APT Main Event (36,000,000 VND)

Jinlong Hu of China emerged victorious in the VND 36,000,000 APT Phu Quoc Main Event, taking home VND 4,710,000,000 ($185,430). He outlasted a field of 795 entries (400 unique), dominating the heads-up match against South Korea’s Junseok Oh. With a 5:1 chip lead, Hu quickly sealed the win, while Oh earned VND 2,865,000,000 ($112,795) for his runner-up finish.

With an online bracelet and nearly USD 600,000 in live tournament earnings already to his name, Hu can now add an APT title to his growing list of accomplishments. This win not only secures his second major live tournament victory but also advances him 36 places on the China All-Time Money List, landing him at #59.

APT Host Greg Liow had a chance to speak to Hu, via the aid of a translator, after his momentous victory:

I think the biggest challenge for me is that in my previous two main event final tables, I finished at ninth and eighth, and both performances were poor. So, this time, I obviously hope to break through and challenge myself to win the championship.

I think there are two key moments for me. The first was when I made a re-jam with 10-8 suited from the big blind. There was an Indian player who opened, and I re-jammed. He snap-called with ace-king. But this hand with 10-8 suited, I had pushed it three times before, and each time I won it at the final table. So, I was confident this time as well, and I ended up winning with two pairs.

The second key moment was when my biggest competitor, David, and I both had strong hands. I opened with ace-queen suited, and he re-jammed. We were heads-up, and I called, and I won. After I won that hand, I felt that I was definitely going to win because I had a huge chip advantage, and my toughest competitor was out.

I think, firstly, the Golden Lion trophy is one of the best-looking trophies I’ve ever seen, second only to the WSOP gold bracelet. Secondly, because APT is the Asia Poker Tour, it represents the highest level of poker competition in Asia, so it holds a very special meaning for me.

Final Table Action

In just five hands, Pham Ngoc Bao from Vietnam saw himself walking towards the payout counter when his ace-jack offsuit bumped into the champion’s ace-queen suited which turned a two-pair eliminating Bao so early in the day. Bao went home with a significant ninth place cash prize of VND 352,000,000 (~$13,860).

Despite having doubled up twice, China’s Chuhao Zhang found himself in a pinch when he tried to steal the blinds on the button by jamming with ace-eight offsuit, only to be called by Vietnam’s Do Tien Vu, who won with ace-ten high. Instead of the blinds, however, Zhang was able to snatch a well-deserved reward of VND 445,000,000 (~$17,520) for finishing eighth.

Another finalist who attempted to stay in the game through several double-ups was India’s Deepankur Gupta. In a pivotal hand for the champion, Gupta went all-in with ace-king, hoping for another double-up against Hu’s ten-eight suited. Although Gupta was ahead until the flop, fortune turned against him when Hu hit a pair on the turn, eliminating him from the tournament in seventh place. Gupta walked away with VND 642,500,000 (~$25,295).

Haozhao Wang from China, struggling after being blinded out due to a lack of playable cards, was forced to shove all-in for his tournament life with jack-six offsuit. The action unfolded in a battle of the blinds against Vu, who called with king-ten offsuit. Vu paired his king on the turn, sealing Wang's fate and sending him to the payout counter to collect his sixth place prize of VND 902,500,000 (~$35,530).

David Erquiaga from the Philippines, who entered the final table as the chip leader, lost a crucial hand that shifted the chip lead to Hu. From there, a series of unfortunate exchanges followed, culminating in Erquiaga shoving all-in with pocket deuces against Hu’s ace-queen suited. Hu paired his queen on the flop, sealing Erquiaga’s fate. Erquiaga exited in fifth place, taking home VND 1,202,500,000 (~$47,340) to some time in the sun and beach.

Australia’s Minh Truong Trang defended his blind by shoving all-in with king-nine offsuit in response to Hu’s aggression. After a brief tank, Hu called with ace-eight suited and caught two-pair on the flop, making Trang another of his eliminations and widening the gap between Hu and the remaining two players. Trang exited the tournament in fourth place, earning VND 1,525,000,000 (~$60,040).

Down to three players, Hu’s lead was double the combined stack of Vu and Oh. With that ratio, it wasn’t that long before Vu became the next casualty in Hu’s felting spree.

Hu, holding queen-eight offsuit, strategically trapped Vu into believing he had a weak hand, despite hitting two-pair on the flop. Vu, taking the bait, shoved all-in with jack-ten, hoping to complete his straight draw. Missing his draw entirely, Vu exited in third place with VND 2,025,000,000 (~$79,725).

