Jun Obara Wins Inaugural RGPS Mission RunGood Japan in Tokyo ($26,053)

The first-ever cooperation between two thriving live poker tours from opposite ends of the world has been a resounding success, as the 2025 RGPS Mission RunGood Japan attracted a massive field of 1,585 entries for the modest ¥25,000 buy-in (~$175). And if there was ever any player to embody the spirit and atmosphere of the RunGood Poker Series as well as the hosting Japan Open Poker Tour (JOPT), none other than Jun Obara would certainly be near the top of the list of candidates.

Known to everyone on home turf as "misawa-san", the Japanese poker enthusiast with more than $2 million in live poker cashes is always a source of joy with a big smile on his face no matter where and how the cards fall. His first recorded live poker cash came in 2017, and he has had several victories under his belt, yet you could still see the incredibly happy kid in a candy shop when he defeated mashipi in heads-up play.

It didn't take long after his triumph until he proudly put the RunGood ring on his fingers and posed for the winner shots before dozens of friends arrived for the group winner picture. Also right next to him were his partner and two young daughters, who were cheering on their daddy during the final stages.

Both players earned the largest portion of the $165,394.37 in fixed prizes, according to local regulations in Japan, and Obara became the first winner of a RunGood ring outside the United States.

Officially dubbed as Event #22 NLH Colossus by Mission RunGood it was one of the biggest live events in JOPT history, fitting to the setting of the 2025 JOPT Grand Final at the stunning La Belle Salle in Shinjuku, which hosts more than 160 poker tables.

Final Table Result

*all prizes are available as Web Coin or JOPT passports and have been converted from Japanese Yen, rounded to the nearest dollar

"Finally, first, I usually finish second or third," Obara joked, but he has more than one dozen victories on the live poker circuit under his belt, most of which came in low and mid-stakes buy-ins, certainly fitting to the RunGood and JOPT brands. He also co-hosted a live poker series in Incheon, South Korea, just two months ago, during which he won four titles.

The largest cash on the live poker circuit was a fourth-place finish in the 2022 European Poker Tour Prague Main Event, worth €361,950. He also added a sixth-place finish in the WPT Alpha 8 High Roller this past December during the WPT World Championships to his resume, earning an additional $145,688. Yet, one could certainly sense that the biggest joy today was that he earned the next victory at home in Tokyo with many friends around to cheer him on.

Remarkably, the longest period for the same number of players remaining on a very fast-paced final day was the heads-up stage, which lasted almost 45 minutes. The action had recommenced with 185 survivors of the four starting flights, and 175 of them secured a portion of the prizes. "Misawa-san" started his journey on a mere 22 big blinds but survived the early carnage before gaining momentum.

Within the first half an hour, the prize bubble burst, and the first break after two hours of play had already cut down the field of hopefuls in half. That same trend also continued for the next two-hour session, and it never really slowed down, to be honest. With fewer than 60 players still in contention, Obara got to work and notched up several eliminations with a very active playing style.

The action became more volatile on the final three tables, and Obara was fortunate enough to survive the all-in showdowns when he was at risk. One of these spots came just before the nine-handed final table was set when his ace-seven hit a four-card flush against king-queen after a queen-high flop before he headed to the stage with an average stack.

mashipi was leading the final nine, and in fewer than half an hour, those were culled down to only five. First to go was Kanasuke in the second hand of the final table when his ace-five suited failed to improve against pocket jacks. SU__ then fell victim to the hot run of the chip leader, who turned a flush against his set of jacks.

The final table could have well been over for Obara a few moments later when he jammed ace-four into the pocket kings of Nakaten. However, an ace on the turn saved him, and Nakaten then lost a flip with jacks to ace-queen in the very next hand. Obara then picked up kings himself and the most-cursed pocket pair in tournament poker - pocket jacks - was no good for PINZMAN.

After a brief period of slower action, Ryuseiii picked the wrong spot to make a move with king-nine suited as second in chips because he ran them smack dab into the pocket aces of mashipi to see the latter as massive chip leader. Takeshi lost a flip with sixes to the ace-jack of Obara, who leapt into comfortable second place.

Three-handed play saw Jiro3 put up a fight as the far shortest stack while Obara took over the lead, who then secured the heads-up stage with queen-jack suited against the jack-ten of Jiro3. The duel for the title was a topsy-turvy affair in which Obara doubled into a commanding lead and cruised to victory a few minutes later, followed by the roaring victory announcement for "misawa-san" to the entire room by the emcee — because that's how things work in Japan, where poker is just one part of the equation and the entertainment follows right behind.