On Level 13, 🇰🇷 Hogyun Kang defeats 🇹🇼 Kuan Han Lee heads-up to capture his first-ever Players Series trophy and the TWD 710,000 top prize.

Kang’s ascent begins at the final table when he eliminates 🇵🇭 John Niko Costiniano in eighth place, claiming a game-changer pot that vaults him into the chip lead, one he never relinquishes. From that point forward, Kang dictates the pace, steadily accumulating chips and repeatedly defending his big blind to distance himself further from the pack.

By six-handed, he controls more than a third of the chips in play. At four-handed, that dominance grows to over half the total chips on the table. Kang then knocks out 🇹🇭 Nirunrut Rachburom in fourth place, followed by 🇹🇼 Yu-Chung Chang in third place, entering heads-up with a commanding 77 big blinds against Lee’s 20 big blinds.

Kang proceeds to grind Lee down to 12 big blinds before delivering the final blow to secure the title.

💵 Payouts

The Natural8 Open Super High Roller drew 26 entries at Day 1 and another 21 entries at Day 2 for a total field of 47 entries, to breach the guarantee for a larger TWD 2,030,400 prize pool.

Among the late arrivals are three eventual finalists: Kang, Lee, and 🇰🇷 Yohwan Lim. Kang enters in Level 12, while Lee and Lim jump in at max registration just before Level 13 begins.

Also reaching the final table is Rachburom, who starts Day 2 with only nine big blinds and nearly bows out early in a clash with 🇦🇹 Manuel Fritz where her king-jack pairs the jack to outdraw king-queen suited.

Meanwhile, the day’s entering top two chip leaders fail to make an impact. 🇨🇭 Fabian Rolli and 🇰🇷 Youhyun Kim both fall well short of the money. Kim exits at the hands of Costiniano before registration closes, and Rolli follows him to the rail two levels later.

Scroll down to read up on the day’s thrilling action.

Photo: Kuan Han Lee

Hogyun Kang grinds down Kuan Han Lee to 12 big blinds before the all in showdown takes place.

Kuan Han Lee: 

Hogyun Kang: 

Lee needs a miracle to overtake however the board drops only big cards along with a turned pair for Kang  to end Lee in 2nd place.

After nine hours of play, it is now down to the final two players. The top prize is TWD 710,000 while runner-up receives TWD 422,000.

Photo: Yu-Chung Chang

Yu-Chung Chang pushes all in with   and runs into Hogyun Kang’s . With only a thin window to stay in the running, it doesn’t come on the board to finish in 3rd place.

Photo: Nirunrut Rachburom

End of the road for Nirunrut Rachburom in 4th place. On her final hand, she open jams with and chip leader Hogyun Kang calls with  .

Rachburom is behind but is live for a chance to survive. However, the board doesn’t cooperate as it runs out .

Hogyun Kang is far ahead of the rest and surges further to well over half of the chips in play. On a board of and a hefty 1,275,000 in the pot, Kang bets 700,000. Nirunrut Rachburom tanks, burning through two time extensions before finding reason to call.

Kang turns over  and ships the pot with Rachburom mucking.

Level 23 is underway with blinds up 60K-120K ante 120K. Only four players remain on the hunt for the title and the TWD 710,000 top prize. Average stack is 2,937,500

Following a rase by chip leader Hogyun Kang, big blind Nirunrut Rachburom three-bets all in for 770,000. Kang slides out the call to put Rachburom on the ropes.

Nirunrut Rachburom:

Hogyun Kang: 

Things are looking peachy for Rachburom who has the spades in the bag and improves further on the flop . A slight scare come on the turn with Kang pairing up. With the river, Kang isn’t able to overtake to send Rachburom a happy boost.

Photo: Yohwan Lim

Kuan Han Lee open-shoves 1,835,000 on the button then waits as small blind Nirunrut Rachburom tanks. After using up a time extension, she folds, passing the decision to big blind Yohwan Lim.

Lim proceeds to tank, using up his last two time extensions, then calls for his tournament life.

Kuan Han Lee:

Yohwan Lim: 

Lee is slightly ahead with his small pair while Lim needs to connect to stay in the game. An ace quickly appears on the window as well as the six for a dominating set to Lee. With the turn  , it’s the end for Lim in 5th place. The river completes the board with an inconsequential .

