The End of an Era: Lloyd Fontillas to Leave Asian Poker Tour
The end of an era is near within the Asia-Pacific poker community. At the end of May 2025, Lloyd Fontillas will part ways with the Asian Poker Tour after he guided the live poker operator to one of the prime brands in the entire region. Getting his start in San Jose, California, Fontillas has become one of the most highly-regarded figures in the Asian live poker scene ever since he joined forces with the APT.
Lloyd Fontillas: Early Career And Bay 101 Days
Like many involved in the operational procedures for major poker tours, Fontillas has a background in the world of poker and his roots date back more than three decades.
I spent seven years as a dealer while also playing tournaments, which fueled my passion for the tournament side of poker. My opportunity came when the owner of Bay 101 introduced the idea of a Midnight Madness tournament a few nights a week. The daily tournament director at the time dismissed it as a bad idea, which opened the door for me to step in. As a tournament player who knew everyone, I rallied support for my first event—and it was a huge success. It quickly became a nightly event, and within a year, I moved up to the role of daily tournament director.
That was all the way back in 1996, and his journey in the world of poker quickly accelerated from there on. He became a supervisor for the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour, arguably two of the biggest and most respected brands that the industry has produced after the Moneymaker boom in 2003.
Fontillas Joins APT
For nearly 15 years since 2009, Fontillas then held various roles at the Asian Poker Tour and it comes as no surprise that this is also the most cherished step in his poker career to date.
The most memorable step in my career was walking into my very first APT event at Star World in Macau. That experience was a turning point—it set me on the path to building my career in Asia.
What started as a close-knit community has become a powerhouse in the entire region, especially under the new APT ownership which has seen attendance figures and prize pool records explode within the last two years. Fontillas was there for the transition to an even bigger juggernaut and leaves the brand in the strongest shape it has ever been.
But there is no doubt at all that he will disappear from the poker scene any time soon, as indicated by his farewell announcement on Facebook this March 13, 2025.
Poker has always been more than just a career for me; it’s a passion, a lifelong pursuit, and a community I’ll always be part of. The journey continues, and I look forward to what’s next with the same excitement and dedication I’ve always had for the game.
Plenty of opportunities should be readily available in one of the emerging markets of the live poker scene, as various countries in Asia are stepping up the game throughout the last few years such as Vietnam, South Korea, the Philippines, Cambodia, Taiwan and China as well. On top of that, the prospect of legalization in Thailand and Japan indicates that the ceiling and appetite for the card game is certainly not reached just yet.
Even new live poker tours successfully launched and gathered a loyal following such as Poker Dream, U Series of Poker (USOP), and Red Dragon Poker Tour (RDPT) to name a few. They have all secured a corner of the growing market and major festivals in the region these days not only attract local poker enthusiasts but also well-known international names.
Whatever the next part of Fontillas’ poker journey may be, the revelation is going to take some more time and he will still be at APT Taipei from April 25 to May 4, 2025, when another record turnout is expected on Taiwanese soil.
I do have plans—but like the rest of the poker world, you’ll have to wait for the official announcement! Here’s a little hint, though: it’s going to be a lot of fun!
