CHAMPION DING BIAO!

Ding Biao narrowed the gap at the top of China's poker money list after he secured a third title on the Triton Poker Super High Roller Series in Jeju on Monday.

The 34-year-old won the 64-entry $50,000 PLO event, securing another win in the same room where he won the equivalent event last year. It was an effective title defence, and earned him $880,000.

Only Aaron Zang, the Triton Million champion, tops Ding in the money list for the world's second-most populous country. If you're going to be second on any list, it's not a bad one to choose.

Ding downed Lautaro Guerra heads-up at the conclusion of today's event, emerging unscathed from a final that also featured notable PLO talents Ben Tollerene, Dan Dvoress, Cesar Garcia, Martin Dam and yesterday's PLO winner Artur Martirosian.

But Ding navigated a remarkably smooth path through these otherwise choppy waters to get things done by about 7pm local time.

Ding collects his check from Triton TD Luca Vivaldi

TOURNAMENT ACTION

It was a case of new day, old story when players in this $50K buy-in event returned to their seats for Day 2. The opening session had once again seen players arrive, re-enter and then depart, building a $3.2 million prize pool, ending with Ben Tollerene at the top of the counts.

There were 11 still in with a shot at the start of play, including three of yesterday's final table line-up. But Punnat Punsri was the first knocked out in the money, winning $80K for 11th place, and they eventually ground their way to a final table line-up of seven.

Dan Dvoress - 2,930,000 (59 BBs)

Ben Tollerene - 2,635,000 (53 BBs)

Ding Biao - 2,560,000 (51 BBs)

Cesar Garcia - 1,745,000 (35 BBs)

Lautaro Guerra - 1,295,000 (26 BBs)

Martin Dam - 915,000 (18 BBs)

Artur Martirosian - 725,000 (15 BBs)

Event 15 final table players (clockwise from back left): Cesar Garcia, Martin Dam, Dan Dvoress, Ding Biao, Lautaro Guerra, Artur Martirosian, Ben Tollerene

Yesterday's $25K PLO event ended in a heads-up battle between Artur Martirosian and Ben Tollerene, with the former comfortably converting a chip lead to take down the title. But Tollerene exacted a measure of revenge to get this final table off and running, busting Martirosian on the third hand played.

Tollerene had won the previous two as well, and then completed from the small blind holding 10973. Ding Biao limped from early position; Martirosian checked his big blind.

Tollerene was all over the 738 flop, hitting two pair and a straight draw. He led out, Martirosian raised, Ding folded and then Tollerene jammed, covering Martirosian comfortably. Martirosian called for his last five blinds.

Martirosian's Q1093 had the same straight draw as Tollerene, plus a flush draw. But after the 7 turn he said, "I'm dead" and he was. Tollerene's full house took this one down, leaving Martirosian heading to the cash desk for $154,000.

No back-to-back for Artur Martirosian

The tournament continued to trim players from the bottom up. Martirosian was the shortest stack coming into the final, and now Martin Dam was under pressure. The Danish player is another of those Nordic PLO wizards, but wasn't able to wriggle out of this precarious position.

He was down to 10 big blinds, and was able to get them all in as a three-bet from the small blind holding QQ103. The only caller was the opening raiser, Ding, who had KKQ2. The board bricked and the kings in Ding's hand remained the best. Dam won $195,000 for sixth.

Denmark's PLO whiz Martin Da

It had been plain sailing so far for Tollerene at this final table, but bumps are never too far down the road when you're playing PLO. And he was about to hit one of significant size, held by Lauraro Guerra.

Guerra is another one of those PLO experts, whose only Triton title to date came here in Jeju in March. But, honestly, even a low-stakes hold'em player would have known how to play this hand correctly. Guerra had AA33 and, with a 22 blind stack, three-bet Tollerene's open.

Tollerene covered Guerra and moved all in. Guerra called off with aces.