Nirunrut Rachburom min-raises from under the gun, Yohwan Lim three-bets to 455,000, everyone gets out of the way and action returns to Rachburom who jams for 835,000. Lim reluctantly calls.

Nirunrut Rachburom:

Yohwan Lim:

Rachburo’s pair is ahead and is in prime position to secure her a double up. The deck agrees as the board runs out  .

Level 22 is underway with blind of 50K-100K ante 100K. Five players remain out of a field of 47 entries. Minimum payout now is TWD 139,000 and up top is TWD 710,000.

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Kuan Han Lee goes all in with   and is flipping against caller Yu-Chung Chang’s .

The board favors Lee as it runs out to survive the race and double through.

Following the hand, Chang recovers some of the lost chips in two consecutive pots.

Photo: Andrei Cherkashin

Andrei Cherkashin min-raises from hijack position and big blind Yohwan Lim defends to bring about a flop of . Lim leads out 250,000, Cherkashin goes all in for 1,220,000, Lim has more behind but proceeds to tank for three time extensions before making the call.

Andrei Cherkashin:

Yohwan Lim:

Upon revealing, Lim is ahead with a pair and still needs to dodge the overcards to deliver the elimination. The turn is through and with the on the river, that ends Cherkashin’s run in 6th place.

Yohwan Lim opens the new level with a three-bet to 480,000 out of the small blind and initial raiser Kuan Han Lee at cutoff folds.

The next deal, Lim raises 160,000 on the button and Andre Cherkashin defends out of the the big blind. Action continues at the flop with a 100,000 bet from Lim. Cherkahsin answers back with a check-raise to 250,000 and wins the pot uncontested with Lim folding.

Level 21 is underway with blinds of 40K-80K ante 80K. Only six players remain on the hunt for the glory and the TWD 710,000 top prize.

The final six players are on a 15-minute break. Below are the chip counts. Average stack is 1,958,333.

💵 Remaining Payouts

Photo: Meng Ling Lin 

Meng Ling Lin shoves twice and finds no callers however on the third one, Nirunrut Rachburom asks for the count which is 540,000, then defends on the big blind.

Meng Ling Lin:

Nirunrut Rachburom: 

Lin is behind however her cards are live until the flop rolls .  Only a runner runner can save Lin from elimination but with the turn, she is drawing dead instead. The river completes the board.

Photo: John Costiniano

The first player to the payout desk is John Costiniano with all of his chips added to Hogyun Kang’s stack. As many have attempted, Costiniano open-jams on the button and Kang defends his big blind.

John Costiniano: 

Hogyun Kang: 

The flop changes nothing however the turn pairs up Costiniano for a bit of hope, then the river  kills it completely with Kang improving to a flush.

Yohwan Lim opens from under the gun and it’s a three-way to the flop with the blinds both calling. Lim continues with a 125,000 bet on a board of , and only small blind Nirunrut Rachburom makes the call.

On the turn , Lim fires 275,000, and again Rachburom check-calls for the board to complete  on the river. Once more, Lim fires away, making it 450,000 to play. With only 515,000 behind, Rachburom uses up two time extensions before opting to hold on to her remaining chips.

Level 8 is underway with 8 players remaining out of a field of 47 entries. Blinds are up 30K-60K ante 60K.

Andrei Chershakin min-raises on the button and Kuan Han Lee tops up on the big blind. Action continues after the dealer fans the flop   with a bet of 75,000 from Cherkashin. Lee check-calls and the turn comes .

Again Lee checks, and again Cherkashin fires a bet of 200,000. No more calling for Lee who answers with a raise to 400,000 and wins the pot with Cherkashin surrendering his hand.

Photo: Hogyun Kang

Players continue to raise on Hogyun Kang’s big blind but fail to win the pot. The next player to do so is Meng Ling Lin who min-raises from middle position. After Kang defends his big blind, Lin test-bets 50,000 on the flop and Kang check-calls.

Both players stay friendly on the turn ,  then Kang leads out 125,000 on the river .  Lin pays t0 see then mucks to  top pair.

