Sean Winter Scores First Career Triton Poker Tournament Title In Jeju

The thirteenth time was the appeal for American poker professional Sean Winter.

After a dozen in-the-money finishes in Triton Poker excessive curler occasions with out an outright win, the 34-year-old Florida native lastly broke by way of to take down the 2025 Triton Jeju $40,000 thriller bounty no-limit maintain’em occasion.

“This feels significantly good as a result of it’s 3x so long as it’s been since I gained a poker event,” Winter advised Triton reporters after closing out the occasion. “It’s been bothering me. I’ve had a number of seconds and thirds. It’s a monkey off my again.”

For his victory, Winter netted $935,000 from the primary prize pool. However he’ll take dwelling greater than due to his thriller bounties, which he’ll pull the day after the occasion.

He scored three knockouts all through the event and may have three envelopes to open. Every bounty is price no less than $40,000, however might be price as a lot as $500,000.

By having gamers pull envelopes the day after the occasion, it retains everybody’s hopes alive for pulling the “golden bounty” whereas the occasion is operating.

The $8.92 million prize pool was cut up equally between the primary prize pool, awarded primarily based on ending place, and the bounty prizes.

Previous to his victory in South Korea, Winter’s final title got here in January 2023, when he took down the kickoff occasion of that 12 months’s PokerGO Cup.

This victory elevated Winter’s profession earnings to just about $34.8 million. The 1,344 Card Participant Participant of the Yr factors that accompanied the title moved him inside the highest 20 within the 2025 POY standings offered by World Poker. This was his second final-table end of the 12 months already, with a fourth-place exhibiting in a $10,000 occasion on the PGT Final Likelihood sequence.

The ultimate heads-up match for the title noticed Winter overcome five-time Triton champion Mikita Badziakouski, who got here ever so near breaking his three-way tie with Phil Ivey and Danny Tang for the second-most wins on the high-stakes-centric tour. Jason Koon stays properly out forward of that group with 10 Triton trophies in his assortment.

This occasion drew 223 entries, with 34 making the cash to earn a part of the primary prize pool. Badziakouski was out in entrance when the unofficial last desk of eight was set, with Winter in the course of the pack.

Last Desk Set for Occasion #7 $40K Thriller Bounty!

Eight gamers stay within the hunt for the $935K prime prize, with bounties nonetheless in play. Each knockout is price no less than $40K, however lurking within the combine is the $500K golden bounty.

Last Desk Lineup:Mikita Badziakouski… pic.twitter.com/3rze70b4OQ

— Triton Poker (@tritonpoker) March 4, 2025

Two-time bracelet winner Kahle Burns (eighth – $115,000) was the primary to hit the rail, with six-time bracelet winner Jeremy Ausmus not far behind.

Ausmus obtained all-in with pocket jacks on a six-high flop and was up in opposition to prime pair and an open-ended straight draw for Badziakouski. The flip and the river gave the Belarusian star operating playing cards in direction of a full home, sending Ausmus packing in seventh place for $157,000.

The American already sat in first place within the 2025 POY standings, however now has a fair bigger lead on the remainder of the sphere. He has already cashed for greater than $2.3 million in POY earnings throughout 4 last desk finishes, together with the $1,892,000 he secured only a few days earlier at this pageant.

Winter managed the following knockout, along with his flopped two pair holding up in opposition to the open-ended straight draw of Biao Ding (sixth – $218,000).

Ben Tollerene’s run got here to an finish in fifth place ($287,000) when his QJ was unable to carry in opposition to the Q10 of Klemens Roiter, who discovered an all-diamond runout to provide him a profitable flush. Tollerene grew his profession event earnings to just about $20.9 million due to this newest rating.

Matthias Eibinger was the shortest stack heading into four-handed play, regardless of having collected 11 bounties on this occasion.

He ended up dropping a key preflop race with Ok-Q in opposition to the pocket fours of Roiter to complete fourth for $363,000. The three-time Triton champion has $24.6 million in lifetime cashes, with greater than $11.1 million of that coming from his success on this tour.

Roiter was assured his largest Triton rating but by making the ultimate three. He wound up ending third for $441,000 when his A-J bumped into the A-Q of Badziakouski. This was the second-largest payday ever for the Austrian, trailing solely the $463,700 he earned because the sixth-place finisher in a $25,000 occasion on the 2023 WSOP Paradise.

The ultimate showdown for the title started with Badziakouski holding a slight lead. Winter took a giant lead due to profitable an enormous pot with journey fives, leaving Badziakouski with fewer than 10 massive blinds after that conflict.

He was capable of develop his stack a bit forward of the following degree. Then, he open-shoved his final 10 massive blinds with J6 and was known as by Winter’s A6.

The board ran out OkQ1053 to see Winter declare the ultimate pot of the event with ace excessive.

Badziakouski added $630,000 to his tally with this runner-up exhibiting. He now has $62,769,146 in profession earnings, good for fourth on poker’s all-time cash record. Almost $25.3 million of that has come from his 39 cashes in Triton tournaments.

Last Desk Outcomes

Place
Participant
Earnings
POY Factors

1
Sean Winter
$935,000
1344

2
Mikita Badziakouski
$630,000
1120

3
Klemens Roiter
$441,000
896

4
Matthias Eibinger
$363,000
672

5
Benjamin Tollerene
$287,000
560

6
Biao Ding
$218,000
448

7
Jeremy Ausmus
$157,000
336

Photograph credit: Triton Poker.