HomeAfter four days of supercharged Main Event action, the newest champion will be crowned with the Final 8 returning today for their most defining duel starting at 130pm. The APT Championships Philippines 2017 saw a record breaking 442 entries for the Main Event at Resorts World Manila. The prize pool grew to a roaring USD 428,740 with the eventual winner claiming the USD 105,530 first place purse, the championship trophy, and the APT Championship Ring.
Final 8 of the Main Event
Japan’s Asakura Yasuyuki enters as the chip leader with 2,140,000 in chips. Yasuyuki has been at the top of the charts since the starting day finishing second in Day 1B, second again at the end of Day 2, then climbed into the chip leader’s seat early in Day 3 and never relinquished it.
Filipino Mike Takayama comes in second in command with 1,990,000 in chips. Takayama is a highly decorated pro; his victories include an APT Main Event title having won it back in September 2014 at the APT Asian Series Manila. Last night, Takayama had an impressive comeback from five big blinds to where he is entering today.
Japan’s Akashi Kosaku takes third position with 1,870,000 in chips. He eliminated Linh Tran from the running then amassed a fortress of chips with pocket aces over pocket kings. Singapore’s Keith Seah is next in line. He entered Day 3 with a very short stack, just twelve times the big blind, but managed to claw his way up, even dodging a possible fall on the bubble position. He enters the Final 8 with 1,290,000 in chips.
Heading the bottom half of the chip count is Korea’s SJ Kim with 1,165,000 in chips. Kim was the chip leader entering Day 3 and stayed well up in the ranking, never in any danger of losing his stack. Like Takayama, Kim is a highly decorated player with an APT Main Event title under his belt earned at the APT Finale Macau in December 2016.
The next three players are from the host country. William Te enters with 1,065,000 in chips. Te had a turnaround moment, tripling up his short stack to eventually eliminating several players to secure his Final 8 seat. Noel Araniel enters with 830,000 in chips. Araniel saw his stack swing up and down in Day 3 but always kept it out of major trouble. And rounding the Final 8 is Anton Del Rosario who had several tough challenges towards the end of Day 3 but managed to stay in contention with 695,000 today to back him up.
Good luck to the Final 8 players! Cards will be in the air at 130pm. You can watch all the Final 8 action streamed live in the APT Twitch channel and the APT YouTube channel. There will be a 30 minute delay.
APT Championships Philippines Day 1A underway at 1pm
Get ready for the last major tournament of the festival, the APT Championships 2017! There are two entry days to this highlight event with Day 1A kicking off at 1pm today. This is a scheduled five day tournament with the Final 8 on the last day of the festival, Sunday, May 7th. Buy-in is USD 2,200. Here are the details:
Starting stack: 50,000 (250x starting big blind)
Blind levels: increases every 60 minutes
Scheduled play: eight levels for Day 1A, Day 1B, and Day 2
Late registration/re-entries: closes at the start of round 7
Just like the main, early birds will be eligible for bubble protection. Make sure to pre-register, pay, be at your seat and have your chips in play by the first deal of round 1. Players who avail of the bubble protection will be insured in the event he/she falls as the bubble. That player will receive a consolation prize of APT credits equal to the value of this event.
High Rollers resumes with 18 players remaining
The USD 3,300 buy-in High Rollers event attracted a field of 56 entries for a prize pool of USD 162,960. The event wrapped up with 18 players remaining. They will return today for the race to the finish with the eventual winner due to ship in USD 53,780. Cards in the air at 3pm.
Click here for the full event schedule.