APT Taipei 2025 Main Event Headed For An Earth-Shaker; Wu Chun Yu Bags Day 1A Lead

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04/28/2025
APT Taipei 2025 - APT Main Event - Photo by APT
APT Taipei 2025 – APT Main Event Day 1A – Photo by APT

Players continued to flood into the Asian Poker TourAPT Taipei 2025 festival, with the Main Event and its NT$ 70,000,000 (~US$ 2.1 Million) guarantee now the centerpiece of all the action. Kicking off on April 27 at the brand new Red Space venue, Day 1A brought in 542 entries (404 uniques), setting a strong early pace for what is expected to be another record-breaker.

According to APT, another 466 qualified via Natural8 OnLive, further boosting the numbers to 1,008 entries. With three more flights still to come, just how high the final turnout will climb remains to be seen.

APT Taipei 2025 – APT Main Event

Through the years, the APT Main Event has been widely regarded as having the best structure in the region. For players that took their chances at Day 1A, the starting stack was 400x the opening blinds with increases at the slowest pace of 60 minutes. This gave players plenty of time to gauge the competition and build up.

Wu Chun Yu sets the bar at APT Main Event - Photo by APT
Wu Chun Yu sets the bar at APT Main Event – Photo by APT

By the end of the scheduled ten rounds, 203 players managed to avoid the rail led by Taiwan’s Wu Chun Yu with a stack of 469,200 equivalent to a whopping 335 big blinds. Yu was far ahead of the pack with his closest challenger Hong Kong’s Nicholas Go bagging 338,900 (242 bb). Other notables making the cut were China’s biggest player Biao Ding, past APT Main Event champions Rene Alexander Von Reden, Gyeongbyeong Lee, Lester Edoc, and Zhan Shuo Guo. 

Indonesian player Jhon Hendri also found a bag, jumping in right after he finished 8th at the APT Super High Roller. To list a few more were Vietnam’s #1 ranked player Dao Minh Phu, Korea’s Hyun Sup Kim, and side event winners Alfie Poetra, Ryan Plant, Jun Hao Wu, and Zichuan Huang

Day 1A Live Updates
Day 1A Chip Counts

For those that fell by the wayside or have yet to join the action, the APT Main Event continues with three more entry flights running from April 28-29. And if you still need one more chance, players can sign up just before the start of Day 2. Buy-in is NT$ 55,000 (~US$ 1,700).

APT Taipei 2025 – Day 3 Winners

Despite the APT Main Event at the top of the menu, the side events still saw significant action with big winners crowned. Here are all of the day’s champions.

#15 APT Super High Roller (330,000 TWD)
APT Super High Roller

Nguyen Quang Minh Clinches APT Super High Roller For Career Best

Vietnam's Nguyen Quang Minh celebrated his biggest takedown to date at the APT Super High Roller, after defeating Alexander Lynskey for a payout of NT$ 9,580,920 (~US$ 295,700). In a brief interview with the champ, he shared,


Đây là chiến thắng lớn nhất của tôi cho đến nay. Là một người Việt Nam yêu nước, tôi thực sự hạnh phúc khi chiến thắng này lại đến đúng vào thời điểm đất nước của tôi đang chuẩn bị kỷ niệm 50 năm ngày giải phóng miền Nam và thống nhất đất nước.


[This is my biggest victory to date. Being a patriotic Vietnamese, I am truly happy that this victory comes at the right time when our country is preparing to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the liberation of the South and the reunification of the country.]


The two-day event attracted a record field of 122 entries, each one coughing up the NT$ 330,000 (~US$ 10,100) buy-in. This built a prize pool of NT$ 37,040,420 (~US$ 1,143,225) with the top 18 places paid. The money began with rising young Malaysian player Chun Keat Liu first to collect. When players continued to fall, German pro Dominik Nitsche was bumped out in 10th place to form the final table. Nguyen expressed,


Tôi vào bàn chung kết với 1 tâm lý thoải mái và không có chiến thuật gì cả. Tôi chỉ quyết tâm thi đấu với tất cả niềm đam mê mà tôi đã giành cho bộ môn Poker.


