Mike Takayama Wins Biggest APPT Manila Main Event Ever for PHP 15.5M

Mike Takayama saw the king arrive on the turn and looked up at the screen inside Cove Manila . The news was about as bad as it could be: one out.

His pocket queens had been ahead of Yang Yung Mao’s ace-king, but the turn moved Mao in front and another queen had already been folded. Only the last queen in the deck could keep Takayama alive in the biggest APPT Manila Main Event ever played.

It appeared on the river.

Takayama leapt from his chair as the noise rolled through Cove Manila, where his enormous rail had gathered around the final table and the giant screen inside Okada Manila. Five players were still in the tournament, but the celebration sounded as though Takayama had already won it.

Several hours later, he had.

Takayama defeated fellow Filipino poker star Florencio Campomanes heads-up to win the record-breaking APPT Manila 2026 Main Event.

The victory earned Takayama PHP 15,530,000 (~USD 252,595), along with an APPT Championship package and the APPT Shard Trophy. It also gave one of the Philippines’ most recognizable players his first APPT Main Event title, achieved in front of a home rail estimated at around 100 people.

Campomanes came painfully close to winning the title for a second time after producing an almost impossible comeback from 0.15 big blinds. By then, however, Takayama had found the hand he needed and a packed Cove Manila was ready to carry him through the finish.

#70 APPT Main Event (80,000 PHP)

Total Prize USD

$1,608,000

Total Prize

97.7M PHP

Guaranteed

60M PHP

Entries

1,413

ITM

207

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₱15,530,000 $252,595	MT Mike Takayama Philippines	3,924.51
2	₱9,700,000 $157,770	FC Florencio Campomanes Philippines	2,775.05
3	₱6,955,000 $113,120	SJ Seunghyuk Jung South Korea	2,265.82
4	₱5,350,000 $87,015	FC Fernan Co Philippines	1,962.26
5	₱4,120,000 $67,010	YY Yang Yung Mao Taiwan	1,755.10
6	₱3,170,000 $51,560	HN Haresh Nathan Singapore	1,602.18
7	₱2,430,000 $39,525	SN Steve Ng Singapore	1,483.33
8	₱1,870,000 $30,415	JK Joungsun Kim South Korea	1,387.52
9	₱1,439,560 $23,415	JP Jaehyung Park South Korea	1,308.17

Check the 207 Payouts & Results ...

“I Was Actually in Shock”

The scale of the victory was still sinking in when Takayama spoke after lifting the trophy. He had survived almost the entire 1,413-entry field and recovered after becoming short-stacked, with the tournament stretching deep into the night before he was finally confirmed as the champion.

“Actually, I’m extremely, extremely happy because the field was so huge,” Takayama said. “It was a really long grind. Then I became a short stack, but I was able to recover again. So yeah, I’m extremely happy.”

His biggest escape was the river queen against Mao, although Takayama revealed afterwards that the identity of the dealer had not exactly filled him with confidence.

“Actually, I usually have bad luck with that dealer, but I didn’t think about that anymore,” he said. “I just told myself, ‘Hopefully, I hit it on the river.’ By God’s grace, the queen hit on the river, so I was extremely happy. I was actually in shock.”

Takayama had played patiently during the early stages of the final table, particularly with Campomanes and recent APPT Super High Roller champion Seunghyuk Jung seated to his left. Rather than force the action without a large stack, he decided to wait until the table became shorter-handed.

“This is how I really play. I maintain my stack and discipline myself because there were great players to my left, Flo and a Korean player, Seunghyuk Jung,” Takayama explained. “It was really hard to make moves. Plus, I didn’t have much of a stack. I told myself I’d start battling hard at the final table once we were down to just five players.”

That was exactly when the queen arrived against Mao and moved Takayama into the chip lead. From there, every important pot brought another roar from the group of friends who had remained behind him throughout the final table.

“They’re really my close friends, they genuinely support me, they’re all Team Takayama,” he said. “Thank you all so very much.”

A Record-Breaking Main Event Reaches the Final Nine

Takayama’s victory completed an APPT Manila Main Event that had already broken its records before the final day began.

As reported in Somuchpoker’s article on the record-breaking APPT Manila 2026 Main Event , the PHP 80,000 (~USD 1,300) tournament attracted 1,413 entries across four starting flights.

The turnout generated a prize pool of PHP 97,666,560 (~USD 1.608 million), comfortably clearing the PHP 60 million guarantee. It also moved past the previous APPT Manila records for both entries and prize money.

Sixteen players returned for the final day before the field was reduced to a strong final table led by Jaehyung Park . Takayama and Campomanes were joined by a third Filipino in Fernan Co, while Jung was attempting to win another major title only one week after taking down the APPT Super High Roller.

Park’s chip lead disappeared after Mao found a one-outer on the turn to make a set of kings. Park was left short and eliminated by Mao on the following hand, collecting PHP 1,439,560 (~USD 23,415) in ninth place.

