Champion Pedro Padilha!

Pedro Padilha became only the fourth player from the poker hotbed of Brazil to take down a title on the Triton Poker Super High Roller Series in Jeju on Friday, triumphing in the $50,000 NLH event.

Poker has become something of a national obsession in the Latin American country over the past 15 years, with the online tables in particular regularly coloured the distinctive green and yellow.

Padilha, 39, is among those who cut his teeth in the online game, and in recent years has been showing all his skills in the live environment too. This success, over a 129-entry field of the very best, earns him the title he so narrowly missed out on in the Bahamas in 2025, where he finished second to Aleks Ponakovs in the $100K Triton Main Event.

It earned Padilha $1,400,860 after he agreed a heads-up ICM chop with American pro Nick Petrangelo. By that point, the long final table had become an absurdist theatre piece, with tiny stacks and too much variance for even these two to sanction. They both signed for more than $1 million, with Padilha prevailing after a short heads-up duel to secure the silverware.

"It's the best feeling," a plainly delighted Padilha said. "It's an amazing event, an amazing tournament, and I'm so happy."

Pedro Padilha enjoys his first winner's interview

He told Triton host Alex Gray about his recent decision to spread his wings further than his native Brazil, but adding how the spirited poker fans of his home country continue to support his journey.

Padilha said: "I always played live in Brazil, in South America, but in the last years I've been trying to expand for other tournaments. And it's good. I'm happy with my results."

He added: "People are so happy for me. I have so many friends watching. I want to give one kiss to all Brazilian people."

He also paid tribute to his defeated heads-up opponent Petrangelo, a former Triton winner still searching for a second win. "He's a legend," Padilha said of Petrangelo. "He's a tough player. I was running good, that's it."

A million-dollar score for the legend

Padilha not only denied Petrangelo another Triton win, he also outlasted both Alex Boika and Kiat Lee at the final, two players who have already won events here in Jeju this week. Lee might have gone back-to-back, a feat never achieved before on the Triton Poker Series, but his challenge finished in sixth.

TOURNAMENT ACTION

With the stakes gradually increasing at this Triton Jeju stop, a field of 129 entries of $50,000 apiece pushed the prize pool past $6 million for the first time this week. The spirit of competition was as intense as ever, with only 32 remaining at the end of the first day, and some top performers from the trip already continuing their excellent runs.

Kiat Lee and Alex Boika, both champions already, were among the leaders. But before either of those had the chance to secure what would be a memorable double, there was the small matter of the bubble — and another near repeat that was far less sought after.

Having perished two from the money in the Mystery Bounty event, Ren Lin went only one place better in this one. That's right, a near-bubble became a stone bubble for self-described Tony the Tiger, who was uncharacteristically quiet as he took the walk this time around.

A gracious goodbye from Ren Lin

Lin had nine blinds -- not the shortest, though far from the biggest stack in the room -- and found AQ in the small blind. Alejandro Lococo opened from early position, and Lin pounced with a three-bet jam.

It wasn't Lococo Lin needed to worry about, however. It was Nick Petrangelo sitting in the big blind with AA. Lococo folded, and though Lin flopped an inside straight draw, he couldn't fill it. He was out in 21st and the rest of the field was in the money.

Alex Boika - 5,310,000 (66 BBs)

Nick Petrangelo - 4,925,000 (62 BBs)

Pedro Padilha - 3,930,000 (49 BBs)

Wang Yang - 3,215,000 (40 BBs)

Phil Ivey - 3,175,000 (40 BBs)

Kiat Lee - 1,895,000 (24 BBs)

Eelis Parssinen - 1,405,000 (18 BBs)

Sasaki Yoko - 1,010,000 (13 BBs)

Aren Bezhanyan - 940,000 (12 BBs)

Event 8 final table players (clockwise from back left): Kiat Lee, Phil Ivey, Nick Petrangelo, Eelis Parssinen, Sasaki Yoko, Aren Bezhanyan, Alex Boika, Pedro Padilha, Wang Yang.

The stacks were not what you'd call enormous, but nobody was going down without a fight. Short-stacked Aren Bezhanyan, at his second final table of the trip already, was first to get his chips in, and doubled up. His A2 beat Alex Boika's Q. That left Sasaki Yoko, who was making her third cash of the trip, as the player with the fewest chips, and she wasn't able to match Bezhanyan in doubling up.

