Warm-up (5,000 PHP)

Leading up to the most anticipated event in the Philippines, the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) is offering players a rare shortcut. Running from July 20-22, 2025 at Okada Manila is the APPT Manila Super Qualifier which serves as a direct passage to the APPT Manila Main Event (₱58 Million Guaranteed) at just a fraction of the ₱80,000 buy-in. Players can now secure a seat for just ₱9,000!

Unlike traditional satellites, this is a milestone event where players earn an APPT Manila Main Event seat the moment they accumulate 100,000 chips. No waiting for bubbles and final table negotiations, just hit the target and the seat is in the bag. Additionally, there are many chances to get there with 30 seats guaranteed.

For those looking to stretch value even further, the Step 1 Qualifier offers an even cheaper path. With a buy-in of just ₱2,000, players can vie for one of ten guaranteed seats into the Super Qualifier. The format mirrors the milestone structure with 50,000 as the goal to win a seat.

The biggest guarantee among the six events slated today at the Manila Super Series 22 had its first qualifying sortie launch as 175 entries were logged in (Event #3A) Warm-Up Flight A with 27 making it through to Day 2 in this PHP780,000 (~US$13,970) GTD event here at Pokerstars Live in Okada Manila.

Among the notable who saw action were Manila Megastack 16 High Roller titlist Niroshan Loganathan from Canada, Pokerstars Open runner-up Kai Danilo Paulsen of Norway, Australia’s Andrew Xu who took down the Super Deep title in Manila Megstack 22 and international campaigners Ronnie Hoffman of the Netherlands, Ireland’s Damien, and Filipino hopefuls in APPT National Open winner Alvir Inocentes, Manila Megastack 19 Super Stack titlist Lenart Ecarma, Manila Super Series 18 Superstack champion Chierro de Leon, and WSOP veteran Tony Abesamis.

The action was riveting from the get-go with the chip trading hands in a frenzying pace until Korea’s Han Seung Hyun came back from certain demise when he shoved his Q♥ J♥ on a Q♣ 8♦ 5♥ Q♠ board and was called by Filipino big stack Segundo Barte who tabled K♥ Q♦ . Han rivered the J♠ to improve to a full houise and claim the overall chip lead that he would not relinquish for the rest of the proceedings.

In the end, the bubble was burst by Japan’s Tomohiro Wada when his steal shove from the SB with 5♦ 4♠ was rewarded by a hit on the flop against the K♥ 7♦ of Cypriot Anastasios Pavlou to ensure that the 27 left would be guaranteed to be ITM.

Han’s stack of 461,000 is closely followed by Wada’s 418,000. Sitting in third is Inocentes with 337,000.

Day 2 is on Sunday at 12:00NN (UCT+8).

Meanwhile, Flight B commences tomorrow (June 7) at 5:00PM.

The smoke had barely cleared from the Touchton-Hussein hand when another all-in/call situation is on tap with the action folded to the blinds. Tomohiro Wada attempts to steal the BB of Cyprus’ Anastasios Pavlou by going all-in from the SB. Pavlou, however, decides to make the call.

The Cypriot is at risk but when Wada turns over 5♦ 4♠ , Pavlou shows he’s ahead with K♥ 7♦ .

The Japanese player surges ahead on the flop, however, when it comes A♦ 3♥ 4♣ . The pair of fours hold as the last two community cards are the 8♦ and the J♠ giving Pavlou the unenviable distinction of being Flight A’s bubble boy.

The 27 players who remain now advance to Day that will commence on Sunday (June 8th).

A♠ the money bubble looms, Trevor Touchton of the United States shoves his remaining stack of 73,000 from the CO and gets called in the BB by Australia’s Hatin Hussein.

Touchton turns over A♦ Q♣ and to everyone’s amusement, Hussein flips over A♥ Q♦ .

The runout goes: A♠ 9♣ 8♦ 2♠ K♦ as they split the pot. The money bubble hasn’t burst yet.

Filipino Jonald Garcia opens from the +1 position for 12,000 and when the action folds to the D, Acharya Anant of India re-raises all-in of his last 82,000. After the blinds fold, Garcia makes the call.

