CTP 5th year anniversary; P.Y.Han Chen wins the Main Event, S.D.Chen comes out the richest, & P.H.Huang tops the POS

Five years ago in the city of Tao Yuan, Taiwan, the first Chinese Texas Hold’em Poker Association (CTP Club) opened with just two tables and a third one at the nearby market. Fast forward to today, CTP has grown to five branches. The largest and most popular is located in the Songshan District in Taipei City where numerous Asia industry brands such as the Global Poker Index China (GPIC), All Japan Poker Championship (AJPC), J88Poker Tour, PPPoker, HKPPA (Hong Kong Poker Players Association), Asian Poker Tour (APT), Poker King Cup (PKC), Boyaa Poker Tournament (BPT), Asia Poker League (APL), and Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) have all planted their flags.

On September 10 to 20, a big annual celebration took place with the CTP hosting its 5th year anniversary. 14 events were scheduled and a guarantee of NT$ 5,000,000 (~US$ 172,700). The opening Special Event drew the largest crowd to set a new country record attendance of 1,630 entries. The previous record was briefly held by the Taiwan Millions Tournament Season 8 Main Event with 1,522 entrants. Shou Dien Chen came out victorious to pocket the festival’s single largest payout of NT$ 1,285,000 (~US$ 44,400).

Another big winner was Taiwanese pro Pete Yen Han Chen who shipped the Main Event for NT$ 424,500 (~US$ 14,700). At the side events, Chih Kai Chen claimed two for a total of NT$ 97,000 (~US$ 3,300) in winnings. The festival closed with Ping Hao Huang earning the Player of the Series title. We’ve got those results for you below.

Event #1: CTP 5th Special Event: SHOU DIEN CHEN

The festival’s biggest winner was Taiwanese player Shou Dien Chien after he outlasted the massive 1,630-player field of the record breaking Special Event. This rewarded Shou with his first major win and his largest career score of NT$ 1,285,000 (~US$ 44,400).

Having posted his first live cash in December 2018, Shou has since monied at numerous festivals in his home country. In mid-June 2019, he came close to a title at the Boyaa Poker Tournament, falling in 3rd place for NT$ 623,700 (~US$ 20,128). With his recent win, Shou crossed over $ 100K in live tournament earnings.

Special Event

Buy In: NT$ 5,000 (~US$ 170)
Entries: 1,630
Prize pool: NT$ 6,927,500 (~US$ 239,200)

Final table payouts

Event #10: Main Event: PETE YEN HAN CHEN

After cashing 19 times at the World Series of Poker Online Series on Natural8, Taiwanese pro Pete Yen Han Chen took on the live scene in his home country and proceeded to nail shut the festival’s Main Event. He shipped the NT$ 424,500 (~US$ 14,700) first prize and his first Main Event win of 2020. Chen bested a loaded final table lineup with Carlos Chang, Kuang Hung Lee, and Chan Lok Ming in the round.

Prior to the pandemic, Chen ran deep in several events this year pulling in 5 five-figure scores. Two of those were event victories in Manila, Philippines, one was a 34th finish at the Aussie Millions Main Event for $ 24,932, and the other was a runner up finish at the inaugural APPT Taiwan Main Event for his biggest score this year of A$ 36,080 (US$ 60,980). To date, Chen has over US$ 3 million in live earnings.

Main Event

Buy In: NT$ 10,000 (~US$ 345)
Entries: 199
Prize pool: NT$ 1,698,600 (~US$ 58,700)

Final table payouts

Player of the Series: PING HAO HUANG

Strong performance for Ping Hao Hung at the festival with 10 cashes throughout. He reached the final table an astounding eight times and finished deep in 88th place at the Special Event. Ping accrued the most points to win the Player of the Series title. For his achievement, Ping was awarded the CTP Championship Pass worth NT$ 25,000.

Chih Kai Chen wins two side events

The only player to ship two events was Chih Kai Chen taking down the No Limit Hold’em Turbo and the Mega Stack. For the latter event, it was his biggest live payout. Prior to these wins, Chen only had 8 cashes recorded on The Hendon Mob, all of them earned this year in Taiwan.

Event #11: No Limit Hold’em Turbo Event

Buy In: NT$ 2,500 (~US$ 90)
Entries: 49
Prize pool: NT$ 104,125 (~US$ 3,600)
Winner: Chih Kai Chen – NT$ 35,300 (~US$ 1,200)

Event #13: Mega Stack

Buy In: NT$ 5,000
Entries: 104
Prize pool: NT$ 442,000 (~US$ 15,200)
Winner: Chih Kai Chen – NT$ 61,700 (~US$ 2,100)

Other Side Event Winners

Event #2: Mega Stack

Buy In: NT$ 3,500 (~US$ 120)
Entries: 236
Prize pool: NT$ 702,100 (~US$ 24,200)
Winner: Cheng Yu Lai – NT$ 158,800 (~US$ 5,500)

Event #3: High Roller Single Day

Buy In: NT$ 15,000 (~US$ 520)
Entries: 93
Prize pool: NT$ 1,255,500 (~US$ 43,400)
Winner: Chan Lok Ming – NT$ 256,400 (~US$ 8,900)

Event #4: Fighter Event

Buy In: NT$ 2,500 (~US$ 90)
Entries: 134
Prize pool: NT$ 284,750 (~US$ 9,800)
Winner: Shao Ting Jian – NT$ 58,200 (~US$ 2,000)

Event #5: Giant Stack

Buy In: NT$ 3,500 (~US$ 120)
Entries: 303
Prize pool: NT$ 901,425 (~US$ 31,100)
Winner: Tzu Wei Wang – NT$ 199,600 (~US$ 6,900)

Event #6: Pot Limit Omaha

Buy In: NT $2,500 (~US$ 90)
Entries: 45
Prize pool: NT$ 95,625 (~US$ 3,300)
Winner: Lun Chun Chou – NT$ 32,400 (~US$ 1,100)

Event #7: Pot Limit Omaha

Buy In: NT$ 2,500 (~US$ 90)
Entries: 30
Prize pool: NT$ 63,750 (~US$ 2,200)
Winner: Segers Kristof – NT$ 24,000 (~US$ 800)

Event #8: High Roller Single Day

Buy In: NT$ 15,000 (~US$ 520)
Entries: 39
Prize pool: NT$ 526,500 (~US$ 18,200)
Winner: Ching Wei Chen – NT$ 173,700 (~US$ 6,000)

Event #9: No Limit Hold’em Event

Buy In: NT$ 2,500 (~US$ 90)
Entries: 79
Prize pool: NT$ 167,875 (~US$ 5,800)
Winner: Tien Wei Yao – NT$ 42,700 (~US$ 1,500)

Event #12: No Limit Hold’em Turbo Event

Buy In: NT$ 2,500 (~US$ 90)
Entries: 44
Prize pool: NT$ 93,500 (~US$ 3,200)
Winner: Chi Jen Chu – NT$ 31,700 (~US$ 1,100)

Event: #14 Standard NLH

Buy In: NT$ 2,500 (~US$ 90)
Entries: 42
Prize pool: NT$ 89,250 (~US$ 3,100)
Winner: Ching Hsuan Chou – NT$ 20,500 (~US$ 700)

Next Event: Taiwan Millions Tournament – CTP X APT

Live action at the CTP continues in October with the highly popular home grown event, Taiwan Millions Tournament, running its 9th season. For the first time, the Asian Poker Tour joins in with four events to be hosted. The festival takes place from October 23 to November 9 with a guaranteed NT$ 6,000,000 (~US$ 207,200) in tow.