Red Dragon Championship

After a grinding ten hours into Day 2, the Red Dragon Championship Event closed in with 60 players remaining on the felt, led by Jiang Daqiao. Jiang inched over the field by the last level after putting maximum pressure on his opponents and taking aggressive lines preflop to continuously chip up. Jiang heads to Day 3 with a 3,130,000 chip count, and Cai Jianting right on his tail with 2,695,000. Day 3 action resumes on Saturday, August 3rd with all remaining survivors guaranteed a KRW 7,190,000 payout.

Dates: July 30 - August 4, 2024

Buy in: KRW 2,200,000 (~USD 1,620)

Guarantee: KRW 1,680,000,000 (~USD 1,236,390)

Prize pool: KRW 2,567,843,000 (~USD 1,875,480)

Entries: 1,337

ITM: 201 places

Day 1A: 332 entries / 103 qualified

Day 1B: 395 entries / 138 qualified

Day 1C: 421 entries / 144 qualified

Day 1D: 190 entries / 74 qualified

Day 2: 457 players / 60 qualified

Day 3: Saturday, August 3

Final Day: Sunday, August 4

Hijack Xue Song opened and called a 160,000 three bet from Jiang Daqiao right behind. On flop J♠ 3♥ 9♠ , Xue check folded after Jiang fired another 155,000. Jiang shows A♠ K♠ .

Gnusaev Dmitrii happily called for his 435,000 remaining against big stacked Duan Qifeng. A huge favorite, Gnusaev cruised to victory, securing the double up on board 7♠ 9♣ 7♥ J♠ 7♦ .

Grinded down, Matsueda Junya pushed all-in for 190,000 and was called behind by Zhang Chenxu. At risk, Matsueda found no hope on A♦ 2♠ Q♠ 6♦ A♠ , knocking him out from the Day 2 games.

Chi Qiao completed from the big blind and headed to flop 2♠ K♦ 4♥ . Utg+1 Duan Qifeng barreled 50,000, called by Chi. Turn A♥ went check check, prompting Chi to lead 130,000 on river 6♣ . Duan gives it up and folds.

Utg+1 Li Dong defended his open and called a 155,000 three bet from big blind Wang Xinjun. On flop 5♥ 5♦ 4♠ , Li called for another 115,000 yet folded shortly after Wang barreled all-in for 500,000 on turn 9♠ .

Ye Yipeng committed his last 420,000 and was looked up by Jin Boxin. Slightly ahead, Ye instead stepped off the floor as Jin landed top pair on 6♣ Q♣ 2♣ 4♠ 5♦ .

Facing an open and a call, small blind Zhang Chi fired a three bet to 200,000 and saw Jiang Daqiao call from the button. On flop 9♦ A♣ 5♣ , Zhang check called for 70,000 but was left unable to continue after Jiang sent out another 140,000 on turn 5♥ .

Button Kirishima Akinobu opened to 55,000 and was met with a three bet to 150,000 from small blind Wang Xu. Kirishima answered with an all-in and merited a fold shortly after.

Kirishima Akinobu opened to 55,000, called by the small blind. Kyung Min Lee right beside, shoved all-in and saw Kirishima call off for his 585,000 stack. Dominated, Kyung booked the loss as the board 6♠ 4♦ K♥ 3♣ T♦ left him with ace high.

Folded to Zeng Linli, she shoved 245,000 in and saw Kirishima Akinobu make the call. Battling once more, Zeng this time, scooped up the win, crushing his opponent all the way through 2♣ 6♣ J♠ 8♦ J♥ .

A huge preflop pot saw Zhang Nan at risk for his 30 BB stack with Q♦ Q♠ against Chi Qiao's K♦ K♠ . Covering his opponent, Chi locked in the chip lead after the board 2♦ K♣ 7♥ 8♣ 9♥ delivered no bad beats.

Two short stacks on the blinds - Chen Wenwen and Charles Pansoy, were at risk against initial raiser Chen Chuan Shu's Q♦ T♦ . A three way race, the board T♣ 5♠ 3♥ Q♠ 2♣ quickly landed in favor of Chen sending both A♥ 5♥ and K♠ Q♣ towards the muck.

A preflop back and forth saw Song Ying all-in for her entire 755,000 stack with Hongjie Wang making the final call. Dominated, Wang lucked out after the river 7♦ d2c 3♠ 5♥ Q♥ paired up his queen to steal the win.