Anant unveils K♥ J♥ while Garcia is live with 8♠ 7♠ .

The flop comes K♦ 4♠ 5♦ as the Indian maintains his lead with top pair but Garcia gets a gutshot. The turn is the T♣ and the river is the 3♣ to get Anant a huge double up at the expense of a former big stack.

Norihisa Zaitsu has it folded to him in the CO and open shoves his dwindling stack of 42,000. Australia’s Hatim Hussein calls from the D and just for good measure, big stack Jonald Garcia of the Philippines joins also from the BB.

The flop goes J♠ T♠ 6♦ as Hussein and Garica check. The turn is the K♣ and they still skip this betting street while the river is the 8♦. No further action ensues.

Zaitsu flips over A♣ T♥ for middle pair on the flop while Hussein has 9♣ 9♦ . Garcia unveils shows 4♠ 4♥ .

With the triumph, the Japanese player triples up and reenters the six-figure mark to stay in contention.

Finland’s Ville Vallenius open shoves from UTG for his last 49,000 and going all-in for less is the recently crippled Kang Myeonghwa of Korea for 34,500 in the +2 position. Pushing the blinds out of the way is Raymond Enriquez of the Philippines who 3-bet shoves to isolate. The blinds fold.

Vallenius turns over A♠ J♣ while Kang is in bad shape with A♦ T♥. However, both are in dire straits against Enriquez’s A♣ K♠ .

The runout goes: 6♣ 2♦ 7♦ Q♣ 7♥ as the Filipino not only finishes off Kang but also eliminates the Finn in the process.

With the action folded to the D of Korea’s Kang Myeonghwa, he open shoves but gets called on the BB of Filipino Raymond Enriquez who is at risk with his last 54,000.

However, Enriquez likes his chances when Kang turns over A♣ 8♦ against his A♦ J♦ .

True enough, the runout made it official for the Filipino: 9♠ 2♣ 5♣ 3♥ 7♠ . Enriquez gets his much coveted double up and sends Kang’s stack spiraling to dangerously low levels.

With the flop of 3♥ 4♥ 4♠ already dealt and 36,000 already in the middle, Jonald Garcia of the Philippines checks it to Ireland’s Daryl O’Rourke who comes out firing for 32,000. Garcia then check-raises it 64,000. O’Rourke makes the call. The turn is the 5♥ as Garcia checks anew. The Irishman then goes all-in for his remaining 93,000. The Filipino covers his opponent and makes the call.

O’Rourke shows T♣ T♦ but is surprised when Garcia unveils 3♣ 3♦ for a full house on the flop.

The river card is the 8♣ as suddenly O’Rourke is out of the tournament and Garcia is now among the big stacks.

Canadian Robert Williams limps in from UTG and the action folds to Trevor Touchton of the United States who shoves his remaining stack of 54,500. Williams calls.

Touchton turns over K♠ K♦ while a disgruntled Williams shows J♣ J♦ .

The runout goes A♠ 3♦ T♥ 4♦ K♣ with the rivered set proving to be the coup de grace for the American as Williams’ stack slides all the way down to below 40,000.

In a three-way all-in preflop situation, Taiwan’s Chen Chun Yuan tables A♦ K♣ dominating (and covering) his two opponents in Nguyen Van Dong An of Vietnam and Filipino Raymond Tiu who show A♠ 9♠ and A♣ Q♣ , respectively.

The flop, though, turns the tides as it comes Q♥ 6♣ 6♦ giving Tiu the lead. The turn is the T♠ rendering Nguyen dead in the water but the river is the K♠ , handing thw victory to Chen. The Taiwanese player KOs two adversaries and is just under thr 300,000 chip mark.

Vietnam’s Nguyen Van Dong An limps in from the +1 position and is met by a shove from Filipina Alma Aguila for her last 17,000. It gets to the CO where Anastasios Pavlou of Cyprus makes the call. Nguyen folds.

Aguila tables 5♠ 5♥ while Pavlou has two over cards with A♦ J♣ .

