Ritwik Khanna Stages 10-to-1 Comeback To Win High Roller; Christopher Mateo Claims Second Series Victory As APT Taipei 2026 Concludes

The final day of the Asian Poker Tour (APT) Taipei 2026 at the Red Space and Asia Poker Arena concluded with Ritwik Khanna making history in the APT High Roller . The Indian pro overcame a 10-to-1 chip deficit during heads-up play against defending champion Trung Quan Nguyen to secure the APT Rose Gold Lion Trophy and a top prize of TWD 5,336,300 (~USD 170,490). Other major results included Christopher Mateo winning his ninth APT title in the Ultra Stack for TWD 2,388,180 (~USD 76,299).

The record-breaking series also saw significant local breakthroughs, with Huang Chi Hsuan topping a massive 2,135-entry field in the Labour Day Monster Stack to earn TWD 692,000 (~USD 22,108). Additionally, Yunghan Chien claimed the Micro Main Event title and TWD 874,100 (~USD 27,927), more than doubling his career earnings. The tour now heads to South Korea for APT Incheon 2026, running from August 7 to 16 at Paradise City Casino .

Ritwik Khanna Makes History With Epic High Roller Comeback

The APT High Roller provided a thrilling finish to the APT Taipei 2026 series. The event drew 329 entries, creating a TWD 34,110,720 (~USD 1,089,800) prize pool, making it the second-largest and second-richest High Roller in the tour’s history.

India’s Ritwik Khanna emerged as the champion, taking home the APT Rose Gold Lion Trophy, an APT Championship (APTC) 2026 Main Event seat, and TWD 5,336,300 (~USD 170,490). Khanna’s victory followed a heads-up deal with defending champion Trung Quan Nguyen and made him the first Indian player to win a standard APT Mega Lion Trophy.

This was one of the greatest moments in my life. And just sharing it with my family was very special because they’ve been supportive all throughout, even though, you know, my dad’s always been like, “you’ve got to do our business”.

Final Table Action

The final table action began quickly, with Yi Cheng Lo becoming the first player to hit the rail in ninth place after his pocket sevens failed to beat Rene von Reden’s ace-queen. Shortly after, Quang Trinh Do was eliminated in eighth place when his pocket fives were overtaken by Anh Tuan Le Tran , who flopped an ace and turned trips. The early chip leader Mikael Andersson was the next to go in seventh place, after being left short-stacked, his ten-deuce could not improve against Khanna’s queen-nine.

Nirunrut Rachburom, the only woman at the final table, finished in sixth place after Khanna’s pocket eights flopped a set against her ace-ten. The field was reduced further when von Reden exited in fifth place, as his king-four couldn’t find help against Tran’s pocket jacks. Hei Mong Ying followed in fourth place after being left with less than a big blind, and Tran took third place when his king-ten lost to Nguyen’s ace-nine.

An Incredible Heads-Up Comeback

The heads-up battle between Khanna and Nguyen was a rollercoaster. Although Nguyen started with a lead and even extended it to a 10-to-1 advantage after a successful river bluff, Khanna refused to give up.

Down to just a few big blinds, Khanna secured back-to-back doubles to get back into the game. The momentum shifted completely as Khanna applied relentless pressure to take the chip lead. In the final hand, Khanna’s pocket kings held up against Nguyen’s queen-ten, sealing an incredible comeback victory and denying Nguyen a back-to-back title.

This is going to live with me in my grind room with the other lions. Not the other lions, but, you know, maybe the rabbits.

#149 APT High Roller @RED (120,000 TWD)

Total Prize USD

$1,089,800

Total Prize

NT$34,110,720

Guaranteed

NT$20,000,000

Entries

329

ITM

47

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	NT$5,336,300 $170,490	RK Ritwik Khanna India	2,703.84
2	NT$5,335,420 $170,460	TQ Trung Quan Nguyen Viet Nam	1,911.91
3	NT$3,107,400 $99,280	AT Anh Tuan Le Tran Viet Nam	1,561.06
4	NT$2,514,700 $80,340	HM Hei Mong Ying Hong Kong	1,351.92
5	NT$1,982,300 $63,330	RV Rene Von Reden Germany	1,209.20
6	NT$1,513,500 $48,355	NR Nirunrut Rachburom Thailand	1,103.84
7	NT$1,111,700 $35,520	MA Mikael Andersson Sweden	1,021.96
8	NT$817,000 $26,100	QT Quang Trinh Do Viet Nam	955.95
9	NT$669,700 $21,395	YC Yi Cheng Lo Taiwan	901.28

Check the 47 Payouts & Results ...