Action folds to John Costiniano on the button, he opens 100,000 and is denied the steal with big blind Hogyun Kang defending. At the flop , Kang checks then calls Costiniano’s 180,000 continuation bet.

They head to the turn where the finds the board. Both players check, then check again on the river .

Kang opens up top pair and claims the pot with Coostiniano mucking his hand.

Level 19 is underway with blinds of 25K-50K ante 50K. The final 8 players are now all in the money and are hunting down the top prize of TWD 710,000. Average stack is 1,468,750.

Man Chi Shing is all in and at risk against caller Kuan Han Lee however has hope with both players holding an ace and Shing with the higher kicker.

Man Chi Shing:

Kuan Han Lee: 

With a flop running a clean , Shing needs only dodge the next two cards however it is not to be as the   comes on turn for a pair to Lee. With the river , Shing exits as the bubble on a bad beat.

With around 400,000 in the pot, Meng Ling Lin bets 175,000 on a turn board of and Hogyun Kang check-calls. When the river comes , both players check. Kang is first to show and opens ace-high, which to his surprise is a winner with Lin mucking her hand.

On a board of with a massive 1,170,000 in the pot, Andrei Cherkashin and Kuan Han Lee keep it friendly with checks. However, when the river comes , Cherkashin jams 1,065,000 sending Lee to the think tank.

After spending two time extensions, Lee open-folds . Cherkashin doesn’t show.

Level 18 is underway with blinds now at 20K-40K ante 40K. Average stack is 1,305,555 with 9 players remaining out of a field of 47 entries. They are currently on the bubble with ITM starting at 8 players.

Kuan Han Lee and Hogyun Kang battle for a pot that has ballooned to around 550,000 by the time the river fills the board . Lee slides out a 250,000 bet and Kang immediately pays to see his hand. Lee shows straight and claims the pot with Kang mucking.

It’s bubble time with 9 players remaining.

Photo: Chih Wei Fan

Ever since Chih Wei Fan lost a costly pot against Meng Ling Lin, he has been on life support and eventually loses it all on the soft bubble. Sitting at under the gun, Fan takes a peek and says, “it’s my turn” then raises 200,000 leaving just 5,000 behind.

Two spots over, Kuan Han Lee calls and the dealer fans the flop . Fan checks, Lee puts Fan all in who obliges with his last chip.

When they flip over their hole cards, Fan is in very bad shape with far behind Lee’s set. The turn seals the win for Lee as Fan is drawing dead. The river  completes the board.

Andrei Cherkashin raises at cutoff and goes hunting down the streets with big blind defender Kuan Han Lee. The pot continues to grow at the flop   with Cherkashin representing for 40,000 and Lee with the check-call.

Both players take it easy on turn with no bets on the table, then resume on the river   with Lee leading out 300,000. Cherkashin makes the fast call and they flip them over.

Lee has   two pair, Cherkashin connects on the river with broadway to drag in the pot.

At the turn of the new level, with blinds of 15K-30K ante 30K, Kuan Han Lee doubles up thru Hogyun Kang and Hyo Sung Kim falls to Andrei Chershakin to bring the field down to 10 players. Chershakin’s pocket kings hold against Kim’s ace-queen.

They are now going hand-for-hand to the final table of 9 players. ITM begins at the final 8.

Level 17 is underway with 11 players remaining. Only three busts needed to reach ITM.

Rong Zhang goes all in for his last 160,000 and Lin Yu Hsien joins in with 575,000. Yu-Chung Chang peeks down and likes his hand as well and calls covering both players.

Rong Zhang: 

Lin Yu Hsien:

Yu-Chung Chang:

Chang is looking good for a scoop, and with the board running low, with no ace in sight, Chang ships it and boots two players simultaneously.

On a three-bet pot that balloons to 260,000, the dealer fans the flop of . Out of the big blind seat, Nirunrut Rachburom continues for 80,000, at cutoff, John Costiniano challenges with a raise to 205,000, Rachburom calls.

As soon as the dealer opens the turn of , Rachburom leads out again for 300,000 and this time it sends Costiniano deep in the tank. He burns through two time extensions before finally releasing his hand.

Players are back from another break. Only 15 remain out of the 47 total entries. ITM begins at the final 8.

Just before the break, Meng Ling Lin scores a double up through Chih Wei Fan.

