Poker in South Korea: Jeju's high-roller scene, the law and playing online

South Korea hosts the biggest poker festivals in Asia — the Triton Super High Roller Series visits Jeju twice a year and the WPT plays at Inspire near Incheon — yet most of those tables are closed to Korean citizens, who may only gamble at a single casino in the mountains of Gangwon. Online poker is illegal for Koreans. WPT Global nevertheless serves the country, so this page explains the law honestly, describes the live scene, and introduces Korea's best players.

Is poker legal in South Korea?

Gambling is an offence for Korean nationals under Article 246 of the Criminal Act, and the prohibition follows citizens abroad. The exception is Kangwon Land in Jeongseon, the one casino licensed to admit Koreans, which has a poker room. The country's other casinos, including those on Jeju and the Inspire and Paradise City resorts near Incheon, are licensed for foreign passport holders only. Online gambling is illegal for Koreans, offshore sites are blocked by the Korea Communications Standards Commission, and prosecutions of players, not just operators, do occur, particularly when large sums move through domestic bank accounts. Playing on an offshore room from Korea is therefore at your own legal risk. Korea has been debating poker's status as a mind sport for years, but nothing has changed in law. This is general information, not legal advice.

Live poker in Korea

Jeju Island is Asia's high-roller capital: the Triton Super High Roller Series holds two festivals a year at the island's foreigner-only casinos, the Jeju Poker Festival and Red Dragon events fill the gaps, and the WPT stages WPT Korea at the Inspire Entertainment Resort near Incheon Airport. Korean nationals cannot sit in those games, which is why Korea's own leading players tend to be dual nationals or overseas residents. Kangwon Land's poker room is the domestic option, and 'hold'em pubs' that play for prizes rather than cash have spread through Seoul as a legal grey-area alternative.

Online poker for Korean players

WPT Global lists South Korea among the markets it serves and offers Korean-language support. GGPoker's main site and Natural8 do not accept Korean players. Deposits typically go through e-wallets or crypto because domestic cards are blocked for gambling. Korea taxes prize winnings as other income, and professional players' earnings are assessable.

Korea's players

Calvin Lee of Seoul leads the all-time money list with about $7 million, most of it won at Triton Jeju. Kevin Song, a 1997 WSOP bracelet winner based in California, is second with $5.5 million, and Chang Hwan Lee, who won the $25,000 High Roller at the 2025 WSOP and was runner-up in the $50,000 High Roller in 2026, has $4.6 million from only eleven cashes.