IPG Jiuhuashan Station | Main Event Day 1A: 267 players entered, 41 advanced; Wang Hengming reversed a 77-point deficit to defeat KK and become the chip leader.

International news

The 2026 IPG Grand Finals Qualifier Jiuhuashan Main Event Day 1A kicked off on September 18th, attracting 267 participants. After 14 levels and simultaneous hands, 41 players successfully advanced. Wang Hengming, holding 77, reversed Wu Tao's KK in a crucial bubble hand, becoming the chip leader in Group A with 649,000 chips. Meanwhile, Meng Zhiyuan won the Jiuhuashan Cup, while Zhang Zhiqiang, Guo Yangyang, and Zhao Chen each won their respective supplementary events.

Published: 2026.09.19 Updated: 2026.09.19 Category: International News
International Poker News IPG Jiuhuashan Station | Main Event Day 1A: 267 players entered, 41 advanced; Wang Hengming reversed a 77-point deficit to defeat KK and become the chip leader.
Wang Hengming staged a comeback with 77 chips to defeat KK and become the chip leader on Day 1A of the 2026 IPG Jiuhuashan Main Event.
Wang Hengming hit a triplet with 77 on Day 1A, reversing Wu Tao's KK and ultimately leading the 41 advancing players with 649,000 chips.

 

On September 18, 2026, the second day of the seven-day IPG Grand Finals Qualifier Jiuhuashan Station began, with the main event officially kicking off the first Day 1A of the starting group at the Four Seasons Yongyi Hotel.

A total of 267 players participated in this group. After 14 competition levels and simultaneous card games, 41 players qualified for the second round.

The most anticipated key hand occurred during the bubble stage. Wang Hengming, holding 77 against Wu Tao's KK, hit a set on the flop to complete the comeback, not only eliminating his opponent but also increasing his chip count to 649,000, becoming the Day 1A chip leader.

In the supplementary competitions, Meng Zhiyuan successfully won the "Jiuhuashan Cup" championship, while Zhang Zhiqiang, Guo Yangyang and Zhao Chen also won championships in different events.

Main Event Day 1A: 267 participants, 41 advanced.

The main event of this year's IPG Jiuhuashan Station consists of four rounds.

The first round is divided into four starting groups: A, B, C, and D, with group D using a fast-paced format.

Day 1A officially started at 12:00 noon on September 18th. Each group adopted an advancement mechanism where the competition would stop when there were approximately 151 TP3T remaining. Players who successfully advanced would directly enter the ring.

Day 1A Core Data

projectdata
TournamentIPG Jiuhuashan Main Event
Match DateSeptember 18, 2026
Starting groupDay 1A
Number of participants267 people
Completion Level14
Number of people advancing41 people
King of ChipsWang Hengming
Chip King Score649,000
Bubble Players AdvanceWu Tao

When Level 14 reached blinds of 2,000/5,000/5,000, there were 44 players remaining, and the game entered the synchronized hand phase ahead of schedule.

On the seventh hand of the synchronized game, both players were eliminated simultaneously.

After Day 1A entered the synchronization phase, the players on the field began to manage the scoreboard more carefully.

Until the seventh hand, both tables went all-in almost simultaneously.

At one of the tables, the player holding the long scoreboard was:

A♦6♣

Against short-score players:

A♠7♠

The public signs are issued in sequence:

4♦ 9♠ 4♣ 6♥ 9♦

A6, who was slightly behind in the starting hand, hit a pair of 6s on the turn and ultimately won with two pairs.

Player A7 thus became the first player to be eliminated in the synchronous phase.

Nianqishun's Q9 lost to AT, leaving 42 players on Day 1A.

At the same time, another table also saw a pre-flop all-in.

Remember to follow and uphold:

Q♣9♦

The opponent then received:

A♦10♦

Public sign:

J♠ 6♣ 9♣ 7♣ 10♥

Although Nian Qishun hit a pair of 9s on the flop, his opponent completed a pair of 10s on the river, ultimately taking the lead.

Nian Qishun was unfortunately eliminated.

With one player eliminated from each of the two tables, Day 1A now has 42 players remaining, just one short of the qualifying threshold.

Key Bubble: Wu Tao KK collides with Wang Hengming 77

The eighth hand, played simultaneously, became the most important turning point of Day 1A.

At that time, Wu Tao had approximately:

150,000 Scoreboard

Wang Hengming has accumulated nearly:

500,000 Scoreboard

Both players put all their chips into the pot pre-flop.

Wu Tao:

K♠K♣

Wang Hengming:

7♦7♣

Judging from the starting hand, Wu Tao's KK was clearly ahead, and Wang Hengming had to rely on the community cards to make a comeback.

However, the flop immediately changed the situation.

The flop came 7♠! Wang Hengming hit a set and reversed the situation with KK.

Flip the card:

J♣ 2♦ 7♠

Wang Hengming hit three 7s directly, instantly overtaking Wu Tao's pocket kings.

Turn Card:

A♦

River card:

9♣

Final community cards:

J♣ 2♦ 7♠ A♦ 9♣

Wu Tao failed to get the remaining two Kings and ultimately became the bubble player who advanced from Day 1A.