Preflop action opens with a raise by Chih Wei Fan that’s called by button player Meng Ling Lin and Yohwan Lim who defends his big blind. At the flop of , action is checked to Lin who tests the waters for 40,000. Boht Lim and Fan call to head to the turn where all three opt to slow down and check.

The river then comes . Lim leads with a check again, Fan tank-bets 112,000, Lin tanks as well then opts out, and it is back to Lim who tanks for one time extension before laying out a raise of 400,000. Fan calls then mucks after Lim reveals  full house.

Catching the action on a board of   with a massive pot of around 860,000 already weighing down the middle of the felt, Michel Molenaar goes all in and in a snap, Hogyun Kang calls with a covering stack.

Molenaar opens trips however, it is far behind Kang’s   full house to crash out of the field.

There are now 15 players remaining.

Meng Ling Lin is all in preflop and facing elimination, with chip leader John Costiniano putting her on the ropes.

Meng Ling Lin:

John Costiniano: 

Lin looks poised for a double-up when the flop    delivers her a set, however the scare card comes on the turn opening a possible straight for Costiniano. The river comes  clean, the , for a safe landing to happily scoop up the pot.

Short stacks tangle with Soo Bum Kim at risk and dominated by Kuan Han Lee at the showdown.

Soo Bum Kim:

Kuan Han Lee:

With the flop running , Kim’s survival is looking bleak. By the turn  , it’s all over for Kim. The river completes the runout.

Level 15 is underway with blinds of 10K-20K ante 20K. Only 18 players remain out of a field of 47 entries. The money begins once the final 8 is reached.

Photo: Michel Molenaar

With heavy action leading up to this point, Michel Molenaar calls Ki Goh Seok’s all in on the turn with a board showing .

Seok has the nuts straight and Molenaar is behind with top two pair .

The dealer then opens the river and Seok stands up in disbelief as Molenaar spikes the four-outer full house. After the count, Seok packs up while Molenaar zooms over a million in chips.

With 47 entries at TWD 50,000 each, the prize pool surged past its guarantee. The total climbed to TWD 2,030,400, rewarding the top eight finishers. Awaiting the eventual champion is a hefty TWD 710,000 payday.

Hogyun Kang and Hyo Sung Kim are at the turn on a board showing with a hefty pile of around 580,000 in the middle. Kang checks out of the big blind seat and Kim taps back from cutoff. After the   lands on the river, no more checking for Kang who announces all in for 246,000.

Kim goes straight to the think tank and burns through two time extensions before deciding to toss in the one-chip call then sees the bad news.

Kang flips open that dominates Kim’s for a well earned double up.

Shortly after, Kim recovers some of the lost chips by cleaning out Fabian Rolli.

John Costiniano continues to distance himself from the rest of the pack adding an elimination under his belt at the start of the new level. The preflop all-in player is Seungmook Jung with jamming right into Costiniano’s  .

With both players improving on the flop, , no runner runner comes for Jung as the turn has him drawing dead to the river .

Level 14 is underway with 24 players remaining out of a field of 47 entries. The top three players are John Costiniano (1,470,000), Nirunrut Rachburom (1,170,000), and Chih Wei Fan (1,080,000).

Hogyun Kang on the big blind and button players Hyo Sung Kim are staring down a flop of with 68,000 in the pot. Kang passes up the decision to Kim who takes the bait with a bet of 25,000. Kang fires back with a check-raise to 75,000, and Kim snap-folds.

Not long after Nirunrut Rachburom eliminated Kristof Segers, she sent another two out simultaneously in stunning style. The hand opens with a raise from button player Wang Chihyuan for 25,000, small blind Rachburom flats, then big blind Manuel Fitz jams for 80,000.

Action swing back to Wang who joins Fitz for his entire 462,000 stack to send Rachburom deep in the think tank. After burning through one time extension, she finds the reason to call with a covering stack.

Manuel Fitz:

Wang Chihyuan:   

Nirunrut Rachburom: 

With the board running out , it’s a double takedown for Rachburom’s snowmen to catapult over a million in chips.

Level 13 is underway which means registration has closed. The screens have 47 entries registered with 29 players remaining in the field. Stay tuned for the prize pool and payouts. Blinds are now up to 6K-12K ante 12K.

