“It’s Been Waiting for Me”: Teeraphat Rangkatekarn Wins APT Jeju 2026 Super High Roller

Thailand’s Teeraphat Rangkatekarn has won the APT Jeju 2026 Super High Roller at LES A Casino , topping a 99-entry field to collect KRW 355,667,500 (~USD 265,425), the Pewter Mega Lion Trophy and an APT Championship Main Event seat.

The Super High Roller drew 99 entries from 67 unique players, making it the second-largest Asian Poker Tour Super High Roller ever held in South Korea and edging past the 97 entries recorded at the same event last year.

The field built a prize pool of KRW 1,368,427,500 (~USD 1,021,215), well clear of the KRW 500,000,000 guarantee.

Rangkatekarn carried the chip lead into the final day and held it for most of Day 2. Even so, he had to come through a marathon heads-up battle with Calvin Lee , who recovered from a 5:1 deficit to briefly take the lead before settling for second place and KRW 249,330,000 (~USD 186,070).

#10 APT Super High Roller (15,000,000 KRW)

Total Prize USD

$1,021,215

Total Prize

1.4B KRW

Guaranteed

500M KRW

Entries

99

ITM

13

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₩355,667,500 $265,425	TR Teeraphat Rangkatekarn Thailand	2,165.93
2	₩249,330,000 $186,070	CL Calvin Lee United States of America	1,531.55
3	₩164,640,000 $122,865	CH Christian Harder United States of America	1,250.50
4	₩129,410,000 $96,575	JM James Mendoza Philippines	1,082.97
5	₩104,340,000 $77,865	AC Abraham Ceesvin Singapore	968.63
6	₩81,300,000 $60,670	JY Jingyao Yan China	884.24
7	₩64,360,000 $48,030	YC Yita Choong Australia	818.65
8	₩50,140,000 $37,420	DN Dillon Najor United States of America	765.77
9	₩37,940,000 $28,310	YY Yee Yan Wen Malaysia	721.98

Check the 13 Payouts & Results ...

“It’s Been Waiting for Me”

Speaking after his win, Rangkatekarn began by thanking the tournament staff.

“Firstly, thank you to all the staff and APT for making a good event,” he said.

The Thai player made it clear that he never doubted he could win a title of this size. “For me, I think I feel like it’s been waiting for me for a long time,” he said.

That confidence showed throughout the event. Rangkatekarn finished Day 1 as the player to catch and spent most of the final day at the top of the counts.

Asked what the win meant to him, Rangkatekarn pointed to the sleeve of tattoos on his arm, which features a fan of playing cards. “Look at this,” he said. “I tatted it up.”

He said he had always believed that one day “I will bring it home”, and he thanked his rail and the wider Thai poker community for their support. The emotion showed as he lifted the Pewter Mega Lion Trophy, which came with an APT Championship Main Event seat worth around USD 10,000 for APT Championship Taipei in November.

The result more than doubled Rangkatekarn’s career live earnings, taking him to around USD 544,000 and lifting him from 22nd to 11th on Thailand’s all-time money list.

Final Day Action

Twenty-six players returned for the final day, with Rangkatekarn holding almost twice as many chips as his nearest challenger, Lee. The pair would eventually meet heads-up, but first the field had to get through the money bubble.

Yuhan Liu was one of the first to go when Yita Choong rivered him early in the day. Yoko Sasaki followed after her ace-king failed to improve against Johan Pedersen’s flopped top pair.

Choong made a fast start, also eliminating Wouter Beltz in the opening level to climb the counts. However, it was Lee and Rangkatekarn who began to pull away from the pack as the field shrank.

Rangkatekarn Sets the Pace

Rangkatekarn used his big stack to drive the action, and the field went from 26 players to two tables in just two hours. He kept up relentless pressure while also picking off bluffs, most notably with a hero call using ace-high to catch Han Shao bluffing on the river.

He was also happy to get chips in behind and was rewarded more than once. Just before the bubble, he rivered a straight to eliminate Ngo Khoa Anh, before also accounting for Joseph Cheong , the APT’s all-time money leader.

Hand-for-hand play began with 14 players left, and the bubble lasted for almost an hour. Lee took full advantage, putting constant pressure on the shorter stacks.

Fabian Gumz had a rollercoaster ride on the bubble, falling short before finding a crucial double. His run ended when his ace-king ran into Lee’s pocket tens and the flop gave Lee a set. Gumz left as the bubble boy, just short of the KRW 27,780,000 (~USD 20,730) min-cash.

The pace picked up once the money was reached. Mehdi Chaoui was the first player paid after running into Abraham Ceesvin’s pocket kings, and Zhuoqun Zhang became the final elimination before the final table.

The Final Nine

Rangkatekarn took a commanding lead into the final table, with Lee and James Mendoza his closest challengers.

Jingyao Yan survived an early scare when he got his last chips in with ace-ten against Rangkatekarn’s ace-jack, only to spike a one-outer for a chop.

Yee Yan Wen was the first to fall. He was reduced to 60,000 after his pocket eights ran into pocket kings, then briefly recovered when he was all but forced all in with pocket aces and held. Christian Harder eventually ended his run by rivering a flush, sending him out in ninth place.

Dillon Najor followed in eighth. He got his chips in ahead with ace-king, but Rangkatekarn improved on the river.

Ceesvin then eliminated Choong in seventh with ace-king against queen-nine suited, but the Singaporean began to lose chips soon afterwards.

The river was cruel to several players on the final table. Yan went out in sixth when his pocket nines were ahead of Lee’s two overcards until the river. Ceesvin, who won the APT Jeju Main Event in 2025 , was also beaten on the river and finished fifth for KRW 104,340,000 (~USD 77,865).

The final four played for more than an hour before Mendoza fell in fourth, his ace-three unable to catch Lee’s ace-king. Three hands later, Harder saw his pocket aces cracked by Rangkatekarn, leaving two players to battle for the title.

Marathon Heads-Up Battle

Rangkatekarn started heads-up play with a 5:1 chip lead, and most expected a quick finish. Instead, the battle swung back and forth late into the night.

Lee drew level several times and even took the lead after rivering a diamond flush. Rangkatekarn soon hit back, winning a key pot to level the stacks again and swing the momentum his way.

From there, he steadily chipped away at Lee’s stack. In the final hand, Lee called off his remaining chips with ace-jack offsuit, only to find himself up against Rangkatekarn’s pocket jacks.

The board brought no help for Lee, who settled for second place, while Rangkatekarn claimed the Super High Roller title he always believed was his. His next stop will be APT Championship Taipei in November.

All data images courtesy of Asian Poker Tour.

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