Japanese Players Sweep Day 3 at GOP Incheon II; Yoshikawa Claims First Gauntlet

Ken Yoshikawa wins GOP High Roller Gauntlet

The Japanese contingent was out in full force on Day 3 of Gods of Poker: The Labyrinth Trail at Paradise City, Incheon in South Korea, dominating the tables in both numbers and results. Of the five trophies awarded, every single one went to a Japanese player!

Read up on all the action just below.

Ken Yoshikawa Hoists Silver Gauntlet

The first GOP Gauntlet of the series found its owner at the GOP High Roller, where Ken Yoshikawa defeated fellow Japanese player Yoshiyasu Nagayasu to claim the prestigious trophy and KRW 11,520,000 in prize money.

The heads up battle saw both players come out swinging. Yoshikawa fired the first shove that went uncalled. Several hands later, Nagayasu returned the favor, moving all in on a board of 6 ♦️ 3 ♦️ K ♣️ 7 ♥️ 9 ♠️.

Yoshikawa went deep into the tank before calling with K ♥️ 2 ♦️ top pair. Nagayasu could only show A ♦️ 3 ♣️ bottom pair to bring the race to an uber fast end.

Japanese Players Dominate Titan Stack

The day's action kicked off with the Titan Stack, where Japanese players first flooded the tables. They accounted for 56 of the 83 entries across three starting flights with 11 of the 13 survivors carrying the flag.

Titan Stack - Final 13 Players

Kazuharu Inamura emerged as the overall chip leader after a commanding run in Flight A. Already ahead of the pack as the bubble approached, he added another pile of chips by eliminating Taki Monji with A ♣️ K ♠️ cracking K ♦️ K ♣️

Kazuharu Inamura delivers the Titan Flight A bubble

At Flight B, Junichi Kubo finished with the biggest stack but it was Rintaro Kato who provided much of the entertainment.

Kato first survived Kubo's A ♣️ A ♦️ with J ♠️ J ♥️ when a jack found the river then he denied Ryo Takeuchi's A ♠️ Q ♠️ when his 8 ♣️ 7 ♣️ filled up to a straight.

Rintaro Kato's connectors connect

To cap it off, Kato sent Nattichai Sutipanwihan packing on the bubble after his A ♠️ 8 ♦️ improved to trip-eights against A ♥️ K ♦️.

There was no shortage of memorable hands elsewhere in the Titan Stack. Takuya Morita got very lucky to avoid the Flight A bubble with J ♦️ J ♣️ rivering a straight to get past pocket kings. At Flight B, Chin Hei Chan celebrated quads.

Takuya Morita's gutshot connects

Both players secured their places in the money, adding their names to the list of survivors returning for the next stage.

When action resumes on Monday, November 2, at 12:30 PM, everyone is guaranteed a piece of the KR₩ 47,808,000 prize pool with the champion set to earn KR₩ 13,338,000.

Titan Stack: Survivors | Structure | Payouts | Photos

Haruna Matsumoto Claims Aphrodite Event

Aphrodite Event final table

The ladies brought both glamour and game to the Aphrodite Event (Women's), with some arriving dressed to impress and ready to battle for the signature Mirror Trophy. Japan dominated here as well, accounting for 26 of the 29 entries.

Aphrodite Event final hand

Emerging victorious was Haruna Matsumoto, who defeated Mone Hayashi at heads up to claim the signature GOP Aphrodite Mirror Trophy and the lion's share of the KR₩ 8,352,000 prize pool, pocketing KR₩ 3,654,000.

With only four players guaranteed a payout, Hayashi took care of the money bubble when her pocket nines held up against Aoi Miyashita's A ♥️ 10 ♣️ in a preflop flip.

First to collect was Yasuko Goto, who finished fourth after getting her chips in with K ♥️ J ♥️ against Matsumoto's Q ♣️ 8 ♣️ and Hayashi's A ♥️ 10 ♠️. The board finished off 3 ♠️ J ♦️ 10 ♦️ 9 ♥️ 8 ♥️ giving Matsumoto a straight.

Hayashi then brought out pocket nines again for another elimination, this time sending Miku Shinozaki out in third place to enter heads up with the larger stack.

Mone Hayashi rails Miku Shinozaki

Her advantage however didn't last long. Matsumoto quickly seized the lead and steadily chipped away at Hayashi's stack. Although Hayashi found a timely double up, Matsumoto finished the job for her first GOP title.

Joichi Fukui Becomes First Multi-Winner at the Series

Second shield for Joichi Fukui

Joichi Fukui is on a roll! Just one day after winning the Hyper Turbo High Roller, the Japanese player returned to the winner's circle, outlasting the 18-entry field of the Limit Triple Draw Mix (A-5, 2-7, Badugi). With this win, he became the festival's first two-time champion.

Fukui's hot run began with a runner-up finish at Day 2's JPPS NLH, followed by his victory at the Hyper Turbo High Roller.

Returning after a night's rest, he binked his second GOP Shield trophy and KR₩  3,462,000 for his latest success.

With three cashes already under his belt, the Player of the Series leaderboard is now underway.

Other Day 3 Winners

Completing the five winners were:

Kazuho Ito - PL - Choose Your Own Omaha - Turbo

Kanehiro Yoseda - Hyper Turbo - Power Button

*Photos to be uploaded.

Congratulations to all the winners!

Links:

Day 3 - Results

GOP Incheon II - Photos

GOP Incheon II - Schedule