Final Eight Players of the APT Experience Manila with Linh Tran as the chip leader

The Main Event of the Asian Poker Tour Experience Manila 2016 at the Waterfront Manila Pavilion Hotel and Casino in Manila, Philippines concluded last night with the final table of eight decided. Among them were decorated players along with some APT regulars and newbies at the final table.

APT Experience Final 8

Here is a look at the Final 8 players:

Linh Tran – 548,000 chips

Vietnamese player Linh Tran leads the final eight of the Main Event with 548k chips. Tran already has one APT Main Event title under his belt having won at the APT Asian Series Cambodia in 2014. Tran also has a side event trophy at the ongoing festival having won the Head Hunter event on Monday. Tran kicked off his calendar year with a good start claiming a victory at the WPTN Philippines High Roller event and a couple of deep finishes at the 2016 Aussie Millions.

Gyeong Byeong Lee  – 42,000 chips

Korea’s Gyeong Byeong Lee takes the second spot in the chip rung, trailing very close to the leader with 542k chips. Lee finished as the chip leader at Day 1a of the festival’s Main Event and continued to dominate the felt at Day 3. This will be Lee’s first appearance at an APT Main Event final table.

Christopher Mateo  – 442,000 chips

Filipino player Christopher Mateo enters the final table running third in chips. Mateo is an APT regular with two APT side event trophies claimed at previous festivals. His biggest win was at the PokerStars Live Manila Megastack 5 Kickoff event earlier this month. As he is the only Filipino remaining, he will surely be the locals crowd favorite.

Gabriel Carter – 325,000 chips

Entering the final table in fourth position is UK’s Gabriel Carter with 325k chips. Carter entered the APT scene last month where he cashed in two of the events however this will be his first appearance at an APT final table. Most of Carter’s poker earnings-to-date are from previous years at his homeland. Carter has already posted a nice payout at the APT Experience Manila 2016 with a fourth place finish at the No Limit Hold ‘em 1 Day event.

Tomoyasu Arai – 213,000 chips

Japan’s Tomoyasu Arai is another new player at the APT Main Event final table. Not much is known of Arai however he ended Day 1b as one of the leaders and then at yesterday’s round, he scalped one of his own country mates to put him in fifth position with 213k chips.

Seung Soo Jeon  – 179,000 chips

Entering the final eight with 179k chips is Korea’s Seung Soo Jeon. Jeon is going for his third APT Main Event title having won his first one at the APT Asian Series Cebu 2013 and his second one at the APT Philippines 2016 last month (his biggest payout to-date). Jeon has been playing the APT circuit for quite some time and has consistently cashed at almost every festival. At the ongoing APT Experience Manila, he has already profited in two events and is looking to make an even bigger scoop at the Main Event. Out of all the players at the final table, Jeon clearly has had the most experience at the APT final table and his two-time success is nothing short of impressive.

Jae Chul Chang  – 149,000 chips

Korea’s Jae Chul Chang is another APT regular and will be entering the final table for his second appearance. Chang fell one spot shy of the Main Event title at the APT Asian Series Cambodia 2014. He has also cashed in quite a number of events this year with a recent victory at the PokerStars Live Manila Anniversary Special No Limit Hold’em Megastack side event. Chang is looking to get past that runner up hump and claim his first-ever APT Main Event championship trophy. Jeon is currently 9^th in the APT Player of the Year leader board.

Michael Kim Falcon  – 131,000 chips

Denmark’s Michael Kim Falcon brings up the rear of the chip rung with 131k chips. Falcon is an APT circuit regular who came close to a Main Event victory at the APT Cebu 2016 in February ending in third place. Falcon has been posting some good stats so far at the APT this year, and earned a big win at the APT Philippines High Roller event last month. He is currently running 11^th in the APT POY leader board.

The final table will resume at 1:30pm Philippine time. They will be battling it out for the first place money of P1,574,000. We will return with a recap story on the winner of the Main Event.

Main Event Payouts (9^th-18^th)

9^th Jun Saito; Japan; P188,000

10^th Sung Ho Kim; Korea ; P160,000

11^th John Tech; Philippines; P151,000

12^th Lim Yo Hwan; Korea; P151,000

13^th Jun Funabashi; Japan; P129,000

14^th John Beveridge ; Canada; P129,000

15^th Junya Nagano; Japan; P129,000

16th John Kim ; Korea; P114,000

17^th Mitsuru Sano ; Japan; P114,000`

18^th Nilo Heinikangas  Finland – P114,000