The 2024 APPT Manila has come and gone with thirteen days of thrilling poker action witnessed at Southeast Asia’s grandest venue, Cove Manila at Okada Manila. Running from July 24 to August 5, the PokerStars premier tour in Asia was the richest in its 15 year run, paying out PHP 318.655 Million, equivalent to well over $5.5 Million, across 56 trophy events. Scroll down for the numbers and highlights including the festival’s biggest winners.
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Up next for the Asia Pacific Poker Tour is the first-ever APPT Manila Championship 2024 taking place October 18 to 27, 2024 at the newly renovated Coral Lounge in Okada Manila. The upcoming festival guarantees over $2.5 Million with the Main Event once again featuring PHP 55,000,000. The APPT Manila Championship event schedule is as follows:
- Okada Kick off: October 18-19 – ₱25,000 (₱10 million GTD)
- APPT Open Championship: October 19-23 – ₱90,000 (₱30 million GTD)
- APPT National Championship: October 21-24 – ₱60,000 (₱15 million GTD)
- APPT Super High Roller Championship: October 22-23 – ₱700,000
- APPT Main Event Championship: October 23- 27 – ₱165,000 (₱55 million GTD)
- APPT Mystery Bounty Championship: October 25-27 – ₱50,000 (₱10 million GTD)
- APPT One Million Challenge Championship: October 26 – ₱1,000,000
- APPT High Roller Championship: October 26 – 27 ₱300,000 (₱10 million GTD)
2024 APPT Manila Festival Results
Date: July 24 to August 5, 2024
Venue: Cove Manila at Okada Manila
Trophy Events: 56
Prize pool: PHP 318,655,754 (~USD 5,535,150)
Record Main Event Prize Pool: PHP 91,071,360 (~USD 1,575,790)
Main Event Champion: Xiong Cheng – PHP 15,000,000 (~USD 259,265)
PokerStars Red Dragon Champion: Lester Edoc – PHP 3,375,000 (~USD 65,190)
Biggest Bounty: Redentor Edoc – PHP 1,300,000 (~USD 22,700)
Most Cashes: Mike Takayama (8), Liao Po Hsun (7)
Multiple Wins: Boon Seng (2), Marc Rivera (2)
Trophy Wins By Flag: Philippines (14), South Korea (14), Japan (7), India (3), USA (3), Singapore (3), Canada (2), Australia (2)Hong Kong (1), Finland (1), New Zealand (1), UK (1), Malaysia (1), Estonia (1), China (1), Germany (1)
Big Fields And Prize Pools
The 2024 APPT Manila was a fireball of fun from start to finish. Throughout the series, daily events ensured players multiple chances at snatching PokerStars spadies and shard trophies. Listed below were the most popular events of the festival.
Main Event: 1,304 entries, PHP 91,071,360 (~USD 1,553,060)
Mystery Bounty: 459 entries, PHP 15,742,280 (~USD 268,456)
APPT National: 449 entries, PHP 15,679,080 (~USD 267,379)
PokerStars Red Dragon: 365 entries, PHP 25,000,000 (~USD 426,330)
Mini Main Event: 363 entries, PHP 9,506,970 (~USD 162,125)
APPT Turbo: 334 entries, PHP 7,127,560 (~USD 121,548)
Super Deep: 333 entries, PHP 4,263,732 (~USD 72,710)
Okada Kickoff: 327 entries, PHP 4,605,599 (~USD 78,540)
Super Knockout: 268 entries, PHP 4,575,296 (~USD 78,023)
Double Stack: 254 entries, PHP 3,252,216 (~USD 55,461)
Deepstack: 227 entries, PHP 1,920,600 (~USD 32,752)
Six Handed: 196 entries, PHP 2,509,584 (~USD 42,796)
2024 APPT Manila Highlights
At the top of the highlights is the appearance of billiards GOAT, Efren “Bata” Reyes. Known worldwide as “The Magician”, players were able to meet the legend, and for some, even have the chance to play alongside him at Charity Event and at the Main Event.
Record Breaking APPT Manila Main Event
The 2024 APPT Manila set an ambitious one million USD Main Event guarantee and more than achieved it with 1,304 entries ponying up the PHP 80,000 (~USD 1,300) buy in for a tour record prize pool of PHP 91,071,360 (~USD 1,575,790).
The top 191 places earned a piece of the enormous pot with USA’s Xiong Cheng earning PHP 15,000,000 (~USD 259,265), the largest prize money ever awarded at the APPT.
Lester Edoc Wins PokerStars Red Dragon
After a three year hiatus, the PokerStars Red Dragon trophy found its way back on the awards shelf. Though the beloved freezeout structure was replaced by a re-entry format, it was still one of the most popular events in the lineup with 365 entries and a PHP 25,000,000 (~USD 426,330) prize pool. Filipino Lester Edoc was crowned champion after a three way deal.
PokerStars Red Dragon – LIVE UPDATES
Mike Takayama With Most Cashes
Mike Takayama may not have walked away with coveted merch but he did top the charts in the most cashes. The highly decorated Filipino ace was certainly on fire at the series, cashing in eight events, finishing 2nd at four of those events. Takayama walked away with a combined payout of PHP 12,884,000 (~USD 224,880).
APPT Main Event – 18th place
Okada Kickoff – 6th place
APPT Open – 5th place
APPT National – 13th place
PS Red Dragon – 2nd place
NLH – 2nd place
APPT Super High Roller – 2nd place
APPT One Million Challenge – 2nd place
Taiwan’s Liao Po Hsun nearly matched Takayama with cashes in seven events that included two final tables. Liao’s largest score was at the APPT High Roller, finishing 6th for PHP 1,130,000 (~USD 19,609).