It’s heads-up! The match lasted just an hour and a half, during which Oh found himself mostly card dead. Unable to find the right spot or hand to shove, he eventually took a stand with eight-six suited against Hu’s king-seven suited. Hu’s hand held up without improvement, securing the win. Despite his elimination, this marked Oh’s biggest career achievement and a significant milestone in his poker journey.

So who won in the end? None other than Hu who took home VND 4,710,000,000 ($185,430) and a very precious APT Lion Trophy . Congratulations to all the players.

Hand #5 Pham Bao, at risk, shoved all-in from the cutoff, prompting Jinlong Hu to ask for a count before making the call.

Pham Bao: A♠ J♦

Jinlong Hu: A♥ Q♥

The flop revealed 2♠ T♥ Q♦ , giving Hu top pair and leaving Bao bracing for the worst. The turn A♣ improved Hu’s hand to two pair, effectively sealing Bao’s fate. With the river 6♥ completing the board, Bao was eliminated from the tournament just five hands into the final day.

Good morning from the tropical paradise of Phu Quoc, Vietnam, where the ocean breeze and the bright sun will share its energy for this historic day in the Asian Poker Tour!

The APT Phu Quoc 2024 Main Event is set to wrap up today at the Corona Resort & Casino and crown a champion with the final table all set to take action. 795 registrants - the largest field in the APT's Phu Quoc-based tourneys - shared a dream to earn a share in the VND 25 billion (~USD 1 million) prize pool. 119 players would be awarded a piece of the prize pool pie with the biggest share of VND 4,710,000,000 (~USD 185,430) and a coveted 24-karat Gold Lion APT Trophy going to the champion.

After several days of competitive tournament poker, only 9 players remain to fight for the top prize. The Philippines' David "Spade" Erquiaga, one of the more renowned poker pros of Asia, sits as the chip leader entering the final table with 5,470,000 chips (109 BB) and looks to be on course for another major title.

South Korea's Junseok Oh comes to the final table with the second largest stack of 5,080,000 chips (102 BB). Oh makes a personal achievement as he makes his first APT final table appearance and his largest APT payout. It could also be his first championship.

China's Jinlong Hu holds the third rank with 4,740.000 chips (95BB). Hu has traveled around the world to pursue his dream of playing poker. Bagging a title in Phu Quoc can add another worthy feather to his global cap of poker achievements.

Vietnam's very own Do Tien Vu has the 4th spot with a stack of 4,630,000 (93BB). Vu recently took down Event 41: Turbo - Double Stack in this APT Phu Quoc series and hopes the win streak will also land him the Main Event title.

Minh Truong Thang of Australia is at the middle of the pack with a fifth-ranked 3,900,000 chips (78 BB) This final table appearance will mark his largest career payout.

India's Deepankur Gupta has the sixth biggest chip count with 3,380,000 chips (68BB). Gupta has had much success in live tournaments and online poker for a combined earnings of over USD 1 Million. A win here will add nicely to his portfolio.

Seventh in the chip count is China's Wang Haozhao with 2,025,000 (41 BB). Haozhao has some small cashes in live tournaments, but this one will be his biggest payday yet.

Second to the bottom is Pham Ngoc Quoc Bao of Vietnam with 1,965,000 chips (39BB). Bao did have a commanding chip lead at one point in the tournament and has the capability to bounce back. Certainly, this final table appearance wil be one of his biggest live earnings.

Chuhao Zhang of China has the shortest stack with 515,000 (10BB) and will have to play well and get lucky to keep in contention for the championship. This will be his first career cash ever.

For a more detailed look into the players, you can check out the profiles of the **APT Phu Quoc Main Event Final Table** players here.

Follow all the drama and the action at the livestream via the official APT Youtube Channel

Live updates will also be given via the APT Blog.

Meanwhile, here is the final table seating and the chip counts:

50 qualifiers of the Day 3 leg of the APT Phu Quoc Main Event returned to the tables today at the Corona Resort & Casino to play down to the last 9 players to comprise the final table for tomorrow's final day.

795 registrants punched their VND 36,000,000 (USD 1,400) buy-ins for a shot to earn a share from the VND 25,000,000,000 (USD 1 Million) guaranteed prize pool. 119 made ITM on Day 2 with all players jockeying for a better spot up the payout ladder until 50 remained.

Today, those 50 went into another intense session of nearly 10 hours of poker action until the final table of 9 was reached.

The elimination of Dongyeol Choi in 10th place officially ended the day with "The Final Table 9" bagging up their chips for tomorrow's final day. All 9 who return will be locked in for a payout of at least VND 352,000,000 (USD 13,860). But, of course, the fight will be for the APT Main Event grand prize of VND 4,710,000,000 (USD 185,430) and the coveted Golden Lion APT Trophy.

