With 200 events on the schedule at the Asian Poker Tour Championship (APTC), there was one that stood out among the rest. After four days of blood, sweat, and tears, the APT Championship Main Event has reached its final table — and the lineup doesn’t disappoint.

With its gigantic TWD 194,080,973 (~USD 6,220,550) prize pool — the largest in APT's 19-year history — and a TWD 37,030,773 (~USD 1,186,880) first-place prize, the biggest ever awarded in an APT Main Event, it’s no surprise that some of the best names in poker made their way to Red Space, Taipei, to chase history.

From 671 hopefuls who put down the TWD 311,000 (~USD 10,000) buy-in, only nine remain. They’ll return on November 28 to battle for the title, the trophy, and a seven-figure payday. Leading the way is India’s Nishant Sharma, who bagged a massive 9,125,000, good for 152 big blinds, as he looks to become just the third Indian player to record a million-dollar score.

Dominik Nitsche is a man who needs no introduction. With over USD 21,000,000 in live tournament earnings, according to The Hendon Mob, he sits sixth on Germany's All-Time Money List. No matter what happens on the final table, Nitsche is guaranteed to break into his country's top five. Sitting second in the counts with 7,125,000 chips, Nitsche will certainly be a huge threat.

Australia have representation on the final table as Neng Zhao brings a stack of 4,195,000 chips, good for third on the leaderboard. Zhao has already locked up a career-best cash by almost double, but it'll be the bigger payouts he will be eyeing. Zhao has only five APT cashes on his resume, but that includes a victory at the APT Summer Series Da Nang in 2023, where he took down a Turbo Event.

No APT Main Event final table would be complete without the presence of a Filipino, and John Costiniano is the player representing his nation as he bagged up 3,700,000 and starts in fourth position. It won't be a new experience for Costiniano as he finished third in the APT Manila Main Event just over a year ago, but this time the stakes are much higher. Finishing seventh or above would set a new career-best score for the man from the Philippines.

One of two Taiwanese players to reach the final nine, Hao Chuang, will start in the middle of the pack after he bagged 3,345,000. Chuang already has a final table appearance this festival as he finished fifth in the Ultra Stack Championship. A career-best is already guaranteed for the local.

To add to the international lineup, Matas Cimbolas, who sits second on Lithuania's All-Time Money List with over USD 7,500,000 in career earnings, takes a stack of 2,370,000 onto Day 5. Cimbolas recorded his first-ever APT cash during this festival, and a second-place finish or better will ensure he locks up the largest score of his career.

If second place wasn't enough on a country's All-Time Money List, Alexandru Papazian fixes that as he is currently rated as Romania's best tournament player with over USD 4,000,000 in recorded cashes. Papazian will start the final table as one of the shorter stacks with 1,530,000 in his bag, but with 90-minute levels, he will pick his spots wisely.

Taiwan's Hao Shan Huang is certainly no stranger to APT events as he has no less than 11 cashes on his APT resume. Of those, five are on final tables where he has finished second twice, fourth, fifth, and sixth. The local player has the chance to tick off another box on the APT final table bingo card, but the real story is how he got there.

Huang played a USD 350 Step 1 satellite and scored a Step 2 ticket. Roughly, every six entries generated a ticket in the Step 2 satellites, and Huang was one of the players to make it through his respective qualifier. That means his minimum return on investment is 27,802%, but with a victory, it would swell to 339,008% - not bad for five days of poker at the APT. The Taiwanese player has some work to do as he starts eighth with 1,395,000 chips as he looks to cap off a fairytale tournament.

Germany's Martin Finger will start the day in ninth as he bagged the smallest stack of 635,000, just under eleven big blinds. Finger is approaching the USD 9,000,000 mark in live tournament earnings, and a top-five finish would bring him over that milestone. However, if he could pull off a victory, he would edge ever so close to the eight-figure territory.

There were 34 players that started Day 4, and they all had the same objective in their mind — survive until the final table. Chuang flipped out Ben Loo early on and Sharma's ace-queen dispatched the king-queen of George Tomescu.

Cimbolas also moved up the count early on as he tussled with Eisuke Katsuren. The Japanese player shoved the turn with ace-seven on an ace-high board after Cimbolas bet. After some time in the tank, Cimbolas called with ace-king and held on to score the knockout and vault up the counts.

At the halfway mark of Day 4, Dohang Na (31st), Adam Alfie (29th), Jereld Sam (24th), Ori Kossonogi (22nd), Martin Sedlak (19th), and Ankit Ahuja (18th) had all hit the rail.

With 90-minute levels, the expectation was that it would be a slow slog toward the final table, but the players had other ideas. Five eliminations in less than 30 minutes took the final 16 down to 11, leaving the field just two away from the final table.

Thanh Tien Nguyen ran his pocket queens into Nitsche's aces, and Junzhong Loo's ace-three couldn't improve against the pocket sevens of Andrew Han. Nitsche then scored another knockout moments later when his turned trips with five deuce induced a hero call out of Bo Wei Lin with pocket eights, which was unsuccessful.

