HomeNext week, Chinese Poker legend Johnny Chan will join the Asian Poker Tour in Macau for the second year running. Chan, holder of 10 World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets, aims not only for a final table showdown with Phil Ivey, who has won eight WSOP bracelets, but to also join forces with other Chinese Poker players in the APT Macau’s Battle of the Nations side event. Chan was recently part of the good-medal winning Team China and the team’s World Team gold medal is now on display at the Poker King Club in Macau.
10-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner Johnny Chan
A legend in the Poker world, Chan’s 10 WSOP bracelets ties him with Doyle Brunson for second on the all-time list, and makes the Chinese-born star among the players to beat when the APT Macau kicks off from Saturday, November 6-14 at the City of Dreams, Macau.
FellowTeam China members expected to join the side events and Main Event include Chau Giang, David Chiu, Derek Cheung and Winfred Yu. Giang is a three-time WSOP bracelet winner and finished 13th in the 1996 WSOP Main Event. Chiu has four WSOP bracelets and has over US$7 million in career earnings. The up-and-coming Cheung is one of the young stars to watch, while Yu returns to the APT in Macau having finished eighth overall in the 2009 APT Macau Main Event.
The growing popularity of Poker has seen Asian and Asian-based players excel in the sport and in 2009, three Hong Kong residents earned their way to the final table of the Main Event. This year, to accommodate the rise of the sport in Macau, an additional Day 1A of the Main Event has been added for Sunday, November 7 (Day 1B is on November 10 and Day 1C is on November 11), providing players who have weekday work commitments the opportunity to play.
In addition to the Main Event, the APT in Macau will also include a host of popular side events, such as the Battle of the Nations on Friday, November 12. At this year’s inaugural World Team Poker tournament, Chan, Giang, Chiu and Yu were all members of the US$300,000 winning team, beating teams from Brazil, Australia and the United States among others.
The City of Dreams became the ideal venue for the event after the opening of the Hard Rock Poker Lounge in June this year. The venue is already raising the profile of Poker in Macau, and provides a sophisticated-yet-fun environment designed with players’ comfort in mind to attract the world’s top Poker players as well as play host to a wide variety of functions.
City of Dreams, in collaboration with the APT, will host the Asian Poker Tour in Macau from Saturday, November 6 to Sunday, November 14, 2010. Visit the Asian Poker Tour Macau 2010 page for the complete tournament schedule and details.