Dongli Shen Takes Overall Lead in WPT Seoul INSPIRE Championship
Day 8 of WPT Seoul 2026 at INSPIRE Entertainment Resort in South Korea saw the KRW 1 billion guaranteed INSPIRE Championship reach 434 entries after Friday's second starting flight.
Dongli Shen emerged as the overall chip leader with 1,236,000 after 213 entries joined Day 1B, with 27 advancing to Sunday's Day 2.
Meanwhile, Bayar Saran claimed the KRW 8 million Super High Roller title for KRW 96,030,000 (~USD 71,500), while Kilian Loeffler, Remigiusz Hajduk, Shuzo Sekine and Kuen Shing So also secured titles across Friday's side events.
Dongli Shen Leads Championship Day 1B
The KRW 1,750,000 WPT Seoul INSPIRE Championship continued on Friday with another 213 entries, taking the combined field to 434 across the opening two flights.
After Thursday's 221-entry Day 1A produced 28 survivors, Friday's field played down to 27 players, all of whom secured a place in the money.
Dongli Shen finished with 1,236,000 chips, moving ahead of Thursday's chip leader Aleksandr Goloborodko, who had bagged 1,018,000.
Shen ended with the lead after eliminating Naruku Tanaka on the money bubble. Tanaka's pocket queens were well ahead of Shen's queen-ten suited before Shen flopped a Broadway straight, sending Tanaka out one place short of the money.
Antoine Priniotakis finished second with 725,000 after eliminating several opponents throughout the day. Chang Hwan Lee followed with 652,000 after winning a substantial pot against Andy Kok.
Other notable survivors included Yuki Kubo with 511,000 and Gary Moon with 376,000. Moon had narrowly missed the money during Thursday's opening flight but successfully advanced on his second attempt.
The final stages also saw Romulo Dorea, Fintan Hand and Jerome Pelletier eliminated, while 2023 WPT Cambodia Prime champion Reiji Kono fell after attempting to recover from a short stack.
WPT Seoul INSPIRE Championship Day 1B Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | China | 1,236,000 | |
2 | Antoine Priniotakis | France | 725,000 |
3 | South Korea | 652,000 | |
4 | Tzu Yu Huang | Taiwan | 590,000 |
5 | USA | 566,000 | |
6 | Yuki Kubo | Japan | 511,000 |
7 | Hayato Nagasawa | Japan | 422,000 |
8 | Yu Guang Wang | China | 393,000 |
9 | Gary Moon | USA | 376,000 |
10 | Myagmardorj Batsukh | Mongolia | 376,000 |
The Championship continues with two more starting flights on Saturday, November 7, before the surviving players combine for Day 2 on Sunday. The final day is scheduled for Monday, November 9.
Bayar Saran Wins Super High Roller
Bayar Saran claimed the KRW 8,000,000 Super High Roller, taking home KRW 96,030,000 (~USD 71,500) after topping the 40-entry field.
The tournament generated a KRW 291,000,000 (~USD 216,725) prize pool, with nine players returning for Friday's final day and seven finishing in the money.
Saran entered the final day second in chips behind Chang Hwan Lee but went on to claim the title after defeating Japan's Tomohiro Kamikawa heads-up. Kamikawa collected KRW 61,110,000 (~USD 45,500) for second place.
Germany's Kilian Loeffler finished third for KRW 40,740,000 (~USD 30,350), while Hiroyuki Noda placed fourth for KRW 32,010,000 (~USD 23,845).
Super High Roller Final Table Results
Place | Player | Country | Prize (KRW) | Prize (~USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 96,030,000 | $71,500 | ||
2 | 61,110,000 | $45,500 | ||
3 | Germany | 40,740,000 | $30,350 | |
4 | Hiroyuki Noda | 32,010,000 | $23,845 | |
5 | 23,280,000 | $17,345 | ||
6 | Chang Hwan Lee | Japan | 20,370,000 | $15,180 |
7 | Kyosuke Nagami | 17,460,000 | $13,010 |
Kilian Loeffler Adds Mystery Bounty High Roller Title
Kilian Loeffler enjoyed a successful Friday, following his third-place finish in the Super High Roller with victory in the KRW 3,300,000 Mystery Bounty High Roller.