Nguyen Manh Hao lost a flip with pocket queens against the ace-king Chuang to depart in thirteenth, before Han correctly called off a four-bet from Nitsche holding ace-queen. Nitsche held king-six and drilled a six on the flop, and that left Han out in twelfth.

From that point, it took five more hours, albeit with a dinner break thrown in there, to reduce the field down to nine. Though those five hours were magical for Costiniano as he grew his stack from a few big blinds to a massive amount in a short space of time.

First, he doubled up when his ace-eight held against the king-queen of Jun Hao Wu, then again when he picked up aces against the tens of Huang. Another hand against Huang followed, where the Filipino player correctly picked off a bluff with pocket jacks against the king-ten of Huang.

Xiaowen Zhao had an unfortunate exit in eleventh when his pocket queens were all-in on the flop against Chuang's pocket sixes. Just as it seemed Zhao would double up, a six on the turn ended his dreams as Chuang improved to a set.

Sharma then put on a masterclass and took down pot after pot before he played his part in the final hand of the night. Wu held pocket tens and four-bet shoved over the three-bet of Sharma, who held pocket jacks. Sharma made the call and flopped top boat, which ended Wu's run in tenth and set up the final table.

Each of the finalists have locked up a score of TWD 3,047,100 (~USD 97,660), and each ladder is worth life-changing amounts of money. The top eight are all guaranteed USD six-figure scores, with the top three bagging at least half a million dollars each.

Play resumes at 11:15 AM on Friday, November 28, in Level 28 (30,000/60,000/60,000) with 66 minutes left on the clock.

For an APT Championship Main Event Final Table Seat Draw: Click here.

The action will be streamed on the APT Youtube and Twitch channels with a 30-minute delay. The APT blog will follow the same update to ensure no spoilers are leaked.

However you want to tune in, be sure you don't miss the final table as fireworks are almost guaranteed with huge amounts of money at stake.

The APT Championship Main Event final table has finally been reached following the elimination of Jun Hao Wu.

The remaining nine players will return tomorrow at 11:15 AM and play until a champion is crowned.

Stay tuned for a recap of Day 4.

Jun Hao Wu raised to 125,000 on the button and it folded to Nishant Sharma, who asked to see how much Wu had total from the big blind. He then three-bet to 425,000.

Wu took his time contemplating his decision, but eventually announced he was all in for approximately 1,700,000 total. Sharma quickly called and the hands were revealed.

Jun Hao Wu: T♦ T♣

Nishant Sharma: J♠ J♣

It was bad news for Wu, who found his pair pipped by Sharma's jacks as everyone watched in anticipation.

The J♦ 5♣ 5♦ flop all but sealed Wu's fate after upgrading Sharma to a full house, and the 2♥ turn left him drawing dead as he got up from his seat.

The 3♣ river made Wu's elimination official, and he was sent to the payout desk to receive TWD 2,484,200 (~USD 79,620) for his 10th-place finish.

Dominik Nitsche raised to 240,000 from the small blind holding J♥ J♣ and John Costiniano called from the big blind with A♥ T♣.

The flop came 5♥ 4♣ 6♥ and Nitsche checked over his jacks, only for Costiniano to knuckle it back to the K♦ turn. It checked through again to the 3♦ river, where Nitsche bet 270,000.

Costiniano quickly folded, and Nitsche took it down.

Hao Shan Huang opened to 120,000 and got called by Martin Finger to see a flop. The flop came 2♣ T♥ 6♥.

Both players checked, leading them to the 5♦ turn. Finger fired 155,000 and got a raise from Huang to 355,000, sending Finger into the tank.

After burning through two time banks, Finger called to see the last street. The 7♥ dropped on the river and after a check, Huang shoved all in for more than 900,000. Finger, with only 410,000 behind, burned a time bank before mucking his hand.

Matas Cimbolas asked Huang to show, but his request fell on deaf ears.

Dominik Nitsche opened to 120,000 in the cutoff with 7♥ 6♥ and Neng Zhao called in the big blind holding T♣ 9♣.

On the flop of J♣ Q♠ 3♦ flop, Zhao check-called a bet of 90,000 with his open-ender and when the 5♥ hit the turn, he checked it over. Nitsche then bet 510,000, and Zhao quickly folded.

Nishant Sharma opened to 125,000 on the button and Hao Shan Huang defended his big blind.

Huang checked on the 5♠ 7♥ 4♥ flop and Sharma continued for 150,000, which was met with a check-raise to 430,000 from Huang.

Undeterred, Sharma shoved, and Huang quickly let his hand go.

The final 10 players have been sent on another 15-minute break.

Hand-for-hand play will resume when they return and continue until the final table is reached.

Here are some highlights from the past level:

• Costiniano Gets Cimbolas to Pay With Ace-High
• Wu Gets a Bluff Through on Costiniano
• Xiaowen Zhao Eliminated in 11th Place
• Finger the Clear Short Stack After Wu Gets a Shove Through
• Sharma Gets Paid with Aces

With the final table approaching, players tightened up as they tried to survive.