An all-in preflop situation saw Kirishima Akinobu at risk for his last 375,000 against Zeng Linli. The two ran board J♠ 9♣ A♥ T♥ K♦ with Zeng's top pair eventually crashing down after Kirishima rivered a straight.

Down to a short stack, Patrik Demus committed his last 165,000 with 9♠ 8♠ and ran smack right into two pocket pairs - T♦ T♣ and A♦ A♠ . Lucky for him, the board felted J♥ 8♣ 9♣ 9♥ 3♠ , landing him a full house to survive through.

Cutoff Cao Tingjia opened to 40,000 and saw big blind Pete Chen three bet to 140,000. Cao tanks and puts in another raise to 235,000. Chen quickly gives it up and folds.

With already 160,000 in the pot three way, action on flop Q♠ 8♣ 6♠ saw Lo Cheng Yen lead for 135,000. Ji Siyu behind makes the call, and goes on to call 205,000 more after Xue Song behind moved all-in. Ji shows K♣ Q♦ , no good against Xue's A♥ A♠ all the way to turn A♦ and river 6♣ .

Cheng Bo open shoved 245,000 in and saw Jiang Daqiao call off for his lesser 205,000. A pocket pair battle, Jiang's better holdings earned the double up just as the board T♦ 8♠ Q♦ 9♥ 6♣ landed on the felt.

Pang Wei Ping shoved from the button and saw Xu Yahui commit his 280,000 stack with a premium pair. A huge favorite, Xu cruised to victory on board K♥ J♥ 7♥ J♦ 6♠ .

A three way raised pot saw flop 5♠ 9♠ Q♦ . Checked to Wang Xinjun, he bet 50,000, check called by Li Zhongxian. Turn 6♥ went check check, revealing river 9♣ . Li leads all-in for 215,000 and Wang snap calls with T♥ 9♥ . Li shows a straight 8♦ 7♦ and rakes in the double up.

Duan Qifeng defended his open and called small blind Deng Yawei's 120,000 three bet. On board K♥ A♦ 4♣ , Deng barreled 65,000 and 220,000 with Duan calling each street behind. Deng surrendered on river 4♥ , and snap folded following a hefty bet from Duan.

Cao Tingjia opened and called off Heng Qiao's 160,000 all-in. Board 2♠ Q♦ J♦ Q♠ K♠ ran in favor of the overcards, sending Heng out of the Main Event games.

Celina Lin defended her big blind against Chen Yubo's early raise and saw flop 2♦ 2♠ 2♣ . Chen continued for 25,000 yet quickly folded after Lin check jammed 180,000 in.

Feng Huahuan open shoved his last 215,000 folded to him, and saw Hu Jinlong call behind for a flip. Board ran J♣ J♠ Q♠ A♣ K♣ , pairing up Feng's ace to spare him from elimination.

Mp Lo Cheng Yen opened to 30,000, called behind by Chi Qiao. On flop K♠ 4♦ 7♦ , Lo check called for 25,000 and went on to check jam on turn 5♦ . Chi calls off for his 335,000 stack and tables K♦ 9♦ , sending Lo's K♥ J♦ towards the muck shortly after.

Zhang Nan opened and called off vs Zhang Tao's 250,000 all-in. Dominated, Zhang Tao quickly stepped off the floor just as the board 5♦ 9♦ 3♣ 3♠ 6♥ sealed his fate.

Mp opened, followed by Ding Yayun with a three bet to 85,000. Shi Lei sent out a four bet to 250,000 and saw Ding tank and eventually make the call. On flop K♥ K♠ 2♥ , Shi check called Ding's all-in for his 190,000 behind and tabled K♦ K♣ . Ding with J♥ J♠ , is drawing dead and shoots down to 5 BB.

An all-in preflop situation saw Lo Cheng Yen quickly send two opponents packing, running pocket kings against two pocket queens. Lo sweeps it up and soars past the 1M mark.

Small blind Zhang Nan opened to 35,000 and called big blind Matsueda Junya's 120,000 three bet. On flop T♣ 8♣ 2♦ , Zhang check called for 50,000 and got to showdown after turn 3♣ and river 9♦ were checked through. Zhang shows 4♥ 4♣ and scoops up the pot.

Up against an open and a call, Zhou Quan pushed all-in for 165,000 and was called by Deng Yawei. Flipping for his tournament life, Zhou headed towards the exit shortly after missing the board J♣ K♠ 6♣ 5♦ J♠ .