Joungsun Kim followed in eighth when his ace-queen failed to improve against Campomanes’ ace-king. Campomanes then sent Steve Ng out in seventh, with his pocket queens holding against Ng’s pocket fives.

Start-of-day chip leader Haresh Nathan was the next player eliminated. His ace-king improved to two pair on the flop, but the same board gave Jung a set of tens and Nathan could not recover on the remaining streets.

One River Card Changes the Tournament

Takayama had already found an important double through Ng during the early stages of the final table, but the hand against Mao completely changed his position.

Takayama opened with pocket queens before Mao three-bet from the big blind holding ace-king. Takayama responded with a four-bet to 3,000,000 and Mao moved all in, leaving Takayama with a decision for his remaining 6,680,000.

He eventually called and remained ahead through the flop, only for the king on the turn to leave him facing elimination. The screen showed only one available out before the final queen arrived on the river.

The reaction inside Cove was immediate. Takayama jumped from his chair while his friends celebrated behind the rail, with the noise spreading across the venue as those watching on the giant screen realized what had happened.

The pot moved Takayama into the chip lead and left Mao with a much shorter stack. Takayama soon finished the job, eliminating Mao in fifth place for PHP 4,120,000 (~USD 67,010).

A Costly Misunderstanding Ends Co’s Run

Co had already produced an impressive recovery during the final table, rebuilding from 1,630,000 to more than six million chips in a matter of hands.

His tournament ended through a painful misunderstanding against Jung.

On the river, Jung announced all in and placed a 500,000 plaque into the middle. Co believed Jung had bet only 500,000 and quickly called, unaware that his entire stack was at risk.

Co’s pocket nines were behind Jung’s two pair, bringing his run to a sudden end in fourth place. The Filipino collected PHP 5,350,000 (~USD 87,015), the largest live tournament cash of his career.

That left Takayama facing Campomanes and Jung for the title. The final three traded pots for more than an hour before Campomanes was pushed into a position from which there appeared to be no possible return.

Campomanes Comes Back From 0.15 Big Blinds

Campomanes opened to 3,500,000, leaving himself only 125,000 behind, before Jung moved all in for 4,400,000. Takayama called and Campomanes was left to decide whether to risk his tournament life in a multiway pot or preserve what little remained of his stack.

The 2019 champion eventually folded and watched Jung win the hand.

Campomanes was left with 125,000 chips at blinds of 400,000 and 800,000, giving him approximately 0.15 big blinds. His entire stack was smaller than the ante he would soon be required to pay.

Somehow, he survived.

Campomanes doubled through Takayama four times before putting 6,600,000 at risk against Jung. The flop left Campomanes firmly ahead and the turn improved him to quads, completing a fifth consecutive double-up.

Within a short stretch of hands, Campomanes had turned 125,000 into approximately 14 million chips. A player who appeared certain to finish third was suddenly back in contention for a second APPT Manila Main Event title.

Jung was left short after the hand and soon committed his remaining chips against Takayama. The South Korean could not overtake Takayama’s pocket eights and departed in third place for PHP 6,955,000 (~USD 113,120).

Jung’s elimination ended another superb run only one week after his APPT Super High Roller victory. It also guaranteed that the largest APPT Manila Main Event in history would be won by a Filipino.

Two Filipino Greats Bring Cove to Life

Campomanes began heads-up with approximately 13 million chips after completing his remarkable recovery. Across the table, Takayama held the lead with around 29 million and one of the loudest rails seen at Cove Manila.

The final pairing could hardly have been more fitting for the home crowd.

Campomanes had won the APPT Manila Main Event in 2019 and was attempting to become a two-time champion. Takayama had collected several major titles during his career, but an APPT Main Event trophy was still missing from his record.

The crowd inside Cove had grown throughout the final stages, with supporters surrounding the table and watching the action on the enormous screen. The players’ hole cards were hidden from those in the venue, making every showdown a fresh reveal and every Takayama pot another reason for Team Takayama to erupt.

Philippine poker was guaranteed a home champion, but neither player had come this far to settle for second place.

Campomanes eventually committed his final 12,500,000 chips and Takayama made the call. The board brought no help for the former champion, ending his extraordinary recovery one place short of another APPT Manila title.

Campomanes earned PHP 9,700,000 (~USD 157,770) for one of the most memorable runner-up finishes the tour has seen. From a stack smaller than the ante, he had dragged himself all the way into heads-up and forced Takayama to earn every part of the victory.

The 1,413 entries ensured the APPT Manila 2026 Main Event would be remembered as the largest in the tour stop’s history. Its final night gave the record a story that the numbers alone could never tell.

Long after most of Manila had gone to sleep, two of the country’s best-known players were still battling beneath the lights at Cove. When the last card was dealt, it was Takayama’s friends who delivered the final roar.

Mike Takayama had waited years for his first APPT Main Event title. When it finally arrived, it came at home, in front of Team Takayama, in the biggest APPT Manila Main Event ever held.