Leading the final table with the biggest chip stack is David "Spade" Erquiaga of the Philippines with 5,470,000 chips. Erquiaga earned most his chips by making some key eliminations leading up to the final 9. Erquiaga has won several APT titles and other prestigious hardware to amass a total live earnings of nearly USD 1.8 Million. However, he has yet to win an APT Main Event. Maybe this time's the time.

Junseok Oh of South Korea bagged the second largest count with 5,080,000. Oh earned his way to the second spot by winning huge pots like the straight he had over Jinlong Hu. Oh has capped some nice championships and earned over USD 800,000 from live tournaments, but has yet to bag an APT trophy.

China's Jinlong Hu has the third top-stack with 4,470,000 chips. Hu moved up the ranks when he took all the chips of Kyosuke Nagami . Hu has been traveling around the world to play poker and has won some APT events in the past. Hu's Main Event final table appearance will catapult his earnings to over USD 600,000, and even more if he wins it all.

Some of the Day 3 hopefuls who were considered favorites to make it to the final included the likes of Dylan Foster, who unfortunately ran into a case of bad timing and settled for a 34th place finish.

Kyosuke Nagami of Japan had a great run, even making the day's best hand with a straight flush to make him a chip leader at one point, but was stopped short in 11th place.

David Mann of Canada had some brilliant moments to make a comeback, but ended his run in 17th place.

Day 2 chip leader Xuan Thieu Nghiem of Vietnam didn't find the momentum he had in the previous day and was eventually taken out by Erquiaga at 22nd.

Bracelet holder Motoyoshi Okamura of Japan was a top contender, but had to settle for a 14th place payout.

The APT Main Event Final Table continues tomorrow at 11AM and will play until a Main Event champion raises the APT Golden Lion Trophy. There are strict rules that will prevent any ICM deals, so the action is expected to be very competitive.

Meanwhile, here are the Final Table Chip Counts:

Action folded to the blinds to create a class Battle of The Blinds.

Small blind Pham Ngoc Quoc Bao just completed the blinds when big blind Do Tien Vu raised it to 300,000.

Table chip leader Bao then shoved all-in for 3,900,000, daring Vu to risk his tournament life.

Vu gave it some thought, used some time-bank tokens, convinced himself that unicorns do exist and made the call, risking his last 2,400,000 chips.

Do Tien Vu: A♥ 8♠

Pham Ngoc Quoc Bao: J♣ T♠

The flop came 6♥ 7♠ Q♣ . Both missed, but Vu remained ahead.

The A♠ on the river was a justified reward from the poker gods for the bold big blind stand.

Vu won the Battle of the Blinds in a huge way and jumped to the top of the table chip lead. Bao got completely crippled and put his stack in near-critical condition with the life support machine on standby.

Minh Truong Thang raised to 175,000 from under the gun and found one challenger in Pham Ngoc Quoc Bao on the button, who had pocket threes in his hole.

Both players were presented a flop of 5♥ 9♥ 3♣ , giving Bao a set of threes.

Thang led out with 175,000 and Bao just slyly called.

With a Q♥ on the turn, Thang tapped his option over to Bao, who fired 450,000. Thang thought about it, but counted out the chips to make the call.

The river showed a J♥ . With four hearts on the board, Thang pushed a cool 700,000 to the middle and Bao had to let go of his set.

This pot inched Thang closer to the table chip leader's stack.

Phao Ngoc Thanh opened to 125,000 from the hijack, and Motoyoshi Okamura called.

The flop came down J♥ 2♦ 6♠ , and both players checked.

On the turn 6♠ , Bao led out with a bet of 100,000, and Okamura raised to 300,000. Bao made the call.

The river 8♠ saw Okamura fire a bet of 400,000, but Bao calmly called.

Okamura revealed Q♥ 5♠ as a bluff, only to be met with Bao’s winning hand of A♣ A♦ for a pair of aces.

Minh Truong Thanh opened for 125,000 under-the-gun and was called by Pham Ngoc Bao on the button. The blinds folded, and the dealer flopped A♣ 9♠ J♥ . Thanh led out with 100,000, and Bao called.

The turn brought the A♦ , and Thanh checked to Bao, who took the opportunity to bet 175,000. Thanh called.

The river was the 4♠ , and once again, Thanh check-called Bao’s hefty bet of 525,000.

Bao revealed A♥ T♦ , and with much regret, Thanh mucked his hand, visibly frustrated by how the hand had played out.