Aldous Formanes Victory Debut At PokerStars Player Special Event
Filipino online player Aldous Formanes was a new face in the live tournament scene, APPT being his first LIVE venture. Formanes proved he could rough it up with the rest after winning the PokerStars Player Special Event. Practically a freeroll with entry to this event only costing PHP 100 (~USD 1.75), Formanes won PHP 52,000 (~USD 890) plus a seat to the Main Event.
Immediately following his victory, Formanes entered Main Event Day 1A and bagged the largest stack that held to enter Day 2 as the overall chip leader. Formanes proceeded to finish in 38th place for a payout of PHP 305,000 (~USD 5,230). In total, Formanes walked away profitable, taking home a combined PHP 357,000 for his debut live appearance.
Redentor Edoc Draws The Largest Bounty, Darius Nass Debut Victory
Amid an excited rail, Filipino Redentor Edoc came out the luckiest after pulling the largest bounty prize of PHP 1,300,000 (~USD 22,690) at the Mystery Bounty event. This was nearly five times more than his 7th place payout of PHP 270,000. Edoc also drew the PHP 600,000 bounty making for a very profitable day.
The Mystery Bounty event drew 459 entries, making it the most popular side event of the series. This sent the PHP 5 Million guaranteed prize pool soaring to PHP 15,742,280 (~USD 268,456). Germany’s Darius Nass locked up the win for his first ever recorded live title. He pocketed a cool PHP 1,565,000 (~USD 27,160) plus bounties rewards.
Patrick Crivell Wins APPT High Roller
On the final day of the festival, with nearly all of the poker tables broken down, Canada’s Patrick Crivell was crushing the heads up action against Vietnam’s Trung Quan Nguyen to clinch the APPT High Roller title. Crivell shipped the PHP 5,203,950 (~USD 90,300) top prize and his first ever APPT shard trophy. With no prior wins on record, this was not only his first but also Crivell’s largest career takedown.
The APPT High Roller drew 81 entries for a prize pool of PHP 18, 463,950 (~USD 319,140). Read up on the two-day action via the APPT High Roller – LIVE UPDATES.
Sunghak Lee crowned champion at Mini Main Event
Another event wrapping up late was the highly popular Mini Main Event that drew a roaring 363 entries to crush the advertised PHP 2M guarantee for a sweeter PHP 9,506,970 (~USD 162,125) prize pool. This was the largest unphased tournament of the series.
The final three players opted to split the money down the middle. Korea’s Sunghak Lee was crowned champion. Lee, Jester Intia, and Edgar Asehan each pocketed PHP 1,284,323 (~USD 22,400).
Boon Seng and Marc Rivera Win Two Each
While Mike Takayama nearly walked away with four titles, Boon Seng, and Marc Rivera impressed by taking down two events each. Boon Seng triumphed two Pot Limit Omaha events – PLO and PLO Turbo – for a combined payout of PHP 665,888 (~USD 11,620). Boon Seng also cashed small at three other events to add PHP 168,000 (~USD 2,930) to his winnings.
Similarly, for the Philippines leading player, Marc Rivera, he won two Mix NLH-PLO Turbo events for a combined payout of PHP 1,158,956 (~USD 20,230). Rivera also cashed at four other events for an additional PHP 3,529,000 (~USD 61,600). His best score was at the APPT Super High Roller where he placed 3rd for PHP 2,771,000 (~USD 48,365).
Read up on the APPT Super High Roller – LIVE UPDATES
Philippines and South Korea Top Trophy Tally
Out of the 56 trophies on the mantle, the Philippines and South Korea cleared out half with each one lifting an impressive 14 trophies each.
Philippine Winners
Martin Astorga – Event 7: Deepstack
Florencio Campomanes – APPT Open
James Mendoza – Event 9: Megastack High Roller
Arjay Tolentino – Event 10: Knockout
Jeffrey Pardales – Event 14: Megastack
Emmanuel Segismundo – Event 19: Knockout
Vivencio Nachor – APPT National
Lester Edoc – PokerStars Red Dragon
Johnson Tan – APPT Turbo
Aldous Formanes – PokerStars Player Special
Vamerdino Magsakay – APPT One Million Challenge
Rene Mar David – Event 59: NLH 20,15/10
Marc Rivera – Event 65: Mix NLH/PLO – Turbo
Marc Rivera – Event 75: Mix NLH/PLO – Turbo
South Korean Winners
Kyung Ho Moon – Event 1: Early Bird
Kihyung Kim – Event 6: Hyper Turbo
Heo Jeongwoo – Event 15: Knockout Challenge
Jaemoon Seok – Event 25: NLH
Youngbae Kim – Event 26: PLO High Roller
Poong Kihyun – Event 44: Six Handed Shot Clock
Hyung Chul Hyun – Event 54: NLH 15.10,5
Hyunkoog Koo – Event 56: Double Stack
Seong Il Hwang – Event 60: Hot Hyper Turbo
Seonghun Park – Event 61: Showtime Hold’em
Seokchul Hwang – Event 64: Shot Clock
Jaeseok Jeon – Event 66: 6+ Hold’em Turbo
Sunghak Lee – Event 73: Mini Main Event
Wonchul Bae – Event 74: Last Chance – High Roller Turbo
That concludes the 2024 APPT Manila held at Cove Manila at Okada Manila in the Philippines. For more info on the event, head to the links provided.
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Tricia David
Tricia David has long experience as a recreational poker player and has been covering poker events since 2010 for numerous outfits in Asia. She spent one year working part time with Poker Portal Asia then became editor and lead writer for all event coverage of the Philippine Poker Tour (PPT). Under the PPT, she overlooked content for their website, and produced live updates on all their events. In addition, she served as the live and online events website content writer for the Asian Poker Tour. Currently, she does live events reporting in Asia for online news site Somuchpoker and is also one of their news contributors.
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