Po-Shuo Huang

After an intense and grueling bubble period in the APT Manila Classic Main Event, 175 players have locked up a payday and secured their spots in Day 3. This event has officially made history as the largest-ever APT Main Event in the Philippines, reinforcing the tour’s continued growth in the region.

Leading the field is Taiwan's Po-Shuo Huang, who finished Day 2 with an impressive 1,168,000 chips — the only player to bag a seven-figure stack. Not far behind is Javier Zarco, who accumulated 959,000, with the Spaniard playing a pivotal role in bursting the bubble after eliminating Kenneth Anthony.

Nobuaki Sasaki rounds out the top three, benefiting from a dream scenario when his pocket aces held up against the pocket kings of Raju Jaruplavath in one of the biggest hands of the day.

Day 2 Top Ten Chip Counts

The day began with 377 returning survivors from the opening flights, joined by 56 late entries who took advantage of the last chance to buy in before registration closed. David Erquiaga wasted no time making his presence felt, quickly rising among the chip leaders after eliminating Shinya Maeda in Level 13. Erquiaga capitalized on his early momentum and bagged a top ten stack of 680,000.

However, several former Main Event champions weren’t as fortunate, as Punnat Punsri, Lester Edoc, Henrik Tollofsen, Christopher Mateo, and John Tech all failed to make the money. Three past champions are still in contention, with Mike Takayama (577,000), Moses Saquing (124,000), and Yohn Paredes (71,000) carrying the torch forward.

China’s Zhen Chen, who has been making waves in the poker world as of late, closed out Day 2 with 165,000 chips. Chen added another trophy to his collection just yesterday, winning the Baby Superstar Challenge for PHP 4,327,600.

Samuel Mullur, currently third on Austria's All-Time Money List, secured the fourth-largest stack of 834,000. Mullur, who captured a WSOP bracelet in December 2023 by conquering the GGMillion$ High Roller for $2,736,300 — his career-best score—now sets his sights on adding another prestigious title. Despite his global accolades, an Asian trophy still eludes him, and what better way to start his collection than by claiming an award-winning Gold Lion to adorn his mantle?

Despite his gut-wrenching cooler against aces, Jaruplavath, champion of the Philippines National Cup, still managed to survive the day with 169,000 chips. Another notable mention is APT commentator Stephen Lai, who navigated the field smoothly and bagged a respectable 333,000 heading into Day 3.

As play resumes, 29 online qualifiers will merge with the live field, adding a fresh dynamic to the competition. Some notable names among them include Adalsteinn Karlsson (428,000), Abraham Ceesvin (353,000), Joshua Mccully (321,000), Marc Rivera (242,000), and Asa Smith (135,00).

Vietnamese poker vlogger Ngoc Huyen Quach, aka “Gemmy” maintained her position as the top stacked female player, fighting through with 226,000 in chips, with five other women still in contention for Day 3: Thailand’s Nattamon Kaweesorasak (206,000), Natural8 Ambassador Hua-Wei Lin (203,000), Thailand’s Wipawadee Kanaraksapong (179,000), Japan’s Seina Asagiri (117,000), and China’s Cai Xin Wong (59,000).

All remaining players are guaranteed a payout of PHP 94,000 (~$1,615), but it’s the PHP 11,069,680 (~$190,201) top prize that remains the ultimate goal. With the biggest APT Main Event field in Philippines' history now down to its final contenders, who will rise to the occasion and claim poker glory?

For a full APT Main Event Day 3 Survivor List: Click Here.

The surviving 175 players have all earned themselves a payday and are currently bagging up their chips.

Stay tuned for a recap of the day's action!

Kenneth Anthony bubbles

Kenneth Anthony was forced all in from the big blind, while Javier Zarco and Cheng Zhou battled for a side pot from the button and small blind, respectively.

Zarco opened the button to 20,000 and Cheng called from the small blind.

On a flop of 4 A T , Cheng check-called a bet of 16,000 to see the K drop on the turn. After Cheng checked, Zarco bet 80,000, which got Zhou to fold.

