Stephen Pang and Punnat Punsri Capture Special Lions at APT Incheon

APT Incheon 2026 delivered its biggest day yet on Saturday, with Stephen Pang needing two victory laps before finally securing the Main Event title.

Thailand’s Punnat Punsri collected the highest buy-in trophy of the festival in the Superstar Challenge, while Japan’s Toru Sakiyama turned a modest tournament record into a life-changing Mini Main Event victory.

The final signature event also began, with 222 entries building a prize pool approaching KRW 1 billion in the APT High Roller.

Two Victory Laps for Stephen Pang

Stephen Pang’s first victory lap came too early. His second made him the champion of the APT Incheon 2026 Main Event .

The Hong Kong player ran to celebrate with his rail after making a flush against Shoumin Zhang’s pocket fours during heads-up play. The dealer had not finished counting, however, and Zhang survived with little more than one big blind.

Zhang then doubled four consecutive times, briefly turning what appeared to be a finished tournament into an unlikely comeback attempt.

Pang eventually stopped the revival to claim the 24K gold APT Main Event Lion Trophy and KRW 411,180,000 (~USD 293,700) following a three-handed ICM deal.

Zhang collected KRW 366,500,000 (~USD 261,785) as runner-up. The United States’ Yifu He earned KRW 257,000,000 (~USD 183,570) for third, with all three also receiving USD 10,000 seats to the APT Championship 2026 Main Event in November.

#20 APT Main Event (2,500,000 KRW)

Total Prize USD

$2,148,960

Total Prize

3B KRW

Guaranteed

1.5B KRW

Entries

1,393

ITM

207

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₩411,180,000 $293,700	SH San Hon Pang Hong Kong	4,312.55
2	₩366,500,000 $261,785	SZ Shoumin Zhang China	3,049.44
3	₩257,000,000 $183,570	YH Yifu He United States of America	2,489.85
4	₩155,650,000 $111,180	TK Tempei Kotani Japan	2,156.28
5	₩121,860,000 $87,040	KK Kazuki Koyama Japan	1,928.63
6	₩92,440,000 $66,030	SK Shinichiro Kano Japan	1,760.59
7	₩70,740,000 $50,530	PW Phachara Wongwichit Thailand	1,629.99
8	₩50,130,000 $35,800	TE Takeru Endo Japan	1,524.72
9	₩38,580,000 $27,560	RF Ryo Fujita Japan	1,437.52

Check the 207 Payouts & Results ...

The KRW 2,500,000 Main Event attracted 1,393 entries from 807 unique players at Paradise City Casino Resort , creating a KRW 3,008,540,000 (~USD 2.15 million) prize pool that effectively doubled the KRW 1.5 billion guarantee.

It became the largest and richest international poker tournament held in mainland South Korea and the third-largest Asian Poker Tour Main Event staged anywhere in the country.

Pang began the final table with the chip lead and chose a patient approach while the shorter stacks battled around him. He changed gears with five players remaining before winning a major flip with pocket queens against Tempei Kotani’s ace-king.

Those same queens had already cracked pocket aces on Day 4, leading Pang to give his most reliable hand a fitting nickname.

“Pocket queens were my lucky hand all tournament,” Pang said. “‘Lady Gaga’ was always there for me!”

Pang entered heads-up behind Zhang before moving ahead and appearing to end the tournament with his flush. After Zhang’s four double-ups, Pang rebuilt a lead of more than five-to-one and finally finished the job when his pocket nines held against king-ten.

This time, the dealer finished counting before the celebrations began.

Punsri Wins Superstar Challenge and KRW 360 Million

Thailand’s Punnat Punsri claimed his seventh APT title by winning the KRW 35 million Superstar Challenge .

The highest buy-in tournament of the festival attracted 29 entries from 25 unique players and generated a KRW 961,350,000 (~USD 686,680) prize pool.

Eleven players returned for the Final Day, but only five would be paid. Start-of-day chip leader Ryuta Nakai eventually departed on the money bubble.

Punsri defeated Vietnam’s Khoa Anh Ngo heads-up to collect KRW 360,000,000 (~USD 257,140), the Black Stealth Lion Trophy and a seat to the APT Championship Main Event.

#83 Superstar Challenge (35,000,000 KRW)

Total Prize USD

$686,680

Total Prize

961.4M KRW

Entries

29

ITM

5

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₩360,000,000 $257,140	PP Punnat Punsri Thailand	1,546.39
2	₩239,210,000 $170,865	KA Khoa Anh Ngo Viet Nam	1,093.46
3	₩156,310,000 $111,650	CL Calvin Lee United States of America	892.81
4	₩111,310,000 $79,500	YL Yuan Lei China	773.19
5	₩80,520,000 $57,515	NO Naoki Ota Japan	691.56

Ngo received KRW 239,210,000 (~USD 170,865) as runner-up. Defending champion Calvin Sungwon Lee finished third for KRW 156,310,000 (~USD 111,650).

The victory took Punsri’s APT New Era earnings beyond USD 1.4 million and gave him his first Superstar Challenge title.