The window card immediately makes it even a steeper uphill climb for the Cypriot as the 5♦ shows along with the A♠ and the 7♠ to give Aguila bottom set. Needing running cards to come from behind, the turn card is the 8♦ to effectively shutdown Pavlou’s chances. The river card is the 4♣ to make it another official double up for Aguila who continues to stay afloat.

The action opens from UTG for 6,000 and is followed by a 3-bet shove from Filipino Jonathan Villasis in the +1 position for his last 53,500. William Rogers of England calls from the BB as the original raiser folds.

Villasis tables A♦ Q♥ while Rogers has him crushed with A♠ K♠ .

The runout sealed the win for the Englishman: J♠ 6♣ 2♠ 3♦ 3♣ as Villasis is eliminated and Rogers is just a few hair strands away from the double century chip mark.

Going all-in preflop are Raphael Bubong of the Philippines, Japan’s Hideaki Tani and the short-stacked American Tmothy Ferrari. Tani covers everyone.

Bubong shows K♥ T♠ , Tani has A♥ Q♣ while Ferrari unveils K♦ J♦ .

The runout goes: 6♥ 9♠ 2♣ 2♥ A♠ as Tani rivers the ace he didn’t need in vanquishing his two opponents and climb into the big stack conversation.

India’s Acharya Anant opens from UTG for 5,500 but right beside him in the +1 position, Rodrigo Enriquez of the Philippines 3-bet shoves his remaining 16,500. Folded to the D, American Timothy Ferrari isolates with a 4-bet shove, forcing Anant out of the hand.

Enriquez unfurls K♦ K♣ while Ferrari shows A♠ J♥ .

The Filipino successfully avoids any complications in his double up attempt: 9♥ 3♣ 4♥ 2♠ 4♦ .

The loss, however, sinks Ferrari’s stack to below 15,000.

The action gets folded to the blinds where Benie Goldstein of the United States open shoves his last 25,000 from the SB but gets promptly called by Canada’s Robert Williams in the BB.

The cards are revealed as Goldstein shows K♥ K♠ while Williams has J♥ J♠ .

The flop immediately kept the American firmly entrenched in the lead as it comes K♣ T♣ 5♥ for top set. The turn, however, gave the Canadian a glimmer of a miracle as the J♦ arrives. However, no miracle is in store on the river as the 3♥ giving Goldstein a double up and more ammunition to keep trudging on.

In an ongoing hand, the pot is at 63,500 and the board reading Q♣ 8♦ 5♥ Q♠ . Segundo Barte of the Philippines bets 30,000 but Korea’s Han Seung Hun goes over the top all-in for his remaining 126,000. Barte covers him and makes the snap call.

Han shows Q♥ J♥ for trips on the turn while the Filipino flips over K♥ Q♦ for trips with a higher kicker.

Just when it looked like Barte was set to sit atop the leaderboard, the J♠ arrives on the river to give Han a full house and cripple his opponent to just below the starting stack.

Han currently has the most chips in Flight A.

Israel’s Avi Kaplan opens from UTG for 4,500 and gets called by SB Robert Williams of Canada and the player in the BB.

The flop goes 2♥ 5♣ K♠ as the blinds check. Kaplan CBets 7,500 as Williams calls and the player in the BB steps aside. Now Heads Up to the turn, the A♥ as the Canadian checks anew. Kaplan shoves and Williams heads for the hills.

In another all-in preflop situation, Timothy Ferrari of the United States is at risk as his remaining 13,000 is in the pot against Filipino Reuel Bacos.

The American turns over 7♠ 7♥ but is disheartened when Bacos shows J♥ J♦ .

The flop is 9♥ T♠ T♦ . However, the turn card is the 7♦ to give Ferrari the lead with a full house. The river provided no comeback story for the Filipino as the 6♣ appeared.

Ferrari now is slightly ahead of his suck out victim as a result.

The action is opened from UTG to 3,000 as Filipino Alex Taneo calls from the +2 position. It gets folded to the SB where William Rogers of England 3-bet shoves his last 19,500. The initial raiser folds but Taneo makes the call.

Rogers shows A♣ Q♠ (the same hand he chopped with earlier) while Taneo tables K♣ J♥ for live cards.

