ACE Poker League (APL) Jeju 2026 Hits Halfway Mark with Main Event on Pace to Crush Guarantee

The ACE Poker League (APL) is hitting big milestones at the LES A Casino inside Jeju Shinhwa World, South Korea . The APL Jeju 2026 festival is officially halfway finished and has already drawn massive crowds to the tournament tables.

This special ten-day event features a total of 38 tournaments and carries a massive series guarantee of KRW 1.5 billion (~USD 977,000). The event is also a celebration, marking the official 10th anniversary of the APL tour, and this Jeju stop is quickly proving to be the biggest festival in the company’s history.

Lin Wins the Kick-Off to Secure the Opening Title

The festival action officially started with the APL Jeju 2026 Kick-Off event, which cost KRW 600,000 (~USD 390) to enter and offered an initial guarantee of KRW 80 million (~USD 51,700). Over three starting flights, the opening tournament brought in 219 entries, easily blowing past the original target to create a final prize pool of KRW 109,770,000 (~USD 71,885).

Hong Kong’s Hao Lin outlasted a tough final table packed with players from China to win the first-place trophy and a top cash prize of KRW 25,000,000 (~USD 16,370). The win adds another major achievement to Lin’s resume, following his high roller victory last year at the APL Taipei Single Day High Roller event where he took home a solid payout.

#1 APL Jeju Kick-off (600,000 KRW)

Total Prize USD

$71,885

Total Prize

₩109,770,000

Guaranteed

₩80,000,000

Entries

219

ITM

33

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₩25,000,000 $16,370	HL Hao Lin Hong Kong	1,020.83
2	₩16,600,000 $10,870	WZ Weisheng Zhao China	721.84
3	₩11,100,000 $7,270	WY Wing Yin Lee Hong Kong	589.38
4	₩8,370,000 $5,480	RY Rui Yao China	510.42
5	₩6,500,000 $4,255	QZ Qingyuan Zheng China	456.53
6	₩5,000,000 $3,275	SY Sicheng Yao China	416.75
7	₩3,800,000 $2,490	CH Chi Hang Chang Taiwan	385.84
8	₩2,900,000 $1,900	BD Bo Dou China	360.92
9	₩2,200,000 $1,440	TC Tsung Chun Yang Taiwan	340.28

Check the 33 Payouts & Results ...

Xu Wins Zodiac Mystery Bounty While Sun Claims WSOP Main Event Seat

Another massive highlight from the first half of the series was the GGPK Zodiac Mystery Bounty tournament. The event attracted a field of 423 entries, completely crushing the original KRW 200 million  guarantee. The final prize pool surged to KRW 380,700,000 (~USD 249,300), nearly doubling the casino’s initial expectations.

Jieming Xu emerged as the champion after facing an intensely competitive final table that was heavily dominated again by Chinese. Xu walked away with a first-place prize of KRW 33 million (~USD 21,610). He secured the title by defeating countryman Changliang Sun in a quick heads-up match.

Sun earned KRW 22 million (~USD 14,405) for his second-place finish, but he still walked away with a massive victory of his own after drawing a mystery bounty envelope that contained a complete 2026 World Series of Poker Main Event seat.

#5 GGPK Zodiac Mystery Bounty (1,000,000 KRW)

Total Prize USD

$249,300

Total Prize

₩380,700,000

Guaranteed

₩200,000,000

Entries

423

ITM

63

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₩33,000,000 $21,610	JX Jieming Xu China	1,724.37
2	₩22,000,000 $14,405	CS Changliang Sun China	1,219.31
3	₩15,500,000 $10,150	YY Yusyun You Taiwan	995.57
4	₩10,700,000 $7,005	SG Shengyan Gao China	862.19
5	₩7,700,000 $5,040	JL Jiang Li China	771.16
6	₩5,700,000 $3,735	QL Qianhong Li China	703.97
7	₩4,300,000 $2,815	MQ Mengjie Qiu China	651.75
8	₩3,330,000 $2,180	XL Xuan Li China	609.66
9	₩2,600,000 $1,705	CL Chang Li China	574.79

Check the 63 Payouts & Results ...

APL Jeju 2026 Main Event Flights Pull in Massive Numbers

All eyes are now turning to the flagship APL Jeju Main Event, which features a buy-in of KRW 1.5 million (~USD 970) and a guaranteed prize pool of KRW 1.2 billion (~USD 775,000). Out of the six scheduled starting flights, the first two sessions have already brought a huge crowd to the casino floor.

Day 1A brought in 172 initial entries, played down until only 26 survivors remained. Day 1B wrapped up yesterday with another 180 entries, leaving 27 players left on the felt. Thanks to the structure of the tour, the top 15% of each flight automatically finishes in the money, meaning all 53 players who advanced from the first two sessions are already guaranteed a return on their investment when they come back for Day 2.

With 352 entries booked from just the first two sessions, the Main Event is on pace to easily smash its KRW 1.2 billion guarantee. The momentum is set to grow even faster with four starting flights still left to play. Two of those sessions take place today, starting with the deep-stack structure of Day 1C at noon and followed by the fast-paced Day 1D turbo flight later tonight. Fans can expect even more updates as the remaining players fight for a spot at the upcoming final table.

Today’s Schedule

All photos courtesy of APL.