Dragon Of The Year

Following twelve hours of play, the first of two flights for TMT 16's Dragon of the Year Special Event wrapped up with Kai Hung Hu topping the 18-survivor list. The local runner rose to the lead right on the money bubble, having picked up several small pots with his relentless aggression. Kai went on to take a couple hits yet still capped the day with the chip lead, stacking a sizeable 805,000 to start the Day 2 rounds.

Date/s: July 22 to 24, 2024

Guarantee: NTD 2,000,000 (~USD 60,980)

Buy in: NTD 15,000 (~USD 450)

Day 1A: 179 entries / 27 ITM / 18 survivors

Day 1B: Tuesday, July 23

Day 2/ Final Day: Wednesday, July 24

Utg Kwak Gun moved all-in for 106,000 and was called behind by Huang Wei Hao. A good spot for Kwak to double up, the board A♠ 3♠ 7♠ J♥ T♠ instead left him in pieces after it ran a flush for his opponent.

Facing an open, button Jang Jong Bea fired a three bet to 50,000 and saw big blind Kai Hung Hu moved all-in with his big stack. Jang puts in the call and bags the double up with his monster pocket pair on J♥ 3♠ 2♦ 8♦ J♠ .

Utg+1 Toshio Kataoka open shoved his 70,000 in and was called by Nakayama Takumi with a better pair. In rough shape, Toshio was left packing as the board Q♥ 6♣ 5♣ Q♦ 4♠ spared none of his two outer.

Utg+1 opened to 20,000 and was met with a three bet to 58,000 from Kaiser Huang. Big blind Yuting Liu bumped it up further to 124,000 yet shortly folded after Huang moved all-in.

Utg+1 Tsuen Shi Chiang moved all-in for 72,000, called by Kai Hung Hu. At risk, Tsuen dodged elimination after an ace high board A♠ 8♣ 6♣ K♣ 7♦ turned up on the felt.

Ariel Lin went with K♦ Q♥ for his last 54,000 and was up against Jimmy Pham's A♠ J♣ for a race. Running similar stacks, the board 5♣ 4♣ 2♥ 3♠ Q♣ rolled a straight for Pham to send his opponent out of the qualifier.

Utg Toshio Kataoka opened to 16,000 and called Chiu Yip's 43,000 all-in. A huge underdog, Toshio lucked out and instantly flopped two pair on Q♠ J♥ 3♥ 8♣ 7♦ to clinch the win.

27 remaining players are guaranteed a minimum payout of NTD 24,000 with 18 runners guaranteed a spot into Day 2.

Utg Cai Win Jie flicked in his remaining 11,000 and faced Yu Sheng Lin's ace high. In for a race, the board Q♣ 9♦ 3♦ 2♥ Q♥ ran dry for Cai, sending him out right on the money bubble.

Hijack Yu Sheng Lin opened to 16,000, called behind by Cai Win Jie. On flop K♥ Q♣ 4♥ , Yu continued for 15,000, Cai with a call. Turn J♣ saw Yu this time, check call for 35,000 and another 80,000 on river 4♦ . Yu shows A♥ T♣ for a turned straight and Cai mucks.

Button Yu Sheng Lin opened to 17,000 and saw both players on the blinds come along on flop 3♦ 5♦ 4♠ . Yu continued for 25,000, check raised by Chu Hung Wang to 70,000. Yu makes the call, heading to turn 8♠ . Chu bets all-in and Yu snap calls for his remaining 120,000 with 6♠ 7♠ . Yu with 3♥ 3♣ , is behind and remained that way as the river 9♣ missed to pair the board.

Hijack Wei Jen Wang opened to 16,000 and was priced in to call after Ting Yi Wang moved all-in for 48,500. At risk, Ting claimed the double up after the board 9♠ 4♠ 9♦ 5♥ 8♥ ran safe for his pocket pair.