Nirunrut Rachburom entered Day 2 with just nine big blinds and survived a showdown to double through. Just before the break, she is all in again and is behind with   against Manuel Fitz with .

Looking like she will need to re-enter, the board puts her firmly back in her seat as the turn gives her a lucky jack and completes for a double up.

Players are now on a ten minute break. This is the last chance to enter. Registration closes at the start of Level 13. Currently 45 entries with 27 players in the field.

Since the start of the day, Chih Wei Fan is on the rise and now climbs to nearly a million in chips after eliminating a player in a classic flip. Fan’s pocket jacks hold firm against ace-king, pushing his stack close to the seven-figure mark.

A pot of 100,000 is up for grabs by the time time turn board is   with Andrew Han and Andrei Chershakin both looking to claim it. Both players check to get a free peek at the river card . Out of the big blind seat, Han attempts to steal for 34,000 however Chershakin snap-calls. Han quickly mucks giving Chershakin the pot without a showdown of hands.

Photo: Wang Chihyuan

Wang Chihyuan continues to pressure his tablemates despite being on his second bullet today. Catching him in action, he bets 58,000 onto a pot of 70,000 on a board of . This sends Michel Molenaar deep in the tank until he burns through a time extension before calling.

Wang isn’t bluffing and shows two pair to claim the pot.

Level 12 is now underway which means latecomers only have until the end of this level to join the hunt for the first high roller title of the series. Blinds remain the same at 5K-10K ante 10K. There are currently 23 players in the field out of 36 entries.

Photo: Man Chi Shing

Youhyun Kim opens with a min-raise only to face a shove from Man Chi Shing for 92,000. With a big stack behind, Kim assesses the math then tosses in the one-chip call.

Man Chi Shing:

Youhyun Kim: 

It’s the best Kim can hope for with a flip to eliminate Shing however, the flop grants Shing the instant nuts and as it completes , Shing ships a happy double up.

Photo: Andrew Han

With a pot of 60,000 up for grabs, and a flop showing , small blindAndrew Han bets a light 10,000 and big blind Sung Jin Yung continues to defend. Both players turn down the heat with a check on fourth street’s , then Han resumes the pressure with a 133,000 bet on the   river. Yung tanks for one time extension then gives up of his stake in the pot.

By the time the flop lands , a big pot of 195,000 swims in the middle of the felt. Out of the big blind, John Costiniano checks and hijack Seunghyuk Jung taps back. After the free turn card comes  ,  Costiniano takes a shot with an 80,000 and it’s enough to secure the pot uncontested.

Photo: Dicky Siu Hang Tsang

Some new arrivals and latecomers to boost the total entries to 31. Among the players with fresh stacks are defending champion Dicky Siu Hang Tsang, PS II Championship High Roller champion Wang Chihyuan, Lin Yu Hsien, and Chia Yun Wu.

Following a min-raise by Yu-Chung Chang at cutoff, button player Seunghyuk Jung jams his last 177,000 and Chang tops up to put Jung at risk of becoming the day’s first elimination. When they turn them over, Jung is flipping.

Seugnhyuk Jung:
Yu-Chung Chang:

The board favors Jung as it runs out for a crushing full house to scoop a full reload.

By the time the board is at its limit, showing  , Chih Wei Fan bets 150,000 onto a pot of around 230,000 in the middle. Youhyun Kim doesn’t hesitate to make the call. Fan turns over two pair and picks up a big early pot.

First deal of Day 2 is underway with blinds at 5K-10K ante 10K. There is still time for latecomers to jump in with registration open until the start of Level 13. Incoming players receive a 250,000 starting stack which is 25 times the opening blinds. Blinds increase every 40 minutes. Good luck to all!

The Natural8 Open Super High Roller resumes today with 16 players out of 26 entries returning from Day 1. For those interested in jumping in, this is your last chance. Registration remains open for two levels, closing at the start of Level 13 at 1:30PM.

For a buy-in of TWD 50,000, entering players start with a stack of 250,000 which is 25 times the opening blinds of 5K-10K ante 10K. Once registration closes, play continues until a champion is crowned.

Follow the action right here with updates on the action throughout the day.

Day 2 Seat Draw – 16 Players