John Costiniano opened to 100,000 from the cutoff and got a call from big blind Dominik Nitsche. Both players checked the 7♦ J♥ T♣ flop.

On the A♦ turn, Costiniano bet 125,000 and Nitsche called. The 5♥ river checked around, where Nitsche revealed T♥ 7♠ for two pair. Costiniano let out a small gasp and flashed one card - the A♠.

In another hand, Nitsche raised to 100,000 under the gun and picked up calls from both blinds, Neng Zhao in the small and Alexandru Papazian in the big.

The trio checked through the 5♣ Q♠ A♠ flop. On the J♣ turn, Zhao fired 225,000, which was enough to scoop the pot.

Nishant Sharma opened A♥ A♦ from under the gun to 100,000 and Hao Shan Huang called with 9♠ 9♥ on the button. Matas Cimbolas also called with 7♣ 6♣ form the big blind.

They saw a flop of 5♦ 3♠ 5♥ and when it got to Sharma, he bet 100,000. Huang came along, but Cimbolas mucked his gutshot.

A Q♠ fell on the turn and Sharma didn't show any signs of slowing down as he bet 400,000. Again, Huang called and the Q♣ paired the board on the river.

Sharma took some time and then decided that 550,000 was the right price with his aces. Huang thought about it and eventually called, which meant he saw the healthy pot head in Sharma's direction.

Matas Cimbolas opened the button to 100,000 with A♠ 3♦ and Martin Finger called in the big blind holding A♣ 7♥.

Cimbolas found two pair on the T♦ 3♠ A♦ flop and he bet 150,000 once it checked to him. Finger just called with his two pair and saw the 2♦ land on the turn.

Finger checked it over again and Cimbolas bet 200,000. After a brief pause, Finger just mucked his ace and forfeited the pot to Cimbolas.

Will that fold help Finger make the final table? Only time will tell.

Jun Hao Wu opened 5♠ 5♦ from under the gun to 100,000 and Nishant Sharma called on the button with A♠ 7♠.

Short-stacked Martin Finger was in the small blind and shoved for 705,000 holding J♠ J♦, and that earned him the pot as the rest of the table folded.

In the next hand, Sharma opened A♥ 9♣ from the cutoff and Finger shoved 1,000,000 from the button holding 3♣ 3♦, which got through as Sharma folded.

Play has been fairly tame on the outer table, with players so far prefering to keep the pots small.

However, in a recent hand, Alexandru Papazian opened to 100,000 from under the gun and was called by Dominique Nitsche in the cutoff. Hao Chuang then announced he was all in for 3,265,000 from the small blind.

A somewhat incredulous Papazian asked for a count in the face of the massive shove, but eventually decided to lay his hand down.

"I wasn't trapping... I wish I was," Nitsche said before also laying his hand down, awarding the pot to Chuang.

Matas Cimbolas raised under the gun with 9♦ 9♣ to 100,000 and Nishant Sharma three-bet 8♥ 6♥ to 300,000 from the cutoff.

Jun Hao Wu looked down at J♠ J♦ in the big blind and shoved 1,500,000, which got both of his opponents to fold.

That pot helped Wu climb to almost 2,000,000, and left a clear gap between him and Martin Finger, who has around 800,000.

Nishant Sharma opened J♣ T♦ from under the gun and Matas Cimbolas called in the big blind with K♦ 8♦.

Both picked up a draw on the 7♦ 9♥ A♦ flop and after Cimbolas checked, Sharma bet 150,000. Cimbolas called to the 8♠ turn, which paired his eight. However, Sharma hit the nuts.

Cimbolas checked it over and Sharma bet 300,000, which again Cimbolas called.

The Q♥ rolled off on the river and when it got to Sharma, he bet 800,000. Cimbolas let go of his eight.

Both Cimbolas and Sharma found their way into the Main Event through a Step 2 satellite, so have already earned an exceptional ROI.

With ten players left, the floor has announced hand-for-hand play.

Hao Chuang opened to 100,000 under the gun and faced a 350,000 three-bet from Xiaowen Zhao in the big blind. Chuang called and they went to the flop.

The board came 5♠ 5♣ 9♦. Zhao continued for 260,000, and Chuang moved all in for about 1,500,000. Zhao, covered, snap-called for his tournament life.

Xiaowen Zhao: Q♠ Q♦

Hao Chuang: 6♠ 6♦

Zhao looked pleased to be well ahead and was cheering when his joy changed quickly to frustration when the 6♣ hit the turn, giving Chuang a full house. The river 2♣ brought no help for Zhao.

Before heading to the payout counter, Zhao took a quick photo of the hand. He finished in 11th place for TWD 2,484,200 (~USD 79,620).

Matas Cimbolas opened 9♥ 8♥ from under the gun to 100,000 and John Costiniano called on the button with A♣ 2♣. Jun Hao Wu also called in the big blind holding T♣ 7♣.