“This one means a lot to me because it’s the biggest buy-in of an APT series,” Punsri said. “To win the highest buy-in event feels great, especially after so many of my friends have won it already.”

The Thai professional pointed to his pocket queens against Lee’s ace-king on the bubble as the most important confrontation of the tournament. Lee paired his king on the flop, but Punsri turned a set and went on to control much of the remaining action.

Sakiyama Turns Mini Main Event Into Career-Changing Win

Japan’s Toru Sakiyama outlasted the record-breaking Mini Main Event to win his first APT title and KRW 189,982,000 (~USD 134,739).

The KRW 900,000 tournament drew 1,427 entries across its opening flights and generated a KRW 1,078,812,000 (~USD 770,580) prize pool.

Both figures set new South Korean APT records for a Mini Main Event, with the turnout beating the previous Incheon benchmark by 398 entries. It was also the second-largest Mini Main Event held during the APT New Era.

#80 Mini Main Event (900,000 KRW)

Total Prize USD

$770,580

Total Prize

1.1B KRW

Guaranteed

400M KRW

Entries

1,427

ITM

199

#	Payout	Player	SPI
1	₩189,982,000 $135,800	TS Toru Sakiyama Japan	3,076.17
2	₩108,770,000 $77,750	SM Shingo Matsushima Japan	2,175.18
3	₩76,600,000 $54,755	AG Andrew Geonwoong Choi United States of America	1,776.03
4	₩56,480,000 $40,370	GO Genki Okabe Japan	1,538.08
5	₩44,220,000 $31,610	SN Seiya Nakajima Japan	1,375.70
6	₩33,540,000 $23,975	KT Kyohei Tobita Japan	1,255.84
7	₩25,670,000 $18,350	YN Yuichi Nakayama Japan	1,162.68
8	₩18,190,000 $13,000	KY Kohei Yagi Japan	1,087.59
9	₩13,980,000 $9,995	HI Hyuma Igarashi Japan	1,025.39

Check the 199 Payouts & Results ...

Sakiyama entered the tournament with only USD 8,063 in recorded live earnings and a previous best cash of USD 3,099. His first-place payout was therefore more than 43 times his previous largest result and over 16 times his prior career total.

The title also came with a USD 10,000 seat to the APT Championship Main Event.

Japan’s Shingo Matsushima had no recorded live tournament cashes before arriving at the final table but left with KRW 108,770,000 (~USD 77,142) after finishing runner-up.

Andrew Geonwoong Choi took third for KRW 76,600,000 (~USD 54,326). The American had only one previous recorded live cash worth USD 2,939.

For a tournament designed to offer a more accessible route to a major festival score, the final three provided a fairly convincing demonstration.

Chang Hwan Lee Leads APT High Roller

The final signature tournament of the festival drew 222 entries from 154 unique players, creating a KRW 959,040,000 (~USD 685,030) prize pool in the APT High Roller .

Bracelet winner Chang Hwan Lee finished Day 1 with the chip lead after bagging 1,211,000.

China’s Yuan Lei sits close behind with 1,183,000, while Nakai recovered quickly from bubbling the Superstar Challenge and advanced with 1,173,000.

A total of 51 players survived the opening day, with the top 31 set to reach the money. A min-cash is worth KRW 8,320,000 (~USD 5,940).

The champion will receive KRW 199,870,000 (~USD 142,765), the Rose Gold Lion Trophy and another USD 10,000 APT Championship Main Event seat.

APT High Roller Day 1 Top Ten

Other familiar players advancing include Nevan Chang with 615,000 and Super High Roller champion Jeremy Chan on 608,000.

Nakayama Tops 84 Ultra Stack Survivors

The KRW 700,000 Ultra Stack attracted 588 entries across its three opening flights, more than doubling the KRW 150 million guarantee and creating a KRW 339 million prize pool.

Japan’s Takumi Nakayama will lead the 84 remaining players into the Final Day after topping Flight B with 2,700,000.

Shoma Ishikawa follows with 2,600,000, while Hua Wei Lin advanced with 2,535,000.

Everyone returning has already secured at least KRW 1,060,000 (~USD 752). The champion will receive KRW 65,639,878 (~USD 46,553) and one of the final APT trophies available in Incheon.

One Final Day at Paradise City

APT Incheon 2026 concludes on Sunday, August 16, with several trophies still waiting to be claimed at Paradise City Casino Resort .

The Ultra Stack and APT High Roller both resume at 11:15am KST and will play down to champions.

The KRW 400,000 Micro Main Event begins at 11am, offering one final Main Event-style tournament for players who may have missed out earlier in the festival.

There is still plenty available for the bigger bankrolls. The KRW 3 million Last Chance High Roller starts at 11:15am, followed later by the KRW 1.5 million Turbo High Roller at 5:15pm.

Pang and Punsri have already taken two of the festival’s biggest Lions out of the building, but the final day offers several more chances to avoid leaving Incheon empty-handed.

Be sure to check back with Somuchpoker for the final results and complete festival wrap from APT Incheon 2026 .

All facts, figures and images courtesy of the Asian Poker Tour.