Christopher Mateo Wins Ultra Stack For Ninth APT Title

Ultra Stack finished with the Philippines’ Christopher Mateo taking the top spot. The tournament drew 732 entries, creating a total prize pool of TWD 12,912,480 (~USD 412,539). Mateo earned TWD 2,388,180 (~USD 76,299) for the win, along with a seat in the APTC Main Event.

This victory marks Mateo’s ninth APT title and his second of the Taipei series, following his earlier win in the High Roller Mystery Bounty . He entered the final day as one of the top stacks and stayed in control to add another trophy to his collection.

India’s Amit Kaushik finished in second place, taking home TWD 1,460,300 (~USD 46,654). This result was a major milestone for Kaushik, as it pushed his lifetime live tournament earnings over the USD 1 million mark. Ryo Matsuoka from Japan rounded out the top three. Matsuoka, who is new to the tour, finished in third place for TWD 1,043,200 (~USD 33,328). It was a massive result for him, earning nearly ten times his previous career earnings in a single event.

#146 Ultra Stack @RED (21,000 TWD)

Total Prize USD

$412,540

Total Prize

NT$12,912,480

Guaranteed

NT$10,000,000

Entries

732

ITM

103

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	NT$2,388,180 $76,300	CM Christopher Mateo Philippines	2,234.81
2	NT$1,460,300 $46,655	AK Amit Kaushik India	1,580.25
3	NT$1,043,200 $33,330	RM Ryo Matsuoka Japan	1,290.27
4	NT$790,000 $25,240	KY Kazuo Yamamoto Japan	1,117.40
5	NT$628,700 $20,085	TW Tao Wei Chang Taiwan	999.44
6	NT$482,600 $15,420	TA The Anh Tran Viet Nam	912.36
7	NT$349,000 $11,150	KK Kiyoung Kim South Korea	844.68
8	NT$238,100 $7,610	YY Yiu Yeung Leung Hong Kong	790.12
9	NT$189,000 $6,040	WK Wai Kit Law Hong Kong	744.94

Check the 103 Payouts & Results ...

Local Success In Labour Day Monster Stack And Micro Main Event

The final day of the series saw two more local players claim victory in some of the most popular events on the schedule.

In the Labour Day Monster Stack, a massive field of 2,135 entries built a prize pool of TWD 6,000,000 (~USD 191,693). Taiwan’s Huang Chi Hsuan emerged as the champion, earning his first APT title and a top prize of TWD 692,000 (~USD 22,108).

Huang turned a small TWD 3,500 buy-in into a payout worth nearly 198 times his investment. The final three players agreed to an ICM deal before Huang secured the trophy. Japan’s Momoi Kazusa finished in second place for TWD 471,200 (~USD 15,054), while Taiwan’s Yung Kuei Wu took third place for TWD 632,300 (~USD 20,201).

The Micro Main Event also stayed on home soil as Taiwan’s Yunghan Chien topped a field of 370 entries. Chien took home the TWD 874,100 (~USD 27,927) top prize, more than doubling his career tournament earnings in the process. The prize pool reached TWD 4,526,400 (~USD 144,600), easily beating its original guarantee. Japan’s Seiru Nomura finished as the runner-up for his first-ever career cash, while South Korea’s Sung Sik Eum took third place, marking his first result in an Asian event.

Next Stop: APT Incheon 2026

The conclusion of these final events marks the end of a record-breaking series in Taipei. With the final trophies handed out and millions in prize money awarded, the tour now looks ahead to its next major destination.

The Asian Poker Tour heads to South Kore next for APT Incheon 2026. The festival will run from August 7 to 16 at the Paradise City Casino , where players will gather once again to compete for the tour’s famous Lion trophies.

Information and images courtesy of Asian Poker Tour.