There was some talk about Stephen Chidwick potentially passing Bryn Kenney on the all-time live tournament cashes list in 2026. Unless some operator decides to host a $1 million buy-in event before the end of the year and Chidwick wins it, that probably won’t happen.
Kenney, who already had a comfortable lead on The Hendon Mob charts, pulled away even further with a seven-figure win at the King’s Poker Cup in Jeju. The New York high roller took down the $100,000 King’s Charity Super High Roller for $1.6 million via a heads-up chop with Jesse Lonis, who received the same amount.
Dwan Cashes for First Time in a While
Tom Dwan, always more of a cash game specialist than a tournament grinder, was one of six skilled high rollers who reached the final table. The online poker legend known as “durrrr” finished in sixth place for $350,000, his first tournament cash since the 2024 WSOP Main Event (593rd place).
There were still some big name pros in the field after Dwan’s elimination, including Elton Tsang, who took third place for $880,000. That left two of the best in the world — Lonis and Kenney — to battle it out heads-up, although they had agreed to a chop.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bryn Kenney | $1,600,000 |
| 2 | Jesse Lonis | $1,600,000 |
| 3 | Elton Tsang | $880,000 |
| 4 | Xuanyi Wang | $630,000 |
| 5 | $450,000 | |
| 6 | Tom Dwan | $350,000 |
Kenney’s run to victory wasn’t all smooth-sailing. He ran two pair into Lonis’s superior two pair in one hand, which set him back. But a four-liner to a straight on board came on the river to potentially save him most of his stack.
He would, however, eventually build a 2.5-1 chip lead over Lonis, a lead that held. On the final hand, Lonis moved all in with K♣2♠ and was a bit ahead of his opponent’s J♥10♥. But a 10 appeared on the flop and held up through the river to finish off the tournament.
Kenney, with the victory, barely surpassed $90 million in live tournament cashes. He is now the first to $70 million, $80 million, and $90 million. Chidwick is about $1 million away from $80 million and $11 million behind Kenney. Jason Koon, with $77 million, is the only other player to have reached the $70 million mark.
Kenney’s presence atop the tournament charts has not come without some controversy. He’s attempted to move past an alleged online poker cheating scandal in 2022, which was brought to light by Martin Zamani, who admitted to being part of a stable of players (aka “horses”) who were led by Kenney to collude and ghost other players online.
Kenney appears to have taken responsibility for his actions, as evidenced by a recent somewhat cryptic tweet. He wrote: “We’ve all made lots of mistakes in life, somethings ashamed to admit it. Have been trying to be open about it, willing to hear it and listen, take accountability when it needs to be taken and going on ahead stronger for it.”
The K Poker Cup and King Poker Cup in Jeju runs through Aug. 10 at Les A Casino at Jeju Shinhwa World. The Main Event began on Wednesday and will play down to a winner on Aug. 3.
King Poker Cup Full Schedule