The three saw a flop of K♣ 4♥ 5♣ and when it got to Costiniano, he bet 125,000 with his flush draw. Wu called with his smaller flush draw, and Cimbolas folded.

The J♥ turn missed both players and it checked through to the 6♦ river. Wu grabbed a big stack of chips and put 450,000 into the pot, which got Costiniano to fold.

Neng Zhao came rushing back from dinner, as he apparently was having issues with his phone clock. He arrived just in time to get his hand from under the gun and raised to 100,000.

Alexandru Papazian called in the cutoff and it was then folded to Xiaowen Zhao, who announced he was all in from the small blind for 1,120,000. Zhao asked for a count before reluctantly laying his hand down and Papazian quickly followed suit to award Zhao the pot without a showdown.

Matas Cimbolas looked down at A♣ Q♠ on the button and made it 125,000 to go. John Costiniano peeked at Q♦ J♥ out of the big blind and called.

They saw a flop of K♦ J♠ K♣ and Costiniano check-called a bet of 50,000 from Cimbolas to see the 6♣ turn, which checked through.

A 6♠ on the river double-paired the board and Costiniano went for value as he threw out 150,000 with his pair of jacks. Cimbolas contemplated the ace-high call, and did eventually pay it off.

After that pot, Costiniano's stack reached 4,500,000, while Cimbolas saw his drop to 2,500,000.

After a dinner break, cards are back in the air in the APT Championship Main Event.

After two more players have been eliminated, play will halt for the night and the nine survivors will come back to battle it out on the final table tomorrow.

The final 11 players have been sent on an extended 75-minute dinner break.

Here are some highlights from the past two levels:

• Sharma Sends Ahuja Out
• Zhao Spikes a Set Against Cimbolas
• Han Bluffs Twice into Wu's Set
• Thanh Tien Nguyen Eliminated in 16th Place
• Junzhong Loo Eliminated in 15th Place
• Bo Wei Lin Eliminated in 14th Place
• Nguyen Manh Hao Eliminated in 13th
• Andrew Han Eliminated in 12th Place
• Costiniano Comes Back From the Brink

On the button, John Costiniano raised to 90,000 and picked up two callers in the blinds: Hao Shan Huang in the small blind and Jun Hao Wu in the big blind.

After both blinds checked, Costiniano continued with a 80,000 bet on the T♥ 4♠ 7♠ flop, and the blinds happily came along for the ride.

The J♣ turn brought another round of checks from the blinds, prompting Costiniano to ramp up the pressure with a 300,000 bet. Huang stuck around while Wu decided he’d seen enough and folded.

The A♠ river went check-check. Costiniano waited for Huang to table his hand - A♥ T♣ for rivered two pair - before revealing his own Jx 9x. A♠ Huang dragged in the pot, Costiniano tapped the table and said, “Nice hand,” before heading off for

Hao Chuang hasn't been the most popular player on the table as of late as he has been stalling at every opportunity. The floor finally decided enough was enough and gave a warning.

Shortly after, Chuang opened to 80,000 from the cutoff with K♥ J♥ and Nishant Sharma three-bet the small blind holding A♦ K♣ to 300,000. Chuang called.

The flop came down 7♥ 7♦ 8♠, and Sharma continued for 150,000. Chuang used some extra time before he eventually let it slide.

John Costiniano had around 13 big blinds not so long ago, now he has over 100!

Costiniano started the action with a raise to 80,000 in the cutoff, and small blind Hao Shan Huang three-bet to 280,000. Costiniano called.

The dealer fanned out 4♦ 2♠ 4♣ and Huang fired 240,000, which Costiniano called. With a 675,000 bet, Huang just couldn't shake Costiniano off the hand on the 5♥ turn.

On the A♣ river, Huang shoved all in for more than 3,000,000, effectively putting Costiniano all-in. Costiniano went into the tank, and after he burned through a time bank, he reluctantly made the call.

Huang showed K♥ T♣ for a bluff while Costiniano tabled J♣ J♥ for a pair of jacks to score another double-up his opponent.

John Costiniano opened for 80,000 from the button and got a three-bet from Hao Shan Huang in the big blind to 265,000. Costiniano called.

Huang continued with 185,000 bet on the 9♦ 6♦ 6♥ flop. Costiniano, not willing to let go of his hand, called once again.

The same thing happened on the K♦ turn when Huang fired 325,000. Costiniano then laid out chips and called

Huang placed ultimate pressure with a shove on the river 3♣ and Costiniano snap-called for his tournament life.

Huang turned over T♣ T♥. Upon seeing Huang's hand, Costiniano got on his feet and slammed his cards open-faced showing A♥ A♦ for a pair of aces to win the pot.

Dominik Nitsche opened to 80,000 from under the gun with K♦ 6♦ and Alexandru Papazian called in the big blind holding A♦ Q♣.

Both caught a piece of the 2♦ A♣ T♦ flop as Papazian made top pair and Nitsche hit a flush draw. Papazian check-called a bet of 75,000 to the 4♥ turn, which checked through.