Yoko, a Triton ONE champion, can hardly be blamed for getting her last six blinds in with pocket nines. It just happened that Nick Petrangelo had pocket 10s and that was the end of Yoko's run. She took $155,000 for ninth but it edging nearer a first Super High Roller Series success.

Sasaki Yoko: Another Triton ONE graduate loving life among the Super High Rollers

Kiat Lee had slid a little down the counts, but doubled through Petrangelo with aces to stay afloat. And they were still eight-handed when they went on a dinner break, even though the average stack was only 16 blinds and Petrangelo's chip lead was only 37 blinds.

These kinds of situations usually mean that when the dam breaks, there's a sudden flood. But it didn't quite work like that this time, at least not immediately.

Lee doubled up, finding aces again when he needed them and beating Petrangelo's KQ. But then the next big pocket pair landed in the hands of Yang Wang, and it was enough to vacuum up the last of Eelis Parssinen's chips. Parssinen had A and raised for all but one quarter of a small blind. Wang called and they took the flop of before the last chip went in.

Wang had pocket queens and only an ace would save Parssinen. It did not emerge, so the Finn hit the rail in eighth for $200,000.

Eelis Parssinen makes another NLH final

Stacks were exceptionally shallow, but Bezhanyan doubled again, Lee doubled again, and the ICM handcuffs clamped themselves around even players further up the counts. But then Phil Ivey found pocket nines at the same time Nick Petrangelo found pocket jacks and the shackles came off.

The chips went in and Petrangelo actually ended the hand with a flush. Ivey was sent packing in seventh for $271,000.

Phil Ivey came up short again

Petrangelo was now having fun. He was the only player with enough chips to be able to afford to lose a pot. But the shorties were also still surviving: Pedro Padilha doubled. Alex Boika doubled. Wang then doubled too. Boika doubled one more time, spiking a two-outer holding pocket sevens to beat Petrangelo's pocket nines. Perhaps Petrangelo wasn't having so much fun anymore.

Having swung and missed so many times, the Grim Reaper finally found his range to chop down Lee. The man who nobody could knock out in Event 7 was on for an unprecedented back-to-back, but his Hail Mary with K8 and four blinds this time missed the mark. Boika's pocket sixes prevailed and Lee bust in sixth for $361,000.

They finally got him: the unbeatable Kiat Lee is downed

There was now a $100K payjump between sixth and fifth, which is as good a reason as any to tread carefully. But the average was now only 13 blinds and nobody was more than five away from the average line. So it was a lottery.

Wang's ticket did not get drawn. He found an ace on the button -- A6 -- and ripped it in. But Padilha was in the small blind with and called to put Wang in danger. He couldn't get out of it and bust in fifth for $461,000. Padilha took the chips and moved into a marginal chip lead, but the basic circumstances for everybody hadn't changed.

Wang Yang seems happy enough as he busts in fif

Boika next bounced Bezhanyan. The Armenian player, who is no stranger to back-to-back final tables having done the same thing here in March, was down to four blinds when he picked up J10 and called all in from the big blind after Boika shoved.

Boika started ahead with K4 and stayed there, with a king on the flop beating the 10 that also appeared. Bezhanyan was out in fourth for $574,000.

Another fine showing from Aren Bezhanyan

Boika immediately saw almost all his chips go elsewhere when he doubled Petrangelo on the next hand. But Petrangelo couldn't hold on either, and his pocket aces lost to Boika's QJ which flopped a flush draw and nailed it on the river. Petrangelo had a set of aces.

Those chips were only on loan to Boika, however. Only a few hands later they were sitting in front of Padilha, who three-bet jammed over Boika's open with six blinds. Boika called with A9 but Padilha had A. Boika's challenge for a second title in three days ended in a third-place finish. He won $697,000.

Alex Boika is on a brilliant run in Jeju

Padilha's late surge had put him into a decent lead. He had 35 blinds to Petrangelo's 17. These two wily pros asked to look at the numbers and quickly agreed a straight ICM chop. Padilha took $1,350,860 and Petrangelo signed for $1,201,140. They left $50,000 on the side to play for.

Heads up for the title

It didn't last long. They got their remaining blinds in when Petrangelo had K4 and Padilha had Q. Though Petrangelo was ahead and flopped a four to stay that way, the turn was an eight. And that was Padilha's gin card.

This one was heading to Brazil, and 200 million people rejoice.