Image courtesy of Somuchpoker.com.
Stephen Song seized the spotlight at The Lord Poker Tournament Jeju festival in South Korea, cashing for $970,000 across three final table finishes, winning two titles along the way.
The American poker pro’s biggest triumph of the festival saw him defeat a field of 191 entries in the $15,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em main event, which ran from May 16-18 at the Jeju Shinhwa World Resort. The event failed to surpass its $3 million guarantee, resulting in an overlay for those who cashed.
Song was awarded $750,000 as the eventual champion, the second-largest score yet for the 29-year-old. This trails only the $1.4 million he secured as the champion of the 2024 European Poker Tour Barcelona main event last fall. This triumph edged out the $712,650 he secured as the champion of the inaugural World Poker Tour Prime Championship in 2022 for the second-place spot on his personal top career scores leaderboard. The World Series of Poker bracelet winner now boasts nearly $10.2 million in career earnings.
Notables that joined Song at the final table in that tournament included Danish short-deck crusher Martin Nielsen (4th – $220,000) and German high roller Marius Gierse (3rd – $320,000). Song took a massive lead into heads-up play with James Mendoza after busting Gierse. Mendoza put up a game effort to battle back into the match, but was soon sent to the rail as the runner-up ($450,000).
Before taking down the main event, Song had finished seventh in a $500 buy-in tournament that drew 505 entries, earning $16,000 for his efforts. The day after winning the big dance, Song entered the $20,000 buy-in high roller and made it to the final day with the chip lead.
Song was able to convert his big stack into the title once again, hoisting his second trophy of the series just two days after his first. Song earned another $204,000 as the last player standing from a field of 32 entries.
Mendoza also joined him in putting up impressive back-to-back showings, following his second-place finish up by surviving to the final four. He added another $75,000 to his career haul in this high-stakes event.
The Lord Poker Tournament Jeju Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Payout |
| 1 | Stephen Song | $750,000 |
| 2 | James Mendoza | $450,000 |
| 3 | Marius Gierse | $320,000 |
| 4 | Martin Nielsen | $220,000 |
| 5 | Patrik Demus | $170,000 |
| 6 | Ivan Zhang | $130,000 |
| 7 | Huawei Lin | $100,000 |
| 8 | Jiaming Zhao | $76,000 |
| 9 | Haitao Lei | $62,000 |
The Lord Poker Tournament Jeju High Roller Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Payout |
| 1 | Stephen Song | $204,000 |
| 2 | Calvin Lee | $200,000 |
| 3 | Taylor Black | $101,000 |
| 4 | James Mendoza | $75,000 |
| 5 | Lei Yu | $60,000 |