When the J♦ landed on the river, Papazian led for 60,000, and Nitsche made it 300,000. Papazian snap-called, and then mucked when he saw the flush of Nitsche.

Hao Shan Huang raised to 80,000 first to act and just behind him, Jun Hao Wu three-bet to 240,000. Action folded back around to Huang, who cut out a four-bet to 500,000 and placed it into the middle. Wu called.

The flop came 8♥ 9♣ K♣ and Huang put a bet of 250,000 into the middle. Wu wanted nothing to do with it and slid his cards into the muck, conceding the pot to Huang.

Huang then turned over A♦ A♥ and chuckled before collecting the pot.

While there have been fireworks on the feature table, play has been much more muted on the outer table, with most pots being taken down preflop or to a single bet postflop as of late.

Here's how the currently stack up:

Jun Hao Wu opened for 100,000 and received an all-in shove from John Costiniano for 475,000. Wu snap-called putting Costiniano at risk.

John Costiniano: A♦ 8♣

Jun Hao Wu: K♥ Q♠

Costiniano breathed a sigh of relief after hitting top pair on the 6♦ T♠ A♠ flop. The turn 4♠ and river T♦ brought no help for Wu, securing Costiniano a much-needed double-up.

Dominik Nitsche needs an ice bucket because he is running super hot right now.

Dominik Nitsche raised the cutoff to 80,000 and Andrew Han three-bet to 250,000 from the button. Nitsche then four-bet shoved, and Han called for his stack of 1,300,000.

Andrew Han: A♣ Q♦

Dominik Nitsche: K♥ 6♥

Han was ahead, but fell behind when Nitsche paired his six on the T♣ 8♥ 6♣ flop. Han was looking for an ace or a queen, but the 5♦ 7♠ runout didn't deliver, which left him on the sidelines in 12th.

There goes another!

Nguyen Manh Hao did manage to double up not so long ago, but he then moved all in for 430,000 from the hijack and was put at risk by Hao Chuang in the big blind.

Nguyen Manh Hao: Q♦ Q♣

Hao Chuang: A♦ K♠

Hao needed to win the flip to stay alive, but a flop of 3♣ 3♦ K♥ saw Chuang take the lead with a pair of kings.

Only a queen could save Hao, but neither the 2♦ turn nor 7♥ river could deliver one, meaning he was out in 13th.

Bo Wei Lin just hero called himself out of the Main Event.

Lin raised the hijack to 60,000 and Dominik Nitsche called in the big blind.

The flop came 5♦ 3♠ A♣, where Nitsche check-called a bet of 45,000 from Lin to the 5♥ turn. Nitsche then led out for 85,000, which Lin called.

A 6♥ hit the river and Nitsche shoved, which left Lin with the decision for his remaining stack of 460,000. After using a few time banks, Lin finally put the rest of his stack in.

Nitsche then showed that he turned trips with 5♠ 2♠, and Lin's 8♦ 8♣ for a pair of eights was no good.

Down to 13!

After complaining about the skipped scheduled break, Neng Zhao opened to 65,000 under the gun and got called by Martin Finger on the button.

The flop came 7♦ 3♠ A♦. Zhao continued with 80,000 and Finger called again. Action slowed down on the turn 6♠, where action went check-check.

On the river 6♣, Zhao checked once again. finger took his time to consider his options waiting for the last few seconds before shaking his head, and knuckling after.

"I win!" Zhao exclaimed as he turned over K♠ Q♥. Amused, Finger flipped over A♠ J♠ and won the pot.

Jun Hao Wu opened to 60,000 and got the cutoff Matas Cimbolas to call. Nishant Sharma, on the button, three-bet to 200,000, pushing the initial raiser out. Cimbolas decided to stay on.

The flop came 9♣ K♦ A♦, Cimbolas seemed to have just wanted to see the flop as he check-folded his hand after Sharma fired 130,000 into the pot.

Another one bites the dust.

Andrew Han made it 75,000 to go from the hijack and Junzhong Loo shoved his stack of 90,000 in from the small blind. Han called.

Junzhong Loo: A♠ 3♥

Andrew Han: 7♠ 7♣

Loo needed to find an ace, but had to find more than that after the 2♦ 3♣ 7♦ flop gave Han top set. A 4♦ did give Loo a wheel draw, but the Q♦ river meant he was out in 15th.

Well, that didn't take long.

Thanh Tien Nguyen opened to 60,000 from under the gun and Dominik Nitsche three-bet to 180,000 from the hijack. Nguyen then four-bet to 500,000, Nitsche shoved, and Nguyen called off his stack of around 1,200,000.

Thanh Tien Nguyen: Q♠ Q♣

Dominik Nitsche: A♠ A♦

Disaster for Nguyen, who ran straight into the aces of Nitsche just after the restart. There was still a board to run, but the 7♠ T♣ 4♦ T♥ 4♣ runout changed nothing, which left Nguyen out in 16th.

Nitsche in dreamland.

The remaining 16 players are on a 15-minute break for the table redraw. After the break, live updates will be delayed by 30 minutes to stay synchronized with the livestream.

