A Hall of Famer Gets His Moment

Some poker résumés barely need another line added to them, but even the greats have boxes left to tick. For Nick Schulman, that box was a Triton Main Event title, and he finally checked it off in dramatic fashion at the close of the 2026 Triton Poker Super High Roller Series Jeju II.

Schulman, an eight-time WSOP bracelet winner, two-time WPT champion and Poker Hall of Famer, defeated Austria’s Bernhard Binder heads up to win the $100,000 NLH Main Event at Les A Casino. He conquered a 196-entry field at LES A Casino and defeated Bernhard Binder heads-up in a hard-fought battle for $3,854,888, the biggest single cash of his career. That the payday landed on the eve of his 42nd birthday only added to the storybook feel of the result.

How the Final Table Played Out

The Main Event itself produced a stacked final table, with Bernhard Binder finishing second for $3,080,112, Gytis Lazauninkas third for $1,968,000, Xu Yang fourth for $1,596,000, Ryuta Nakai fifth for $1,263,000, Isaac Haxton sixth for $958,000, Danilo Velasevic seventh for $700,000, Wesley Fei eighth for $512,000 and Roberto Perez ninth for $424,000. The $100,000 Main Event brought together 196 entries, producing a $19.6 million prize pool and nine final-table payouts ranging from $424,000 to almost $3.9 million.

For a player who has spent more than two decades mixing it up in the toughest cash games and tournaments in the world, the significance wasn’t lost on him. For Schulman, the result was not simply another high-roller cash; his payday was a career best and his first Triton Main Event title after more than two decades at the top end of the game.

Jeju II Closes the Books at $103.2 Million

Schulman’s win was the headline, but it was far from the only story to emerge from a festival that reinforced just how deep the Triton player pool has become. The festival produced $103.2 million in prize money from 1,752 total entries.

Brazilian pro João Simão authored one of the most eye-catching weeks of the year, stacking two massive final tables back to back. The largest single prize was Joao Simao’s $7,250,000 for winning the $200,000 Triton Invitational. He followed that up by finishing runner-up in the $150,000 10th Anniversary Special, a tournament that itself closed with a flourish. Nick Petrangelo took that title for $2,212,910 after a heads-up deal with Simão, with Adrian Mateos third for $1,286,000, Miroslav Atanasov fourth for $990,000 and Thomas Boivin fifth for $783,000.

The festival wrapped on a fitting historical note too. Nick Petrangelo and Wang Ye closed the festival in style, with Petrangelo settling the Anniversary Special trophy with three consecutive blind all-ins between longtime friends, and Wang Ye claiming the series’ final trophy in the closing $30,000 Turbo. It’s also worth noting that Schulman’s Main Event triumph kept alive an unusual streak in Jeju. Triton has now staged three $100,000 NLH Main Events in Jeju since September 2025, and no player has repeated.

What’s Next for the Triton Calendar

With the Jeju chapter closed, attention now turns west. Triton’s final stop of its 10th Anniversary Season will see the tour touch down in Northern Cyprus for an extended double-header at the Merit Royal Diamond Hotel in Kyrenia. Triton ONE will run from November 4 to 15, followed immediately by the Triton Super High Roller Series Northern Cyprus from November 15 to 28.

The Triton ONE leg carries real historical weight of its own, marking the first ever Triton ONE series in Europe, giving a broader pool of players a shot at Triton silverware on more accessible buy-ins before the high rollers take over the Merit Royal Diamond for the main event. The $8,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em Main Event begins Nov. 10, with three Day 1 starting flights, and the tournament concludes Nov. 15, the final day of the series before the Triton Super High Roller Series in North Cyprus kicks off.

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Why This Story Matters

High-roller poker can sometimes feel like a closed shop of the same handful of names trading trophies, but Schulman’s win is a reminder of how much depth and longevity still exists at the top of the game. A legend who built his reputation in cash games and WSOP bracelet runs adding a career-best score at 41 years old, on the eve of his birthday, is the kind of narrative that gives the Triton brand its enduring appeal heading into the final festival of its anniversary year.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much did Nick Schulman win for the Triton Jeju II Main Event?

Schulman collected $3,854,888 for winning the $100,000 NLH Main Event, the biggest single cash of his career.

Who finished runner-up to Schulman?

Austria’s Bernhard Binder finished second for $3,080,112 after a heads-up deal with Schulman.

How much prize money did the entire Jeju II festival award?

The festival produced $103.2 million in total prize money across 1,752 entries and 14 events plus the $150,000 10th Anniversary Special.

Where does the Triton Poker Series go next?

Triton heads to Northern Cyprus, with Triton ONE running November 4 to 15 and the Triton Super High Roller Series following from November 15 to 28 at the Merit Royal Diamond Hotel in Kyrenia.

Featured image: Triton Poker Series.