Mission accomplished. Korean ex-Starcraft gamer Lim Yohwan set out to win a poker major and he did just that at the recently concluded APT Philippines Championships this past weekend. Yohwan aka Boxer by his fans, crushed the 174-entry field of the Championships Event and lifted his first-ever championship title along with the PHP 2,819,900 (~US$51,900) first prize money.
A few months back at an Asian Poker Tour event, we chanced upon Lim Yohwan for a short interview where he told us of his goal to win a Main Event trophy. Having gotten agonizingly close in July 2016, finishing one spot shy of the glory at the APT Asian Series Experience, Lim Yohwan’s continuing drive has partially been motivated by the poker situation he hopes to change back in Korea. Currently, Koreans are not allowed to enter casinos where poker tournaments are held.
More: A conversation with Lim Yo-hwan, aka boxeR
With a large fan base glued to his every move, and this victory beyond impressive, Lim Yohwan may now have a much better chance of getting heard. He closed out every stage of the tournament at the top. First, he bagged up the overall largest stack of the combined starting days; was chip leader at the end of Day 2 with series Main Event champion Lester Edoc as one of his many fallen victims; proceeded to rule Day 3 delivering two monster double knockouts to once again amass a commanding chip lead for the final day with 7 remaining.
Throughout the final day, players attempted but were unable to cause major dents to Lim Yohwan’s massive stack. Instead, players dropped all around him leading to his final hurdle, heads up against Singapore’s Si Yang Phua. Phua held his own, successfully dragging out chips off the leader to bridge their gap slightly however the game was not his for the taking. The final hand arrived with Lim Yohwan holding a winning pocket tens against Phua’s king-queen clubs suited that missed the board completely.
Lim Yohwan pocketed his single largest career payout at the Championships Event. He adds this to his other winnings at the series; 1st at the CoinPoker High Rollers Single Day Shot Clock, 21st at the Main Event, and 54th at the Opener. He was also awarded 2nd place at the APT Player of the Series race. His combined winnings amounted to nearly PHP 4 Million.
Final 7 payouts
1st Lim Yohwan – Korea – PHP 2,819,900 (~US$51,900)
2nd Si Yang Phua – Singapore – PHP 1,879,500
3rd Joshua Chargualaf – Guam – PHP 1,31,200
4th Jae Hyun Lim – Korea – PHP 955,200
5th Steffen Endres – Germany – PHP 721,900
6th Richard Marquez – Philippines – PHP 564,200
7th Masatoshi Tanaka – Japan – PHP 454.400
Lester Edoc wins APT Player of the Series
The APT closes out every series with the awarding of the Player of the Series. Winning it was none other than Filipino pro Lester Edoc. Once again, Edoc matched his performance of the previous series in the Philippines, dominating the charts on home turf. Edoc won the Main Event, making him the first player to win back-to-back APT Philippines Main Event titles, he won the Monster Stack event besting a 125-strong field and defeating Korea’s Soo Jo Kim at heads up, he also placed 20th at the MegaSportsWorld Deep Stack Turbo. This awarded him the APT Player of the Series Cup, an exclusive watch, and US$800. Added to his winnings at the series was a CoinPoker Super High Rollers title and a Main Event seat to APT Vietnam 2018.
Article by Tricia David
Louis Hartwell
Graduated in Media Communication at the University of Lausanne, Louis Hartman is a co-founder of somuchpoker.com. He began his career in Cambodia as freelance journalist. In same time he was making his living by playing poker every night at that time. Intense learner, he read dozens of poker strategy books to improve his skills during many years. With a strong interest about poker "behind the scene" in Asia and his communication skills, Louis launched Somuchpoker in 2014.
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