Kai Hung Hu has been actively putting pressure on his opponents with the money bubble still at play. Folded to him on the button, he opened to 18,000 and saw big blind Nakayama Takumi complete. On board 7♦ T♥ K♠ 5♦ 5♥ , Kai went on to bet all three streets, shoving all-in for the final blow. Nakayama check called two bets yet gave it up by the river, earning Kai the pot as well as the chip lead.

Button Chu Hung Wang open shoved and saw big blind Rui Lu call off for his remaining 41,500. At risk, Lu dodged the money bubble bust after no aces showed up on board K♣ 6♠ 2♦ 7♦ 3♠ .

Clock is currently paused with bubble time still ongoing. 27 players ITM, 18 survivors advance to Day 2.

Right on the money bubble, utg Yu Sheng Lin limp jammed 123,000 in and was called by raiser Chu Hung Wang. In for a flip, the board K♣ Q♠ J♠ A♦ 7♥ connected with both players with Yu landing a set to take it down.

Utg Kai Hung Hu opened to 11,000, joined by big blind Chueh Hao Hsuan on flop 7♠ J♣ 6♥ . Kai continued for 11,000 and called a click back to 22,000 to reveal turn 7♦ . Chueh led all-in and was snap called by Kai with quads 7♥ 7♣ . Chueh's Q♠ Q♦ is sent towards the muck as he heads out two places short of the money.

Cutoff Huang Wei Hao opened to 11,000 and called the big blind's 62,500 jam with 6♥ 6♠ . Opponent shows A♠ 2♥ and ends up falling out of the race after the board 3♥ 2♠ 3♦ Q♦ 6♦ ran a boat for Huang.

Utg+1 Tao Wei Chang went with A♣ 8♥ for his last 42,500 and was called behind by Kai Hung Hu with A♠ T♥ . Dominated, Tao was knocked out of the running shortly after the board 9♦ 3♥ 5♣ Q♠ 4♦ missed to improve his ace high.

Cutoff Toshio Kataoka opened to 10,000, called behind by Wei Jen Wang. On board T♦ 3♠ 5♣ Q♠ K♥ , Wei check called two streets and went on to fire a 35,000 bet into a 77,000 pot by the river. Toshio makes the call with Q♣ T♠ , and is good against Wei's A♥ 2♥ .

Following an open and a call, small blind Hyun Youl Choi stuffed his 80,500 stack in with K♠ K♥ and faced the original raiser's Q♥ Q♣ . Board 9♥ 4♥ 4♦ 9♠ 2♣ delivered no bad beats, earning Hyun a quick double up.

Hijjack Park Chongmin defended his open and called a 20,000 three bet from small blind Jang Jong Bea. On board 9♣ 8♦ 7♦ 4♥ 2♣ , Jang triple barreled all the way down to the river before Park eventually threw in the fold. Jang wins by default and shows A♠ A♥ .

Button Tao Wei Chang opened to 10,000 and called off big blind Kai Hung Hu's 45,000 jam. Drawing slim, Tao slipped down after the board 7♣ 3♣ A♣ T♦ J♥ spared no nines.

Utg Chung Wei Chun opened to 9,000, joined by two other players on flop 4♦ 2♠ K♣ . Chung continued for 12,000 and was called by the hijack, revealing turn 7♦ . Chung fired another 26,000 and claimed the pot after his opponent was unable to continue.

Utg+2 Ariel Lin opened to 8,000, joined by three other players on flop 2♣ 3♥ 4♣ . Checked to Ming Ken Thoo, he bet 8,000 followed by two calls behind. Back to Lin, he raised all-in for 28,500 and saw Ming reshove 80,000 and Kwak Gun for a final call. A flopped straight against two sets, Lin locked in the win after the turn 8♠ and river 6♥ missed to pair the board.

Utg Jang Jong Bea opened to 6,500, joined by a player behind on flop K♣ 7♥ J♥ . Jang check called his opponent's 39,000 all-in with A♥ A♠ and shipped the pot after the latter's top pair K♠ 9♠ failed to catch up on either turn 2♦ or river 6♣ .

