The WPT Seoul INSPIRE Championship took place at the INSPIRE Entertainment Resort in Incheon. Over four starting flights, it recorded 1,033 entries, significantly surpassing the originally guaranteed prizepool of 1 billion KRW. With a buy-in of 1,750,000 KRW (~$1,300), the prize money soared to 1,561,896,000 KRW (approximately $1.15 million).
Nine players made it to the final table, with Dongli Shen entering as the massive chipleader and eventual winner. He dominated most of the final day, but the closing heads-up against Japan's Yosuke Sekiya was a gripping drama filled with twists and mutual double-ups.
Although the players agreed on a financial deal, which earned them almost identical amounts, only one could clinch the title.
In the decisive hand of the tournament, Sekiya went all-in with A d 7 s, and Shen called with T s 9 s. The board J d K d 5 s Q s 9 d gave Shen a straight and sealed his biggest career win, along with a package to the WPT World Championship in Las Vegas worth $10,400.
Final Table Results of WPT Seoul INSPIRE Championship:
|
Place |
Player |
Country |
Winnings (KRW) |
Winnings (~USD) |
|
1. |
Dongli Shen |
China |
252,378,000 KRW* |
$185,000 |
|
2. |
Yosuke Sekiya |
Japan |
246,238,000 KRW* |
$180,000 |
|
3. |
Jun Li |
China |
124,950,000 KRW |
$91,500 |
|
4. |
Tomoharu Hikino |
Japan |
92,310,000 KRW |
$67,600 |
|
5. |
Juhyun Lee |
USA |
68,720,000 KRW |
$50,300 |
|
6. |
Myagmardorj Batsukh |
Mongolia |
54,670,000 KRW |
$40,000 |
|
7. |
Andrew Tomoya Matahira |
Japan |
45,290,000 KRW |
$33,180 |
|
8. |
Hayato Nagasawa |
Japan |
36,700,000 KRW |
$26,800 |
|
9. |
Yumi Hanzawa |
Japan |
28,900,000 KRW |
$21,170 |
*Heads-up deal
Sources: WPT, YouTube, Flickr
#result
