Punnat Punsri picked up his sixth Triton Poker title on Saturday, taking down the $30,000 NLH/PLO Mixed event at the Triton Super High Roller Series in Jeju for $504,000.
The Thailand native defeated Zhou Quan heads-up after a volatile three-handed stretch that also involved Daniel Rezaei. The win moves Punsri into second place on the all-time Triton titles list, behind only Jason Koon.
"I guess I've just been lucky right from the start of the Triton journey three and a half years ago to now," Punsri said after collecting his check. "This event was particularly special because it's both disciplines that I played since my university days. I used to play hold'em and Omaha, alternating every week. To be able to win an event like this, I'm super, super proud."
Final Table Results
The 60-entry field paid 10 spots. Seven players returned for Day 2:
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Punnat Punsri | $504,000 |
| 2 | Zhou Quan | $356,000 |
| 3 | Daniel Rezaei | $240,000 |
| 4 | Matthew Wantman | $183,000 |
| 5 | Matthias Eibinger | $144,000 |
| 6 | Laszlo Bujtas | $112,000 |
| 7 | Dan Dvoress | $87,000 |
Day 2 chip counts heading in: Zhou Quan 2,955,000 (59 BBs), Rezaei 2,175,000 (44 BBs), Punsri 2,135,000 (43 BBs), Wantman 1,640,000 (33 BBs), Bujtas 1,260,000 (25 BBs), Eibinger 1,240,000 (25 BBs), Dvoress 595,000 (12 BBs).
Day 2: Eliminations
Dan Dvoress (7th, $87,000) was first out. Starting with 12 big blinds, he got it in with AA97 against Punsri's AKQ4. The board ran 4-10-J-3-K, giving Punsri a straight.
Laszlo Bujtas (6th, $112,000) fell next. He three-bet shoved 23 big blinds holding KJ. Punsri called from a 42-blind stack with A-10 and held.
Matthias Eibinger (5th, $144,000) was knocked out in a three-way pot involving Rezaei and Zhou Quan. Down to four big blinds, Eibinger committed after a raise from Rezaei and a call from Zhou. The board ran out 8-6-5-Q-5. Rezaei tabled KKA7 for kings full, Eibinger's 10-7-8-3 had no piece, and Zhou's KJ106 went to the muck.
Matthew Wantman (4th, $183,000) moved all-in with A-10 and eight big blinds. Zhou called with A-4. The 4 on the flop gave Zhou the lead and Wantman was out.
Three-Handed Play
Punsri started three-handed with 47 big blinds to Rezaei's 44 and Zhou's 29. He gradually lost ground through small pots, eventually sliding to 16 big blinds before shoving with K-5. Rezaei called with Q-J and Punsri held, doubling back into the lead.
Rezaei then found three consecutive doubles to briefly take the chip lead. His J-10-5-5 boated up against Punsri's KQ103 in a PLO hand to flip the counts. But a key hold'em hand turned things for good: Punsri's Q-J rivered a flush against Rezaei's pocket nines, all-in preflop. That left Rezaei with only a couple of big blinds, and he was out shortly after on a PLO hand.
Daniel Rezaei (3rd, $240,000) had already won one event in Jeju. He leaves with $240,000 from this one.
Heads-Up
Punsri started heads-up with 40 big blinds to Zhou's eight. Zhou doubled several times to stay alive, and the match stretched longer than the chip counts suggested. On the final hand, the chips went in preflop in a hold'em round with Zhou's A-J ahead of Punsri's 5-3. The flop came 2-K-A, still in Zhou's favor. But a 4 on the turn completed Punsri's straight and Zhou was drawing dead. Zhou collected $356,000 for his runner-up finish.
Punsri on Poker in Thailand
Beyond the result, Punsri has been pushing to get poker recognized as a mind sport in Thailand and ultimately legalized.
"Initially when I started to pursue tournaments it was partly to put Thailand on the map in a mind sport that people maybe overlooked, or don't totally understand," he said. "Over the past three years, the most proud thing I've done is pushing the movement towards potentially legalising poker tournaments in Thailand. As of now, we are already acknowledging that it's a mind sport back home, so that's a huge thing."
He also credited the competitive level at Triton for driving improvement: "When you play with opponents of this level, it forces you to improve every stop. I think I've become much more mature and a better person through poker and Triton."
The Bubble: Mosbock's Double Bubble
Triton Ambassador Mario Mosbock had a rough day before the money was reached. Playing his PLO debut after registering late and re-entering, Mosbock was among the last 11 players with 10 spots paying. His J-7 went in against Laszlo Bujtas' K-6. Mosbock flopped a jack but the board completed a straight for Bujtas, sending Mosbock out on the money bubble.
It was his second bubble of the day: Mosbock had also stone-bubbled the $150,000 10th Anniversary Event earlier in the series.