You can watch the action on the following channels:

Youtube

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Hao Chuang opened on the button and just behind him, Che Li Lin shoved for his remaining short stack. Chuang quickly called and a showdown was held.

Che Li Lin: Kx Tx

Hao Chaung: A♥ J♦

Lin would need some help, but the 9♣ 4♣ 2♦ 3♥ J♠ runout left Chuang best with a pair of jacks and Lin was sent out in 17th place for TWD 1,667,200 (~USD 53,435)

Matas Cimbolas and Neng Zhao, who have been bantering for the better part of the day after jousting in many pots, were heads up on a completed board of T♣ 3♥ A♥ 7♥ 9♣ with a large pot already in the middle.

Cimbolas bet 150,000 and was met with a raise to 575,000 from Zhao, sending Cimbolas deep into the tank.

Cimbolas eventually called and Zhao turned over 9♦ 9♥ for a rivered set.

"You had one out," Cimbolas said as he sent his cards into the muck.

"The universe is balanced!" Zhao replied. "You are better, I'm luckier!"

Martin Finger opened the button to 60,000 and Junzhong Loo defended his big blind.

On the 8♣ 2♥ 2♦ flop, Loo checked and Finger fired out 40,000. Loo then stuck in a raise to 110,000, and Finger three-bet to 220,000. Loo called, leaving 445,000 behind.

The 2♠ on the turn put three deuces on board, and both players opted to check to see the T♣ fall on the river. Loo checked again, then Finger bet 295,000. Loo didn't have much more in his stack, and after some time thinking, he called.

Finger then flipped a full house with T♦ 9♦, which beat the smaller boat of Loo, who had 9♥ 8♠.

Brutal river for Loo, but a fantastic one for Finger.

Thanh Tien Nguyen fired 50,000 on a flop of 9♣ 6♦ 2♥ with around 200,000 in the middle. Neng Zhao, who checked earlier, raised to 125,000 and Nguyen flat-called.

The turn 3♥ went check-check. On the river T♦, Nguyen fired 335,000 and Zhao called. Zhao showed Q♠ 9♥ for a pair on the flop. Nguyen turned over A♣ T♠ for a rivered pair. Zhao surprised said, "But I check-raised the flop..."

Ankit Ahuja and Nishant Sharma were heads-up on a flop of 5♣ 6♠ 5♠, where Ahuja already had a bet of 140,000 in front of him from the small blind. Sharma made it 380,000 to go from the big blind and Ahuja responded by shoving all in for approximately 3,800,000 total.

Sharma quickly called to put Ahuja at risk and cards were turned face up.

Ankit Ahuja: 9♠ 7♠

Nishant Sharma: 7♣ 5♥

Sharma had flopped trips, but needed to fade a lot of outs against Ahuja's flush and straight draws.

It wasn't meant to be, however, as the T♦ turn nor 3♣ river helped Ahuja, eliminating him in 18th place for TWD 1,473,100 (~USD 47,215)

Alexandru Papazian started the aciton with a 60,000 raise from hijack and got clled by Hao Chuang in cutoff.

The flop came 4♠ 4♦ 3♦. Papazian continued with 75,000 and after two time banks burned, Chuang raised to 205,000. Papazian three-bet to 600,000 and after two time banks once again, Chuang called.

Both players checked the A♥ turn. Action resumed with the river A♦ where Papazian bet 180,000. Chuang called without hesitation.

Papazian tabled K♣ K♦ which made Chuang muck his hand.

Andrew Han opened the button to 60,000 and Jun Hao Wu called in the small blind. Martin Finger also peeled from the big blind.

They took it to a flop of 2♥ J♦ 3♣ and when it checked to Han, he fired out 75,000. Wu and Finger both called to the K♠ turn. When it got to Han again, he bet 200,000, which Wu called. Finger folded.

A 9♥ fell on the river and Wu checked for a third time, then Wu knuckled it back after a while thinking.

Wu showed a set with 2♠ 2♦, and Han's 8♦ 6♦ went into the muck.

On a board of J♣ 8♦ 6♥ 3♣, Alexandru Papazian fired 165,000 into a pot of 300,000 when action was passed to him. HIs heads-up opponent, Xiaowen Zhao, called to see the last card.

The river 6♦ fell and after burning a time bank, Zhao bet 400,000, sending Papazian to the tank. Papazian leaned forward, looking at the board and mulling over the action.

He threw in a time bank card and said, "Ace-six of clubs?" A few seconds after he made the call, Zhao tabled A♣ 6♣. Visibly frustrated, Papazian threw his hand in the muck and said, "Nice hand!"

Action folded around to the blinds, where Hao Shan Huang shoved from the small blind to put Thanh Nguyen all in for a bit over 400,000 from the big blind. Huang quickly called and hands were revealed.

Thanh Nguyen: K♣ Q♣

Hao Shan Huang: T♣ J♣

The T♥ 3♣ 6♦ flop looked grim for Nguyen after pairing Huang's ten, but the K♠ turn bailed him out with a pair of kings.

