Historic Hand: Alex Foxen and an $11 Million Pot at Triton Poker Jeju II

In June 2024, Alex Foxen and Ossi "Monarch" Ketola played the largest televised pot in poker history—almost $11 million. Let's break down Foxen's crucial call with a flush.

In early June 2024, during the Triton Poker Series Jeju II stop, a hand took place that has already gone down in poker history: Alex Foxen ( Alex Foxen ) and Ossi “Monarch” Ketola ( Ossi "Monarch" Ketola ) played a pot worth almost $11 million—the largest ever shown on televised poker. This hand sparked intense discussion in the poker community, with the key moment—Foxen’s river call with a flush—becoming the subject of deep analysis. PokerNews ambassador Lukas Robinson ( Lukas Robinson , also known as RobinPoker) used GTO Wizard to break down the hand in detail to answer the question: was Foxen’s call justified from a Game Theory Optimal (GTO) perspective? Context: Triton Poker Series Jeju II and Game Format The Triton Poker tournament series is one of the most prestigious and expensive in the world, regularly attracting the poker elite. The second stop in Jeju (Jeju II) became the stage for super high roller cash games with blinds of $30,000/$60,000. It was in such a game that Alex Foxen and Ossi Ketola faced off. Both players are well known in the professional scene: Foxen is a recognized high-stakes expert who regularly competes in the biggest series, while Ketola, playing under the nickname Monarch, has also repeatedly proven his level in elite lineups. The format of the hand was a cash game, where players can rebuy and leave at any time, and bets are not limited by tournament rules. This allows for pots that exceed the prize pools of most tournaments. The Hand: Step by Step Let’s take a detailed look at the key moments of the historic hand between Foxen and Ketola: Preflop: Monarch (Ketola) on the button/small blind opens to $150,000 (2.5 big blinds) with K♣J♥ . GTO Wizard rates this play as completely correct. Alex Foxen defends the big blind, calling with 8♦6♦ . However, according to GTO Wizard, the optimal play with this hand would be to 3-bet (re-raise) 100% of the time, not just call. Nevertheless, the difference in expected value (EV) between calling and 3-betting here is minimal, so Foxen’s decision can’t be called a serious mistake. The solver recommends 3-betting mainly for range balance and maximizing EV over the long run. For a more precise analysis, Robinson used the nodelocking tool in GTO Wizard—a feature that allows you to “lock in” certain player actions if they deviate from pure GTO strategy. In this case, Foxen’s big blind range was adjusted: some medium suited connectors, such as 8♦6♦, were played as a mix between calling and 3-betting, reflecting Foxen’s real-life tendencies. Flop ($300,000): K♦J♦8♣ Foxen checks—completely in line with GTO. On this flop, Monarch has the range advantage, so Foxen has no incentive to donk-bet (bet out of position without initiative). Monarch also checks with top two pair (K♣J♥). According to the solver, this is not optimal: with KJo on this board, it’s better to bet (either small or large—the solver suggests a mixed strategy with two bet sizes). Checking is allowed about 43% of the time, but betting yields the highest EV. Robinson again used nodelocking to account for the fact that Monarch will sometimes check even strong hands like sets and two pair, which matches real-world play. Turn: (the card is not specified in the source, but further analysis shows it improved Foxen to a flush) Foxen bets $250,000. The solver prefers bet sizes of 120% or 40% of the pot, but the EV of all options is close. For 8♦6♦, the solver suggests a mix between checking and betting, which helps balance strong hands and bluffs. Monarch calls the bet—completely GTO, since Monarch has top pair and a full house draw, while Foxen’s range now contains many flushes. River: (the card is not specified, but Monarch makes a full house and Foxen has a flush) Foxen bets $550,000 (70% of the pot). The solver approves this bet, but only at a low frequency. Overall, for 8♦6♦ on the river, the highest EV comes from either a pot-sized bet (100%) or a small bet (30%). This allows you to maximize value with flushes and balance your bluff range. Monarch shoves all-in, adding $4,500,000. This is standard with a full house: the solver never uses smaller bet sizes with such a hand. Monarch’s bluff range in this spot consists mainly of trips and two pair, which are hard to identify when playing for such huge sums. Foxen calls the all-in for the remaining $4,500,000. The solver confirms this is theoretically correct: with a flush on the eight (8♦6♦), calling yields the highest EV, especially if Monarch’s range contains enough bluffs. Interestingly, the eight-high flush calls more often than the nine-high flush, as it blocks some of the opponent’s possible full house combinations. As a result, the $10,990,000 pot goes to Monarch, who made a full house on the river, while Foxen had a flush. Despite the loss, from a GTO perspective Foxen’s call was justified: if Monarch’s range contains enough bluffs (such as trips and two