[I entered the final table with a relaxed mindset and no strategy. I was just determined to play with all the passion I had for Poker.]


Nguyen also added that at the final table, his toughest opponent was Jhon Hendri saying,


Đối thủ khó nhằn nhất của tôi là JHON HENDRI bằng 1 cách nào đó tôi luôn thua anh ấy ở tất cả các ván bài, từ ngày thứ nhất cho tới khi anh ấy bị loại.


[My toughest opponent was Jhon Hendri. Somehow I lost every hand against him, even from Day 1, until he was eliminated.]


You can watch the final table action via APT Super High Roller Livestream.

Total Prize USD
$1,143,225
Total Prize
NT$37,040,420
Guaranteed
NT$15,000,000
Entries
122
ITM
17
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$9,580,920
$295,705
2NT$6,237,500
$192,515
3NT$4,054,500
$125,140
CS
Calvin Sungwon Lee
United States of America [USA]United States of America
4NT$3,357,000
$103,610
MP
Matthew Paul Belcher
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland [GBR]United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
5NT$2,708,000
$83,580
6NT$2,135,500
$65,910
JS
Joseph Sanghyon Cheong
United States of America [USA]United States of America
7NT$1,632,500
$50,385
CY
Christopher Young Park
United States of America [USA]United States of America
8NT$1,229,000
$37,930
JH
Jhon Hendri
Indonesia [IDN]Indonesia
9NT$917,500
$28,320
Check the 17 Payouts & Results ...
#24 Sunday Super Stack (30,000 TWD)
Sunday Super Stack

Japan's Taiga Tanida Tops Sunday Superstack's Huge Turnout

Another big field produced at the APT Taipei 2025 with the Sunday Superstack bringing in a roaring 386 entries to easily smash the guarantee. With a NT$ 30,000 (~US$ 925) buy-in, it wasn’t a small investment either however the reward was well worth it for the 55 players that earned a piece of the bloated NT$ 10,005,120 (~US$ 308,800) prize pool.


Among the notables that reached the final table was APT Main Event champion Dicky Tsang, finishing in 7th place. The title was claimed by Japan's Taiga Tanida, turning his buy-in nearly sixty times over for a payout of NT$ 1,943,120 (~US$ 59,975). With no prior live scores on record, this may well be his first ever live title and score.

Total Prize USD
$308,800
Total Prize
NT$10,005,120
Guaranteed
NT$5,000,000
Entries
386
ITM
55
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$1,943,120
$59,975
2NT$1,230,500
$37,980
3NT$889,500
$27,455
CY
4NT$719,500
$22,205
JS
Jo Seng Mok
Malaysia [MYS]Malaysia
5NT$569,500
$17,575
WH
Wei Huang
Taiwan [TWN]Taiwan
6NT$438,000
$13,520
CH
7NT$326,000
$10,060
8NT$236,000
$7,285
9NT$191,000
$5,895
FY
Check the 55 Payouts & Results ...
#29 NL Hold'em - Big Bounty (TWD 10K Bounty Per Player) (20,000 TWD)
NL Hold'em - Big Bounty (TWD 10K Bounty Per Player)
Total Prize USD
$89,705
Total Prize
NT$2,906,400
Entries
173
ITM
23
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$569,900
$17,590
2NT$565,500
$17,455
AH
3NT$305,000
$9,415
4NT$250,000
$7,715
CH
Chin Ho Li
Hong Kong [HKG]Hong Kong
5NT$200,500
$6,190
YC
6NT$155,500
$4,800
WF
Wai Fung Tang
Hong Kong [HKG]Hong Kong
7NT$115,000
$3,550
JY
8NT$84,500
$2,610
9NT$67,500
$2,085
Check the 23 Payouts & Results ...
#28 Women's Event (12,000 TWD)
Women's Event
Total Prize USD
$28,550
Total Prize
NT$924,960
Entries
94
ITM
13
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$242,460
$7,485
JC
2NT$170,000
$5,245
3NT$112,500
$3,470
OA
4NT$88,500
$2,730
5NT$71,000
$2,190
ER
Elena Roberta
Indonesia [IDN]Indonesia
6NT$55,500
$1,715
YK
7NT$44,000
$1,360
8NT$34,000
$1,050
SW
9NT$26,000
$800
LJ
Check the 13 Payouts & Results ...
#26 Single Day High Roller (100,000 TWD)
Single Day High Roller