The runout, however, did not improve the Filipino’s quest: 8♥ 3♣ 5♦ A♠ 4♥ as Rogers finally doubles up.

Japan’s Yoshinori open shoves from the D for his remining 15,400 and gets called in the SB by Jo Handong of Korea.

Fukazawa tables A♣ 5♠ while Jo has him dominated with A♦ T♠ .

The subsequent runout was insignificant to the Japanese player’s cause: 8♦ 7♣ K♥ 8♠ 3♠ .

The Korean shows Fukazawa the door.

Joining a hand already ongoing, the board reads T♣ J♦ 8♠ 9♥ and has a pot of 25,400.

William Rogers of England checks and Filipino Anacleto Quijano bets 20,000. Rogers check-raises all-in. Quijano calls.

Quijano shows Q♦ T♥ for a made straight on the turn while Rogers flips A♠ Q♦ for the same straight but needing a King for a higher straight.

The river is the T♦ as both players chop it up.

Alma Aguila of the Philippines opens from the CO for 2,500 and gets re-raised all-in by American Amir Fateh for his last 14,000. The Filipina makes the call.

Fateh turns over J♠ 9♠ while Aguila has K♥ Q♣ .

The first three community cards gave the American a sliver of hope: T♠ 7♥ K♦ as he flops a gutshot. However, the next two were of no help: 3♦ A♥ .

With the elimination of Fateh, Aguila’s roller coaster ride on her solitary bullet continues.

Thailand’s Pakkanat Boonlikitchewa limps in from the CO and is met with a shove from the BB of Singaporean Jonathan Wong for his remaining 10,900. Boonlikitchewa makes the call.

Wong shows 9♦ 3♦ while Boonlikitchewa has K♠ J♣ .

The runout goes: A♠ 6♣ Q♦ K♦ (a redraw to a flush for Wong). The river is the 7♠ as Wong gets waylaid.

The Philippines’ Roland Don Ferrer raises from UTG to 2,400 and gets callers in the blinds as Korea’s Kim Kunwoo joins in from the SB and Norihisa Zaitsu is also in from the BB.

The flop comes Q♥ J♦ 9♦ as Kim check and Zaitsu check. Ferrer continues for 3,600 as Kim calls. However, Zaitsu check-raises it to 8,500. Ferrer calls but the Korean 3-bets all-in for his last 25,200. The move elicits a fold from the player from Japan. Ferrer makes the call.

Kim shows A♦ 4♦ for the nut flush draw while the Filipino is delighted to learn he is ahead with K♠ Q♣ for top pair and a gutshot straight draw.

The turn is the 6♥ and the river is the T♣ as Ferrer completes the straight he didn’t need and busts Kim in the process.

Following a raising battle preflop, Filipina Alma Aguila finds herself in a coin-flip against her Japanese opponent Daichi Miyata as the cards are tabled. Aguila shows A♣ K♠ while Miyata has J♠ J♥ .

Miyata dodges everything: 8♣ 6♣ Q♥ 9♣ Q♠ .

The double up for Miyata brings him just a tad above the starting stack.

The action is folded to the CO where India’s Jayantilal Jain limps in. Amir Fateh of the United States completes his SB and the player in the BB checks his option.

The flop comes K♣ Q♠ 6♦ as Fateh and the BB check. Jain bets 1,500 and Fteh makes the call. The player in the BB folds. It is now Heads Up to the turn where the Q♥ shows up. Both check. The river is the T♥ and this time, the American fires 1,000. Jain raises to 2,500 and gets called.

Much to everyone’s surprise, Jain tables A♣ A♦. Fateh mucks.

Daryl Rourke raises it to 2,500 from the CO and gets re-raised by Korea’s Kim Sangbum to 5,500 from the D. From the BB, the Philippines’ Dave Aguila 4-bet shoves as Rourke calls for his remaining 36,300. Kim tanka s bit but decides to join in.

Aguila tables Q♥ Q♣ while Rourke has him deflated by showing K♠ K♥. Kim is somehow in there with T♦ 9♦ .

