APT Main Event (60,000 PHP)

Jie Zhang opened the cutoff to 240,000 and Niklas Warlich three-bet to 700,000 from the small blind, only to be jammed by Zhang for 1,740,000. It only took Warlich a few seconds to announce a call.

Niklas Warlich: A♠ K♣

Jie Zhang: 8♦ 8♥

Warlich was behind with his Big Slick facing off Zhang’s snowmen, which was even improved to a set on the flop of 3♠ 8♠ J♦ .

The 6♦ dropped on the turn, leaving Warlich drawing dead. The board-pairing 6♣ landed on the river, blooming Zhang’s set into a full house.

Samuel Mullur raised to 200,000 from the cut-off and Niklas Warlich called on the button. Both players entered a flop of 6♦ 5♠ 3♥

Mullur check-called the 200,000 bet of Warlich to open a 6♥ on the turn. Both players checked to see a Q♠ river.

Mullur led out for 260,000 and Warlich made the call. Mullur showed 7♣ 7♦ for two pair sevens-sixes while Warlich flipped over Q♣ T♣ for a better two pair.

Players have been sent on a 60-minute dinner break.

Here's a peek at the counts while the players fuel up.

Or Yaaqov Nezer raised to 160,000 from under the gun and received two callers: Dylan Foster from the cutoff and Niklas Warlich in the big blind.

Three players checked through the K♠ 3♣ Q♦ flop to see a 6♠ fall on the turn, where Warlich fired 300,000, which only Foster made the call.

The river showed a 9♦ . Warlich sent another barrel of 800,000 and took down the pot as Foster threw his cards into the muck.

Chuning Tan opened to 80,000 from under the gun and Niklas Warlich defended from the big blind.

The two went to a flop of A♠ 6♣ 4♠ where Warlich check-called a bet of 65,000 from Tan to see the 5♦ land on the turn. Here, Warlich switched up his strategy and elected to lead out for 90,000, which Tan called.

A 2♥ on the river saw Warlich throw in a time bank before he bet 400,000. Tan didn't seem too confident and threw away his A♣ J♠ , and Warlich scooped in the pot.

Sangbum Kim made it 90,000 to go from the hijack and was defended by Nikas Warlich from the big blind.

On the flop of 5♦ 7♠ T♦ , Warlich checked it to Kim, who continued with a bet of 90,000, which Warlich put in a raise to 260,000. Kim then shoved all in for around 1,030,000 and Warlich called off his 870,000 to put himself at risk.

Niklas Warlich: A♣ A♠

Sangbum Kim: T♠ T♣

Warlich picked up the lead with a set of tens against pocket aces from Warlich. The Q♣ slid on the turn, improving nothing to both players, and Warlich was still looking for an ace to stay alive.

Asked and you should receive, the river brought help with the A♦ , giving Warlich a superior set to keep his tournament run.

After a short but action-packed Day 3 at the Crowne Plaza Galleria, just 48 players remain from the 175 hopefuls who started the day. Leading the charge is Hong Kong's Jie Zhang, who holds a commanding chip lead with a stack of 3,930,000 after a dominant performance.

From the moment cards were in the air, eliminations came at a blistering pace. It took just six hours for the field to be whittled down to one-third of its original size, ensuring a new Main Event champion will be crowned, as no former winners remain in contention the PHP 11,069,680 (~$190,201) top prize.

Zhang's rise to the top was punctuated by a massive double-knockout in the late stages, where his pocket aces held strong against pocket kings and ace-queen in a crucial three-way all-in. He cemented his lead by delivering the final elimination of the night, as his pocket queens proved too strong for the pocket sixes of Inoue Senan.

Behind Zhang, Alexander Ugay holds the second-largest stack with 2,335,000, while Samuel Mullur is the only other player to cross the two-million mark, bagging 2,065,000.

Start-of-day chip leader Po-Shuo Huang ended the day in solid shape with 1,755,000, while Jayden Zalac (1,740,000), Rishi Mehra (1,465,000), and Niklas Warlich (1,365,000) all secured a top-ten finish. The top ten list is represented by ten different countries, showcasing the truly international nature of the competition and reinforcing APT's status as a premier global poker tour.

Three former Main Event champions entered the day, but none managed to survive. Yohn Paredes (107th), Mike Takayama (85th), and Moses Saquing (78th) all saw their title hopes cut short before the bags came out.

Eleven of the 29 qualifiers managed to find a bag and advance to Day 4. They include the aforementioned Mehra, Adalsteinn Karlsson (1,345,000), Che Li Lin (1,295,000), Noppon Taengruen (1,090,000), Xuan Huy Dinh (1,030,000), Nopparut Piyatassakorn (615,000), Donavan Chu (525,000), Padipan Photha (470,000), Anusorn Asiralertsiri (300,000), Miei Hayama (285,000), and Terry Gonzaga (280,000).

At the bottom of the counts sits Spain’s Javier Zarco, who will enter Day 4 as the tournament’s shortest stack with just 30,000 chips—a little over a single big blind. It will take nothing short of a miracle for him to run it up, but if poker has taught us anything, it's that a chip and a chair is sometimes all you need.

Day 4 kicks off at 11 a.m. on February 14th, where the remaining 48 players will battle to keep their title hopes alive. With the stakes rising and the pressure mounting, there will be no love lost at the tables as they fight for a spot in the final stages of the APT Main Event on Valentine's Day.

