Jules Dickerson has finished Day 1 on top of a record-breaking $200,000 Triton Invitational in Jeju, bagging 1,431,000 chips as one of the richest tournaments of 2026 took shape.
The event has already attracted 155 entries and created a $31 million prize pool, with late registration still open before Day 2 begins. Ninety-four players survived the opening session, including Stephen Chidwick, Isaac Haxton, Adrian Mateos, Ethan “Rampage” Yau, Phil Ivey and Patrik Antonius.
The Invitational began with 60 invited players paired with 60 professional partners, creating 120 unique entries before re-entries pushed the total considerably higher. The two groups played separately throughout Day 1, keeping the professionals and invitees apart until Sunday’s restart. They will finally merge into a single field on Day 2, when the race for one of Triton Poker’s biggest titles becomes considerably more direct.
Dickerson Leads a Remarkably Balanced Top 10
Dickerson finished with 1,431,000 chips, giving the British player 179 big blinds when play resumes at 4,000/8,000. Argentina’s Alejandro Lococo sits second with 1,173,000, while Hong Kong’s Winfred Yu is third on 1,118,000. The unusual Invitational format produced a perfectly balanced top 10, with five invited players and five professionals occupying the leading positions.
| Rank | Player | Country | Chips |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jules Dickerson | United Kingdom | 1,431,000 |
| 2 | Alejandro Lococo | Argentina | 1,173,000 |
| 3 | Winfred Yu | Hong Kong | 1,118,000 |
| 4 | Stephen Chidwick | United Kingdom | 1,076,000 |
| 5 | Isaac Haxton | United States | 1,040,000 |
| 6 | Adrian Mateos | Spain | 1,025,000 |
| 7 | Musk Thomas | China | 1,025,000 |
| 8 | Klemens Roiter | Austria | 1,018,000 |
| 9 | Ethan Yau | United States | 908,000 |
| 10 | Tom Fuchs | Germany | 900,000 |
Dickerson has already shown he can compete at this level, having finished third in a $50,000 Triton event in Montenegro during 2025 for $751,000. This time he has started with an even stronger position, although the players immediately behind him make this anything but a comfortable chip lead.
Lococo, Chidwick, Haxton and defending Invitational champion Mateos are all within striking distance as the fields prepare to combine.
Stephen Chidwick Continues Huge Jeju Run
Stephen Chidwick enters Day 2 fourth overall with 1,076,000 chips after another strong session at a festival that has already pushed his career into new territory. The Englishman passed $80 million in recorded live tournament winnings earlier at Triton Jeju II, becoming only the second player ever to reach that mark. Now he has put himself in position for another enormous result in an event where the eventual champion could collect several million dollars.
Chidwick is joined near the top by Isaac Haxton on 1,040,000 and Adrian Mateos on 1,025,000. Mateos carries particularly relevant history into the restart after winning the previous $200,000 Triton Invitational in Montenegro for a career-best $6.37 million. Nobody has won two Triton Invitationals, giving the Spaniard the chance to create another piece of tour history in Jeju.
Rampage Bags a Top-10 Stack
Ethan “Rampage” Yau also made his presence felt, finishing Day 1 ninth with 908,000 chips. The popular poker creator spent his birthday playing one of the most expensive tournaments on the calendar and ended it with 114 big blinds for the restart. Yau therefore heads into Day 2 ahead of a long list of established high-stakes tournament specialists.
Further back, Ben Tollerene bagged 836,000, Bryn Kenney finished with 768,000 and Samuel Mullur closed on 763,000. Artur Martirosian also remains dangerous with 730,000, while Seth Davies survived with 623,000. The depth of the remaining field means even players outside the top 20 will have to navigate tables packed with Triton champions and major title winners.
Dvoress, Ivey and Antonius Survive Day 1
Daniel Dvoress returns with 233,000 only days after winning his seventh Triton title in Jeju. Phil Ivey is also still alive with 237,000 after an eventful opening day that included an early elimination followed by a $200,000 re-entry. Nick Schulman, Alex Foxen, Biao Ding, Danny Tang and Mike Watson are among the other established names still holding chips.
Patrik Antonius may have had the most unusual preparation of anyone in the field, having played Ossi “Monarch” Ketola for $20 million only hours before the Invitational began. Antonius lost the extraordinary heads-up match after Ketola made a straight flush in a pot worth $15.925 million, but he was back at the Triton tables almost immediately. The Poker Hall of Famer survived Day 1 of the Invitational with 229,000 and will have another opportunity to make Jeju profitable.
$31 Million Prize Pool Could Still Grow
The $31 million already collected makes this the largest Triton Invitational field yet, but the final number has not been set. Registration remains available until the beginning of Day 2, meaning additional entries could push the prize pool significantly higher. The final payouts will therefore depend on how many players enter or re-enter before registration closes.
Day 2 begins at noon local time in Jeju on Sunday, September 13, with blinds of 4,000/8,000 and an 8,000 big blind ante. The separate professional and invited-player fields will merge for the first time, removing the defining restriction of the opening day. Dickerson will start with the lead, but with Chidwick, Haxton, Mateos and Rampage all inside the top nine, the $200,000 Invitational remains wide open.
