The Middle Kingdom Holds the Most APT Tournament Title Wins at this Picturesque Tour Stop
Following the most successful Korean festival in Asian Poker Tour history, the upcoming APT Jeju has a lot to live up to.
However, until the recent APT Incheon stole its thunder, it was Jeju that formerly occupied the top spot as the tour’s most successful Korean poker tour stop of the APT New Era and there is a distinct possibility that the picturesque South Korean Island could retake its crown.
Running September 26 to October 5 at the luxurious Jeju Shinhwa World resort, the APT Jeju will be the 124th APT festival since the tour made its debut in Singapore back in November of 2006, and the fourteenth poker series of the APT New Era, which began in the April of 2023 with the APT Taipei 2023.
The APT Jeju 2025 will mark the second time the Asian Poker Tour has partnered with Landing Entertainment Korea to bring world-class tournament poker to South Korea’s largest island, with the highlight being the KRW 2.6M (~USD 1,865) buy-in Main Event and its KRW 2.2 billion (~USD 1.5 million) guarantee.
In addition to the Main Event, the festival features a sizable schedule of 103 tournaments (including satellites) packed into its ten-day run time and boasts close to KRW 4.9 billion (~USD 3.4 million) in total prize pool guarantees.
You can read in more detail about the festival’s key events and explore the high roller tournament highlights via the below articles:
- APT Jeju 2025: The Preview
- Living the High Life: A Closer Look at the APT Jeju 2025 High Roller Events
Those looking for accommodation recommendations and entertainment options in Jeju should also check out our Guide to APT Jeju, South Korea 2025 feature.
With this being the tour’s fifth ever visit to the volcanic island, and the second visit of the New Era we decided to explore the history of this iconic tour stop and examine the rumblings that preceded the explosive action that erupted during the last visit at the APT Jeju 2024.
The Growth of the APT Jeju Festival
There have been four APT Jeju festivals in tour history, all at four different locations, with the current New Era iteration of the festival hosted at Landing casino in Jeju Shinhwa World resort since 2024.
These four tour stops to date make Jeju the seventh most visited in terms of the number of times APT has operated a festival here, and the sixth busiest since its introduction as a tour stop back in February of 2013, attracting 9,969 total entries over the 125 tournaments the APT has run here.
In terms of prize money played for, Jeju is the sixth richest overall APT tour stop with close to KRW 13 billion (USD 9.8 million) in prize money awarded.
In terms of New Era results, there has only been one festival putting it fifth of seven tour stop destinations in terms of New Era prize money played for with KRW 12.33 billion (USD 9 million) awarded over the 93 tournaments (including satellites) played at APT Jeju 2024, which makes up 8 percent of the USD 111 million in prize money the APT has awarded since APT Taipei 2023.
There is a marked difference between the old era and new era festivals, with the single New Era festival accounting for a whopping 92 percent of the total prize money awarded at this tour stop, with the festival over six times larger in terms of entries than the other three APT Jeju festivals combined, and over 12 times richer in terms of prize money awarded.
The Players
When it comes to the player base, competitors to win APT Jeju titles have come from 17 different countries and regions.
Prior to the New Era it was the Japanese who made up the largest portion of the player base and claimed the most tournament titles, winning 16 out of 37 (43.2%) old era tournaments played.
However, with the launch of the New Era it is China who make up the largest portion of the player base, accounting for 47 percent of the fields at the APT Jeju 2024 and claiming an impressive 35 out of the 88 tournament titles—39.7%—awarded at the festival.
This saw the Middle Kingdom overtake the Land of the Rising Sun for most tournament titles awarded in Jeju, with China claiming 40 in total out of the 125 tournaments (32%) the APT has run in Jeju since 2013, while Japan sits in second with 29 titles (23.2%), with Hong Kong taking the #3 spot with 14 titles (11.2%).
APT Jeju Country/Region Title Breakdown
The Main Event
Of course, in addition to looking at the total number of festival entries and prize money played for, the best way to measure any poker festivals’ pulse rate is by examining the success of the flagship tournament and celebrating its former and current champions.
The Tour Debut: APT Jeju February 2013
The APT made its Jeju debut with the eight-day APT Jeju 2013 which ran from February 27 to March 6 at the Royal Place Casino located in the Oriental Hotel and comprised 15 tournaments which attracted 650 total entries and generated KRW 421 million (USD 386,870) in total prize pools.
Japan claimed the most titles, with Japanese players winning 5 of the 15 tournaments played (33%), closely followed by Hong Kong, which provided 4 title-winning players (26%).
However, it was Canadian-South Korean player Ryan Yu who claimed the Main Event crown, with the tournament coming with a USD 1,100 buy-in and generating the largest prize pool of the festival – a total of KRW 174.8 million (USD 160,520) which accounted for just over 41 percent of the total festival prize money awarded.
Yu, who claimed his maiden live tournament title with the victory, earned a KRW 39 million (USD 36,100) top prize and has claimed another three live tournament titles since, including another APT title at the APT Jeju 2017 festival, and has gone on to earn over USD 2.9 million in live career cashes to date.
Canadian-South Korean Ryan Yu won the inaugural APT Jeju Main Event
APT Jeju August 2013
Following its debut in February, the tour returned to Jeju six months later in August of 2013, with the six-day festival running from August 18-23 at the Ramada Hotel. This smaller festival was half the size of its forerunner with 283 entries competing over ten events for a total of KRW 191 million (USD 170,300) in series prize money.