The German player earned KRW 16,880,000 (~USD 12,575) in prize money, defeating Hon Cheong Lee heads-up. Lee collected KRW 10,600,000 (~USD 7,895) for second place.
Vietnam's Van Tuan Pham finished third for KRW 6,680,000 (~USD 4,980), followed by Japan's Kenji Arai in fourth.
Remigiusz Hajduk Claims 5 Card PLO Victory
Poland's Remigiusz Hajduk topped the 37-entry KRW 500,000 5 Card PLO, collecting KRW 4,834,000 (~USD 3,600).
Hajduk defeated Japan's Hirotoshi Nakabo heads-up, with Nakabo receiving KRW 3,790,000 (~USD 2,825) for second place.
Russia's Aleksandr Ovodov finished third for KRW 2,240,000 (~USD 1,670), while Takumi Nakayama and Long Sing Wu rounded out the top five.
Shuzo Sekine Wins Megastack Freezeout
Japan's Shuzo Sekine claimed the KRW 500,000 Megastack Freezeout Turbo title after overcoming a field of 155 entries.
Sekine collected KRW 16,880,000 (~USD 12,575), defeating Reo Yamamoto heads-up. Yamamoto received KRW 10,410,000 (~USD 7,755) for second place.
Yuda Zhou completed the top three for KRW 6,930,000 (~USD 5,165), followed by Sara Shiobayashi and Ryo Kitagawa.
Among the other finalists was Aleksei Zhukov, who finished eighth for KRW 2,280,000 (~USD 1,700).
Kuen Shing So Takes Evening Hyper Turbo Title
Kuen Shing So added another tournament victory to his record after finishing first in the KRW 1,000,000 Evening
Hyper Turbo.
The Hong Kong player was officially listed with a KRW 7,596,000 (~USD 5,660) payout, while runner-up Sean Robert Rounds received KRW 14,000,000 (~USD 10,430), according to the results sheet.
Japan's Yoshiki Hamada finished third for KRW 5,500,000 (~USD 4,100), followed by Kenneth Hirose and Robertus Hollink.
Eight players finished in the money, including Ryuta Nakai, who collected KRW 2,960,000 (~USD 2,205) for sixth place.
Friday's Side Event Winners
Event | Entries | Winner | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
5 Card PLO | 37 | KRW 4,834,000 (~USD 3,600) | |
Mystery Bounty High Roller | 22 | KRW 16,880,000 (~USD 12,575), excluding mystery bounties | |
Megastack Freezeout Turbo | 155 | KRW 16,880,000 (~USD 12,575) | |
Evening Hyper Turbo | 49 | KRW 7,596,000 (~USD 5,660) |
Final Championship Starting Flights on Saturday
The WPT Seoul INSPIRE Championship continues on Saturday, November 7, with Day 1C beginning at 11:30 AM KST, followed by the faster Day 1D at 6:00 PM.
Both flights will play down to approximately 12.5% of their starting fields, with advancing players securing a place in the money.
Two additional tournaments are scheduled, including the KRW 500,000 Turbo Freezeout and the KRW 2,500,000 Extreme Hyper Turbo High Roller.
Saturday, November 7 Schedule
Time (KST) | Event | Buy-in |
|---|---|---|
11:30 AM | WPT Seoul INSPIRE Championship Day 1C | KRW 1,750,000 |
11:30 AM | Turbo Freezeout 20 Sec | KRW 500,000 |
6:00 PM | WPT Seoul INSPIRE Championship Day 1D | KRW 1,750,000 |
10:00 PM | Extreme Hyper Turbo HR 20 Sec | KRW 2,500,000 |
The Championship's remaining players will return for Day 2 on Sunday, November 8, with the winner crowned on Monday, November 9.
Catch up on Thursday's WPT Seoul Day 7 recap and follow the WPT Seoul live updates for more action from 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.
