Dmitrii Belikov

As the sun rose over Manila this morning, 48 hopefuls returned to the tables inside the Crowne Plaza Galleria with one shared mission—securing a seat at the APT Main Event final table. After eight levels of play, that number has been slashed to just nine, each now shifting their focus to the ultimate prize: the PHP 11,069,680 (~$190,201) first-place payout.

The player in the best position to capture the title is Russia’s Dmitrii Belikov, who ran hot throughout the day and closed out with an impressive 8,890,000 in chips. Japan’s Hiroya Iwamoto wasn’t far behind, building his stack to 8,225,000, while Or Nezer secured the third spot on the leaderboard with 6,660,000, keeping himself in striking distance of the leaders.

When they return tomorrow for the fifth and final day, the remaining nine players will battle for the prestigious APT Main Event title and their share of the massive PHP 62,311,680 (~$1,070,647) prize pool—the biggest APT Main Event ever held in the Philippines. Each has already secured at least PHP 819,000 (~$14,072) for reaching the final table, but with the payouts getting progressively bigger, the stakes couldn’t be higher as they chase history and a career-defining victory.

Final Table Chip Counts

*Big blinds calculated for Level 31, as there is only one minute remaining in Level 30.

With a healthy stack of 6,615,000, Dylan Foster is well-positioned to make a run at the title. A familiar face on the APT circuit, Foster has already racked up eight final table appearances in APT events, but a trophy has eluded him outside of his home country of Australia.

Now, with a career-best payday within reach, Foster will be looking to leverage his experience and navigate his way up the payouts—all the way to the PHP 11,069,680 (~$190,201) top prize and his first international title.

Samuel Mullur

The most decorated player at the final table is undoubtedly Samuel Mullur. The Austrian bracelet-winner boasts nearly $5,000,000 in live tournament earnings and currently sits third on Austria’s All-Time Money List—a resume that speaks for itself.

However, Mullur faces an uphill climb with just 2,150,000 in chips, leaving him as one of the short stacks heading into Day 5. But with his experience and deep-run prowess, few would be surprised to see him mount a comeback and battle for the title as the tournament reaches its final stages.

Rounding out the final table are Jie Zhang (5,320,000), Alexander Ugay (4,720,000), Ivan Govorov (3,390,000), and Adalsteinn Karlsson (1,700,000). While Zhang and Ugay sit comfortably in the middle of the pack, Govorov has some ground to make up, while Karlsson enters as the short stack, needing an early double-up to stay in contention.

Day 4 Action

Among those who started the day, Javier Zarco had the steepest hill to climb, entering with just a single big blind. While he hoped to spin up a miracle run, his journey ended in 45th place. Terry Gonzaga (39th), Rishi Mehra (33rd), Jayden Zalac (24th), and Vlada Stojanovic (21st) also fell before the pay jumps started to get a little juicier.

One of the standout stories of the tournament was Gemmy Quach, who described her deep run as “magical” after bagging at the end of Day 3. But as fate would have it, the deck had other plans.

Quach's troubles began in Level 26, when Belikov’s ace-queen rivered her ace-king, but she managed to recover and battle on. However, in Level 29, it was déjà vu—this time, Quach four-bet shoved with king-jack, only to once again find herself at risk against Belikov’s ace-queen.

A king on the flop offered hope for a crucial double-up, but in a cruel twist, the river brought an ace, officially ending her Main Event journey at the hands of the same opponent who cracked her earlier. A magical run, but sometimes even fairy tales get a bad ending.

Gemmy Quach

Belikov vaulted to the top of the chip counts after winning a massive flip, holding strong with pocket jacks against Egidijus Digrys' ace-queen in the tournament’s biggest pot so far. The crucial hand catapulted Belikov into the lead while leaving Digrys on life support with just a handful of big blinds.

Still reeling from the loss, Digrys found himself flipping again just a few hands later, this time with pocket eights against Hiroya Iwamoto’s ace-jack. Unfortunately for him, the board brought an ace on the flop, dashing any hopes of a comeback and sending him out in the unlucky 13th place.

Niklas Warlich (12th) and Jeoffrey Sibal (11th) came agonizingly close to the final table but still walked away with solid paydays for their deep runs. However, it was Japan’s Michihiko Matsuda who suffered the toughest blow, finishing as the final table bubble boy after his stack was slowly ground down to dust.

In his final hand and down to just a few big blinds, Matsuda shoved with nine-eight over an open from Iwamoto, who called with six-three suited. The flop brought Iwamoto a flush draw, and the turn completed it, leaving Matsuda drawing dead and his tournament dreams officially over in tenth.

Hiroya Iwamoto

Remaining Payouts

Play resumes at 11 AM on Saturday, February 15, where the final nine players will battle until one is crowned APT Main Event champion. There’s one minute remaining in Level 30, and with the average stack around 5,300,000, every decision will be magnified as the blinds continue to rise.

As always, the final table will be streamed with a 30-minute delay, ensuring fans can follow the action without spoilers. Live updates will remain in sync with the broadcast to provide a seamless experience. To watch the stream: Click here.

With PHP 11,069,680 (~$190,201) up top, the pressure is at its peak. The stage is set, the chips are counted, and by the end of the day, a new APT Main Event champion will be crowned. Buckle up—it’s going to be a thrilling finale!