Cutoff Kaiser Huang opened to 6,500 and saw Kim Yichang complete from the big blind to see flop J♣ T♣ K♠ . Huang continued for 7,500 and another 23,000 on turn 2♥ with Kim check calling both streets. On river A♣ , Kim led all-in for 85,000 with Huang going in the tank for five minutes before making the call with A♥ Q♠ . Kim shows K♦ 7♣ and shoots down to 5 BB.

Big blind Ming Ken Thoo reshoved his 43,000 stack in with 6♥ 6♠ against a cutoff open and saw his opponent call off with A♠ K♣ for a flip. The board 7♠ J♠ 5♥ 4♦ 3♠ lucky for him, ran a straight to his sixes to spare him from elimination.

Mai Ko Ho defended his big blind against Yuting Liu's hijack open and went on to lead all-in for 30,000 on flop A♦ 5♦ 5♠ . Liu snap called with A♠ A♣ and quickly left Mai's A♥ T♣ headed towards the muck after turn 4♦ and river Q♥ completed the board.

Utg opened, followed by a three bet to 15,000. Chiu Yip pumped up the action to 30,000 and proceeded to call off his opponent's 12 BB stack with 5♦ 5♥. Player shows A♠ K♥ , which failed to pair up on board Q♥ 3♣ 9♦ 2♠ T♥ costing him his tournament life.

An all-in preflop situation was seen with Chu Hung Wang putting his opponent at risk with the rockets. The ace high flop A♦ 5♠ 2♥ 9♠ T♠ instantly wiped out any hope for the underdog, leaving him headed for the exit.

Utg+1 Tsuen Shi Chiang opened to 5,000, called by two players behind. Small blind Alex Peer put in a raise to 25,000 and saw only Tsuen complete. On flop 7♠ 4♥ 2♦ , Peer was quick to give it up after Tsuen sent out a 20,000 bet.

An all-in situation ensued with two premium holdings getting it in preflop. Flop Q♥ 9♦ J♠ 8♥ 5♦ offered some straight outs for Zong but completely bricked the runout to send him packing.

Utg+2 shoved his last 21,500 with 9♥ 9♦ against an open and was called behind by Man Kam Wai with Q♥ Q♣ . In great shape, the board Q♦ 7♣ 6♥ J♠ 6♠ killed it further for Man as he raked in the 11 BB boost.

Facing a cutoff open, button moved all-in for 51,500 with A♥ K♦ and was met with another all-in behind from small blind Yuting Liu. Liu with 9♦ 9♠, is in for a flip and luckily dodged his opponent's overcards on J♠ 8♠ 6♦ 6♥ T♣ to bag the win.

Man Kam Wai defended his big blind vs Chiu Yip's open and saw flop K♥ 9♦ 4♣ . Both players checked it through, revealing turn 4♦ . Man led for 10,500 yet shortly folded after Chiu put in a raise to 30,000.

Having doubled through Huang Wei Hao just two hands prior, Ariel Lin clashed once more with Huang after shoving his 38,000 stack in against the latter's utg open. The board 4♠ 2♣ T♠ 3♠ 5♣ ended up rolling a straight for Lin, earning him the crucial pot to for another chance at the money.

Utg Chiu Yip opened to 5,000 and saw the big blind move all-in for 73,000 total. Chiu makes the call with A♣ K♣ and is up against his opponent's A♥ T♥ . Dominated, the underdog was left instantly crushed after Chiu landed a monster runout on K♦ 6♣ 2♣ 5♥ 3♣ .

Utg+2 open shoved his last 3 big blinds with A♣ T♥ and was followed with two more stacks coming into the middle - Kim Yichang with 4♠ 4♦ , and the button with A♠ Q♣ . The three way all-in situation ran board 4♣ 5♥ 6♣ 5♠ 8♣ , giving Kim a full house to knock both opponents out entirely.

Utg+1 Zong Chi He defended his open and happily called off vs an opponent's 39,500 jam with Q♦ Q♣ . Player shows J♦ J♥ and shortly headed for the rails after board K♠ T♠ T♥ 4♥ 9♣ turned up on the felt.

