Nikolai Kanunikov Wins $6,000 PLO at Triton ONE

Nikolai Kanunikov opens Triton ONE’s PLO action with a title

Nikolai Kanunikov made a statement in the first PLO event of Triton ONE North Cyprus, winning Event #13, the $6,000 pot-limit Omaha 6-Handed, for $178,000. The Russian player defeated Artur Teshaev heads-up at Merit Royal Diamond in Kyrenia and turned his first event of the festival into a trophy run.

That matters because Triton events are never just about prize money. They are a benchmark for elite tournament poker, especially in formats like Omaha where edge realization, hand-reading, and postflop discipline matter more than ever. For players studying the game, it is worth tracking not only results but also the ecosystem around them, from poker rooms to poker clubs where Omaha volume is available.

A 138-entry turnout confirms strong demand for Triton PLO

The two-day tournament kicked off the festival’s PLO schedule on Nov. 10, 2026, after a hold’em-only opening led by the 912-entry QQPK Genesis. The $6,000 PLO attracted 138 entries, including 54 re-entries, creating a $766,590 prize pool. The top 23 places made the money, with payouts starting at $9,500.

That field was more than 50% larger than the 90 entries in the $6,000 PLO at Triton ONE Jeju in March 2026, where Jon Peter Rounce-Sue won the first PLO title in Triton ONE history. The growth is a strong sign that Omaha has become a core part of the brand rather than a side attraction.

For regulars, that kind of expansion is meaningful. Bigger PLO fields mean tougher lineups, more variance, and more opportunities for specialists to separate themselves. If you are building your game, a structured poker school can be especially valuable for navigating the unique equities and multiway dynamics of Omaha.

Kanunikov’s Day 1 chip lead set up the run

Kanunikov bagged 4,985,000 chips at the end of Day 1, worth 166 big blinds and well ahead of fellow Russian Said Butba, who finished on 2,695,000. That stack was not just a comfort cushion; it was a weapon. In PLO, a massive stack gives you leverage in bubble spots, multi-street pressure, and stack-to-pot ratio control.

He used that leverage to burst the bubble when Finland’s Juho Suutari got his aces in against Kanunikov’s 9-9-8-6, only for the final two cards to deliver a straight to the Russian. The hand was a reminder of a key Omaha truth: even premium starting hands can be under heavy pressure postflop.

Artur Martirosian, one of the three PLO winners in Jeju, made the money but bowed out in 22nd place. Zhou Quan, fresh off his $5,000 NLH 8-Handed Mystery Bounty victory, then cracked Danny Tang’s aces to set up the seven-handed final table.

Final table swings: Zhou’s aces, Sitbon’s cooler, Kanunikov’s surge

Zhou entered the final table with 7,850,000 chips, or 63 big blinds, while Kanunikov sat second on 6,700,000. But the early stages of the final table quickly reshaped the landscape. Said Butba, Nacho Barbero, and Tommi Lankinen fell in rapid succession, and Zhou was left with close to 40% of the chips four-handed.

Then came one of the biggest hands of the event. France’s Julien Sitbon ran kings into Zhou’s aces on a 4-K-A flop. The 2 on the turn added a wheel to Zhou’s set before the last king in the deck arrived on the river for quads. It was the kind of brutal Omaha cooler that can change the entire tone of a final table.

By the dinner break, the stack counts had tightened: Zhou held 22 big blinds, Sitbon 19, Kanunikov 17, and Teshaev 12. Once play resumed, the momentum moved decisively toward Kanunikov.

How Kanunikov closed out the title heads-up

Kanunikov’s first major swing after the break came against Zhou. His aces held against Zhou’s aces on a K-7-3-7-3 board, where the Russian made trips threes. The next time Zhou picked up aces, he moved in preflop again, but the pressure had already shifted.

Sitbon then flopped top pair on K-Q-6, yet Kanunikov had limped the button with 8-7-6-6 and hit a set of sixes, eliminating both Zhou in fourth and Sitbon in third. That sequence left Kanunikov with a commanding lead going into heads-up play.

The heads-up match began with Kanunikov holding 60 big blinds to Teshaev’s nine. The decisive hand came on an 8-7-K flop, where Kanunikov’s two pair stayed ahead of Teshaev’s aces and straight draw. The king on the turn filled him up, and the queen on the river locked up second place for the Uzbek player.

Expert analysis: why this Triton PLO win matters

Kanunikov’s victory is important beyond the trophy itself. It highlights several lessons for serious PLO players and for anyone following high-stakes tournament poker.

First, stack depth matters enormously in Omaha. A 160+ BB stack on Day 1 allows you to pressure short and medium stacks, leverage bubble dynamics, and avoid marginal stack-off spots. Kanunikov used that advantage perfectly.

Second, the event underlines how much PLO rewards hand-reading and board awareness. The Sitbon versus Zhou cooler is a textbook example of how quickly equity can swing on turn and river in Omaha, even when one player starts with a premium holding.

Third, Triton ONE’s growing PLO turnout suggests that the format is becoming a bigger part of the global high-roller landscape. That means more opportunities for specialists, but also a higher standard of preparation. Studying spots in a serious poker school, comparing live ranges, and using promotions & bonuses to fuel online practice are all practical edges for ambitious players.

What comes next in North Cyprus

The PLO action is far from over in Kyrenia. The $8,000 Triton ONE Main Event drew 263 entries in its first flight and runs through Nov. 15, 2026, with the tour’s record 1,230-entry field from Jeju in March 2026 still the target to beat.

The $15,000 Triton ONE High Roller begins Nov. 13, and then the Super High Roller Series takes over Merit Royal Diamond from Nov. 15 to Nov. 30, 2026. That stretch includes a $50,000 PLO Mystery Bounty on Nov. 26-27 and a $100,000 PLO Main Event from Nov. 27-29.

For players and fans, the takeaway is simple: North Cyprus is becoming one of the most important Omaha destinations of the year. If you want to stay close to that ecosystem, it helps to follow the broader poker economy too, including opportunities with a poker agent.

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