That's a wrap on Day 4, which ended with one minute remaining in Level 30.

Stay tuned for a recap of the day's action and those all-important chip counts.

Michihiko Matsuda

Short-stacked for much of the day, Michihiko Matsuda was desperate for some tinder to reignite his tournament hopes, and when Hiroya Iwamoto raised to 240,000 from the cutoff, he took his stand, shoving for 365,000 from the big blind. Iwamoto quickly called.

Michihiko Matsuda: 9 8

Hiroya Iwamoto: 6 3

Matsuda was ahead, but Iwamoto had live cards—and more importantly, hearts. The 4 K 4 flop brought a flush draw, and the T on the turn sealed Matsuda’s fate, leaving him drawing dead.

A meaningless K landed on the river, officially ending Matsuda’s run in 10th place, just shy of the final table.

Jeoffrey Sibal

Or Yaaqov Nezer raised the cutoff to 240,000, and Jeoffrey Sibal shoved all in for 1,210,000. Nezer made the call to put Sibal at risk.

Jeoffrey Sibal: K T

Or Yaaqov Nezer: K Q

Nezer was ahead with the queen kicker. A flop came down 2 8 9 , giving Nezer a flush draw.

The turn revealed a 6 and Sibal received a straight draw. The Q hit on the river, pairing Nezer’s queen and sending Sibal to the rail in eleventh place for a payday of PHP 679,000 (~$11,667).

Niklas Warlich

Nicholas Warlich made the most of his remaining time banks before he finally pushed his last 40,000 in, which wasn't enough to match the small blind.

Action went to the blinds. Small blind Jie Zhang matched the big blind and Samuel Mullur checked his option.

The flop came T 9 K Zhang and Mullur checked it down to see a 7 turn and a J river.

Zhang led for 125,000 and Mullur called.

Zhang showed Q 2 and Mullur showed Q 5 Both players making a straight.

Meanwhile, Warlich showed a 6 7 for the losing hand, giving up his Main Event seat to finish 12th.

Action folded to Niklas Warlich on the dealer button, who made a huge raise to 1,000,000 - leaving 160,000 chips behind. Big blind Ivan Govorov defended with a call.

The flop came 7 7 5

Govorov fired 120,000 and Warlich called, leaving only 40,000 chips in his stack.

Both players checked the 9 turn and the T river.

Govorov revealed an A 4 and apparently that was enough to win the huge pot and put Warlich on the brink of elimination.

Egidijus Digrys

After losing a crucial flip for the chip lead, Egidijus Digrys found himself on the ropes and desperately needed a double-up.

When Hiroya Iwamoto opened to 240,000 from the cutoff, Digrys shoved his remaining 500,000 on the button, and Iwamoto quickly called.

Egidijus Digrys: 8 8

Hiroya Iwamoto: A J

Digrys was hoping the Snowmen would bring him back to life, but instead, his Main Event dreams melted away as the board ran out 7 A Q J 2 , giving Iwamoto two pair and sending Digrys to the rail.

A brutal back-to-back flip loss spells the end of his run, as Iwamoto adds more chips to his growing stack.

Jie Zhang opened the cutoff to 240,000 and Niklas Warlich three-bet to 700,000 from the small blind, only to be jammed by Zhang for 1,740,000. It only took Warlich a few seconds to announce a call.

Niklas Warlich: A K

Jie Zhang: 8 8

Warlich was slightly behind with his Big Slick facing off against Zhang’s snowmen, which was improved to a set on the flop of 3 8 J .

The 6 dropped on the turn, leaving Warlich drawing dead. The board-pairing 6 landed on the river, blooming Zhang’s set into a full house.

Dmitrii Belikov

With the Main Event final table approaching, a monster pot erupted after a flurry of action.

Adalsteinn Karlsson opened to 250,000 from the hijack, with Alexander Ugay calling from the cutoff and Hiroya Iwamoto peeling on the button. In the small blind, Egidijus Digrys decided to squeeze to 1,200,000, but the real fireworks began when Dmitrii Belikov shoved for 4,800,000 from the big blind.

After taking a count and burning through several time banks, Digrys made the call, creating a 10,000,000-chip pot—the biggest of the tournament so far!

Dmitrii Belikov: J J

Egidijus Digrys: A Q

A huge flip with Belikov at risk, but his jacks stayed ahead on the 5 T 7 flop. The 9 on the turn added an unnecessary gutshot for Belikov, while Digrys still needed an ace or a queen to flip the script.

But Belikov’s heater continued as the 6 bricked on the river, securing him a massive double-up and the chip lead! Meanwhile, Digrys was left crippled, his stack reduced to just 500,000.

Or Yaaqov Nezer

Or Yaaqov Nezer opened the cutoff to 240,000, only to be jammed by Ivan Govorov on the cutoff. Nezer dropped in a call to put Govorov at risk.

Ivan Govorov: A 9

Or Yaaqov Nezer: J 8

Govorov was ahead with ace-nine, and the flop came down A T Q , pairing Govorov’s ace and offering Nezer a straight draw.

The 4 landed on the turn. Nezer was still looking for a nine. However, the river brought a 6 , awarding another double-up. This time to Govorov instead.