Rourke turned his lead to almost insurmountable as the flop goes 2♣ A♠ K♦ . Both his opponents are drawing dead when the turn card comes as the A♥ . The river card makes it official as the 2♥ arrives.

Kim busts, Aguila has his stack go down to less than 50,000 while Rourke nears the century mark.

A player in the +1 position opens for 1,000 and gets 3-bet by Australia’s Andrew Xu to 4,000 right on the +2. It gets folded to the CO where Alex Taneo of the Philippines 4-bets all-in. The original raiser folds but the call is made by Xu.

Both show Big Slick with Xu having A♦ K♠ and Taneo with A♥ K♣ .

However, the flop goes A♠ 4♠ 5♠ as Taneo quivers at the sight of three spades. The last two community cards produce the 6♦ and the 2♦ as both gentlemen eventually still split the pot.

In a preflop raising war that made it to a 5-bet, Choi Younsik of Korea is in jeopardy as his Q♥ Q♣ is up against the A♠ A♣ of Japan’s Akira Suzuki.

The runout goes: 9♣ 9♥ 2♣ T♥ 6♠ as Choi is sidelined and Suzuki closes in on the 80,000 chip mark.

Ernesto Thorne of Peru open shoves from the +2 position and gets called at the D by the Philippines’ Renato Go for his last 6,500.

Thorne tables an astonishing 7♦ 2♦ while Go shows 9♣ 9♦ .

The poker gods did not find it funny: A♠ A♣ K♠ 4♥ 3♣ .

The Peruvian now only has 800 in chips left in Go’s double up.

Carlos Monton of the Philippines limps from UTG and the action gets folded to the SB where another Filipino in Jonald Garcia raises it to 3,100. Ki Young Son of Korea calls from the BB and Monton also joins in.

The flop goes 7♠ 6♥ K♣ as all three players check. The turn is the Q♥ as Garcia now leads out for 3,000. Son calls but Monton moves all-in for his last 19,500. Garcia calls and Son folds.

Monton shows 9♥ 5♥ for a gutshot that gained a flush redraw while Garcia has A♣ Q♦ for top pair-top kicker. Garcia dodges all of his compatriot’s outs as the T♦ appears on the river.

The miss rails Monton as Garcia now has six-figures in chips.

The action starts from the HJ where it is raised to 1,500 and a call from Renato Go of the Philippines from the CO. However, another Filipino in Chris Chua Ching 3-bets from the SB to 3,800. The initial raiser and Go make the call.

The flop is J♣ 3♣ 5♠ as Ching goes all-in for his remaining 5,000. Go calls.

Ching brandishes A♦ A♥ while Go shakes his head as he tables J♦ 8♦ .

The last two community cards are the 3♠ and the 2♣ .

Thankfully for Go, he was up against a short stack.

Korea’s Jeong Seonghun opens from the +2 position for 1,200 and gets three callers from the HJ, CO and BB.

The flop goes Q♥ T♥ 6♣ as the BB checks and Jeong also relinquishes his betting lead in also checking. A♠ the HJ also checks, Jay Laurence Payuyo of the Philippines leads out for 5,100. The BB folds and Jeong makes the call. The player in the HJ also gets out of the way. It is now Heads UP to the turn where the 6♦ arrives. Jeong and Payuyo skip this street. The river is the J♥ as Jeong unloads 7,500. Payuyo raises it to 15,000. The Korean eventually lets it go.

In a brewing hand that has a pot of 7,000 and a board of 2♦ T♦ T♥ 3♠ Japan’s Keigo Hoshi checks as Kim Sangbum of Korea bets 3,400. Hoshi then check-raises all-in as the Korean calls for his last 9,400.

Hoshi shows T♠ 6♦ while Kim has him dominated with Q♦ T♣ .

The river is the A♦ as Kim doubles through off the Japanese player.

The action is folded to the D where Chen Chun Yuan of Taiwan opens for 1,500. India’s Naresh Thakker Karan 3-bets from the SB to 4,300. Chen proceeds to 4-bet shove for 15,500 and the move puts the Indian in the tank. After much deliberation, Karan opts to lay it down.

