Graeme Siow wins the APT Championships Event; Go Saito runner-up

Congratulations to Singapore’s Graeme Siow! He entered the final 8 round as chip leader, carried it to heads up, and held on to emerge as the newest APT Championships Event winner. Not only was this his first-ever major live victory, it was also his largest live tournament career win worth KRW 84,951,000 (~USD 70,000). 

The Championships Event was the second highlight tournament of APT Korea Incheon 2019 running from August 9 to 13 at Paradise City Casino. In participation were 219 runners each one contributing the KRW 1,980,000 (~USD 1,700) entry fee to amass a series record prize pool of KRW 382,374,000 (~USD 314,700). Only the top 22 spots earned a share with the final 8 payouts claimed today.  

Full APT Korea Incheon 2019 results

Final 8 payouts

1st Graeme Siow – Singapore – KRW 84,951,000 (deal made)
2nd Go Saito – Japan – KRW 73,519,000 (deal made)
3rd Li-ta Hsu – Chinese Taipei – KRW 44,067,000
4th Louis Bilodeau – Canada – KRW 31,828,000
5th Vincent Kwun Ngai Li – Hong Kong SAR – KRW 23,803,000
6th Chi Chung Ho – Hong Kong SAR – KRW 18,371,000
7th Kiichi Ogura – Japan – KRW 14,588,000
8th Chi Wai Law – Hong Kong SAR – KRW 11,885,000 

Final day recap

The final day saw the return of the last 8 players with Graeme Siow heralding in the pack. 

Falling first was Chi Wai Law (8th) who couldn’t do much with his short stack of just 6 bbs. Still, it was an impressive run for Law cashing in KRW 11,885,000 (~USD 9,800). Japan’s Kiichi Ogura (7th) dropped out next and pocketed KRW 14,588,000 (~USD 12,000). For both of these players, it was their first APT cash and largest live tournament score. 

For Chi Chung Ho, he improved on his previous APT Championships Event 12th  place result from January at APT Kickoff Vietnam. His 6th place finish today also earned him his largest live tournament career payout of KRW 18,371,000 (~USD 15,200). 

Down to five players, each one a seasoned player. Vincent Kwun Ngai Li took 5th adding KRW 23,803,000 (~USD 19,500) to his previous cash payout of KRW 26,722,000 which he earned at the Super High Rollers event for finishing runner-up. In total, Li banked a pocketful KRW 50,525,000 (~USD 41,000) at the series.

Canada’s Louis Bilodeau entered the day in a very strong second position and walked out in a respectable 4th place. He too collected his largest live tournament career score worth KRW 31,828,000 (~USD 26,300). He also ran well at the WeLoveSport Turbo event finishing in 2nd place. 

Settling for 3rd place was Chinese Taipei’s Li-ta Hsu for a payday worth KRW 44,067,000 (~USD 36,400). This was his deepest run at an APT major tournament. Out of all the players at the festival, Hsu was undeniably the player on fire. In addition to this event, he cashed in four other events to earn him the APT Player of the Series title. 

This brought about the heads up round between Graeme Siow and Japan’s Go Saito. Saito was the only player of the final 8 seeking his second major APT title. Saito championed the APT Korea Seoul Main Event two months ago. 

Both players struck an ICM deal that guaranteed Siow KRW 83,951,000 and Saito KRW 73,519,000, and KRW 10,000,000 set aside for the eventual champion.  

Despite Saito having a title under his belt, he couldn’t close it out. Siow went on to victory and became the second player from Singapore to lift this prestigious title. He was also the only player to reach the final table of both APT featured events in this series, improving on his 6th place finish at the Main Event. In addition to the cash, he was awarded the APT Championships Event Trophy and the APT Championship Ring. Siow also earned enough points to catapult him to 2nd place in the APT Player of the Series race. 

Day 3 recap and Final 8 players

Day 2 recap