The highly anticipated U Series of Poker Main Event kicked off to a strong start across its first day of festivities at Dream Dragon Resort, Hai Phong, Vietnam. Action filled the air from noon to night with hundreds of runners taking part in the thrilling games. The day closed with South Korea’s Juyeol Lee finding the largest bag across the 341 entry field, joined by 42 other runners onto Day 2. Three more flights are set to follow through, with Day 1B geared to run its course this Friday, September 20th, 11:00 am.
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Main Event Day 1A Recap
The first Main Event flight on schedule drew in a total of 341 (248 unique) entries across ten levels of registration with a surplus of local runners joining the scene. Vietnamese crushers Nguyen Ngoc Dai, Nguyen Nang Quang, Dao Minh Phu, and Pham Tien Dung, were spotted in battle yet failed to catch a spot into the Day 2 rounds. International contenders likewise shared the tournament floor with notables Florent Remi, William Teoh, Jinlong Hu, and Xudong Yang, seen in the mix throughout the day.
It took nineteen levels of play before the heat wrapped up following the exit of South Korea’s Jang Wongeun one spot short of the money. Jang hung on by a thread and succumbed to his fate after his tournament life was forced to be at stake right on the big blind.
Bagging time saw Lee hold down the lead over the 43-survivor pack, being the sole runner to advance with a seven digit chip count – 1,099,000 (92 BB). China’s Tan Xing lists second in rank with a stack of 989,000 (82 BB), just ten big blinds behind Lee.
Lee was already amongst the big stacks late in the day and managed to pull to the lead after his 
held against Joris Michl’s 
on board 
. Lee scooped up the entire 217 big blind pot and carried it through all the way to night’s end.
Also joining the charge are USOP Hai Phong series winners Johnni Nielsen 712,000 (59 BB), Ryan Plant 480,000 (40 BB), Sun Jianfeng 395,000 (33 BB), and Zhichen Yu 194,000 (16 BB).
Date/s: September 19 – 23, 2024
Buy-in: VN₫ 30,000,000 (~USD 1,200)
Guarantee: VN₫ 15,000,000,000 (~US$ 609,500)
Day 1A: 341 entries / 43 qualified
Day 1B: Friday, September 20
Day 1C: Saturday, September 21
Day 1D (Turbo): Saturday, September 21
Day 2: Sunday, September 22
Day 3/ Final Day: Monday, September 23
End of Main Event Day 1A Chip Counts
| Pos. | Player | Flag | Chip Count | BB |
| 1 | LEE JUYEOL | SOUTH KOREA | 1,099,000 | 92 |
| 2 | TANG XIN | CHINA | 989,000 | 82 |
| 3 | NIELSEN JOHNNI PEER KRANKER | SWEDEN | 712,000 | 59 |
| 4 | TAN KEAN WEI | MALAYSIA | 574,000 | 48 |
| 5 | LEE KUN HAN | TAIWAN | 505,000 | 42 |
| 6 | VERBRUGGEN TOM HENRICUS WILHELMUS | NETHERLANDS | 498,000 | 42 |
| 7 | ZHANG YANKAI | CHINA | 491,000 | 41 |
| 8 | PLANT RYAN | UNITED KINGDOM | 480,000 | 40 |
| 9 | DINH GIA TU | VIETNAM | 437,000 | 36 |
| 10 | PHAM NGOC QUOC BAO | VIETNAM | 419,000 | 35 |
| 11 | WAEHURST JULIAN ANDREW | AUSTRALIA | 410,000 | 34 |
| 12 | SUN JIANFENG | CHINA | 395,000 | 33 |
| 13 | LE NHU HAI | VIETNAM | 393,000 | 33 |
| 14 | ZHAI CHANGYU | CHINA | 376,000 | 31 |
| 15 | NGUYEN XUAN TUAN | VIETNAM | 354,000 | 30 |
| 16 | NGO KHOA ANH | VIETNAM | 332,000 | 28 |
| 17 | PHAM TIEN THANH | VIETNAM | 327,000 | 27 |
| 18 | LI JUN | UNITED KINGDOM | 324,000 | 27 |
| 19 | HOANG KHIEM | VIETNAM | 299,000 | 25 |
| 20 | NGUYEN THANH PHAT | AUSTRALIA | 278,000 | 23 |
| 21 | TRAN TUAN ANH | VIETNAM | 258,000 | 22 |
| 22 | LUONG VIET BAC | VIETNAM | 250,000 | 21 |
| 23 | SEDLAK MARTIN MICHAEL | GERMANY | 238,000 | 20 |
| 24 | KAMIYA LEO | AUSTRALIA | 229,000 | 19 |
| 25 | WONG TIN LAM | HONG KONG | 217,000 | 18 |
| 26 | KHATSURIA BHAVIK HARSHILBHAI | INDIA | 213,000 | 18 |
| 27 | NGUYEN VAN SANG | VIETNAM | 212,000 | 18 |
| 28 | YU ZHICHEN | CHINA | 194,000 | 16 |
| 29 | LYTVYNOV DMYTRO | UKRAINE | 192,000 | 16 |
| 30 | NGUYEN NGOC HAI DUY | VIETNAM | 190,000 | 16 |
| 31 | ISAAC PHUA CHERN HZE | MALAYSIA | 186,000 | 16 |
| 32 | TRUONG DINH GIANG | VIETNAM | 184,000 | 15 |
| 33 | BUI CONG TUAN | VIETNAM | 173,000 | 14 |
| 34 | CHU MANH HUONG | VIETNAM | 170,000 | 14 |
| 35 | VU TA NHAT | VIETNAM | 158,000 | 13 |
| 36 | DANG DUC DONG | VIETNAM | 156,000 | 13 |
| 37 | KIM KIYOUNG | SOUTH KOREA | 132,000 | 11 |
| 38 | ZHENG TIANHAO | CHINA | 130,000 | 11 |
| 39 | XU YUAN | CHINA | 122,000 | 10 |
| 40 | YU YUAN | CHINA | 96,000 | 8 |
| 41 | TRAN DUC KIEN | VIETNAM | 81,000 | 7 |
| 42 | TRINH ANH DUNG | VIETNAM | 70,000 | 6 |
| 43 | LIU YONG YI | CHINA | 67,000 | 6 |
Chips in play: 13,640,000
Average stack: 317,209 (26 BB)
Blinds: 6,000/ 12,000 ante 12,000
Remaining players: 43
USOP Hai Phong VN₫ 15 Billion (~US$ 609K) guaranteed Main Event set to take the stage
