Best in the Game? Jason Koon Wins Yet Another Triton Poker Event

For the eighth time, Jason Koon won a Triton Poker tournament, this one for $1,570,000 in the $60,000 No-Limit Hold’em 7-Handed in London.

On Tuesday, the GGPoker ambassador conquered a field of 67 unique players — plus 37 rebuys — to capture his first win since welcoming his second child earlier this summer.

The two-day event was the fifth of what has been an intriguing series, with big names winning titles, such as 2022 world champ Espen Jorstad and Fedor Holz, who secured his first live high roller victory since 2017.

Espen Jorstad Wins Triton Poker High Roller

Koon Does it Again

For the eighth time, Koon was the last player standing at a Triton Poker final table. On Tuesday, he beat some fierce competition on Day 2, which included Phil Ivey, Dan Smith, and Jorstad, who is proving that he’s one of the best world champions of the 21st century.

When the final table began, Koon held the chip lead with 65 big blinds. Jorstad had a small stack and was first to go after getting it in with Ax10x against the Ax8x of Justin Saliba when an 8x appeared on the river. The 2022 world champion was out in seventh place for $273,500, his second final table appearance of the series.

Ivey then was all in preflop with A♣K♣ against the J♠10♠ of Smith. A Jx appeared on the flop and that would hold up, sending the Poker Hall of Famer home in sixth place ($363,000).

Matthias Eibinger would then bust in fifth place ($460,600) after his Jx5x couldn’t suck-out against the Kx5x of Saliba. Moments later, Smith put all his remaining chips in the pot with A♣7♣ and was unable to out-draw Koon’s 10♣10♠. As a result, Smith was eliminated in fourth place ($571,000).

It was then Saliba’s turn to run into Koon’s heater when his Qx9x lost a 60/40 to Ax3x. Saliba received $690,000 for his third-place performance. That created a heads-up match between Koon and Rodrigo Selouan — American versus Brazilian.

When heads-up play kicked off, the eventual champion had 53 big blinds to his opponent’s 31. Right off the bat, Selouan chipped away a bit at the deficit. But on a board of 3♥K♣6♦A♠10♣, he made a hero call for his entire stack with J♠6♠, a small pair. Unfortunately, for the Brazilian with only $500,000 in prior live tournament cashes entering the Triton high roller event, he was up against A♣K♥ for top two pair.

The runner-up, despite failing to win the tournament, still earned $1,060,300, while the now eight-time Triton Poker champion received $1,570,000.

Triton Poker $60k High Roller Final Table Results

Is Koon the Best Live Tournament Player in the World Today?

With his eighth Triton title, and third since May, there’s no doubt that Koon is, at the very least, in the conversation for the best live tournament player in the world today. But there are also a number of other players deserving of consideration, not limited to Stephen Chidwick, Michael Addamo, Shaun Deeb, and you can never leave Ivey off any “best in the game” lists even after all these years.

Koon now has $49,467,007 in live tournament cashes, according to Hendon Mob. That puts him in fifth place all-time, a matter of dollars behind Chidwick, and only $2 million shy of Daniel Negreanu (third place). Justin Bonomo leads the way at $61.9 million, about $4 million more than Bryn Kenney.

Koon’s dominance in high rollers hasn’t been limited to the past couple of years. He’s been one of the best in the world for the past decade. He’s a 2021 World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner, defeated Phil Hellmuth in a $1.6 million heads-up match on High Stakes Duel, and has cracked the $1 million cashes mark eight years in his storied career.

No doubt he’ll reach the Poker Hall of Fame shortly after he becomes eligible at age 40 in 2026. But is he the best in the world at live tournament poker right now? We’ll let you make that decision with your vote below.

2023 Triton Poker London Series Updated Results

_{*Images courtesy of Triton Poker.}