Rui Lu opened to 4,000, called by two other players. Button squeezed all-in and found Lu calling off with K♠ K♦ for his 22,000 stack. Opponent shows A♠ 5♠ and shoots down after the board Q♣ 2♠ 2♦ 9♦ 4♦ leaves him beat.

Up against an open and a call, Jimmy Pham fired a three bet to 10,500 and saw both players continue to flop A♥ 6♥ 8♠ . Checked to Pham, he sent out a bet of 17,000 and proceeded to call off the original raiser's 52,500 all-in. Opponent shows 5♠ 7♠ for an open ended straight draw which failed to come on either turn 6♦ or river A♣ , leaving Pham's A♦ 4♣ good for the taking.

Day 1A numbers are in with 179 total entries recorded and 27 runners geared to make the money. Action will conclude once the field is down to 18 players.

Another three way all-in saw Tsuen Shi Chiang ship the massive 272 BB pot after spiking a lucky river on A♣ 6♠ 8♦ 2♦ Q♥ . Tsuen rises to the lead, leaving both opponents chipped away.

Mai Ko Ho five bet jammed his 29,000 stack in with A♠ K♥ and was called by the original raiser with A♣ T♣ . Board K♦ J♦ 7♦ J♣ 8♣ left no worries for Mai as he cruised to victory with two pair.

Utg+2 Liu Chen Rong opened to 2,600 and saw the big blind complete to see flop J♦ 4♦ 5♥ . Opponent led for 4,000, called by Liu. On turn A♠ , Liu moved all-in for 5,000 more with A♣ Q♥ after seeing another 10,000 bet. Big blind makes the call with 8♣ 6♠ and misses to fill up on the river J♠ to take the loss.

A three way all-in situation erupted with Cai Yu Zhu showing down the rockets and covering both stacks. Unfortunately for him, the board 4♠ 3♠ Q♦ 6♠ J♥ ran a flush for Jang Jong Bea to steal the win away.

Man Kam Wai called a utg open and went on to battle on board 5♠ 8♦ J♣ 3♠ T♠ . Raiser bet all three streets, moving all-in for 18,000 by the river. Man called all the way down with J♥ T♦ and claimed the pot after his opponent revealed lower two pair J♠ 8♥ .

An all-in preflop situation saw the hijack commit his last 22,000 with K♣ T♣ against big blind Keith Ng's K♠ J♥ . Dominated, the board Q♦ 2♣ 9♠ 3♠ 6♥ left Ng raking it all in and deliver the bust.

Hijack opened to 2,500, called by Yoda Lin behind along with big blind Chi Jen Chen. Flop J♠ 8♠ 3♦ was checked to Lin who bet 4,500. Chi calls but is left unable to continue after Lin bet all-in on turn A♣ .

Utg+1 Chung Wei Chun opened to 2,000 and called off a player's 19,100 jam with K♥ J♥. Opponent is ahead with A♥ Q♦ up until the river 9♥ 8♥ 5♦ 7♦ 7♥ rolled a third heart to complete Chung's king high flush.

Utg+2 opened to 2,000 and saw three players call behind. Small blind decides to bump it up to 8,300 yet folds after two stacks rush to the middle. Hyun Youl Choi is at risk with A♠ K♠ against his opponent's A♦ J♦ . Board ran 2♣ 8♥ 8♠ 9♠ 7♣ with Hyun happily collecting a double up with ace-king high.

A three way three bet pot led by big blind Eugene Lim rolled board 8♦ 2♥ 7♦ 4♣ 4♦ . Action was checked all the way down to the river where original raiser Jerry Loh sent out a hefty 18,000 bet. Lim tanks and makes the call, only to muck after Loh reveals 8♣ 8♠ for a boat.

Facing an early open, utg+1 shoved his 18,600 stack in with A♦ T♦ and was up against big blind Ho Ding Herng's Q♦ Q♣ . Already with the advantage, the board 7♥ 5♣ 2♦ 7♦ Q♥ ran a full house for Ho to put him even further ahead.