Big blind Valery Li sent out an 85,000 three bet against cutoff Pete Chen's open and fired all three streets on board J♠ T♦ 3♣ 8♥ - 70,000, 140,000 and a final 150,000. Chen called all the way to showdown and mucked after Li tabled K♥ K♦ .

A fourway raised pot saw flop 5♣ 8♦ 4♥ . Action was checked to turn 2♥ where Chen Weihang bet 30,000. Big blind Mutsuura Yuta check called, and proceeded to call off on river 7♦ for his remaining 44,000 with 7♥ 9♥ . Chen shows bluff J♠ T♠ and doubles up his opponent.

Zhu Shenghong opened and went on to four bet jam 280,000 in vs Yang Chih Hsiung. Yang makes the call and is in for a flip for half his stack. At risk, Zhu was spared from elimination after his pocket pair landed a set on Q♥ T♥ 9♥ 3♣ 5♦ to take it down.

Hijack Chen Yubo opened to 24,000, called by Liu Jun behind along with the big blind. Flop Q♣ 4♣ 4♦ was checked to Liu who bet 26,000. Chen puts in the call and heads to turn 5♥ . Both check it through river 6♠ . Chen leads for 55,000, leaving Liu to tank call and muck after Chen tabled 9♦ 9♠ .

With 180,000 already in the pot on flop T♠ Q♥ 4♥ , action was seen on button Gu Hui Dong with a bet of 120,000. Wang Xinjun check raised all-in and saw Gu call off for his 275,000 remaining with K♠ Q♠ . Gu is crushed against Wang's set T♦ T♥ , and bowed out shortly after the turn 3♥ and river 5♣ completed the board.

Mp Shen Zejin opened to 24,000, called by Guo Wei behind. On flop A♣ 8♦ 7♦ , Shen continued for 25,000, and another 60,000 on turn 5♠ . Guo raised all-in, and Shen tanks and eventually surrenders.

With an open and two calls in front, small blind Zhou Lin squeezed to 91,000 and saw only Shen Shaoji complete. On flop K♣ 5♥ T♣ , Zhou continued for 50,000 and picked up the pot shortly after Shen folded.

Utg Huang Peng opened to 23,000, called by button Nana Nakamura. On flop 9♥ 3♠ 6♣ , Huang continued for another 23,000, called once more by his opponent. Turn 9♠ saw Huang this time, check call for 55,000, revealing river 5♥ . Nakamura shoved all-in and Huang tank folds.

All 201 remaining players are now guaranteed a minimum payout of KRW 4,620,000, with a fighting chance to claim the KRW 392,403,000 top prize! Day 2 action will conclude at the end of Level 22.

Zhu Fang Zhou open shoved 114,000 right at bubble time and was called behind by Chen Xu. At risk, Zhu found no help on board 2♣ Q♦ T♦ 6♥ A♠ , leaving him to exit as the day's money bubble.

Down to 1,000, Jia Bin was all-in right on the big blind against Ogura Takashi. Hoping to crawl to a payout, Jia unfortunately bricked out board T♦ 6♠ 6♣ A♣ Q♠ to crash two places short.

Fang Zhenlong happily got his last 23,000 in with the rockets against big stacked Shen Shaoji. Fang cruised to a double up shortly after the board 9♥ 8♣ K♠ 2♣ 8♦ turned up on the felt.

With the money bubble approaching, Zhou Jin found his last 104,000 at risk against Xu Kai. A favorite, Zhou maintained his advantage all the way through T♣ 5♦ 3♦ 2♥ 8♥ , earning him the double up.

Facing an open and a three bet from to button to 46,000, small blind Charles Pansoy shoved his 265,000 stack in and picked up the pot after both opponents tank folded with the money bubble nearing.

A four way raised pot rolled flop T♠ 4♠ 6♦ . Action was checked to hijack who bet 15,000, called by Jin Xin behind. Big blind Zhang Nan sent out a raise to 66,000 and called off after Jin moved all-in for 52,000 more. Jin shows J♠ J♣ and is behind Zhang's T♥ 6♠ , all the way through turn 2♠ and river 8♥ .

A raised pot, action was seen on big blind Rui Qin with a check raise to 36,000 on flop 4♦ 8♣ 2♥ . Wong Ka Fai completed and called another 66,000 on turn K♣ . Rui checks the river and folds after Wong demanded for the rest of her chips.