Once again it was Japanese players dominating the action, claiming 4 of the 10 titles on offer (40%), with China (20%) and Canada (20%) tied for the #2 spot providing 2 title winners apiece.
The buy-in for the Main Event increased to USD 2,500 and the tournament attracted 46 entries, with the KRW 128 million (USD 113,970) prize pool accounting for close to 67 percent (66.9%) of the total festival prize money awarded.
It was China’s Lifeng Shen claiming the accolades, overcoming poker legend Johnny Chan heads-up in the process to claim the KRW 39.6 million (USD 35,300) top prize and his first and only career APT title to date.
China’s Lifeng Shen claimed his maiden live tournament title with his APT Jeju 2013 victory
APT Jeju 2017
Following a four-year hiatus, the APT returned to Jeju in 2017. The nine-day festival ran at the Paradise Grand Casino from March 22-30 and comprised 12 tournaments which attracted a total of 408 entries who competed for over KRW 204 million (USD 181,469) in prize money.
The third APT Jeju festival saw Japan dominate the title race once again, with the Land of the Rising Sun claiming 7 out of 12 titles (58%) with China taking the #2 spot with 2 title wins (16%).
The Main Event came with a KRW 1,650,000 (USD 1,485) buy-in, drawing a field of 56 entries with the KRW 81,480,000 (USD 72,648) prize pool accounting for close to 40 percent (39.7%) of the total festival prize money awarded.
It was Japan’s Katsuhiro Muto who claimed the victory and the KRW 22.5 million (USD 20,123) top prize, earning his maiden APT live title in the process.
Muto boasts over USD 325,000 in live tournament winnings, which include ten APT final table appearances all made between 2014 to 2017 and went on to claim a second APT title just two months later at the APT Manila Championship 2017.
APT Jeju 2017 champion Katsuhiro Muto
New Era: APT Jeju 2024
The APT did not return to Jeju for another seven years, but the first visit of the APT New Era saw a volcanic eruption of action which resulted in the tour stops largest and richest festival to date, setting a (at the time) record for the largest international poker tournament ever to play out in Korea.
The APT Jeju 2024 festival ran from April 26 to May 5 at the Landing Casino in the Jeju Shinhwa resort and comprised over seven times the number of tournaments offered by the 2017 edition of the festival, with 93 events (including satellites) packed into the ten-day schedule.
As mentioned above, the festival was over six times larger in terms of entries than the other three APT Jeju festivals combined, attracting an impressive 8,628 total festival entries, and was over 12 times richer in terms of prize money awarded with a sizable KRW 12.1 billion (USD 9 million) in prize pools played for.
It was China dominating the title race, claiming 35 of the 88 titles on offer (39.7%) including two of the tour's three signature tournament titles with Xixiang Luo winning the Main Event and Zhendong Li winning the Super High Roller.
Japan claimed the #2 spot with 13 title victories (14.7%), and Hong Kong and Taiwan tied for the #3 spot with their 10 titles apiece each making up 11%, although the latter did claim the third of the tour’s signature tournament titles with Natural8 Ambassador Eric “Six Poker” Tsai of Taiwan taking down the APT High Roller.
The APT Jeju 2024 Main Event came with a KRW 2.5 million (USD 1,800) buy-in and was the largest and richest ever played at the tour stop, drawing a four-figure field of 1,089 entries and generating a KRW 2.3 billion (USD 1.7 million) prize pool – setting a new Korean poker record in the process and accounting for close to a fifth (19.5%) of the total festival prize money played for.
It was China’s Xixiang Luo who entered the tour record books, winning the tour’s richest-ever (at the time) Korean-based Main Event for a hefty KRW 429 million (USD 311,843) pay day.
This moved Luo into the top ten on the China All-Time Money List and represented a career best score until he followed this up two months later with an impressive two WSOP bracelet wins at the 2024 World Series, the latter of which granted Luo a new career all-time high.
Since the start of the New Era, Luo has made eight APT final tables, two of which he converted into APT titles, all of which he did at the APT Jeju 2024 with the Chinese businessman tearing it up at the tables.
In addition to his Main Event win, Luo also final tabled the APT Jeju 2024 Super High Roller, finishing in fourth place for a further KRW 85.6 million (USD 62K).
Luo currently sits on over USD 5.3 million in live career cashes having added to his list of accolades still further since then, claiming a third career bracelet at the 2025 World Series, and will be at APT Jeju 2025 to defend his title.
China’s Xixiang Luo won the record-breaking APT Jeju 2024 Main Event
New Era: APT Jeju 2025
With the upcoming APT Jeju 2025 festival offering 10 percent more (10.7%) tournaments than the record-setting 2024 edition of the festival, and the Main Event boasting a sizable KRW 2.2 billion (~USD 1.5 million) guarantee, it’s a fair bet that this edition of the festival is set to be the largest APT Jeju yet.
Especially when you consider the seven seats on offer to the APT’s largest-ever guaranteed Main Event—the USD 5M GTD Asian Poker Tour Championship Main Event—with the top three places in the APT Jeju Main Event, and the champion of the APT Super High Roller, the APT High Roller, the Superstar Challenge, and the Zodiac Classic – Sponsored by Natural8 all claiming a ticket to this fantastic tournament.
See you in Jeju!