APT Incheon Main Event | 447 entries so far, Takayuki Akamatsu leads Flight A

On August 9, 2026, Day 3 of the Asian Poker Tour (APT) Incheon event took place, with the highly anticipated APT Main Event officially starting. The 2,500,000 KRW buy-in Main Event features a guaranteed prize pool of 1.5 billion KRW. Following Flight A on-site, and with the 282 entries that qualified online on Day 1 from Natural8, the total number of entries has now reached 447.

The first live start group saw 165 entries, and after 10 60-minute levels, 70 players advanced to Day 2. Japanese player Takayuki Akamatsu became Flight A's chip leader with 241,000 chips, followed by Chinese player Jian Ting Cai with 234,700 chips, and Hong Kong player Fong Chi Andrei Chan with 200,200 chips.

APT Main Event with a guaranteed prize pool of 1.5 billion Korean won officially kicks off.

The buy-in for this year's APT Incheon Main Event is 2,500,000 KRW, with a guaranteed prize pool of 1,500,000,000 KRW. In addition to the four on-site starting groups, the event also includes an online Day 1 via Natural8. As of the end of Flight A, there were 282 online entries, plus 165 on-site participants, bringing the total number of participants to 447.

Since Flight B, Flight C, and Flight D have not yet taken place, and Day 2 still has a delayed registration window, the 447 entries are not the final number of participants for this main event.

Takayuki Akamatsu leads with 241,000 meters, with Chinese teams occupying the top positions.

After competing across 10 levels throughout the day, Japanese player Takayuki Akamatsu finished bagging with 241,000 chips, ranking first among the 70 players who advanced from the field.

Chinese athlete Jian Ting Cai is only 6,300 points behind, ranking second with 234,700 points; Hong Kong athlete Fong Chi Andrei Chan has accumulated 200,200 points, ranking third.

It is worth noting that among the top ten in Flight A, there are five Chinese players and one Hong Kong player, demonstrating a strong overall performance from Chinese players in the opening group.

APT Main Event Flight A Top 10

From second-place Jian Ting Cai to sixth-place Lan Te Zhang, the score differences at the top were not significant. Wei Zhu also made it into the top ten with 186,100, meaning the Chinese contingent will enter Day 2 with several healthy scoreboards.

Two former APT Main Event champions successfully advanced.

Besides the leading group, several APT champion players also advanced from Flight A.

2024 APT Manila Main Event champion Daniel Lee finished bagging with 85,150; 2025 APT Jeju Classic Main Event champion William Li advanced with 45,800, and both still have a chance to challenge for their second APT Main Event Gold Lion Trophy.

Other notable qualifiers include Jason Lau, the 2024 APT Phu Quoc High Roller champion, with 108,600; Napat Chokejindachai of Thailand with 107,600; Adriaan Jacobs, a WSOP bracelet winner, with 104,700; and Yue Sun, a five-time APT Women's champion, with 33,700.

On the other hand, Ivan Govorov, the 2025 APT Manila Classic Main Event champion, and Phandert Sukonthachartnant, the 2024 APT Taipei Poker Classic Super High Roller champion, failed to advance from Flight A, but can still try again through the subsequent starter group.

Flights B through D will continue; Day 2 registration is still open for delayed entries.

There are three more live starting groups remaining in the APT Main Event.

Flight B will begin at 11:00 AM on August 10th, with a format that includes six 45-minute levels and four 60-minute levels; Flight C and Flight D will take place at 11:00 AM and 6:00 PM on August 11th, respectively, with both groups consisting of six 30-minute levels and four 45-minute levels.

More importantly, main event registration will not close immediately after the four starting groups conclude. Deferred registration will remain open until the end of Day 2, Level 11 on August 12th, so the current number of 447 participants still has considerable room for growth.

Reoma Ogawa leads the 58-player Super High Roller event.

On the same day the main event kicks off, the APT Super High Roller, with a buy-in of 15,000,000 Korean won, also kicks off its Day 1.

This tournament attracted 58 entries from 48 different players, creating a total prize pool of 801,705,000 Korean Won. The top eight finishers entered the prize pool, with the champion receiving 236,325,000 Korean Won, a Pewter Lion Trophy, and a $10,000 APT Championship Main Event entry.

After 16 40-minute levels, 14 players remained, with Japanese player Reoma Ogawa leading with 2,335,000 chips and 78 big blinds.

APT Super High Roller Day 1 Scoreboard

Natural8 ambassador Chih Wei Fan is ranked second with 1,950,000 points, aiming for his first APT Mega Lion Trophy title. Chinese athletes Peng Chen and Mingzhe Zhou are ranked eighth and tenth respectively, while Nevan Chang from Taiwan is currently in eleventh place.

Since only eight people can enter the prize pool, the 14 finalists will still need to get through the bubble stage after the start of the final day.

Pakorn Duangtrakan's comeback against 868 mysterious bounty hunters

The other Day 3 champion was the Mystery Bounty Hunter, sponsored by Natural8, who won 900,000 Korean won.

The tournament attracted 868 participants from 497 different countries and regions, creating a ranking prize pool of 395,808,000 Korean won, plus a mystery bounty of 260,400,000 Korean won. All 122 finalists have secured at least 840,000 Korean won.

Thai player Pakorn Duangtrakan started with the third shortest stack at the final table and fought his way to the championship, reaching an ICM prize-sharing agreement with Japanese player Nishikido Nobuhiro in the heads-up stage. Duangtrakan won his first live tournament title, with an official prize of 59,981,000 KRW and an additional 12,950,000 KRW in bounty for eliminating seven opponents.

Nobuhiro, who held a chip lead at the time of the deal, ultimately finished as runner-up, earning a ranking prize of 60,117,000 won plus a bounty of 6,300,000 won. The two continued to compete for an additional 2,938,000 won, the championship title, and the trophy after the deal was finalized.

Mystery Bounty Hunter Final Table Results

Chinese player Zhijie Ma finished seventh, while Hong Kong's Kwok Chun Yip ranked ninth. Japanese player Tetsuya Tsujisaka, in addition to winning the 32,000,000 won third-place prize, also earned an extra 25,000,000 won through seven eliminations.

The biggest Mystery Bounty of the round was won by Russian player Anton Kozko, who was eliminated in 11th place. He won the top prize of 30,900,000 won, and with the addition of four other prizes, his total winnings reached 38,880,000 won.

Several members of the Chinese team have entered the leading group in the main event.

Since the start of the main event week at the APT Incheon, Chinese and Chinese-speaking players have achieved impressive results across multiple events. Jian Ting Cai is ranked second in Flight A with 234,700 points, Fong Chi Andrei Chan is in third place, and Yi Wang, Zhentao Long, Lan Te Zhang, and Wei Zhu have all made it into the Top 10 of the Starter Group.

Meanwhile, Peng Chen, Mingzhe Zhou, and Chih Wei Fan are still vying for the prize money and the championship in the 15,000,000 KRW Super High Roller event.

With Flight B, C, and D underway, the main event's current 447 entries will continue to grow. The next stage will focus on whether Takayuki Akamatsu can maintain his lead, and whether Chinese players like Jian Ting Cai can continue their strong start from Flight A into Day 2.

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