Tollerene showed down his AK55, and how about this for a Hollywood flop? It came KA5, giving Tollerene bottom set (and top two pair), but the case ace giving Guerra top set. Tollerene was drawing to just one out -- the 5 for quads -- but the 4 came on the turn, followed by the K on the river.

Both players ended with full houses, but Guerra's was bigger. He doubled into the chip lead.

Spain has recently shown itself to be something of a hotbed for PLO talent, and Guerra was not the only Iberian at the final today. Cesar Garcia had marked his Triton debut with a cash in the PLO Main Event, and then returned to the money in this tournament.

But there was no mercy shown to his countryman from the big-stacked Guerra, who now knocked out Garcia. This was another all-in pre-flop confrontation, with Garcia's AKJ7 finishing second to Guerra's A5Q6. Three clubs on the board gave Guerra a flush and sent Garcia to the cashier looking for $250,000.

Cesar Garcia, the latest talent from the Spanish PLO production line

We were down to four, but it became three almost immediately.

Tollerene never recovered from the confrontation with Guerra earlier and was the four-handed short stack with only 14 blinds. He picked up QJJ5 in the small blind and opened the pot, only to be faced by Guerra's three-bet in the big blind.

Tollerene got the rest of his chips in the middle and Guerra called, tabling the double-suited A764. While Tollerene's had didn't improve, Guerra hit a seven on the flop and a six on the river to make two pair.

With that, Tollerene was toast. His fourth place earned him $315,000, a marginal improvement on the $298,000 he won for his runner-up finish yesterday.

Chip lead offered no indemnit to Ben Tollerene

Guerra got himself up to 80 blinds, which was approximately two-thirds of all the chips in play. But Ding scored a double with QJ102 rivering a straight to beat AKK4, which put Ding ahead of Dvoress and left Guerra with only 60 blinds. And then Ding all but did it again, when a lone seven in his hand connected with three others on the board to give him quads and another massive pot from Guerra.

Ding swung into a narrow lead and, when they came back from a break, he had 45 blinds to Guerra's 40. Dvoress had 17. And Dvoress was next out.

Both of Dvoress' two Triton wins so far came on the final day of festivals, so this showing was actually slightly premature for him. Compared with the ups and downs of his final table rivals, Dvoress' journey to the last three had been relatively uneventful. There had, at least, been no major spikes or slumps on his stack-progression graph.

That was at least until he went to a flop against both opponents in an unraised pot with Dvoress on the button holding KJ98. All three players checked the 277 flop, which got them the J on the turn. Guerra checked, Ding bet two-thirds pot and only Dvoress called.

The 8 on the river gave Dvoress top two. And after Ding bet small, Dvoress shoved for around 13 blinds. Ding called and turned over his 10984, which was now a straight. That was the end for Dvoress, who took $410,000 for third place, and has two more tournaments that finish on the final day from which he can make it a last-gasp hat-trick.

Dan Dvoress heads awa

Both remaining players are also former champions. Guerra had one title before sitting down in this tournament; Ding had two. And while Ding had the bigger stack, with 68 blinds to 34, it was, on paper, hardly insurmountable.

But that's not the way Ding saw it. He was absolutely relentless in closing it out in double-quick time. Guerra was barely able to lay a glove on the Chinese player in what turned out to be the briefest of heads-up battles.

In the final hand, Guerra had 21 blinds left and completed from the small blind holding 10765. Ding checked and the pair went to a flop of 527. Ding checked, Guerra bet one-third pot and Ding check-raised for all he could.

Lautaro Guerra couldn't overcome Ding

Guerra, who had top two, got everything in and Ding called. He then showed down his A864, which was the nut flush draw and an open-ended straight draw.

The 6 turn filled the straight, leaving Guerra drawing thin. The 10 completed the board and ended the tournament, with Guerra having to make do with $625,000. Ding, meanwhile, adds a third title to his name, alongside $880,000.