Ryoichi Katsumata Wins $31,500 After Topping 353 Entries in WPT Seoul Championship Warm Up Following Heads-Up Deal
The WPT Seoul 2026 festival continued at INSPIRE Entertainment Resort in South Korea on Sunday, November 1, with Japan's Ryoichi Katsumata winning the Championship Warm Up for KRW 42,000,000 (~USD 31,500) following a heads-up deal with Estonia's Hendrik Uibo.
The KRW 700,000 buy-in tournament attracted 353 entries across three starting flights, generating a KRW 213,494,400 (~USD 160,115) prize pool and more than doubling its KRW 100 million guarantee.
Meanwhile, the Mystery Bounty got underway with 258 entries across two starting flights, with Hong Kong's Long Sing Wu leading the 33 survivors into Monday's final day. Four other champions were also crowned on Sunday, including winners in the Freezeout, PLO and two Hyper Turbo events.
Ryoichi Katsumata Wins Championship Warm Up
Japan's Ryoichi Katsumata came out on top of the Championship Warm Up, collecting KRW 42,000,000 (~USD 31,500) and the trophy after two days of play.
A total of 45 players returned for Sunday's final day, with Saturday's chip leader, Guanglai Jin, eventually finishing ninth for KRW 4,480,000 (~USD 3,360).
The final three included Katsumata, Uibo and Canada's Hyungki Kim, who was eliminated in third place after his pocket queens were beaten by Katsumata's rivered straight.
That left Katsumata and Uibo heads-up, and the pair agreed to an ICM deal that adjusted the original payouts. Katsumata secured KRW 42,000,000 (~USD 31,500), while Uibo was guaranteed KRW 37,024,400 (~USD 27,765), with the two continuing to play for the trophy.
In the final hand, the two got it all-in on the turn, with Uibo way out in front with top pair and a flush draw against the straight draw and overcard of Katsumata. However, an ace of spades on the river gave Katsumata the best hand, and it was him walking home with the trophy.
Kim collected KRW 19,520,000 (~USD 14,640) for third place, while Ethiopia's Berhanu Abay Kassa finished fourth for KRW 14,820,000 (~USD 11,115).
The victory also gave Katsumata his biggest live tournament cash to date, according to the Somuchpoker live-reporting team.
Read the full Championship Warm Up live updates for more hands and action from the final day.
Championship Warm Up Final Table Results
Place | Player | Country | Prize (KRW) | Prize (~USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ryoichi Katsumata | 42,000,000 | $31,500 | |
2 | Estonia | 37,024,400 | $27,765 | |
3 | Hyungki Kim | 19,520,000 | $14,640 | |
4 | Ethiopia | 14,820,000 | $11,115 | |
5 | Shota Hatori | 11,200,000 | $8,400 | |
6 | Shunsuke Wakayama | 8,970,000 | $6,725 | |
7 | Yusuke Honda | 7,160,000 | $5,370 | |
8 | Kenji Asakawa | 5,760,000 | $4,320 | |
9 | Guanglai Jin | 4,480,000 | $3,360 |
Long Sing Wu Leads Mystery Bounty Final 33
The KRW 1,000,000 Mystery Bounty began on Sunday with two starting flights attracting a combined 258 entries, sending 33 players through to Monday's Day 2. Day 1A brought in 125 entries, while Day 1B added another 133.
Hong Kong's Long Sing Wu finished with the overall chip lead after bagging 1,028,000 in Day 1A, putting him comfortably ahead of Japan's Koki Koyanagi, who accumulated 646,000 in Day 1B.
Fellow Japanese player Okubo Ko sits third with 607,000, followed by Ryohei Hashinokuchi on 517,000.
Australia's Bjorn Sofo, who won the opening-day PLO event, is also well placed with 500,000, giving him another opportunity to add to his WPT Seoul results.
The 33 remaining players return on Monday, November 2, at 11:30 AM KST to play down to a champion.
Mystery Bounty Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1,028,000 | ||
2 | 646,000 | ||
3 | 607,000 | ||
4 | Ryohei Hashinokuchi | 517,000 | |
5 | Bjorn Sofo | Australia | 500,000 |
6 | 476,000 | ||
7 | USA | 458,000 | |
8 | Mayuri Hasegawa | 450,000 | |
9 | 410,000 | ||
10 | Koki Shimizu | 394,000 |
Kazuki Hane Wins 117-Entry Freezeout
Japan's Kazuki Hane won the KRW 500,000 Freezeout, collecting KRW 13,554,000 (~USD 10,165) after topping a 117-entry field.
The tournament generated a KRW 50,544,000 (~USD 37,905) prize pool, with 15 players finishing in the money.