Charles Pansoy shoved his remaining 88,000 and was quickly called by Ji Siyu from the small blind. Flipping for his tournament life, Pansoy was glad to see his pocket pair hold up on board 7♣ T♥ 6♦ 2♦ 2♣ .

Yunfeng Sun shoved his last 53,000 and was met with another all-in from Zhang Junjie behind. Two premium hands, Zhang's nutted pair took it all the way down as the board rolled 6♦ T♦ 2♥ 7♦ 6♥ .

Li Xiaoling open shoved her last 75,000 and was called behind by Feng Huahuan. A huge underdog, Li headed for the exit shortly after the board landed 4♥ 6♥ T♥ 4♦ 7♦ .

Facing an open, Dai Linghui shoved his 133,000 stack in and found Wu Guangbiao behind make the call. At risk, Dai failed to catch up on board Q♠ 5♥ 6♦ K♣ 2♣ , sending him out of the running.

Tan Yubing defended his open vs Xu Feng's 41,000 three bet and headed to flop 3♦ Q♦ 7♦ . Both players checked it through to turn J♣ where Xu sent out 33,000. Tan makes the call and goes on to lead 35,000 on river 6♦ . Xu flicks it in and tables J♦ J♥ , good against Tan's 8♠ 8♣ .

Button Hu Jianwen defended his open vs small blind Yunfeng Sun's 38,000 three bet and saw flop 6♦ 2♥ Q♠ . Yunfeng continued for 55,000 and Hu quickly surrenders.

Facing an open and a three bet, Xun Yun slammed his last 83,000 in and was called by Feng Xu behind. A great spot for Feng, the board K♥ 5♠ T♥ 9♣ 3♦ landed him the boost, knocking his opponent out in the process.

A preflop back and forth saw Xiaosheng Zhang fire a five bet jam right into Luo Xi Xiang's rockets. Drawing slim, Xiaosheng shot down to 20 BB after the board J♥ 6♠ 2♣ 7♦ 6♥ delivered no bad beats.

A four way raised pot headed to flop J♥ 3♣ J♣ and saw the initial raiser continue for 17,000. Song Ying behind bumped it up to 45,000, cold called by Li Yong on the button. Raiser got out of the way, moving on to turn 3♠ . Both checked it through to river T♦ where Li fired a final 50,000. Song check folds and Li rakes in the boost.

Shiina Okamoto defended her big blind vs Zhao Hongjun's button open and saw flop 3♣ 4♠ A♣ . Okamoto check called for 11,000 and another 21,000 on turn K♦ . River 2♠ went check check, revealing Okamoto's K♥ T♥ , good for the win.

Shih Chin Lun opened and went on to slam 94,000 in vs Yang Qinghao's 30,000 three bet. Yang puts in the chips and doubles up his opponent as board 8♥ J♠ 6♠ 2♦ J♦ landed on the felt.

Utg Wen Ruogu opened to 12,000, called by Yamada Kozo behind. On board 4♦ 5♠ 5♣ 7♠ 9♦ , Wen check called two streets - 17,000 and 42,000, and got to showdown after Yamada checked back the river. Wen shows A♠ J♠ and shipped the pot shortly after Yamada mucked.

Button opened, followed by a three bet to 36,000 from small blind Zhang Chenxu. Big blind Zhang Tao tanked and proceeded to shove 265,000 in. Both opponents fold and Zhang Tao picks up the boost.

Zhang Yuhao opened to 10,000, followed by a three bet to 30,000 from Ma Lianjun. Zhang answered with another raise to 80,000 and proceeded to call off 159,000 more after Ma pulled the trigger. A crucial flip, the board 2♥ Q♣ 9♦ 6♥ 3♣ remained in favor of the pocket pair, earning Zhang a full double up.

Mp Zhang Mingjie opened to 10,000, called by Li Dong behind. Li Yong on the button, fired a three bet to 30,000 and saw Zhang complete. Action on Li Dong, he tank shoved 375,000 in and picked up the pot uncontested.

With 55,000 already in the middle on board 6♣ 4♣ 8♥ K♥ , action was seen on small blind Diudiaev Aleksandr with a check raise to 67,000. Cutoff Lyu Bo completed and headed to river Q♠ . Diudiaev took a minute before shoving in 195,000. Lyu snap calls with Q♦ Q♣ and scoops up the pot with Diudiaev showing a busted straight draw 9♠ 7♣ .

Paul Hong opened to 11,000 and went on to jam 109,000 in vs He Junjie's 32,000 three bet. He makes the call and books the loss just as Hong landed a flush on 3♣ A♦ 2♦ 6♦ A♥ to win the pot.