A cooler situation saw two stacks rush to the middle - Park Chongmin with A♣ A♠ against the big blind's K♣ K♥ . Board A♦ 2♠ Q♠ T♠ 7♥ offered no help to the dominated pocket pair as Park quickly soared to the top ranks for the 115 BB pot.

Hijack Eugene Lim opened to 2,000, joined by three other players on flop A♦ 4♣ 5♦ . Lim continued for 3,500, called only by the small blind. Action on turn 7♥ was checked through, convincing his opponent to check call river 8♠ for another 4,000. Lim shows A♥ T♠ and wins the pot with top pair.

Utg Ting Yi Wang defended his open and called a 4,200 three bet from Rene Mar David. On flop 3♠ 9♥ 8♣ , David continued for 3,100 and Ting made the call. David churned out another 8,000 on turn 8♠ yet folded after his opponent check raised all-in.

Following an early open and two calls, button put in a raise and faced an all-in from Toshio Kataoka for 9,000 total. Opponent completes, tabling Q♣ Q♠ against Kataoka's K♣ K♥ . Already a favorite, Kataoka cruised to victory after a king high board landed on the felt.

Hijack Chung Wei Chun defended his open and called a 4,500 three bet from behind. On flop 4♦ J♦ J♠ , Chung went for a check raise to 11,000 after his opponent continued for 4,500. The aggressor quickly gives it up and Chung picks up the boost.

A three bet pot led by Kwak Gun saw flop 3♣ 3♦ T♠ . Original raiser led the action with a bet of 2,500 and called Kwak's raise to 9,000. On turn 4♠ , Kwak continued for another 13,000 and called off after his opponent moved all-in with A♦ 6♠ . River 5♦ completed the board, earning Kwak's Q♣ Q♠ an easy double up.

Utg+1 Yoda Lin opened to 1,500, followed by a three bet to 4,500 from Ray Chen. Another player joins the action only to be met with another raise to 11,000 from Tao Wei Chang. Lin moves all-in, called by Chen along with two folds behind. Running a flip, the board Q♥ 8♣ 3♦ T♣ 7♣ quickly landed Chen a set to earn the double up.

Utg+1 Lo Yu Jung opened to 1,300, called by the hijack. Small blind fired a three bet to 4,500 and was answered by a fourbet to 13,000 from Lo. Opponent raised all-in and Lo called off for his starting stack. Board 9♠ 7♣ 9♦ 7♦ K♣ ran safe for the pocket pair up until the river peeled a king to give Lo the win.

Hijack opened to 1,700 and saw both the button and big blind Man Kam Wai come along on flop Q♣ T♠ 7♦ . Man check raised the action to 6,500 with both opponents continuing to turn 6♣ . Man led for another 13,500 and saw only the raiser put in the call. On the river 2♥, Man bet all-in for his last 7,100, receiving no call to pick up the pot.

After firing a three bet, Ting Yi Wang called off his opponent's 15,000 four bet jam with A♦ K♦ and was up against the same hand A♣ K♣ . In luck, his diamonds put him ahead on J♣ 8♥ T♦ Q♦ 3♦ to snag the win and send his opponent out.

An all-in preflop situation saw Soh Jun Wei at risk for his last 20,000 against Tzu Wei Huang. Fortunately for him, the board K♥ 5♦ A♦ K♦ 8♦ favored his overcards to save him from elimination.

A three way raised pot saw flop 6♣ Q♥ K♥ . Utg raiser continued for 2,500, called by both opponents. Action on turn J♣ was checked to Kai Hung who bet 8,500, with only the raiser making the call. On river T♠ , Hung overbet 40,000 and took the pot down after his opponent folded.

Facing an open and a three bet, small blind Tzu Wei Huang shoved for 19,100 and was called by the original raiser with A♦ K♠ . Board ran 8♠ 2♠ A♣ 7♥ K♦ , giving Tzu a full double up with his set of eights.