Kai Cheng Hsu Finally Takes It Down

Often seen running deep at many high roller events but always denied the gold, Taiwan's Kai Cheng Hsu finally nailed one down at the APT Taipei 2025 - Single Day High Roller. Hsu faced some very tough competitors in the 81 entry field that included Thai pro Punnat Punsri, Hong Kong's Hon Cheong Lee, and Malaysia's Sean Ooi.


In the end, the title came between Hsu and Masataka Setoguchi, both players seeking a coveted first high roller win. Hsu emerged victorious to win the lion's share of the NT$ 6,998,400 (~US$ 216,000) prize pool which was a career high score of NT$ 1,923,900 (~US$ 59,380).

Total Prize USD
$216,000
Total Prize
NT$6,998,400
Entries
81
ITM
11
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$1,923,900
$59,380
2NT$1,368,000
$42,220
3NT$896,000
$27,655
BH
Bawoo Hyun Shik Yun
Korea (Republic of) [KOR]Korea (Republic of)
4NT$689,500
$21,280
PP
5NT$546,000
$16,850
6NT$427,000
$13,180
KC
Kwok Chun Ng
Hong Kong [HKG]Hong Kong
7NT$336,000
$10,370
HC
8NT$262,500
$8,100
9NT$199,500
$6,155
JP
Jason Park Lun Wong
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland [GBR]United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Check the 11 Payouts & Results ...
#33 Hyper Turbo Home Games - Super Hold'em (3 Hole Cards, Use 3, 2, 1 or 0 Cards) (3,500 TWD)
Hyper Turbo Home Games - Super Hold'em (3 Hole Cards, Use 3, 2, 1 or 0 Cards)

Kuan Yu Chen Wins Hyper Turbo Home Games

Another smoking turnout at the Hyper Turbo Home Games - Super Hold'em with 197 lighting up a section of the poker room. The fun game with three hole cards to start with generated a prize pool of NT$ 551,663 (~US$ 17,025) with 27 players locking up cash returns. The biggest winner was CTP regular Kuan Yu Chen to clinch his first ever APT win and a payout of NT$ 121,663 (~US$ 3,755).

