Triton ONE: A Historic Debut, Record Fields, and a New Champion: Joshua Gebissa

Triton ONE: Bridging Everyday Players and High Rollers
 

Triton Poker is renowned for its astronomical buy-ins and the participation of the world's top players. However, the new Triton ONE initiative offers something different. With buy-ins ranging from $2,000 to $20,000, it's designed as a “gateway” for ambitious players aiming to break into the poker elite. The goal is to provide them with the same top-tier structure, production, and atmosphere that the Triton Super High Roller Series is known for, but at more accessible entry points.

And it succeeded – the inaugural series in Jeju was a huge success. Over a week, players had 15 tournaments to choose from, with the most attention naturally drawn to the Triton ONE Main Event with its $8,000 buy-in. This event shattered expectations, as 1,046 entries generated an enormous $7,607,558 prize pool. The winner stood to gain an impressive $1,367,000 and the historic first title of Triton ONE Main Event champion.

The Historic Main Event Crowns Its Champion!
 

The $8,000 buy-in Main Event successfully concluded the debut of Triton ONE by delivering an exciting battle for the title. While the winner's award was impressive, an agreement led to a split before the heads-up, granting Joshua Gebissa $975,225 and Punsri $1,205,775.

The finale was filled with drama and unexpected turns. Joshua Gebissa faced an immense challenge against Punsri, the four-time Triton Super High Roller Series winner and Thailand’s most successful player in history. Despite previously having no tournament victories and a live earnings cap of $40,099, Gebissa took control, displaying tremendous patience and strategic prowess.

The final day’s action began with 16 players, and eliminations occurred swiftly. Conversely, the heads-up was lengthy and nerve-wracking. Punsri held a significant chip lead, but Gebissa gradually caught up and eventually seized dominance. The pivotal moment came with a hand that granted Gebissa a substantial lead. With A c 8 c, he called Punsri's (Q d 2 h) 3-bet and on the flop Q c 7 d 7 h, he secured trip sevens.

Punsri continued post-flop with a bet that Gebissa again called. After the turn 3 s, Punsri initially matched Gebissa's bet and following the river 6 d, called Gebissa all-in. Gebissa won a massive pot, taking a commanding position and a few hands later sealed his victory. This achievement earned him the first historic Triton ONE Main Event win and established his reputation as a promising new name on the high-stakes scene.

Side Events Kick Off in Style
 

The Triton ONE festival kicked off with Event #1, the $3K QQPK Genesis, immediately setting a high bar. A massive field of 1,185 entries set a new record, as it was by far the largest turnout in a single Triton Poker tournament. The unexpectedly huge participation even extended the schedule by a day and created a prize pool over $3.1 million. 

Genesis champion was China’s Cheng Xu Hu, who took home an incredible $564,000, comfortably his career-best. In an interview post-tournament, Hu admitted he struggled during the early stages and at one point had only five big blinds. However, he persevered, eliminating opponents at the final table. “It’s unbelievable. It all feels like a dream. I just tried to survive, step by step, and somehow ended up on top,” said Hu, whose success was also attributed to a lucky dinosaur figurine from his daughter, which guarded his cards.

The first-ever trophy in the Triton ONE series was taken by Doyle Kwan Fu Lee, who dominated the one-day Event #3: $5,000 One Night NLH, earning his first live tournament win of $67,000 for the Hendon Mob database. Russian pro Anatoly Filatov, a former winner of the March 25,000$ No Limit Hold'em event at the Triton Poker Super High Roller Series in Jeju, couldn't topple him in the heads-up.

Europe gained its first title through Johan Schultz-Pedersen, the victor of the Bounty Quattro tournament with a $5,000 buy-in. Besides the $78,000 win, he also claimed $22,500 in bounty rewards. Notably, Ting-Yi Tsai, despite finishing third, secured the second-largest payout thanks to $42,500 in bounties.

A historic moment also unfolded during the $2,000 One Night NLH event, where Yoko Sasaki from Japan broke a nine-year wait and became the first female champion of a Triton tournament, as well as the first-ever Japanese winner on the Triton Poker circuit. Emerging victorious from a smaller tournament featuring 169 entries, she claimed the trophy and a $69,000 prize.

Another notable winner was Chenxiang Miao from China, who after two cashouts at the start of the series triumphed in the priciest tournament with a $20,000 buy-in, taking home a $315,000 prize. Australian Josh Mccully finished runner-up in successive days, narrowly missing a title twice, first to the aforementioned Yoko Sasaki. 

Source: Triton Poker Series, TritonPoker Plus, YouTube