Niklas Warlich opened the button to 32,000 and was defended by Adalsteinn Karlsson from the big blind.

On the flop of 6♠ K♣ 7♣ , Karlsson checked it Warlich, who continued with a bet of 25,000. Karlsson made the call to see the 5♣ turn. The action went check-check.

The river brought the Q♣ . Karlsson fired out 45,000 and this was enough to make Walich muck the hand.

After an intense and grueling bubble period in the APT Manila Classic Main Event, 175 players have locked up a payday and secured their spots in Day 3. This event has officially made history as the largest-ever APT Main Event in the Philippines, reinforcing the tour’s continued growth in the region.

Leading the field is Taiwan's Po-Shuo Huang, who finished Day 2 with an impressive 1,168,000 chips — the only player to bag a seven-figure stack. Not far behind is Javier Zarco, who accumulated 959,000, with the Spaniard playing a pivotal role in bursting the bubble after eliminating Kenneth Anthony.

Nobuaki Sasaki rounds out the top three, benefiting from a dream scenario when his pocket aces held up against the pocket kings of Raju Jaruplavath in one of the biggest hands of the day.

The day began with 377 returning survivors from the opening flights, joined by 56 late entries who took advantage of the last chance to buy in before registration closed. David Erquiaga wasted no time making his presence felt, quickly rising among the chip leaders after eliminating Shinya Maeda in Level 13. Erquiaga capitalized on his early momentum and bagged a top ten stack of 680,000.

However, several former Main Event champions weren’t as fortunate, as Punnat Punsri, Lester Edoc, Henrick Tollofsen, Christopher Mateo, and John Tech all failed to make the money. Three past champions are still in contention, with Mike Takayama (577,000), Moses Saquing (124,000), and Yohn Paredes (71,000) carrying the torch forward.

China’s Zhen Chen, who has been making waves in the poker world, closed out Day 2 with 165,000 chips. Chen added another trophy to his collection just yesterday, winning the Baby Superstar Challenge for PHP 4,327,600.

Samuel Mullur, currently third on Austria's All-Time Money List, secured the fourth-largest stack of 834,000. Mullur, who captured a WSOP bracelet in December 2023 by conquering the GGMillion$ High Roller for $2,736,300 — his career-best score—now sets his sights on adding another prestigious title. Despite his global accolades, an Asian trophy still eludes him, and what better way to start his collection than by claiming an award-winning Gold Lion to adorn his mantle?

Despite his gut-wrenching cooler against aces, Jaruplavath, champion of the Philippines National Cup, still managed to survive the day with 169,000 chips. Another notable mention is APT commentator Stephen Lai, who navigated the field smoothly and bagged a respectable 333,000 heading into Day 3.

as play resumes, 29 online qualifiers will merge with the live field, adding a fresh dynamic to the competition. Some notable names among them include Adalsteinn Karlsson (428,000), Abraham Ceesvin (353,000), Joshua Mccully (321,000), Marc Rivera (242,000), and Asa Smith (135,00).

Vietnamese poker vlogger Ngoc Huyen Quach, aka “Gemmy” maintained her position as the top stacked female player, fighting through with 226,000 in chips, with five other women still in contention for Day 3: Thailand’s Nattamon Kaweesorasak (206,000), Natural8 Ambassador Hua-Wei Lin (203,000), Thailand’s Wipawadee Kanaraksapong (179,000), Japan’s Seina Asagiri (117,000), and China’s Cai Xin Wong (59,000).

All remaining players are guaranteed a payout of PHP 94,000 (~$1,615), but it’s the PHP 11,069,680 (~$190,201) top prize that remains the ultimate goal. With the biggest APT Main Event field in Philippine history now down to its final contenders, who will rise to the occasion and claim poker glory?

Both Niklas Warlich and Dmitrii Urban had their stacks in the middle preflop with around 200,000 each.

Dmitrii Urban: A♥ K♦

Niklas Warlich: Q♠ Q♣

The stacks hadn't been counted as the dealer was instructed to the run the board first. Despite Warlich flopping a full house on the 8♦ 8♠ 8♥ flop, it was Urban who picked up an extra out as any eight would give him the best hand.

Unfortunately for him, the J♦ turn and 4♠ river offered no lifeline.

To make matters worse, once the stacks were counted, Urban was covered by a sliver and was left with no chips — just a one-way ticket to the rail.

Niklas Warlich raised to 8,000 from middle position and was called by Czar Marcos from the cutoff.

Both player checked through the flop of Q♥ 8♦ 9♠ to see the K♦ fall on the turn. The action went check-check again.

An 8♣ landed on the river, where Warlich bet 5,000, and Marcos put in a raise to 15,000, which Warlich snap-called.

Marcos tabled trip eights with A♥ 8♥ and Warlich threw his cards to the muck.

Dmitrii Urban made it 4,000 to go from the hijack with Niklas Warlich and Chia-Ying Lin calling from the blinds.

Three players saw a flop of 2♦ K♦ 4♥ . The blinds checked to Urban, who continued with another bet of 4,000, to which only Warlich made the call.

The turn revealed a 4♠ and it went check-check.

The 8♠ landed on the river, where both players checked to a free showdown.

Warlich tabled two pair with 6♣ 6♥ to overcome the two pair from Urban’s 3♣ 3♦ .