion. Over time, her hard work and results helped her family accept and respect her efforts.

The moment I won this event in front of my parents, I felt like I made them proud. I felt so happy. You know, when a child makes their parents proud, that’s the best feeling. And that’s the thing I do for my passion.

This win marks Pham’s second Main Event title of the year. In January, she won the UK Poker Championships Main Event by GGPoker . Winning again just a few months later pushes her total career live earnings close to the USD 1 million mark.

My next one will be the Triton One. That’s my dream.

The Road to the Final Day

Out of the initial field, 193 players made the money and advanced to Day 2, with the eventual runner-up, Tran, holding the chip lead at the start of the day. Following 13 hours of play, only 27 players remained to advance to the final day.

Wongyu Kang of South Korea started the final day as the chip leader with a massive stack of 5,065,000 in chips. He was followed by Australia’s Neng Zhao with 4,380,000 and the Philippines’ Bon Yap with 4,185,000.

The remaining field included several proven champions, such as APT Incheon Main Event winner Junjie He (3,565,000), 2023 WPT Prime Main Event champion Duy Thuc Nguyen (3,375,000), and former USOP Hai Phong runner-up Ledong Zhou (3,335,000).

It took slightly over five hours of play to set the final table. A major turning point occurred when the early chip leader, Kang, was eliminated in 21st place. Kang held a king-high flush but ran directly into the ace-high flush held by Yap.

Yap took the chip lead after that hand, but his momentum stopped when Zhao hit an ace on the river to beat Yap’s pocket kings. Zhao then eliminated Duy Thuc in 10th place. Ultimately, Serghei Lisii took the chip lead into the final table after eliminating China’s Haidi Feng in 11th place.

#58 MAIN EVENT (30,000,000 VND)

Total Prize USD

$1,479,620

Total Prize

₫39,019,520,000

Guaranteed

₫30,000,000,000

Entries

1,520

ITM

193

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₫6,200,000,000 $235,105	TM Thi Minh Hong Pham Viet Nam	3,863.88
2	₫4,300,000,000 $163,055	MT Minh Thang Tran Viet Nam	2,732.18
3	₫2,850,000,000 $108,070	SL Serghei Lisii Moldova	2,230.81
4	₫2,100,000,000 $79,630	NZ Neng Zhao Australia	1,931.94
5	₫1,656,220,000 $62,805	YC Yaxin Cen China	1,727.98
6	₫1,331,800,000 $50,500	BY Bon Yap Philippines	1,577.42
7	₫1,068,500,000 $40,520	TA Tuan Anh Nguyen Viet Nam	1,460.41
8	₫825,100,000 $31,290	NS Nattichai Sutipanwihan Thailand	1,366.09
9	₫620,000,000 $23,510	CL Cong Luyen Le Viet Nam	1,287.96

Check the 193 Payouts & Results ...

Final Table Action

Vietnam’s Cong Luyen Le was the first player eliminated from the final table. He moved his chips in with pocket jacks but could not beat the pocket kings of Lisii, finishing in ninth place. Thailand’s Nattchai Sutipanwihan was eliminated next in eighth place. He attempted mistimed bluff by shoving his chips, but Zhao made the call to end his run.

Vietnam’s Tuan Anh Nguyen managed to climb up the chip rankings early on. However, he also fell to Lisii when his pocket queens lost to pocket kings, sending him home in seventh place.

Yap finished his tournament run in sixth place. In a twist of fate, Yap was eliminated when his king-high flush lost to an ace-high flush, matching the exact scenario where he had eliminated Kang earlier in the day.

China’s Yaxin Cen finished in fifth place. She spent most of the day near the bottom of the chip counts, at one point surviving an all-in against Yap by hitting a straight on the turn and river to split the pot. She eventually put her short stack in with jack-ten but lost to Lisii’s ace-nine.

Zhao’s Downfall

Zhao held the chip lead through a large portion of the final table, at one point holding more than 50 percent of the total chips in play. He used his massive stack to put constant pressure on his opponents. However, his aggressive strategy backfired when he attempted a huge bluff against Tran, losing more than half his chips and surrendering the lead to Tran.

Zhao then lost a flip against Lisii to leave himself with only two big blinds. He moved his last chips in, and Pham called him holding the classic Doyle Brunson hand, ten-deuce. Pham managed to river a deuce to outdraw Zhao and eliminate him in fourth place.

Three-Handed Play to Heads-Up

Three-handed play lasted for a long time as the remaining players tested each other. Lisii lost his lead after Tran steadily won smaller pots from him.

Lisii was eventually eliminated in third place when his hand failed to improve against Pham’s pocket aces. This setup an all-Vietnamese final match for the title.

Heads-Up Battle

Pham started the heads-up match against Tran with a clear 3-to-1 chip advantage, holding 46,000,000 chips to Tran’s 15,000,000. Tran managed to double his stack during the hour-long battle, but Pham kept the pressure high and stayed ahead. Tran later lost his momentum after Pham called his large river bluff with a pair of kings.

In the final hand, Pham moved all-in with ace-ten, putting maximum pressure on her opponent. Tran called with his remaining chips holding ace-deuce, but the better kicker held. With no help arriving for Tran, Pham secured the title and the top prize.

Tran finished the tournament as the runner-up, leaving Pham to secure the victory and set a milestone for women in poker by becoming the first ever female USOP Main Event Champion.

In a field dominated by men, Thi Minh Hong Pham rose above them all.

All photos courtesy of USOP.