APT Championship 2026 Begins as National Cup Draws 820 Entries Across First Two Flights
The APT Championship 2026 officially opened on Friday, November 13, with the National Cup Championship attracting 820 entries across its first two starting flights at Red Space in Taipei, Taiwan.
The TWD 16,000 buy-in tournament, carrying a TWD 20 million (~$613,000) guarantee, recorded a 13.2% increase in attendance compared with the corresponding opening flights in 2025.
Japan's Konosuke Nakajima topped Flight A, while Troy McLean led the evening Turbo Flight B. A combined 115 players progressed to Sunday's final day.
Nine side events also produced confirmed champions, including Germany's Tolga Karakaya in the Heads-Up tournament and Japan's Abe Yusuke in Pot-Limit Omaha.
Meanwhile, South Korea's Gilsoo Kim finished as the chip leader in High Roller - The Opener, which resumes on Saturday.
National Cup Championship Attracts 820 Entries Across Two Flights
Event #1, the National Cup Championship, provided the main attraction as the 17-day APT Championship 2026 got underway.
Friday's opening Flight A attracted 602 entries, including 464 unique players, representing a 30.6% increase in entries compared with the corresponding flight last year.
After the day's action, 84 players advanced, with Japan's Konosuke Nakajima leading the survivors on 1,234,000 chips.
The flight concluded with a double elimination on the money bubble. Takahiko Kondo was eliminated by Ci Hong Ho, while Jung An Chiang ran ace-queen into Nakajima's pocket queens at another table. Both players departed without a payout, leaving 84 survivors rather than the scheduled 85.
Taiwan's Jun Wei Yan followed Nakajima with 1,126,000 chips, while compatriot Chien Fa Chou rounded out the top three with 940,000.
The evening Turbo Flight B added another 218 entries, with 31 players advancing. Troy McLean finished as the flight's chip leader with 1,261,000, also giving him the overall lead after the first two flights.
Across the two flights, the National Cup recorded 820 entries and 115 survivors, putting the event ahead of last year's corresponding opening flights. Three more starting flights are scheduled for Saturday, November 14, before all qualified players return for the final day on Sunday, November 15.
National Cup Championship Current Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1,261,000 | ||
2 | 1,234,000 | ||
3 | 1,126,000 | ||
4 | Pei Chih Shih | 956,000 | |
5 | 940,000 | ||
6 | Chia Yun Wu | 792,000 | |
7 | 748,000 | ||
8 | 741,000 | ||
9 | 690,000 | ||
10 | 689,000 |
Tolga Karakaya Claims Opening Heads-Up Title
Germany's Tolga Karakaya became the first side-event champion of the official festival, winning Event #1, the TWD 10,000 NL Hold'em Heads-Up (64 Cap) Best of 3.
The tournament attracted 32 entries, generating a TWD 262,410 (~$8,050) prize pool.
Karakaya defeated Hong Kong's Ho Cheung Jonathan Yeung in the final to collect the TWD 114,410 (~$3,160) first-place prize.
Yeung earned TWD 71,000 for second place, while Japan's Daiki Miyazawa and Taiwan's Lian An Jian each received TWD 38,500 after reaching the semifinals.
The tournament used a knockout bracket, with the early rounds contested as best-of-three matches and the championship round played as a best-of-five contest.
Karakaya's victory added the first side-event trophy to the festival's results, following Thursday's industry-exclusive tournament won by Heng Je Hu.
Abe Yusuke Wins Opening Pot-Limit Omaha Event
Japan's Yusuke Abe also secured an opening-day title, winning Event #2, the TWD 16,000 Pot-Limit Omaha High.
The tournament attracted 78 entries, producing a TWD 1,035,889 (~$31,800) prize pool.
Yuseke collected the TWD 284,989 (~$7,873) first-place prize, defeating Troy McLean heads-up.
McLean earned TWD 202,500 for second place, adding another notable result to a day that also saw him lead National Cup Flight B.
Minghsuan Wang Takes Women's Event Title
Taiwan's Minghsuan Wang claimed Event #4, the TWD 3,500 Women's Event, which attracted 85 entries and generated a TWD 238,027 (~$7,300) prize pool.
Wang secured the TWD 58,927 (~$1,810) first-place prize, with Chiaw Yee Chan finishing runner-up for TWD 53,000.
The tournament was the first of several Women's Events scheduled throughout the festival, alongside the TWD 35,000 APT Women's Championship beginning November 19.
Other Opening-Day Side Event Winners
Friday's schedule also included several mixed-game tournaments, Omaha variants and late-night turbo events.