With a hefty pot of 28,200 and a board of Q♥ 9♣ 6♣ Ireland’s Patrick Noonan goes all-in and gets called by Keigo Hoshi of Japan for his last 18,800.

Noonan tables K♠ K♥ while Hoshi is in bad shape with A♠ Q♠ (top pair-top kicker in the worst spot).

However, the turn card is the A♥ and the river could not help the Irishman out of the abyss as the 6♥ arrives.

Noonan’s stack plummets to emergency levels.

The action is folded to the D of Filipino Raymond Tiu who open shoves for his remaining 14,400. Waiting in the BB is his compatriot Jeoffrey Sibal who snap calls.

Much to Sibal’s chagrin, Tiu turns over K♣ K♠ which crushes his Q♣ Q♠ (even the suits are covered).

The runout goes: 6♥ 9♥ 5♥ 6♦ T♥ as Tiu doubles up.

With a board already reading 6♣ T♦ A♦ 7♥ Q♣ and a pot of 6,000, two Filipinos tangle as Manman Pacha bets 2,500 from his BB position. His opponent, Anacleto Quijano, then raises it to 7,500 from the +2 position.

Pacha opts to walk away.

Bernard Chua of the Philippines opens from the LJ for 800 and gets callers in fellow Filipino Ermito Sorio and the player in the BB.

The flop comes K♣ 5♠ 3♥ s the BB checks. Chua continues firing for 1,500 as Sorio calls. The BB folds. It is Heads UP to the turn as the T♠ is dealt. Chua this time checks and Sorio takes the betting lead for 2,500. Chua calls. The river card is the 3♦ as once again, Chua checks. Sorio now makes it 5,500 to go but still gets called.

Sorio tables 8♥ 7♥ for a complete miss while Chua shows K♦ 6♦ for top pair with a not so sexy kicker. It’s still enough to take it down.

With a fresh reload of artillery, Dutchman Germ de Haas opens from the +1 position for 1,000 and gets calls from Hwang Junhyun of Korea on the D and a BB defense from the BB.

The flop goes Q♠ 8♥ 2♥ as the BB checks. De Haas CBets to 1,300 and gets called by Hwang as the BB folds. It is Heads Up to the turn where the 4♣ appears. De Haas this time fires 2,400 and gets the job done.

With less than 5,000 in chips left, Germ de Haas of the Netherlands puts it all in the middle folded to him on the CO while Tony Abesamis—the Filipino who crippled him in the hand prior—isolates by 3-betting to 20,000 from the D.

De Hass flips over 8♥ 6♥ while Abesamis has A♥ J♠ .

The runout goes: 2♠ 2♦ Q♦ T♥ 5♦ . The Dutchman gets railed for now as Abesamis finishes what he started.

The action opens with a player raising from UTG for 600 as it gets folded to the D where Germ de Haas of the Netherlands 3-bets to 2,500. Tony Abesamis of the Philippines makes the from the SB while the original raiser steps aside.

The flop goes K♥ J♦ 4♦ as Abesamis checks. De Haas continues for 1,700 but gets check-raised to 4,000. The Dutchman calls. The turn is the 2♦ and once again the Filipino player checks. De Haas now brings in 4,000 and once again gets check-raised to 10,400. De Haas calls. The river is the 3♠ and now Abesamis donk-shoves for his remaining 5,400. De Haas snap calls.

Abesamis tables A♦ K♦ for the nut flush on the turn while De Haas turns over K♠ J♠ for two pairs on the flop.

De Hass’ stack now drops to the danger zone while Abesamis surges to nearly 50,000.

A player from the +1 starts it off with a raise to 700 and gets called by Australia’s Hatim Abdul Hussein from the D. Ki Young Son of Korea 3-bets it from the SB for 3,600 as both his opponents make the call.

The flop comes Q♣ 4♥ 5♥ as Son continues firing for 2,600. The original raiser folds but Hussein raises it 6,000. Son calls. The turn is the K♣ as both slow down and check. The river is the 8♦ and they check anew.

Son flips over A♥ T♥ for a missed gut-shot straight and nut flush draw while the Australian shows Q♦ J♦ for top pair that avoided all of his opponent’s outs.