Hane entered heads-up against fellow Japanese player Nobuaki Narita after eliminating Mitsuaki Onizuka in third place.
In the final hand, Hane's pocket threes win the flip against Narita's queen-four. Narita collected KRW 8,390,000 (~USD 6,290) as runner-up, while Onizuka earned KRW 5,510,000 (~USD 4,130) for third. Kazakhstan's Konstantin Yun finished fourth for KRW 4,370,000 (~USD 3,275).
Anton Lysenko Claims First Live Trophy in PLO
Russia's Anton Lysenko won the KRW 600,000 PLO event, collecting KRW 6,722,400 (~USD 5,040) after overcoming a 36-entry field. The tournament generated KRW 18,662,400 (~USD 13,995) in prize money, with six players cashing.
Lysenko's victory was his first live poker trophy, with Taiwan's Yih Ming Hsu finishing runner-up for KRW 4,290,000 (~USD 3,215).
Switzerland's Martin Schamaun took third place for KRW 2,800,000 (~USD 2,100), followed by Finland's Henri Matias Saukkonen in fourth for KRW 2,050,000 (~USD 1,535).
Teruhisa Matsuoka and Ryo Hosaka Take Hyper Turbo Titles
Two more trophies were awarded in the evening's faster-format events.
Japan's Teruhisa Matsuoka topped the 80-entry KRW 300,000 Hyper Turbo 15 Sec, securing KRW 6,016,000 (~USD 4,510) from a KRW 20.7 million (~USD 15,550) prize pool.
Fellow Japanese player Taekweng Yoo finished runner-up for KRW 3,730,000 (~USD 2,795), while Takumi Haga took third place for KRW 2,440,000 (~USD 1,830). China's Xiaohuang Chen, who won an opening-day Hyper Turbo title, also cashed, finishing sixth for KRW 1,240,000 (~USD 930).
The KRW 2,500,000 HR Hyper 20 Sec attracted 19 entries and generated a KRW 42 million (~USD 31,465) prize pool.
Japan's Ryo Hosaka collected KRW 18,042,000 (~USD 13,530) for the title, with Kensuke Kanamori finishing runner-up for KRW 11,330,000 (~USD 8,495).
Tomoyo Kono took third for KRW 7,130,000 (~USD 5,345), while Mitsuki Aihara rounded out the four paid places for KRW 5,450,000 (~USD 4,085).
Sunday's Winners
Event | Entries | Winner | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
353 | Ryoichi Katsumata | KRW 42,000,000 (~USD 31,500) | |
117 | Kazuki Hane | KRW 13,554,000 (~USD 10,165) | |
36 | KRW 6,722,400 (~USD 5,040) | ||
80 | Teruhisa Matsuoka | KRW 6,016,000 (~USD 4,510) | |
19 | Ryo Hosaka | KRW 18,042,000 (~USD 13,530) |
Mystery Bounty Final Day and SHR Warm Up on Monday
The festival continues on Monday, November 2, with the 33 remaining Mystery Bounty players returning at 11:30 AM to play down to a winner.
Monday also sees the start of the KRW 3,300,000 Super High Roller Warm Up, alongside the KRW 1,000,000 Monster Stack and the KRW 300,000 Deepstack, which has three starting flights before its evening final.
Monday, November 2 Schedule
Time (KST) | Event | Buy-in |
|---|---|---|
11:30 AM | Mystery Bounty Day 2 | KRW 1,000,000 |
11:30 AM | Deepstack Day 1A | KRW 300,000 |
12:00 PM | PLO Double Board Bomb Pot | KRW 600,000 |
12:30 PM | SHR Warm Up Day 1 | KRW 3,300,000 |
2:30 PM | Deepstack Day 1B | KRW 300,000 |
3:00 PM | Monster Stack Day 1 | KRW 1,000,000 |
5:00 PM | Deepstack Day 1C | KRW 300,000 |
8:30 PM | Deepstack Final | KRW 300,000 |
8:30 PM | Evening Hyper Turbo 20 Sec | KRW 1,000,000 |
8:30 PM | Satellite to Survivor Bounty | KRW 300,000 |
The festival continues through November 9, with the KRW 1 billion guaranteed WPT Seoul INSPIRE Championship scheduled to get underway on November 5.
For more on the series and its venue, read our WPT Seoul 2026 countdown preview and inside look at INSPIRE Entertainment Resort.
About the Editor
Tim Baker is a UK-born Live Poker Reporter based in Indonesia, covering major poker tournaments across Asia and around the world since 2023. With nearly two decades of experience around live and online poker, he brings deep knowledge of the game and the international poker scene to his tournament coverage.
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