APL MAIN EVENT (26,000 TWD)

All six qualifiers for the APL Taipei Main Event have wrapped up with the final flight seeing another 31 players out of its 205-entry field advancing through. Today marked the last opportunity to jump in on the action, which set a new APL country record at a massive 1,178 total entries, nearly doubling its previous showing. Of those, 177 players are secured a paycheck off the NT$ 26,462,592 (~US$ 895,830) prize pool in tomorrow's battle.

Leading the Day 1F pack is South Korea’s Chong Un Kim, who bagged the biggest stack of the night at 808,000 (67 BB). Kim now joins the upper ranks of the leaderboard, well positioned for a deep run in this season’s Main Event games. Joining him at the top of the list are fellow countrymen Ha Seong Min with 659,000 (55 BB), and Jeong In Jae with 621,000 (52 BB).

All Day 1 survivors will converge for Day 2 tomorrow, which kicks off at 11:00 a.m. sharp. Stay tuned as SMP brings you all the live updates, chip counts, and can’t-miss moments straight from the tournament floor!

APL Taipei Main Event

Date/s: June 11-16, 2025

Buy-in: NT$ 26,000 (~US$ 865)

Guarantee: NT$ 21,000,000 (~US$ 700,800)

Entries: 1,178

Prize pool: NT$ 26,462,592 (~US$ 895,830)

ITM: 177 places

Day 1A: 132 entries, 20 qualified

Day 1B: 78 entries, 12 qualified

Day 1C: 223 entries, 33 qualified

Day 1D: 131 entries, 20 qualified

Day 1E: 409 entries, 61 qualified

Day 1F: 205 entries, 31 qualified

Day 2: June 14, 2025

Day 3: June 15, 2025

Final Table: June 16, 2025

Less than eight hours before Day 2 kicks off, the bubble officially burst in the final flight, with Kei Shinagawa falling as the last unfortunate bust.

After action folded to him on the hijack, Shinagawa moved all-in for his last 13,000. The player next to act called but quickly got out of the way when Suya Lee bumped it up to 60,000.

Shinagawa found himself in rough shape and couldn’t survive as the board A♥ J♠ 6♥ 8♣ 9♠ gave Lee two pair, sealing the elimination and wrapping up the day's games.

Bubble time has arrived, with the tournament now shifting into hand-for-hand play. Only 31 players will advance to the next stage, meaning just three more eliminations separates the field from securing a spot in Day 2 of the Main Event.

Yu Hsiu Juan went with A♠ J♠ for his last 45,000 and was called by Zong Chi He on the small blind with a dominated ace A♦ 8♦ .

Poised for a double up, Juan instead bid his Main Event dreams goodbye as the board K♣ 8♣ 6♣ 2♠ K♠ landed Zong two pair to snag the win.

Action was caught on turn K♥ J♣ 3♠ 4♥ with a burly 120,000 pot already stacked up in the center. Chong Un Kim led out a 40,000 bet on the big blind, and followed with an all-in on river Q♦ . Guan Lun Chen called the turn bet, but tank folded the final barrel, opting to preserve his remaining 9 big blinds.

Hon Wai Wong flicked in his last 35,000 and was looked up by Jaegeol Cho on the small blind.

A 50-50 spot, Cho's overcards took the cake, having flopped top pair on board A♦ 8♠ 3♦ K♣ 5♣ , eliminating Wong from the running.

Sunghak Lee stuffed his last 85,000 on the cutoff in response to an utg open and was followed with another shove from Chi Ting Chieh a seat after. Initial raiser opted out, leaving the two to showdown.

Lee at risk, was glad to see a jack-high flop run on board J♥ 2♣ 6♥ 3♥ K♣ , landing him the advantage straight away.

Jeong In Jae fired a 60,000 three bet against an early open and was priced in to call Shuo Mai Cheng's 100,000 all-in two seats over.

The two went heads up to a board of 3♥ 6♣ 4♦ 3♠ 8♦ , where Cheng's pocket pair held up with no overcards in sight, securing him the double and keeping his Main Event hopes alive.

The money bubble is looming with only seven more eliminations to go before this evening's Day 1F flight comes to a close. Only 31 players out of the 205-entry field are geared to advance to Day 2, all in for a share of the eight-figure NTD prize pool.

Third to act, Chong Un Kim opened to 20,000 and quickly called Erwin Ng’s 88,000 shove from behind, putting the latter at risk for his tournament life.

A classic coin flip, Kim’s pocket pair held firm on board 7♦ K♦ 9♦ 9♥ 4♠ , eliminating Ng in the process.

That’s it for this season’s APL Main Event! After a four-year break, APL stormed back into Taipei and made a massive statement. The final flight on the schedule drew 205 more entries, capping the event with a staggering 1,178 total entries, nearly double the turnout from its previous edition.

Just 31 players are due to make the cut from the last-chance flight, joining 146 others in the Day 2 lineup as the race for the title continues!

APL Taipei Main Event

Date/s: June 11-16, 2025

Buy-in: NT$ 26,000 (~US$ 865)

Guarantee: NT$ 21,000,000 (~US$ 700,800)

Entries: 1,178

Prize pool: TBD

ITM: 177 places

Day 1A: 132 entries, 20 qualified

Day 1B: 78 entries, 12 qualified

Day 1C: 223 entries, 33 qualified

Day 1D: 131 entries, 20 qualified

Day 1E: 409 entries, 61 qualified

Day 1F: 205 entries, 31 ITM

Day 2: June 14, 2025

Day 3: June 15, 2025

Final Table: June 16, 2025

It’s now or never for players hoping to join the APL Taipei Main Event action, with Day 1F being the final flight on the schedule. After four exciting qualifiers, this is the last shot to lock up a seat for Day 2 and grab a piece of that massive NT$ 21,000,000 (~US$ 700,800) prize pool. Whether you're firing your first bullet or coming back for another try, today’s the day to make it count!

Blind levels continue to shift in structure, starting with 20-minute intervals for the first four levels, increasing to 25 minutes for the next three, and then extending to 30 minutes for the following four. After registration closes, levels revert to 25-minute durations and remain that way through Level 20.

Each NT$ 26,000 (~US$ 865) entry buys players a starting stack of 40,000 chips - equivalent to 200x the opening blinds. Ample room for play is set on the course with the day due to wrap up once only 15% of the field remains.

Action kicks off at 6:00 p.m, and players eyeing a shot at Main Event glory will have until just before the start of Level 12: 1,000/2,000, ante 2,000 to register. Stay locked in as SMP brings you all the live updates, chip counts, and can’t-miss moments straight from the tournament floor!

APL Taipei Main Event

Date/s: June 11-16, 2025

Buy-in: NT$ 26,000 (~US$ 865)

Guarantee: NT$ 21,000,000 (~US$ 700,800)

Day 1A: 132 entries, 20 qualified

Day 1B: 78 entries, 12 qualified

Day 1C: 223 entries, 33 qualified

Day 1D: 131 entries, 20 qualified

Day 1E: June 13, 2025

Day 1F: June 13, 2025

Day 2: June 14, 2025

Day 3: June 15, 2025

Final Table: June 16, 2025