The APT Main Event featured table usually changes its players after every break, but it seems like the big wigs from behind-the-scenes enjoyed their performance so much that they've kept their characters on for a second episode.

Featured Table Chip Counts:

Lights! Camera! Action!

Lee Koangho pushed all in for 875,000 from the hi-jack and Pham Ngoc Quoc Bao jammed his stack from the small blind just to make sure the big blind wouldn't join in.

Lee Koangho: A♣ Q♦

Pham Ngoc Quoc Bao: J♦ J♣

Bao was ahead pre-flop and maintained the lead when the flop of 5♣ 9♣ 5♥ arrived. The turn 5♦ put a choke hold on Koangho's tournament life and the river 3♠ finally ended him.

Bao's huge win brought him to the top of the chip lead in the feature table. Koangho, meanwhile, finished his Main Event run and can catch the sunset on the beach.

Pham Ngoc Quoc Bao raised to 80,000 from under the gun with A♣ T♥ : and Hyunsick Jang defended his big blind with K♦ Q♦

The flop came 4♣ 4♠ T♠ Jang check-called the 55,000 bet from Bao to see a 8♥ on the turn.

Both players checked to see a free 6♣ on the river.

Jang came out firing with 150,000 to steal the pot, but Bao made the call and showed the winning hand.

Pham Ngoc Quoc Bao raised to 65,000 from the hi-jack with 4♠ 4♦ : and Do Tien Vu was the only one who made the call from the cut-off with A♠ 5♠.

Both players were shown a flop of A♥ A♣ 3♠ , giving Vu a set of acs. Bao led with a 40,000 bet and Vu just called to see a 6♦ on the turn.

Bao fired another barrel for 70,000 with Vu raising to 170,000, forcing Bao out of the pot.

Dongyeol Choi opened to 55,000 on the button and received a call from Tharit Nanthana in the small blind. However, Pham Ngoc Bao wasn’t having it and raised to 200,000. Choi called, and Nanthana folded, setting up a heads-up match.

The flop came down A♥ 6♦ J♣ , and Bao led out for 130,000. Choi called. On the turn, 9♣ , Bao fired again, this time for 400,000, and Choi made another call.

The river was J♥ , and Bao, unsure of Choi’s hand, checked. Choi took the opportunity to go all-in for around 800,000. Bao, clearly perplexed by the move, decided to muck his hand.

Choi gave Bao some relief by revealing one card — A♦ , prompting Bao to ask him to show the other card. Choi simply mucked his second card, before saying, "Aces."

Pham Ngoc Bao opened to 40,000 from middle position, and after action folded around, Do Tien Vu called from the button. Chun Chi Liu, sitting in the small blind, raised the stakes by shoving all-in for nearly 200,000, putting his tournament life on the line.

Vu glanced at his cards, shared a brief exchange in the vernacular, and then made the call.

Chun Chi Liu: A♣ Q♦

Do Tien Vu: T♦ 9♦

Bao was hopeful for a double-up and looked to the board with anticipation. The dealer revealed 3♦ J♠ K♦ , keeping Bao in the lead with a straight draw. Vu, though initially behind, now had both a flush and straight draw, giving him numerous outs to win the hand.

The turn brought the 5♦ , completing Vu's flush. He offered an apology to Bao, as the river 5♥ sealed Bao’s exit from the tournament.

On a completed board with short stacked player Su-Jui Chiu all in and at risk with Pham Ngoc Bao....

Su-Jui Chiu: K♥ K♦

Pham Ngoc Bao: 8♦ : 8♠

Board: 2♣ T♣ 6♥ A♥ 9♦

Chiu was ahead pre-flop and kept the lead all the way through the river. He scooped the pot for a much-needed double up.

Action was picked up with four players's stacks shoved in the middle on a completed board - Amit Kaushik in small blind, Bui Le Ahn in big blind, Pham Ngoc Bao in middle position and Wattana Luangsuwimon on the button. Kaushik, Ahn and Luangsimon were all at risk as they were covered by Bao.

Amit Kaushik: K♥ K♦

Bui Le Ahn A♦ K♣

Wattana Luangsuwimon: 5♥ 5♣

Pham Ngoc Bao: A♥ A♣

The flop came down 5♦ 4♦ A♠ , giving Luangsuwimon a set of fives but Bao the higher set of aces, securing him the lead. The turn 7♦ offered Ahn outs with a flush draw that Bao needed to dodge. The river 4♥ gave Bao a boat - aces full of fours - sending the other three players sailing away to enjoy the beaches of Phu Quoc.