Toan Chan ‘Tony T’ Truong Captures Superstar Challenge Title After Incredible Comeback

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Day 4 of the U Series of Poker (USOP) Vietnam Ha Long Bay 2026 at InterContinental Ha Long Bay Resort saw Toan Chan Truong complete a massive comeback from the bottom of the chip counts to win the Superstar Challenge .

Meanwhile, Peng Chen emerged as the chip leader heading into the High Roller 6 Max final table, and the action-packed schedule continues today with the kickoff of the High Roller Megastack.

Toan Chan Truong Wins USOP Vietnam 2026 Superstar Challenge

Toan Chan Truong
Toan Chan Truong

The Superstar Challenge  at USOP Vietnam Ha Long Bay 2026 brought out some of the best poker players from around the world. The tournament had a buy-in of VND 120 Million (~USD 4,550) and a guaranteed prize pool of VND 3 Billion (~USD 113,700). Thanks to 50 entries, the total prize pool grew to a massive VND 5,232,000,000 (~USD 198,395).

After two days of play, Toan Chan Truong won the tournament, taking home the trophy and the top prize of VND 1,711,000,000 (~USD 64,880). He beat his fellow countryman, Thanh Nghia Pham , who earned VND 1,140,500,000 (~USD 43,250) for second place.

#13 SUPERSTAR CHALLENGE (120,000,000 VND)
SUPERSTAR CHALLENGE
Total Prize USD
$198,395
Total Prize
₫5,232,000,000
Guaranteed
₫3,000,000,000
Entries
50
ITM
8
#PayoutPlayer
SPI
1₫1,711,000,000
$64,880
1,119.45
2₫1,140,500,000
$43,250
791.57
3₫760,300,000
$28,830
646.32
4₫527,900,000
$20,020
MS
559.73
5₫382,300,000
$14,495
500.63
6₫289,400,000
$10,975
SO
Sean Ooi
Malaysia [MYS]Malaysia
457.01
7₫229,500,000
$8,705
423.11
8₫191,100,000
$7,245
395.79

Starting from the Bottom

The final eight players came back for Day 2, with everyone already in the money. It was a real underdog story from the start. Truong began the final table with the second-lowest chip count, and Pham was the shortest stack in the room. Early on, Truong lost a few chips and became the shortest stack himself.

The first player out was Thi My Phuong Nguyen , the only woman at the final table. She hit top pair on the flop, but Milan Stojkovic had flopped a set and hit quads on the turn, leaving her with almost nothing. She managed a quick double-up to stay alive, but her luck did not last.

Truong started a great run of cards when his ace-king beat Thi My’s pocket kings after an ace hit the flop. That left her very short again, and Van Thanh Nguyen eliminated her in eighth place on the very next hand.

Cracking Kings Three Times

With a few more chips, Truong got the big double-up he needed. He cracked pocket kings when he hit a runner-runner flush on the river against Van Thanh.

Truong cracked pocket kings for a third time just a little later. Dinh Hai Linh Nguyen got all his chips in with kings, but Truong hit trips on the turn to eliminate him in seventh place. Sean Ooi was the next to go in sixth place. His ace-six could not beat the pocket tens of Pham.

Pham Takes the Lead

Thanh Nghia Pham
Thanh Nghia Pham

Pham then gave Truong a taste of his own medicine. Pham was almost eliminated when he got his chips in with ace-jack against Truong’s pocket kings, but Pham hit a jack on the turn to make trips. That hand gave Pham the chip lead and put Truong back at the bottom.

Pham used his big stack to take out the start-of-day chip leader, Manh Tuan Nguyen, in fifth place. Manh Tuan hit a flush on the turn, but Pham hit a full house on the river to win a huge pot. Soon after, Stojkovic went all-in with jack-ten, but Pham’s pocket fives held up to eliminate him in fourth place.

A Long Heads-Up Battle

Thanh Nghia Pham (L) - Toan Chan Truong
Thanh Nghia Pham (L) – Toan Chan Truong

When three players were left, Pham held more than half of all the chips in play. However, Truong won a big flip against Van Thanh Nguyen to close the gap. That hand left Van Thanh with less than a big blind, and he was eliminated in third place soon after.

Heads-up play started with Pham holding a small lead. The match lasted an hour and a half, with the chips moving back and forth.

Finally, Truong took the chip lead. On the final hand, Truong held ace-two against Pham’s king-eight. Truong was ahead, but a king hit the turn to give Pham the lead. Just when it looked like Pham would double up, an ace hit the river.

Truong won the hand, completing a great comeback victory.

Peng Chen Leads Final Seven in the High Roller 6 Max Event

Peng Chen
Peng Chen

The High Roller 6 Max Event at USOP Vietnam Ha Long Bay 2026 has reached its final table. The tournament featured a buy-in of VND 66 million (~USD 2,500) and a guaranteed prize pool of VND 1.8 billion (~USD 68,270). With 43 total entries from 34 unique players, the total prize pool grew to VND 2,476,800,000 (~USD 93,940).

Only seven players remain for the final day of play, and everyone left is already in the money.

Peng Chen  holds the chip lead with a stack of 2,570,000. Chen is experienced in these events and recently won a Triton tournament for $214,000, which is his largest career cash. He has more than $1 million in total live tournament earnings.

Minh Huan Nguyen
Minh Huan Nguyen

Minh Huan Nguyen sits second in chips with 1,760,000. Nguyen is having a good series, following up a recent deep run where he finished 11th in the Madness Kickoff .

Hao Tian is close behind in third place with 1,600,000 chips. Tian has proven himself on the international circuit with more than $1.7 million in career live earnings.

Remaining Players and Chip Counts

RankPlayerFlagChip Count
1 Peng Chen China 2,570,000
2Minh Huan Nguyen Vietnam 1,760,000
3 Hao Tian China1,600,000
4 Haohui Ma China875,000
5 Junseok Oh  South Korea 775,000
6 Win Meng Tan Malaysia 590,000
7 Ledong Zhou China435,000

The remaining seven players are all aiming for the top prize of VND 833,800,000. Below is the breakdown of the final table payouts, along with the conversions to USD.

Final Table Payouts

PlacePayout (VND)Payout (~USD)
1833,800,00031,684
2561,200,00021,326
3375,100,00014,254
4259,500,0009,861
5187,400,0007,121
6141,300,0005,369
7118,500,0004,503

Play will resume at 12:30 PM local time. The action will pick up in level 20 with blinds at 25,000 / 50,000. Fans can follow all the final table drama on the official event livestream.

High Roller Megastack Day 1 Up Next

High Roller Megastack Day 1

The High Roller action continues today at USOP Vietnam Ha Long Bay 2026 with Event #26: High Roller Megastack.

The tournament kicks off at 11:30 AM local time. Players will buy in for VND 77,000,000 (~USD 2,920) to chase a share of the guaranteed VND 2,100,000,000 (~USD 79,650) prize pool.

Everyone will start with a generous stack of 250,000 chips, playing through 40-minute levels. Registration will remain open for 13 levels, closing at approximately 20:00 (8:00 PM). Cards will stay in the air tonight until the field plays all the way down to the final table.

USOP Vietnam Ha Long Bay 2026 – Today’s Schedule (May 23)

USOP Vietnam Ha Long Bay 2026

All photos courtesy of USOP.

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