APT Jeju 2026 Opening Day: Zu You Wang Leads National Cup as Yi Ye Wins High Roller

APT Jeju 2026 is underway at LES A Casino , with the Korea National Cup drawing 474 entries and seven side-event champions collecting trophies during a busy opening day on Jeju Island.

The Asian Poker Tour has returned to South Korea for the penultimate stop of its 20-Year Anniversary season, with the 13-day festival running through October 7 and offering more than KRW 5.2 billion (~USD 3.5 million) in guarantees.

There is plenty still to come. The KRW 2.7 million (~USD 1,800) APT Main Event begins on Sunday and carries a KRW 2.2 billion (~USD 1.6 million) guarantee, while the KRW 15 million APT Super High Roller also gets underway today.

Before the festival’s biggest tournaments take center stage, however, the Korea National Cup has already comfortably surpassed its guarantee.

Zu You Wang Leads 67 Into Korea National Cup Final Day

The KRW 900,000 (~USD 665) Korea National Cup kicked off the festival with three starting flights on Friday, attracting a combined 474 entries.

Flight A drew 191 entries, Flight B added 171 and Turbo Flight C contributed another 112, creating a KRW 358,344,000 (~USD 257,250) prize pool and comfortably surpassing the KRW 200 million guarantee.

A total of 67 players progressed to today’s Final Day, with every survivor guaranteed at least KRW 1,380,000 (~USD 990). The eventual champion will collect KRW 70,334,000 (~USD 50,490) alongside the first major trophy of APT Jeju 2026 .

China’s Zu You Wang leads the way after topping Flight A with 602,000, good for 60 big blinds at the start of play. Wang, who reached the final table of the APT Jeju Classic Main Event earlier this year, was the only player across the three flights to bag more than 600,000.

Taiwan’s Kuo Yuan Hung sits second with 531,000, while Flight B leader Bin Li is close behind with 525,000. Japan’s John Matsuda begins the day fourth with 464,000.

Defending Korea National Cup champion Zhiyi Wang is also firmly in contention with 455,000, while reigning APT Jeju Main Event champion Abraham Ceesvin returns further down the counts with 204,000.

Ceesvin won the APT Jeju Main Event last year for KRW 649,835,200 (~USD 464,170), navigating a 1,693-entry field. Maxim Lykov remains in contention with 197,000, while Motokatsu Uhara returns with 130,000.

Dillon Joseph Najor is the highest-ranked survivor from Flight C after bagging 407,000, while at the opposite end of the counts Menglan Lai returns with just 5,000, or half a big blind.

Korea National Cup Final Day Top Ten Chip Counts

The Final Day gets underway at 11:15 a.m. KST, with the 67 survivors playing down to a champion.

Yi Ye Breaks Through for Maiden APT Title in Single Day High Roller

While the Korea National Cup occupied much of the room, China’s Yi Ye secured the biggest side-event prize of the opening day by winning Event #3: Single Day High Roller.

Ye had recorded 11 APT cashes before arriving in Jeju but was still searching for her first trophy. That changed on Friday as she came through an all-Chinese top four to collect KRW 40,530,000 (~USD 29,911) and her maiden APT title.

An ICM deal was struck during the closing stages, with Ye holding the chip lead and ultimately taking home the trophy. Zhuoqun Zhang finished runner-up for KRW 37,226,000 (~USD 27,473), while Yaoyu He completed the podium for KRW 20,220,000 (~USD 14,923).

Five players reached the money.

Single Day High Roller Final Results

Returning Champions Add to APT Trophy Collections

China’s Zehao Li was another player to make an immediate impact, taking down Event #2: PL Omaha Hi-Lo – 5 Card (Big O) for KRW 4,967,728 (~USD 3,666).

The victory gave Li his third career APT title. Russia’s Pavel Platonov came closest to denying him the trophy, finishing second for KRW 3,310,000 (~USD 2,443), while Taylor Atchison of the United States completed the podium for KRW 2,130,000 (~USD 1,572).

Taiwan’s Yih Ming Hsu also added to his trophy collection, winning Event #4: Fixed Limit – Triple Draw Mix (A-5, 2-7) for KRW 2,787,584 (~USD 2,057). The victory earned Hsu his second APT title, with Brian Mitchell Pizza of the United States the only other player to reach the money.

China’s Houyu Zheng joined them among the returning champions after taking down Event #7: Hyper Turbo – NL Omaha High. Zheng defeated Taiwan’s Pu Lin heads-up to collect KRW 3,090,288 (~USD 2,281) and the second APT title of his career.

Three More Players Claim Maiden APT Titles

The opening day also produced three more first-time APT champions, with China’s Yuan Lei breaking through in Event #5: Turbo – High Roller.

Lei entered the tournament with more than USD 1.1 million in recorded live tournament earnings but had yet to secure an APT title. That changed in Jeju as he defeated Thailand’s Pongsapak Himathongkom heads-up to collect KRW 6,358,000 (~USD 4,692).

China’s Bo Dou also picked up his first piece of APT silverware after winning Event #6: Hyper Turbo – NLH for KRW 4,700,496 (~USD 3,469). Zhenghao Zhou and Zhijian Shen completed an all-Chinese podium.

Yongliang Li rounded out the list of maiden winners after taking down Event #8: Super Hyper Turbo – NLH for KRW 2,420,460 (~USD 1,786). Yixi Tang finished runner-up, with Dapeng Chen completing another all-Chinese podium.

By the end of the first day, seven side-event trophies had already been awarded, with four maiden champions and three returning winners adding to their collections.

Korea National Cup and APT Super High Roller Headline Day 2

The action steps up another level today, with the Korea National Cup Final Day joined by the start of several of the biggest early events on the schedule.

The KRW 15 million (~USD 11,000) APT Super High Roller gets underway with a KRW 500 million (~USD 369,000) guarantee before playing down to a champion on Sunday.

The KRW 1.2 million (~USD 885) Mystery Bounty Hunter, sponsored by Natural8, also begins today with a KRW 400 million (~USD 295,000) guarantee, while the KRW 3 million PL Omaha High – High Roller provides another big-buy-in option on Saturday.

Attention will then shift toward the KRW 2.7 million APT Main Event on Sunday. The centerpiece of APT Jeju 2026 carries a KRW 2.2 billion (~USD 1.6 million) guarantee, with the festival’s first Main Event flight beginning as the Super High Roller reaches its conclusion.

APT Jeju 2026 is only one day old, but the Korea National Cup has already comfortably surpassed its guarantee and seven side-event champions have been crowned. With the Main Event and the festival’s biggest high rollers still ahead, there is plenty more to come at LES A Casino.

Be sure to check back to Somuchpoker regularly throughout APT Jeju 2026 for the latest results, stories and updates from South Korea.

All facts, figures and images are courtesy of the Asian Poker Tour.

Follow Us