pair), this call will be profitable in the long run. GTO Analysis: Breaking Down the Players’ Decisions In his review, Lukas Robinson posed two key questions: Is Monarch’s check on the flop with K♣J♥ an optimal decision? Was Foxen’s river call with a flush justified from a GTO perspective? According to the GTO Wizard analysis: Monarch’s check on the flop is not a major mistake, but loses EV compared to betting. Strong hands on this board should bet more often to protect against draws and extract value from weaker hands. Foxen’s river call with a flush is a borderline decision; the EV difference between calling and folding is just 0.1 (almost nothing at these stakes). If Foxen believed Monarch could bluff with trips and two pair, the call becomes profitable. If there are few bluffs, folding would be preferable. Overall, both players demonstrated the highest level of decision-making, and the hand itself became an example of the finest poker nuances when playing for massive sums. Hand Result Table Player Hand Actions Result Prize/Pot Ossi "Monarch" Ketola K♣J♥ Open $150,000, check flop, call turn, all-in river Full house on the river $10,990,000 Alex Foxen 8♦6♦ Preflop call, check flop, turn bet $250,000, river bet $550,000, call all-in Flush on the river Lost the pot Poker Terms and Format Explanations Cash game — a format where players play for real money, not tournament chips. Bet sizes are unlimited, and a player can rebuy or leave the table at any time. Blinds — mandatory bets posted by two players at the table before the cards are dealt: small blind (SB) and big blind (BB). In this hand, they were $30,000/$60,000. GTO (Game Theory Optimal) — a strategy based on game theory, where a player minimizes the chance of being exploited by opponents. Solvers (software for calculating optimal strategies) allow you to analyze hands from a GTO perspective. Solver — software that calculates optimal poker lines based on given ranges and player actions. Nodelocking — a solver feature that allows you to lock in certain player actions if they deviate from pure GTO strategy and recalculate the decision tree accordingly. EV (Expected Value) — the expected profitability of an action over the long run. Flush — a hand consisting of five cards of the same suit. Full house — a hand consisting of three cards of one rank and two of another (e.g., KKKJJ). 3-bet — the third raise in a hand (for example, raise, re-raise, then 3-bet). Donk-bet — a bet made out of position by a player who was not the aggressor on the previous street. Strategic Conclusions: Why the Players’ Decisions Were So Difficult At first glance, in the hand between Foxen and Monarch, calling the river all-in with a flush seems standard. However, considering the stack depth and range structure, the situation becomes extremely close: After the line taken (check flop, call turn, all-in river), Monarch still has many strong hands, but also potential bluffs with trips and two pair. For Foxen, it was crucial to assess how often his opponent could bluff in this spot. If Monarch plays too straightforwardly, the call becomes a mistake; if the opponent’s range is wide enough, the call is justified. From a GTO perspective, both players chose lines as close to optimal as possible, despite the huge pot size and the pressure of responsibility. The Historical Significance of the Hand This pot is the largest ever recorded on television: $10,990,000. It broke all previous records and became a subject of study for players at all levels. Analyzing the hand with GTO Wizard shows how subtle decisions can be, even for the world’s best professionals, and how modern tools help us understand where intuition ends and poker math begins. Lukas Robinson, the author of the review, is known in the poker community as a streamer and professional player who set the Twitch world record for poker streaming (1,000 hours in 100 days) and participated in the first season of the “Game of Gold” show. What This Means for PPPoker Club Players The analysis of this hand is a great example of how modern poker tools and GTO approaches can be applied not only at high roller stakes, but also in PPPoker club games. Even if you play for much smaller stakes, understanding range balance, correct lines, and being able to assess your opponent’s range are key skills for successful play. In PPPoker club games, you often encounter situations where players deviate from GTO strategy—some play too tight, others too aggressively. Using analysis tools (such as free or affordable solvers) helps you find mistakes in your own game and better understand how to adapt to your opponents’ styles. Even simply studying hands like this helps develop poker thinking and make more informed decisions in tough spots. Finally, the example of Foxen and Monarch shows: even at the highest level, poker is a game not just of cards, but of people. It’s important not only to know the theory, but also to read your opponent, assess their bluffing tendencies, and adjust your decisions accordingly. This is a universal lesson for anyone looking to grow as a player—whether at the world’s biggest series or in PPPoker clubs.