Thailand's Nattapat Iammelap won the TWD 16,000 Fixed Limit Triple Draw Mix, while Taiwan's Hung Hsiang Wu captured the Turbo 5-Card Omaha Hi-Lo title.
Japan's Junya Kosaka, Hong Kong's Man Ho Yuen and Poland's Tomasz Brzezinski were among the late-night winners, alongside Cezary Krzysztof Kaminski.
Additional November 13 Side Event Results
Event | Winner | Country | Entries | Prize Pool (TWD) | Prize (TWD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
#5 Fixed Limit Triple Draw Mix | 35 | 464,822 | 135,622 | ||
#7 Turbo 5-Card Omaha Hi-Lo | 50 | 410,016 | 129,016 | ||
#9 Hyper Turbo Home Games NL Hold'em Rivers | Junya Kosaka | 68 | ~190,000 | 55,621 | |
#10 Hyper Turbo NL Single Draw Mix | 22 | 105,600 | 44,300 | ||
#11 Hyper Turbo High Roller | 3 | 67,680 | 67,680 | ||
#12 Super Hyper Turbo NLH | Cezary Krzysztof Kaminski | 55 | 352,017 | 105,517 |
The late-night results included a particularly small field in Event #11, where Brzezinski defeated two opponents and collected the entire TWD 67,680 prize pool.
The variety of formats will continue throughout the festival, with additional mixed-game and turbo tournaments scheduled daily.
Gilsoo Kim Leads High Roller - The Opener Into Final Day
Event #3, the TWD 70,000 High Roller - The Opener, also began on Friday, attracting 98 entries and generating a prize pool of approximately TWD 5.9 million.
After the opening day, 24 players remained, with South Korea's Gilsoo Kim leading the field on 1,089,000 chips.
Taiwan's Nevan Chang, a Natural8 ambassador and multiple APT title winner, finished second with 843,000 chips. The Netherlands' Tom Verbruggen followed in third with 708,000.
Chang will be looking to add another title to his record after winning the Mini Main Event at the inaugural APT Championship in 2025. The remaining players return on Saturday, November 14, to compete for the first High Roller title of the series.
High Roller - The Opener Day 1 Top Ten Chip Counts
Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1,089,000 | ||
2 | 843,000 | ||
3 | 708,000 | ||
4 | 660,000 | ||
5 | 656,000 | ||
6 | 628,000 | ||
7 | 548,000 | ||
8 | 526,000 | ||
9 | 509,000 | ||
10 | 488,000 |
Saturday, November 14 Schedule
The final three starting flights of the National Cup Championship headline Saturday's schedule, alongside the conclusion of High Roller - The Opener and another Single Day High Roller.
Time (Local) | Event | Buy-in |
|---|---|---|
11:00 AM | National Cup Championship Flight C | TWD 16,000 |
11:15 AM | High Roller - The Opener Final Day | TWD 70,000 |
11:30 AM | Fixed Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 5-Card | TWD 16,000 |
3:00 PM | High Roller - Single Day | TWD 65,000 |
4:00 PM | Women's Event | TWD 3,500 |
4:15 PM | Fixed Limit Super Stud Mix | TWD 16,000 |
4:30 PM | National Cup Championship Flight D | TWD 16,000 |
8:30 PM | National Cup Championship Turbo Flight E | TWD 16,000 |
9:00 PM | Hyper Turbo Home Games Red River Hold'em | TWD 3,500 |
10:00 PM | Hyper Turbo NL Omaha High Stairway to Seven | TWD 6,000 |
10:15 PM | Hyper Turbo High Roller | TWD 30,000 |
11:00 PM | Super Hyper Turbo NLH | TWD 8,000 |
The National Cup concludes on November 15, when the TWD 35,000 Mystery Bounty Championship, sponsored by Natural8, also gets underway with a TWD 15 million (~$460,000) guarantee.
The APT Championship 2026 continues through November 29, featuring 23 Championship Events and more than TWD 256 million (~$8.1 million) in combined guarantees.
The series is headlined by the USD 5M GTD APT Championship 2026 Main Event Freezeout, beginning November 23.
For the latest results and remaining program, visit the APT Championship 2026 festival page and full tournament schedule.
All images courtesy of the Asian Poker Tour.
About the Editor
Tim Baker is a UK-born Live Poker Reporter based in Indonesia, covering major poker tournaments across Asia and around the world since 2023. With nearly two decades of experience around live and online poker, he brings deep knowledge of the game and the international poker scene to his tournament coverage.
