Considering live poker took a step back last year amid the pandemic, recent events suggest that the increasingly popular sport is making a stronger recovery than anyone could expect. Having just concluded its four tournament lineup, Asia Poker League’s South Korea series was met with such a great turnout by its local market that it booked its largest field to date held in the country.
The fourth APL South Korea festival closed in on a total of KRW 930,000,000 in awarded prizes with Main Event winner Byeol Ram Yu claiming the largest payout of all. Other champions include Event #2 SuperDeepstack winner Tae Ho Lee, Event #3 Championship winner Seong Hyeon Lee, and Event #4 No Limit Hold’em Turbo winner Dae Ghun Son, who all bagged notable profits at the final games in Welli Healy Park Resort.
APL South Korea Main Event: Byeol Ram Yu – KRW 154,000,000 ($129,940)
Multiple starting flights for the Main Event kicked off as early as July 3rd to cap off a total of 1,435 entries attempting to make it through the final day. The massive KRW 700,000,000 ($589,349) guaranteed prize pool attracted a huge field with only the top 150 players seeing a minimum payout of KRW 910,000 ($771). With 248 players qualifying for Day 2, that meant a portion of the player pool would remain to go home empty-handed. It took nearly eleven hours of play before the day wrapped up with the final three tables heading into Day 3.
Back for another battle on September 26th, 24 players cut down to the final nine after four hours of hitting the felt. South Korea’s Jaemin Choi was the first casualty of the final table, receiving the guaranteed KRW 8,750,000 ($7,476) for making it through the last leg of the tournament. With one after the other following suit, in the end it was between Heesik Shin and Byeolram Yu fighting to seal the deal.
Heads up play began with both players roughly even in chips and Shin asking for numbers considering the KRW 63,000,000 (~$52,275) pay jump from runner-up to 1st. Despite the hefty difference, Yu decided against a deal and clearly made a point that he was here to play. Fortunately for him, the decision paid off with the final hand coming up not long after. As all chips went in the middle, Yu’s pocket Three’s was up against Shin’s pocket Seven’s giving Shin great odds to capture the APL Main Event trophy. However with luck on Yu’s side, his much needed two-outer came on the turn to secure him the top payout of KRW 154,000,000 ($129,940) while leaving opponent Shin to fight another day.
Buy-in: KRW 700,000 (~$585)
Date: September 24-26, 2021
GTD: KRW 700,000,000 ($589,349)
Entries: 1,435
Prize pool: KRW 700,000,000 ($589,349)
ITM: 150 places
2021 APL South Korea Main Event Final Table Results
1st Byeolram Yu – South Korea – KRW 154,000,000
2nd Heesik Shin – South Korea – KRW 91,000,000
3rd Jiyoung Lim – South Korea – KRW 58,100,000
4th Youngjoon Jang – South Korea – KRW 44,100,000
5th Kyosung Yoon – South Korea – KRW 37,100,000
6th Sangjun Jeong – South Korea – KRW 26,600,000
7th HyunChul Kang – South Korea – KRW 19,600,000
8th Sunho Kwak – South Korea – KRW 12,600,000
9th Jaemin Choi – South Korea – KRW 8,750,000
Other Events
Event #2: SuperDeepstack
Buy-in: KRW 600,000 (~$500)
Date: September 25-26, 2021
GTD: KRW 100,000,000 ($84,801)
Entries: 200
Prize pool: KRW 100,000,000 ($84,801)
ITM: 20 places
Winner: Tae Ho Lee – South Korea – KRW 27,000,000 ($23,000)
Event #3: Championship
Buy-in: KRW 1,400,000 (~$1,170)
Date: September 25-26, 2021
GTD: KRW 100,000,000 ($84,801)
Entries: 90
Prize pool: KRW 100,000,000 ($84,801)
ITM: 10 places
Winner: Seong Hyeon Lee – South Korea – KRW 25,000,000 ($21,000)*
*Denotes deal was made
Event #4: No Limit Hold’em Turbo
Buy-in: KRW 300,000 (~$250)
Date: September 25-26, 2021
GTD: KRW 30,000,000 ($25,440)
Entries: 130
Prize pool: KRW 30,000,000 ($25,440)
ITM: 15 places
Winner: Dae Ghun Son – South Korea – KRW 8,400,000 ($7,100)