The 7♠ river bricked out for both players, awarding Nguyen the double up.

After a raise from Nishant Sharma for 120,000 on the button, big blind Che Li Lin, went all-in for 290,000. Sharma called putting Lin at risk.

Che Li Lin: A♦ Q♠

Nishant Sharma: A♥ Q♣

With exactly the same hand, Sharma pulled his chips back the moment the flop dropped K♥ 7♦ 4♣, knowing that it would end in a split pot. The board completed with a 4♠ turn and J♠. The dealer split the pot and the players moved on.

Before this hand, Jin Hoon Lee finished in 20th place and after this hand, Martin Sedlak finsihed in 19th place both for TWD 1,473,100 (~USD 47,215)

The remaining 20 players have been sent on another 15-minute break.

Here are the latest developments:

• Cimbolas' Stack Soars After Busting Katsuren
• Bo Doubles Against Nitsche With Aces
• Huang Adds More to His Already Massive Stack
• Papazian Shoves into Wu's Straight Flush
• Zhao Troll Cimbolas
• Nitsche Sends Pan out With Trips

Mc Mantos was already all in for approximately 300,000 preflop from early position against Hao Chuang, who had Mantos covered on the button.

Mc Mantos: A♦ J♦

Hao Chuang: A♥ A♠

It was bad news for Mantos, who was crushed against Chuang's aces.

The board ran out 6♦ 8♥ 9♠ 3♣ 9♦ — keeping Chuang best to eliminate Mantos in 21st place for TWD 1,279,000 (~USD 40,990).

Alexandru Papazian opened to 48,000 from early position holding 9♥ 9♠ and Martin Sedlak called from the big blind with A♠ J♥.

Papazian flopped middle set on the 8♥ T♠ 9♦ board and when it checked to him, he fired 74,000. Sedlak called with his open-ender, but was left drawing dead when the T♣ hit the turn as Papazian made a boat.

Both players decided to check and the 3♣ on the river was a complete brick. Sedlak checked it over, then Papazian went for some value with his full house as he fired out 115,000.

Sedlak dropped in some time banks and after burning through a few of them, he eventually called. Papazian then showed his full house, and Sedlak mucked.

Matas Cimbolas raised the pot under the gun to 50,000 and Ori Kossonogi in cutoff called to see a flop.

The flop came 3♠ 9♥ T♠. Passing the action to him, Kossonogi fired 125,000. Cimbolas called.

Both players checked the K♦ turn. On the river A♣, Cimbolas re-started the action with an 800,000, covering Kossonogi, who only had around 440,000 behind.

Kossonogi needed time to consider his options and threw a time bank in. He counted his chips and continued mulling things over. Finally, he jammed what he the chips he was counting and for a call.

Kossonogi showed K♠ Q♠ while Cimbolas tabled T♣ T♦ for a set on the flop. Kossonogi finished in 22nd place for TWD 1,279,000 (~USD40,990).

Other eliminations include Te Hsuan Pan in 23rd for TWD 1,279,000 (~USD40,990) and Jereld Sam in 24th for TWD 1,096,600 (~USD 35,150).

When action folded to the small blind Matas Cimbolas, big blind Neng Zhao started yelling at him to limp so they could “play a hand already!” Cimbolas, amused, happily obliged and completed.

Suddenly, Zhao went from hype-man to hitman, instantly raising to 120,000. Cimbolas called anyway. The flop fell K♠ 8♠ 9♠. After a check, Zhao tossed out 75,000, and Cimbolas stuck around again.

The turn brought the A♣, and after yet another check, Zhao unloaded 280,000, finally convincing Cimbolas to fold.

“Xiexie!” Zhao shouted proudly.

Cimbolas protested, “I limped like you wanted and you raise me?”

To which Zhao shrugged, “You could’ve folded.”

“But you’re shouting!” Cimbolas said, pointing accusingly at Zhao’s earphones. “You shout!”

Zhao calmly removed the earphones and, in the softest voice imaginable, said: “Oh, pardon me… was I loud?”

Dominik Nitsche opened to 50,000 first to act and Te Hsuan Pan defended his big blind for a heads-up pot.

Pan check-called a 75,000 bet from Nitsche on the 6♠ J♥ 4♠ flop and then both players checked on the 8♣ turn.

The 8♥ river paired the board and Pan led out for 125,000. Nitsche used up a time bank and then put enough chips over the middle to put Pan all in for his last 450,000 behind.

Pan tossed all of his remaining time banks into the middle and used up all of them before sticking in a single chip to indicate a call.

Nitsche revealed 9♦ 8♠ for runner-runner trips and Pan showed he held J♠ T♥ for jacks-up to be eliminated in 23rd place for TWD 1,279,000 (~USD 40,990)

Hao Shan Huang raised to 50,000 under the gun and got both blinds - small Matas Cimbolas and big Neng Zhao - to join him to see the flop.

