APPT Championship Manila 2026: PHP 60M GTD Season Finale at Okada Manila

The Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) will bring its 2026 season to a close at Okada Manila, with APPT Championship Manila 2026 running from October 8 to 19.

The 12-day festival features a 99-event schedule, headlined by the PHP 165,000 (~USD 2,785) APPT Championship, which carries a PHP 60 million guaranteed prize pool and will award the final APPT Shard of the season.

Before the Championship takes center stage, players will have several major tournaments to choose from, including the PHP 15 million guaranteed APPT Open, PHP 8 million guaranteed APPT National, PHP 15 million guaranteed PokerStars Red Dragon and a PHP 500,000 APPT Super High Roller.

Qualification routes will also run throughout the festival, with Championship seats available through featured events and a 20-seat guaranteed MEGA Qualifier scheduled for October 14.

PHP 60 Million APPT Championship Takes Center Stage

The centerpiece of the festival begins on October 15 and runs through October 19, with players competing for a share of the PHP 60 million guaranteed prize pool.

The PHP 165,000 APPT Championship gives players a 50,000 starting stack and two opening flights.

Flights A and B both begin at noon on October 15 and 16 respectively, with 60-minute levels and 11 levels scheduled on each Day 1.

Day 2 gets underway on October 17 with another ten 60-minute levels. Players are also permitted to enter directly on Day 2, with registration closing after Level 12.

Those who survive move into Day 3 on October 18, where levels increase to 90 minutes and play continues until the final six players remain. The champion will then be decided on October 19.

Once the final table is reached, PokerStars will move away from timed levels and introduce a hands-per-level structure. Each level will consist of a predetermined number of hands, with the blinds increasing once those hands have been completed.

Multiple Routes Into the APPT Championship

One of the biggest themes of the festival is the number of opportunities players have to secure their place in the PHP 60 million guaranteed Championship.

Several of the major tournaments held during the opening week will award PHP 165,000 APPT Championship seats from their prize pools.

The APPT Open will award Championship seats to its top three finishers, while the top two players in the APPT National will also earn entries.

Another three seats will go to the top three finishers in the PokerStars Red Dragon.

Championship seats are also attached to several other events. The top two in the PHP 5 million guaranteed Survivor Knockout and APPT Super High Roller will each receive entries, while the winners of the PHP 1 million guaranteed Super Stack and Double Stack will also secure seats.

Players who have not won their way in through one of those tournaments will still have plenty of opportunities through the festival's live qualifier schedule.

The biggest comes on October 14, when the PHP 19,000 APPT Championship MEGA Qualifier guarantees 20 seats.

Players begin with 10,000 chips and secure a Championship seat once they accumulate 100,000. Step qualifiers into the MEGA Qualifier are available for PHP 2,800, while further Championship qualifiers and direct hyper qualifiers continue during the opening flights.

APPT Open, National and Red Dragon Lead Into Championship Week

Before the PHP 60 million Championship begins, three major multi-day tournaments will provide plenty to play for at Okada Manila.

The PHP 60,000 APPT Open starts on October 9 with PHP 15 million guaranteed. Players can choose from three starting flights before Day 2 on October 11 and the final on October 12.

The APPT National follows on October 11. The PHP 30,000 tournament carries a PHP 8 million guarantee and also offers three opening flights before the final day on October 12.

One of PokerStars' most recognizable Asian tournament brands then takes over.

The PHP 50,000 PokerStars Red Dragon runs from October 12 to 15 and brings another PHP 15 million guarantee. Flights A and B use 40-minute levels, while Flight C provides a faster 20-minute option.

APPT Championship Manila 2026 Key Events

The complete timetable, including qualifiers, satellites, side events and registration closing times, is available on the APPT Championship Manila 2026 schedule.

PHP 500,000 APPT Super High Roller Tops High-Stakes Schedule

High-stakes action will run throughout the festival, culminating in two official APPT High Roller events.

The biggest buy-in belongs to the PHP 500,000 (~USD 8,440) APPT Super High Roller, which begins on October 14 and carries a PHP 5 million guarantee.

Players receive a 250,000 starting stack, with 40-minute levels on Day 1 before levels increase to 60 minutes for the final day on October 15.

The PHP 200,000 APPT High Roller takes place from October 18 to 19 and also comes with PHP 5 million guaranteed. Players start with 50,000 chips and play ten 40-minute levels on Day 1, with registration remaining open into Day 2.

The wider High Roller schedule starts on the opening day with the PHP 55,000 Megastack Mini High Roller Warm-up and includes the PHP 100,000 Megastack High Roller, PHP 120,000 High Roller Super Knockout, PHP 125,000 Survivor Knockout High Roller and several turbo options.

There is also an added incentive for players who arrive early. According to the festival guide, the first four players registered, seated and dealt into the opening hand of qualifying High Roller tournaments will receive 50% rakeback on their tournament administration fees.

Mystery Bounty Packages and More Festival Highlights

The schedule extends well beyond the Championship and traditional High Rollers.

The PHP 25,000 APPT Mystery Bounty runs from October 17 to 18 with a PHP 5 million guarantee. Three PHP 210,000 APPT Championship packages will be included among the mystery bounty prizes.

Another PHP 5 million guaranteed event arrives earlier in the festival through the Survivor Knockout, where PHP 50,000 bounties are introduced once the field has been reduced to 20%.

Players will also find plenty of alternative formats across the 12 days, including Pot-Limit Omaha, Big O, PLO Bomb Pots, knockout tournaments, Ladies and Seniors events, turbos and hyper turbos.

The PHP 35,000 APPT Mini Championship runs from October 18 to 19 with PHP 3 million guaranteed, while a free-to-enter Charity Event will also take place on October 18. Rebuy and add-on proceeds specified in the festival guide will contribute to charity.

Minwoong Jeong Returns as Defending APPT Championship Winner

The APPT Championship returns to Manila one year after South Korea's Minwoong Jeong produced a dominant performance to capture the 2025 title.

Last year's APPT Championship attracted 384 entries, reaching its PHP 60 million guarantee.

Jeong entered the final six with close to half of the chips in play before defeating Craig Daniel Jones heads-up to win the APPT Shard and PHP 11,850,000 (~USD 202,000).

The wider 2025 festival attracted 6,478 entries across 109 events and awarded more than USD 4 million in prize money.

APPT Championship Returns to Okada Manila

The festival once again takes place at Okada Manila in the Philippines, with tournament action taking place in the Coral Lounge.

Okada Manila has become one of the main homes of PokerStars LIVE in Asia and regularly hosts APPT festivals and other major tournament series.

Players traveling to Manila can find venue information, accommodation details, poker room information and travel advice in the Somuchpoker Okada Manila guide.

For official tournament information and updates directly from PokerStars, visit the official APPT Championship Manila 2026 page.

APPT Championship Manila 2026 Begins October 8

APPT Championship Manila 2026 gets underway on October 8, with 12 days of action leading to the crowning of the final APPT Championship winner of the 2026 season on October 19.

From the APPT Open, National and Red Dragon to the PHP 60 million guaranteed Championship and a packed qualifier schedule, players will have several different routes through the festival before the final Shard of the season is awarded.

Somuchpoker will provide results, festival updates, winner coverage and the latest stories throughout APPT Championship Manila 2026.

For the complete schedule, results and festival information, visit the APPT Championship Manila 2026 festival page.

All images are courtesy of PokerStars LIVE Manila.