Jason Koon wins a record fifth Triton Poker title

Jason Koon broke a tie with Mikita Badziakouski to take sole ownership of the top spot in the standings Triton Poker title ranking. Koon secured his record-breaking fifth trophy on the high-stakes tour by defeating a field of 31 entries in 2023 Triton Super High Roller Series Vietnam $50,000 no-limit hold’em turbo event.

Alongside the record, Koon also won the $574,000 first prize as champion of this fast-paced event. As a result, the 37-year-old American poker pro increased his tournament winnings to $42,892,912. He currently sits in seventh place on poker’s all-time cashes list, and is one of only nine players to have grossed more than $40 million on the tournament circuit.

“The motivation, in the end, is that I’m making a lot of money and I want to do it,” Koon said Triton journalists after obtaining the title. “I leave my family at home. I wouldn’t do it for prestige. I’m doing this because I know there’s a short window of time where I have the energy and passion to be good at it, and I want to make the most of it while I can.

Only the top five finishers cashed in this one-day turbo event. Warwick Mirzikinian’s AK couldn’t match Chris Brewer’s A-8 and Mirzikinian busted in the six-figure bubble, ensuring that the other contenders all cashed at least $147,000. That money eventually went to Isaac Haxton, who lost a game with pocket eights to Q-9 seed Artur Martirosian. Haxton also earned 170 Card player Player of the Year for what was already his fifth POY extension-qualified to the final table of the year. With three titles won, 2,348 points accumulated and $3,874,140 in POY extension earnings, Haxton now sits in eighth place in 2023 POY extension ranking presented by Global Poker.

Punnat Punsri lost his race with A-8 suited up to Koon’s pocket threes. Punsri earned $182,000 for his fourth-place finish. He now has five final tables in 2023, with 1,419 POY extension points and $985,600 in insured earnings along the way. As a result, he moved up to 40th in the standings POY extension classification.

Brewer’s run in this event ended in third place. The former collegiate marathon turned poker pro moved all-in with KQ and was unable to get past the A-10 of a rising Koon. Brewer took home $252,000 in third place. This was his fourth final table of the year, with two titles recently won European Poker Tour Paris Festival. With nearly $2.1 million to date POY extension earnings and 2,032 points, Brewer took 17th place in the standings.

Martirosian was the chip leader when the deciding hands-up hand was dealt. Koon’s overbet went all-in on the river with Q64j5 table with Qj for two pairs. Martirosian ended up making a big call with J10 for the second pair, which was second best. He was down to less than 10 big blinds and soon moved all-in with QJ suited facing A-6 for Koon. Martirosian failed to make a comeback and was sent home with $395,000 for his efforts. It now sits in 16th place in the rankings POY extension rankings, with three final tables so far this year, including a third-place finish in the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure main event.

Here’s a look at payments and POY extension points awarded in this event:

Photo credit: Triton Poker / Joe Guron.