In 2019, Aaron Zang made history in the world of poker by winning the largest buy-in poker tournament ever held, the £1,050,000 buy-in Triton Million charity invitational no-limit hold’em event. Prior to heads-up play, Zang struck a deal that resulted in him earning over $16.8 million for the win. Remarkably, this was Zang’s first-ever live tournament victory. Recently, Zang emerged victorious in another Triton event, securing his second career win. In the 2023 Triton Super High Roller Series Vietnam $100,000 buy-in short deck main event, Zang bested a field of 49 participants, taking home $1,544,000 in prize money. With his latest win, Zang has accumulated almost $21.9 million in recorded tournament earnings, with over $19.5 million earned on the Triton tour.
The Hoiana Resort & Golf in Quang Nam, Vietnam played host to a two-day tournament that saw 49 participants compete. By the end of day one, the number of entries had dwindled to 17. However, four late entries meant that the field grew to 21 on day two. Aaron Zang had established himself as the clear chip leader by the time the final table of seven was set. The first to be eliminated from the final table was Jason Koon, a five-time Triton trophy winner who finished in seventh place, earning $257,000. This was Koon’s fourth final-table finish of the year, bringing his year-to-date earnings to over $1.4 million and boosting him inside the top 100 in the Player of the Year rankings with 1,043 points. With career earnings of $43,336,912, Koon currently occupies the seventh position on the poker all-time money list, trailing sixth-ranked Erik Seidel by just $533,296.
Event #13 – 100,000 Short Deck
Dates: March 12-13, 2023
Entries: 49 (inc. 23 re-entries)
Prize pool: 4,900,000
1 – Aaron Zang (China) – 1,544,000
2 – Michael Zhang (UK) – 1,115,000
3 – Kiat Lee (Malaysia) – 710,000
4 – Phil Chiu (Hong Kong) – 540,000
5 – Mikita Badziakouski (Belarus) – 416,000
6 – Paul Phua (Malaysia) – 318,000
7 – Jason Koon (USA) – 257,000