Yun Yao Hung
The Gods of Poker Incheon II Main Event got off to a strong start with 115 entries taking advantage of the rake-free opening flight, courtesy of Pokerfors. Lithuanian and Taiwanese players turned out in force, joining the strong Japanese contingent, and players from the rest of the world.
By the end of play, it was Taiwan's own Yun Yao Hung who pulled well ahead of the 16 survivors, bagging a commanding 2,915,000 (97 bb) in chips.
Hung's surge came in two pivotal hands, both as the bubble neared. First, he doubled up through Oki Nishizaki, then delivered a crushing blow to Ikko Yoshimuta, exposing his bluff to send him to the rail.
Kilian Loffler
Also delivering a dominating presence was Germany's Kilian Loffler who, for much of the day, was the player to catch. Loffler knocked out numerous players including Zongxin Liu on the bubble to bag up 2,000,000 (66 bb) the second largest stack.
Other Flight A Highlights
You Xuan Luo
The opening flight was jam-packed with action, including an explosive entrance from Taiwan's You Xuan Luo. Just minutes after taking her seat, Luo eliminated Zhen-Hao Lee when her rivered full house crushed his trip sevens.
Another exciting hand belonged to Oki Nishizaki, who put Kevin Moon through an agonizing river decision causing him to burn through nine time chips!
Kota Hirano
There was no shortage of successful bluff catchers either. Yuma Endo caught Jen-Yue Chiang firing a busted flush draw into his rivered flush, and Kota Hirano stood his ground against Randy Oh, calling a hefty river raise that forced Oh to muck.
| Player | Chip Count |
| Yun Yao Hung | 2,915,000 |
| Kilian Markus Hyun-Woo Loffler | 2,000,000 |
| Zongjun Yan | 1,320,000 |
| Kota Hirano | 1,005,000 |
| Haibo Yang | 1,005,000 |
| Oki Nishizaki | 805,000 |
| Irak Oganisian | 695,000 |
| Go Saito | 655,000 |
| Jing Gu Huang | 605,000 |
| Yang Tsu Yun | 530,000 |
| Emi Hibuse | 505,000 |
| Domas Vasiliauskas | 450,000 |
| You Xuan Luo | 415,000 |
| Joseph William Magnotti | 135,000 |
| Jen-Yue Chiang | 130,000 |
| Yuma Endo | 130,000 |
Notable Casualties Have Four More Chances
Matas Kaä Inskas
The road to the money proved unforgiving for several familiar faces. Yohn Paredes fell just two spots short of the money, Matas Kaä Inskas, who had been among the early chip leaders, saw his fortunes unravel after a costly river call against Zongjun Yan.
Also missing the cut were GOP Gauntlet holder Daniel Neilson, Jun Li, Tung Wing Wong, Luke Dainton, along with Singapore's Ravn Teo.
Teo arrived in Incheon hungry for glory after coming agonizingly close to the GOP Taipei Main Event title last September, where he finished third.
Fortunately for the flight's fallen, their Main Event ambitions are far from over. Four more starting flights remain, giving them plenty of chances to jump back into the action and chase the coveted GOP Main Event Gauntlet along with a share of the KRW 600,000,000 guaranteed prize pool.