Kenneth Anthony: J 7

Javier Zarco: A T

Anthony needed a queen to complete Broadway and extend the bubble, but the 7 river didn’t cooperate, sealing his fate as the bubble boy.

It wasn’t all bad news for Anthony, though — he walked away with a PHP 25,000 Mini Main Event ticket as a consolation prize for bubbling.

Kenneth Anthony pulls a consolation prize

The remaining players are currently bagging their chips and will come back tomorrow at 11am for Day 3. Congratulations to everyone making the money. Stay tuned, a full recap of today's action will follow here shortly.

Ivan Govorov

Hand-for-hand play continues with 176 players still in contention in the Main Event.

Ivan Govorov just claimed a sizable pot, though not without a few nerves along the way.

The action was picked up on the turn with roughly 200,000 in the middle on a Q 8 T Q board. Govorov, in the cutoff, fired out 115,000, and Takumi Monden called from the button.

The 2 landed on the river, and with about 260,000 behind, Govorov used both hands to push forward a bet of 235,000. However, as he moved his chips forward, his trembling hands sent his stacks tumbling into the pot, prompting the dealer and floor staff to quickly restack them.

Monden remained silent throughout the commotion, and once the bet size was confirmed, he tossed in a call.

Govorov then revealed 9 6 for a flush, and Monden quietly mucked as Govorov raked in the pot.

Hiroya Iwamoto raised the button to 12,000 and Somasekhar Sanampuri defended from the big blind.

On the flop of 2 5 2 Sanampuri checked it to Iwamoto, who continued with a bet of 10,000. Sanampuri then put in a raise to 25,000 and Iwamoto dropped in a call.

The 6 fell on the turn, where Sanampuri check-called a bet of 40,000 from Iwamoto.

The river brought an 8 and it went check-check.

Sanampuri tabled A 5 for a pair of fives, but it was no match for the superior pair of eights from Iwamoto’s K 8 .

Alari Kunnapuu shoved all in from late position and Nattawut Kwunsong called to put his opponent at risk.

Nattawut Kwunsong: 6 6

Alari Kunnapuu: K K

Kunnapuu picked up a lead with pocket kings against Kwunsong’s pocket sixes. On the flop of T A J , Kwunsong received a backdoor diamond flush.

The turn showed the A , leaving Kwunsong drawing very thin.

The 7 hit on the river, sealing a double up to Kunnapuu.

After a raise from Tsz Chung Yip from late position, Edwin Marzan went all in for 316,000. Yip called off his last 123,000 chips to put himself at risk on the direct bubble.

Edwin Marzan: Q Q

Tsz Chung Yip: K K

Yip was ahead with his pocket kings against Marzan’s pocket queens. The flop came T 2 J , giving Marzan a backdoor diamond flush draw. The turn showed an A , putting Yip’s tournament at stake as one more diamond could send him the title of bubble boy. Fortunately for Yip a board-paring A landed on the river, securing him a much-needed double-up.

Zhiqing Liu

Almost every remaining player is silently thanking Jayden Zalac after he eliminated Zhiqing Liu, leaving the field just one spot away from the money.

Zalac opened to 12,000 from the cutoff, only for Liu to fire back with a massive three-bet to 81,000 from the big blind. Undeterred, Zalac moved all in for around 300,000. Liu, after burning through all three of his time banks, eventually flicked in the call for his tournament life, sitting on roughly 280,000.

Zhiqing Liu: 9 9

Jayden Zalac: A K

Liu pumped his fist, celebrating what he believed was a good call, but with five cards to come, the deck still had the final say.

The 8 2 J flop was a safe one for Liu, but the K on the turn flipped the script, leaving him with just two outs to survive. Needing a miracle nine, he instead found the 7 on the river, sealing his fate and sending him to the rail just short of the money.

Stephen Lai

We pick the action up on the turn where Stephen Lai bet 30,000 and got called by Yohei Kitazato next to him on the button. On the river, the board read A K Q 5 5 and Lai went for a bet of 50,000. Kitazato decided to be a non-believer and call. However, he could not beat Lai’s A K .