Akira Takasugi claims the largest APT Main Event prize ever awarded

APT TAIPEI 2025 SCHEDULE | OFFICIAL RESULTS | PLAYER LISTS | IMAGES | WINNERS

TAIPEI, TAIWAN, May 3, 2025 – The largest and richest Main Event in Asian Poker Tour history has crowned a champion, with Japan’s Akira Takasugi riding roughshod over the final table to claim the lion’s share of the massive TWD 121,033,440 (~USD 3,735,600) prize pool – the largest ever generated in the region.

After four intense days of poker, just nine players out of a record-breaking field of 2,547 entries returned for the Final Day of the TWD 55,000 (~USD 1,800) APT Taipei 2025 Main Event.

All nine finalists were already guaranteed a payout of TWD 1,500,000 (~USD 46,300), with the top three finishers also receiving a TWD 350,000 Asian Poker Tour Championship (APTC) Main Event ticket for the tour’s largest-ever guaranteed tournament series, running November 14-30 in Taipei, Taiwan.

However, it was the APT's largest-ever Main Event first place prize of TWD 19,009,440 (~USD 586,710) and the award-winning Gold Lion APT Main Event trophy that all were aiming for.

It was Hong Kong’s Wayne Lam returning in the driving seat with the start-of-day chip lead, with the final table getting underway at 11:15am local time (GMT+8) and the action recommencing on level 34 with blinds of 150,000/300,000 with a 300,000 big blind ante.

Takasugi was one of three Japanese finalists and returned fourth in the chip counts, with the Final Table action comprising 147 hands played out over six and a half 60-minute levels.

Takasugi eliminated three of the nine finalists on his way to the title, using relentless aggression and gutsy betting to close out the win.

The 28-year-old accounts manager was already guaranteed the largest cash of his three-and-a-half-year tournament career for his maiden APT final table appearance; Takasugi may have lacked the experience of some of his fellow finalists, but you would not have guessed it from his fearless play.

The Japanese player edged into a chip lead he would not relinquish on the 91st hand played. After this, Takasugi put pedal to the metal, leveraging his lead to draw further and further ahead of the competition.

Macau's Iat Man Leong and Japan's Akira Takasugi prepare to battle heads-up

While it was runner-up Iat Man Leong of Macau who ended Lam’s title dreams to take play heads-up, it was Takasugi who brought the chip lead into the match.

It took Takasugi 24 hands to grind Leong down, with the Macanese player committing his last ten big blinds with queen-three suited after Takasugi moved all-in from the button with king-six offsuit, pairing his king on the flop to close out the win.

“Honestly, I’m still trying to figure out what to do about the taxes!” quipped Takasugi immediately after his victory, who stated the toughest part of his title journey was midway through the Day 2 action.

“At one point on Day 2, I dropped down to just 4,400 chips. But I managed to come back from there. On Day 3, during the first couple of levels, I was playing with just 40% of the average stack. It was really tough being that short stacked. I just prayed to God.”

It seemed the poker gods were listening, with Takasugi’s Main Event win representing over a 4,000 percent (4,162%) increase of his previous career-best score, moving him up over 500 places on the Japan All-Time Money List, where he now sits just outside the top 30.

“To everyone who watched the stream and cheered me on: Thank you! I was able to win the APT main event!” an elated Takasugi stated, before heading off to collect his giant APTC ticket and pose for the obligatory winner’s photo.

MAIN EVENT FINAL TABLE RESULTS

*Plus an APTC Main Event Seat worth TWD 350,000

For Main Event Results please CLICK HERE.

For APT Taipei 2025 Main Event Final Table Player Profiles please CLICK HERE.

You can read all about the Final Table action in more detail in the APT Blog or view it as it happened via the Main Event Final Table live stream

Main Event by the Numbers

The record-breaking APT Taipei 2025 Main Event drew a massive 2,547 entries comprised of 1,276 players from 45 different countries and regions across the globe.

For Main Event Breakdown by Country/Region please CLICK HERE with a graphic available HERE.

Players competed for the largest prize pool in Taiwanese poker history—a massive TWD 121,033,440 (~USD 3,735,600)—with the TWD 19,009,440 (~USD 586,710) top prize representing the largest first place prize ever awarded in the region. It is also the richest-ever APT Main Event top prize and the second-richest first place prize the APT has ever awarded.

For APT Taipei New Era Main Event Growth Graph please CLICK HERE

The APT Taipei 2025 Main Event is the largest tournament in the tour’s 19-year history, almost double that of the first APT Main Event of the New Era, the APT Taipei 2023, which drew 1,434 entries (881 unique) from 37 different countries and regions.

The APT Taipei 2025 represents over a 77 percent (77.6%) increase in player numbers and close to a 45 percent (44.8%) increase in unique entries over the Taipei 2023 Main Event.

The prize money played for is almost double that of the 2023 tournament, representing a sizable 93 percent (93.3%) increase in prize pool size, with a top prize close to 70 percent (69.5%) larger than the TWD 11,210,400 awarded to Natural8 Ambassador Punnat Punsri at APT Taipei 2023.