The flop came 9♦ Q♠ 8♣. After two checks, Huang continued with another 51,000. Cimbolas got out of the way but Zhao decided to hang on for a little while more.

The turn fell 4♥. After another check, Huang shot out 88,000. Zhao, unwilling to be shaken off, called once again.

On the river 4♠, Huang decided to check after Zhao's third check. Zhao showed A♥ T♦ for ace-high while Huang tabled J♦ J♣ to win the pot.

Hao Chuang opened to 48,0000 from early position and Jereld Sam shipped his stack of 304,000 in from the button. Chuang quickly called.

Jereld Sam: A♥ K♥

Hao Chuang: A♠ K♠

Both players had the same hand, but the equities were different after the T♠ 4♥ 4♠ flop gave Chuang a flush draw. That draw came in on the 5♠ turn, which left Sam drawing dead.

A meaningless 8♦ filled out the board, and Sam had to make his exit in brutal fashion.

Martin Sedlak opened under the gun to 48,000 and Che-Li Lin called in the cutoff. Jereld Sam was in the big blind and called with a short stack.

On the 8♠ 5♦ 6♣ flop, Sam shoved his last 68,000, Sedlak folded, and Lin called.

Jereld Sam: 4♦ 4♣

Che-Li Lin: T♥ T♦

Sam needed a seven or a four to survive, and did bink a straight when the 7♠ rolled off on the turn. A 3♥ river avoided the chop, and Sam doubled up.

Wei Lin Bo opened to 50,000 from early position and Dominik Nitsche called from the big blind.

Nitsche checked to Bo, who continued for 30,000 on the 3♠ 4♥ 2♣ flop. Nitsche then check-raised to 90,000 and Bo called.

The 7♠ fell on the turn and Nitsche contemplated his options for a bit before betting enough to put Bo all in for 314,000. Bo snap-called and a showdown was held.

Wei Lin Bo: A♥ A♠

Dominik Nitsche: 5♠ 5♥

Bo was ahead with his aces, but still needed to fade a lot of outs against Nitsche's pair and open-ended straight draw.

The K♦ was a brick, however, and Bo was awarded the

Players have been given a 15-minute break during the three table redraw to allow the APT staff to set up for the live stream.

High hand bonus!

Jun Hao Wu opened from under the gun to 50,000 and Alexandru Papazian called from the small blind.

The flop came 7♥ 9♥ 7♠ and Papazian check-called a bet of 75,000 from Wu to see the 6♠ drop on the turn. Papazian decided to lead out for 100,000, which Wu called.

A 9♠ fell on the river and Papazian shoved, and Wu snap-called for his stack of 875,000!

Papazian showed 6♣ 5♣ and was playing the board, which was far behind the straight flush of Wu, who tabled T♠ 8s!

Bad timing for Papazian, but what a beautiful sight for Wu!

Eisuke Katsuren and Matas Cimbolas were heads-up on a board of 6♠ A♣ J♣ 2♠ with a large pot already in the middle.

Cimbolas had a bet of 225,000 in front of of him from the hijack and Katsuren shoved for approximately 800,000 total, sending Cimbolas into the tank.

Cimbolas counted the pot and shrugged a couple of times before saying, "Alright, call" to put Katsuren at risk.

Eisuke Katsuren: A♦ 7♦

Matas Cimbolas: A♠ K♦

It was the right call, as Cimbolas had Katsuren's pair of aces crushed with his king-kicker.

The T♦ river changed nothing and Matas was sent the pot while Katsuren was eliminated in 25th place for TWD 1,096,600 (~USD 35,150).

Te Hsuan Pan shoved all in for over 1,000,000 after Dominik Nitsche fired 210,000 from the button on a flop of K♥ K♣ 4♦ and with around 250,000 in the middle. Nitsche called, putting his tournament life on the line.

Dominik Nitsche: K♠ T♦

Te Hsuan Pan: A♥ 8♥

Nitsche caught trips on the flop and his hand improved to a full house when the 4♠ fell on the turn. The inconsequential river 7♠ secured Nitsche a double.

Neng Zho limped in from the small blind with 9♥ 9♣ and Martin Sedlak checked his option in the big blind holding Q♦ 8♣.

On the 8♥ 5♥ 2♣ flop, Zhao bet 25,000 with his overpair and Sedlak called with top pair to the 5♠ turn. A check then came in from Zhao before Sedlak bet 90,000. Zhao called.

When the T♥ hit the river, Zhao fired out 65,000, and Sedlak thought it over for some time before he dropped in the call. Zhao showed his pocket nines and took it down.

Dominik Nitsche raised to 85,000 from the small blind and Te Hsuan Pan defended his big blind.

Pan called a 65,000 bet from Nitsche on the K♣ 4♠ 6♣ flop and then both players checked on the A♠ turn.

The 6♥ filled the river, and Nitsche took another peek at his hole cards before checking over to Pan, who quickly bet 80,000.

Nitsche looked him up and Pan turned over A♣ J♦ for aces-up. Nitsche couldn't beat it and sent his hand into the muck, awarding the pot to Pan.