Cutoff Ky Lee opened to 1,500, joined by three other players on flop 9♥ Q♣ A♣ . Lee continued for 3,500, check called by both players on the blinds. On turn 9♠ , Lee fired another 3,500 yet shortly folded after Ting Yi Wang moved all-in for 26,000 total.

Big blind Hyun Hyung Chun called the small blind's open to 1,500 and headed to flop 8♥ 9♣ J♣ . Hyun bet 1,800 and went on to check down turn T♣ . On river K♠ , his opponent led for 3,500, snap called by Hyun with Q♥ T♦ , good against the other player's A♦ 5♦ .

A three way three bet pot saw flop 5♣ 7♥ 3♥ turn up on the felt. Checked to the aggressor, he bet 6,000, called by Che Chun Chu. On turn Q♥ , Che check called his opponent's all-in for 18,800 and saw the latter drawing to 11 outs with A♦ 4♠ . The river T♦ was neither, earning Che's 9♥ 9♣ the win to take it down.

With an open, call and a three bet in front of him, Chiu Yip pushed all-in with K♥ K♦ for his remaining 11,300 and saw two other stacks come along. Board ran 5♦ 8♦ T♥ 6♣ 7♠ and sent both raiser's A♦ K♠ and caller's 2♦ 3♦ headed for the muck. Chiu Yip sweeps the pot and claims a nice triple up.

A three way all-in saw Keith Ng scoop up the pot, sending two players out on board 2♣ 4♣ 6♠ 8♣ Q♣ .

A fourbet pot led by Mai Ko Ho saw Chan Chung Fai call a 5,000 bet on flop 5♦ T♠ 2♥ . On turn 4♠ , Mai pushed for 18,000 and was called by Chan with A♠ K♣ . Drawing to a straight or an ace against Mai's K♠ K♥ , Chan packed in the loss as the river showed T♦ .

An all-in preflop situation saw Kai Hung push his last 11,000 with A♠ K♣ , called by original raiser Oh Jun Jie with K♦ T♠ . Looking for a double up, Hung instead headed for the exit as the board rolled T♥ 7♦ 8♣ 9♠ T♣ .

A blind vs blind battle, Chu Hung Wang called a three bet to 2,800 from Kai Hung and saw flop K♣ 4♦ 3♥ . Both players checked it through, leading to turn K♠ . Hung this time, bet 4,000, check called by his opponent. On river 7♥ , Hung sent out another 10,000 and was snap called by Chu with K♥ 8♥ . Hung shows Q♥ Q♣ and shoots down to 36 BB.

With an open and two calls in front, button Yoda Lin pumped up the action to 4,000 and saw only the last player continue to flop K♠ 4♦ 8♥ . Lin continued for 2,500 on turn 6♥ and barreled another 10,000 on river 6♥ to take it down.

Utg Chan Chung Fai opened to 800 and was joined by Chu Hung Wang on board J♠ 9♠ 7♣ Q♦ 4♣ . Chan fired all three streets with an all-in to finish off by the river. Chu called two barrels but tank folded against his opponent's last bet after Chan eventually called time.

Utg Kim Yichang opened to 800, called by the button. Big blind Chu Hung Wang fired a three bet to 4,000 with both opponents shortly folding after Yichang bumped it up further to 14,000.

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

Taking a break from the TMT 16 Main Event festivities at Asia Poker Arena, Taipei, Taiwan, players will find a special highlight squeezed right in between, with the three day Dragon of the Year event kicking off today, July 22nd. In lieu of the lucky year ahead, tournament runners can test the waters and hunt down the lion’s share of the NTD 2,000,000 (~USD 60,980) guaranteed prize pool for a buy-in of NTD 15,000 (~USD 450). Only two flights complete the schedule with the games wrapping up on Day 2, July 24th.

Date/s: July 22 to 24, 2024

Guarantee: NTD 2,000,000 (~USD 60,980)

Buy in: NTD 15,000 (~USD 450)

Day 1A: Monday, July 22

Day 1B: Tuesday, July 23

Day 2/ Final Day: Wednesday, July 24