Total Prize USD
$17,025
Total Prize
NT$551,663
Entries
197
ITM
27
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$121,663
$3,755
KY
2NT$82,500
$2,545
3NT$57,000
$1,760
4NT$46,500
$1,435
CY
5NT$37,000
$1,140
6NT$28,500
$880
7NT$20,500
$635
8NT$15,000
$465
9NT$12,500
$385
Check the 27 Payouts & Results ...
#25 Omaha Masters - PL Omaha High (35,000 TWD)
Omaha Masters - PL Omaha High
Total Prize USD
$66,265
Total Prize
NT$2,147,040
Entries
71
ITM
9
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$626,040
$19,320
2NT$451,000
$13,920
TH
3NT$293,000
$9,045
OC
Owen Chong
Malaysia [MYS]Malaysia
4NT$221,000
$6,820
CY
Calvin Yu Jiang
United States of America [USA]United States of America
5NT$172,000
$5,310
6NT$133,000
$4,105
DB
Devid Berlin
Lithuania [LTU]Lithuania
7NT$105,000
$3,240
YC
8NT$81,500
$2,515
9NT$64,500
$1,990
#32 Turbo - High Roller (35,000 TWD)
Turbo - High Roller
Total Prize USD
$55,065
Total Prize
NT$1,784,160
Entries
59
ITM
8
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$535,160
$16,515
2NT$387,000
$11,945
3NT$250,000
$7,715
4NT$189,000
$5,835
5NT$146,500
$4,520
CH
6NT$114,000
$3,520
HL
7NT$91,000
$2,810
8NT$71,500
$2,205
#36 Super Hyper Turbo (8,000 TWD)
Super Hyper Turbo
Total Prize USD
$31,210
Total Prize
NT$1,011,250
Entries
158
ITM
23
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$237,750
$7,340
2NT$159,500
$4,925
3NT$106,000
$3,270
KD
Ken Doi
Japan [JPN]Japan
4NT$87,000
$2,685
5NT$70,000
$2,160
YY
6NT$54,000
$1,665
7NT$40,000
$1,235
SL
Seokyoung Lee
Korea (Republic of) [KOR]Korea (Republic of)
8NT$29,500
$910
JL
Jungwoo Lee
Korea (Republic of) [KOR]Korea (Republic of)
9NT$23,500
$725
Check the 23 Payouts & Results ...
#27 Limit - Dealers Choice - 7 Stud (10 Games) (10,000 TWD)
Limit - Dealers Choice - 7 Stud (10 Games)
Total Prize USD
$10,125
Total Prize
NT$328,012
Entries
40
ITM
6
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$112,012
$3,455
2NT$77,000
$2,375
TK
Tony Khoang
Netherlands [NLD]Netherlands
3NT$49,000
$1,510
4NT$37,500
$1,155
JG
Jarryd Godena
Australia [AUS]Australia
5NT$29,500
$910
GT
Gregory Taborissky
United States of America [USA]United States of America
6NT$23,000
$710
PC
Pui Cheung Ng
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland [GBR]United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
#31 Turbo - PL Drawmaha 2-7 (Half the Pot to Omaha High, Half to 2-7) (10,000 TWD)
Turbo - PL Drawmaha 2-7 (Half the Pot to Omaha High, Half to 2-7)
Total Prize USD
$10,375
Total Prize
NT$336,213
Entries
41
ITM
6
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$114,213
$3,525
LS
Liang Su
Taiwan [TWN]Taiwan
2NT$79,000
$2,440
CP
Chak Pan Yiu
Hong Kong [HKG]Hong Kong
3NT$50,500
$1,560
4NT$38,500
$1,190
AF
Alexander Firsov
Russian Federation [RUS]Russian Federation
5NT$30,500
$940
CY
6NT$23,500
$725
DM
Danny Ming Fan Chang
United States of America [USA]United States of America
#34 Hyper Turbo - NL Single Draw Mix (A-5, 2-7, Badugi) (8,000 TWD)
Hyper Turbo - NL Single Draw Mix (A-5, 2-7, Badugi)
Total Prize USD
$10,865
Total Prize
NT$352,017
Entries
55
ITM
8
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$105,017
$3,240
JY
Jeong Yeol Yu
Korea (Republic of) [KOR]Korea (Republic of)
2NT$76,500
$2,360
3NT$49,500
$1,530
KS
4NT$37,500
$1,155
5NT$29,000
$895
6NT$22,500
$695
7NT$18,000
$555
8NT$14,000
$430
#35 Tick Tock BOOM! (Levels Decrease Every Hour 15/10/5/2) (10,000 TWD)
Tick Tock BOOM! (Levels Decrease Every Hour 15/10/5/2)
Total Prize USD
$13,160
Total Prize
NT$426,416
Entries
52
ITM
7
#PayoutPlayer
1NT$134,416
$4,150
2NT$97,000
$2,995
YM
Yong Man Kwon
Korea (Republic of) [KOR]Korea (Republic of)
3NT$62,000
$1,915
4NT$47,000
$1,450
TH
Tsz Him Yip
Hong Kong [HKG]Hong Kong
5NT$36,000
$1,110
6NT$27,500
$850
7NT$22,500
$695