Wang Hengming then won this important pot, and his score immediately rose to:

649,000

Not only did they secure their place in the second round, they also became the chip leader in Group A.

Wang Hengming leads 41 players with 649,000 chips.

With Wu Tao eliminated, Day 1A now has 41 players remaining.

The competition then ended, and all surviving players qualified for the second round.

projectresult
Day 1A Number of Participants267 people
Number of people starting the synchronization phase44 people
The first batch of eliminations during the synchronous phase2 people
Advancement BubbleWu Tao
Final number of qualifiers41 people
Group A Chip KingWang Hengming
Leading Scoreboard649,000

Wang Hengming secured the top spot in the final moments of Day 1A with a crucial 77-to-KK comeback.

The complete list of 41 people who advanced is subject to the official list image released by the organizers.

Highlight of the game: 33 set of three beats AK top pair

Apart from the final bubble hand, several large pots also appeared in the earlier stages of Day 1A.

Level 4, blinds 300/500/500.

The player in position UTG+1 raised to 1,500, and the players in positions UTG+3 and CO called, bringing the three players to the flop.

Flip the card:

K♠ 2♣ 3♠

UTG+1 checks, UTG+3 bets 1,600, CO calls.

Turn Card:

4♦

UTG+3 bets again on 5,500.

After counting his opponents' chips, CO went all in for 30,600.

UTG+3 called the all-in bet with 23,600.

Both sides reveal their cards:

Locationhand
UTG+33♥3♣
COA♣K♦

UTG+3 has hit three 3s on the flop, while CO has top pair and a straight draw.

River card:

8♣

Ultimately, they successfully defended all three, and UTG+3 took down this important pot.

KJ tops two pairs, eliminating KQ tops two pairs.

Level 8, blinds 600/1,200/1,200.

The CO position raises to 2,600, and the BTN and BB call.

Flip the card:

J♦ K♦ 3♥

After the player in the previous position checked, the BTN bet 4,400.

BB checked all in to 15,700, CO folded, and BTN quickly called.

Both sides reveal their cards:

BB:

K♣Q♦

BTN:

K♥J♠

BTN flopped top two pair, while BB only had top pair.

Turn Card:

4♦

River card:

6♠

Both pairs successfully defended their positions, and player BB was eliminated.

A4 flopped a full house, and the river card won a 40,000 value.

Level 11, blinds 1,000/2,500/2,500.

UTG+2 and CO players limped in turn, SB filled the big blind, BB checked, and the four players entered the flop.

Flip the card:

A♥ 4♥ 4♠

After the cards were checked to CO, CO bet 5,000, and only UTG+2 called.

Turn Card:

7♥

UTG+2 bets 10,000, CO calls.

River card:

5♠

UTG+2 bet again:

40,000

CO had only 55,000 chips left, but ultimately chose to call.

UTG+2 is displayed:

A♦4♣

It turns out he had already hit a full house when the cards were flipped.

Seeing this, CO did not reveal his hand and simply folded to concede defeat.

Meng Zhiyuan wins Jiuhuashan Cup championship

As the main event officially commenced, the first major event of this year's IPG Jiuhuashan Station, the "Snowflake Beer" Jiuhuashan Cup, also concluded its championship competition.

The first round of the Jiuhuashan Cup, with its two groups (A and B), attracted the following:

233 participants

in:

36 players successfully advanced to the second round final day.

After the final competition, Meng Zhiyuan successfully reached the top, winning the Jiuhuashan Cup championship and the "Ruihu Cup (Bronze)" championship trophy.

This also made Meng Zhiyuan one of the first players to win a major tournament at this year's IPG Jiuhuashan Station.

Zhang Zhiqiang, Guo Yangyang, and Zhao Chen won the preliminary round championships respectively.

In addition to the Jiuhuashan Cup and the main event Day 1A, three supplementary events will also announce their champions on the same day.

Tournamentchampion
Snow Beer Jiuhuashan CupMeng Zhiyuan
"Smart Jiuhua" IPG Live Streaming ChallengeZhang Zhiqiang
"Yiru Culture" Mid-sized ChampionshipGuo Yangyang
"Mingpinxing" Mini-Rapid ChampionshipZhao Chen

Among them, Zhang Zhiqiang won the IPG Live Challenge, while Guo Yangyang and Zhao Chen won the Mid-sized Championship and Small Fast Championship respectively.

The original article did not disclose the full prize money, number of participants, and rankings for the aforementioned supplementary competitions, therefore no additional data will be calculated.

Main Event Day 1B continues, with the second-round qualifiers expanding further.

With the conclusion of Day 1A on September 18th, the first batch of 41 players who qualified for the 2026 IPG Jiuhuashan Main Event have been officially determined.

In the final bubble hand, Wang Hengming reversed Wu Tao's lead with 77 and KK, taking the chip lead in Group A with 649,000 chips and becoming the most watched player on the first day of the main event.

According to the original schedule, the main event Day 1B will continue on September 19.

There will be subsequent fast-track events in Groups C and D. As the four starting groups are completed, the full lineup and scoreboard distribution for the second round of the main event will be gradually determined.

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