A four way raised pot saw flop 4♥ A♠ A♣ . Action was checked through to turn 2♦ where Li Valery led for 22,000. Small blind Zhu Fang Zhou check calls, and calls for another 45,000 on river 8♦ only to muck after Li tabled A♥ 5♥ .

Xu Guo open shoved his last 55,000 and was called behind by Yu Zhichen. At risk, Xu lucked out after the flop 3♠ 9♣ 3♥ J♠ 7♠ paired up his nine to survive through.

An all-in preflop situation saw Lu Jiawei push his remaining 90,000, called by Ge Yunqing behind. Dominated, Ge landed the advantage after the turn 4♥ K♥ A♥ T♣ 6♠ paired up his ten to knock his opponent out entirely.

Utg+1 Jiang Ming opened to 9,000, joined by both players on the blinds on flop 8♥ 4♥ 8♣ . Jiang continued for 15,000 yet eventually gave it up after big blind Xu Zhiyuan check raised to 51,000.

With 24,000 in the pot, action was seen on big blind Xun Yuan with a lead bet of 22,000 on flop 7♠ 2♥ 3♦ . Cuoff Liu Zhensong demanded for the rest of his chips with Xun calling off for his 99,000 stack shortly behind. Liu shows 6♦ 7♥ and is behind his opponent's J♣ 7♥ . Lucky for Liu, the turn 2♦ and K♠ called for a split pot, saving him from the loss.

Facing an open and a call, Zhang Lirui shoved his last 51,000 in and was called by initial raiser Hu Weipeng. Yamada Kozo right behind reshoved for 77,000 more and Hu folds. Board ran 7♠ 4♦ J♠ 5♥ J♥ , sending Zhang out of the Main Event games in quick fashion.

Utg Joseph Lee defended his open vs Yang Zih Jing's 18,000 three bet and headed to flop 5♦ T♠ 2♠ . Yang continued for 13,000 and another 20,000 on turn 2♠ with Lee check calling both streets. On river Q♥ , Lee shoved his remaining 35,000 and picked up the pot shortly after Yang folded.

Mp Heng Qiao defended his open and called a 32,000 three bet from Song Rui behind. Action on board T♥ 7♠ 3♥ A♥ 8♣ was checked down all the way to the river where Song bet 25,000. Heng tanks and folds.

Utg Xiaosheng Zheng opened to 9,000, called by a player behind. Button Xu Feng put in a raise to 36,000 yet tank folded after Xiaosheng sent out a heftier 100,000.

Xiao Xian opened to 9,000, called by a player behind. Isaac Chan decided to bump it up to 34,000 and called 66,000 more after Xiao moved all-in. Up against a monster, Chan took the loss after finding no help on board 9♠ 2♦ 3♥ 2♣ 5♣ .

Cutoff Xu Feng defended his open and called a 23,000 three bet from button Zhang Jiageng. On flop 2♥ 6♥ 4♥ , Xu check called for 21,000 but eventually gave it up after Zhang fired another 41,000 on turn 6♦ .

Shuffle up & deal, good luck to all the players!

In return following a five year absence, the Red Dragon Poker Tour is back with a fresh new look, celebrating its debut with a KRW 1,680,000,000 (~USD 1,236,390) guaranteed Championship Event. While ambitious for its first showing, the esteemed tour was met with a smashing turnout over the expected with a total of 1,337 entries recorded across four flights.

Today’s Day 2 sees another ten levels of 60 minute play with 457 players returning to the felt, and only 201 runners banking a share of the KRW 2,567,843,000 (~USD 1,875,480) pot. Payouts are expected to trickle in this afternoon with the minimum prize listed at KRW 4,620,000 (~USD 3,360). Day 1A chip leader Chen Weihang continues to lead, with 1C’s Li Zhongyao right on his tail.

Dates: July 30 – August 4, 2024

Buy in: KRW 2,200,000 (~USD 1,620)

Guarantee: KRW 1,680,000,000 (~USD 1,236,390)

Prize pool: KRW 2,567,843,000 (~USD 1,875,480)

Entries: 1,337

ITM: 201 places

Day 1A: 332 entries / 103 qualified

Day 1B: 395 entries / 138 qualified

Day 1C: 421 entries / 144 qualified

Day 1D: 190 entries / 74 qualified

Day 2: 456 players

Day 3: Saturday, August 3

Final Day: Sunday, August 4