APT Main Event - Final Day - TWD 65,000,000 GTD

Daisuke Ogita

The TWD 70,000 APT Taipei Main Event has been won by Daisuke Ogita for a staggering TWD 12,944,020 (~$409,730) after the Japanese player outlasted a field of 1,182 entries (737 unique) to take down Taiwan's richest-ever poker tournament. Ogita defeated Guo Zhang Xi in a short-heads up match that saw the Taiwanese player pocket TWD 7,620,000 (~$241,205) for his runner-up finish.

With a prize pool of TWD 72,232,020 (~$2,286,275), the Main Event was the richest-ever tournament to be held in Taiwan, beating the record set in the 2023 edition of the APT Taipei Main Event. The first prize was also the second-biggest offered in an APT Main Event in the tour's history, and also the largest first prize ever to be awarded in Taiwan — a record which was set earlier in the series when Bertrand "Elky Grospellier won the Superstar Challenge.

APT Host Gregory "Greg Goes All In" Liow had a chance to catch up with Ogita after his historic win.

"Fantastic, I can't believe it. Amazing, amazing." responded Ogita when asked how he was feeling right now.

"This is my best cash so, [I feel] amazing."

Ogita had some comments to make about his experience at the APT.

"Very kind-hearted people. Many players and many events. It's very good."

"Arigatou." was how Ogita ended his interview as he went to lift the award-winning APT 24K Gold Lion trophy.

Not only is this Ogita's career-best score, but he also jumped up five spots on Japan's All-Time Money List and now sits in seventh after overtaking the likes of APT legend Iori Yogo & Jun Obara while being hot on the heels of Nozomu Shimizu.

It was Safwane Bahri who held the chip lead coming into the final table with around twenty-five percent of the chips in play after a phenomenal Day 4 inside the Asia Poker Arena for the Frenchman. Bahri's stack started to go in the wrong direction just three hands into the final table after Li Wei Sun - who was one of four players representing Taiwan in the final nine - shoved all in from the small blind with king-seven and was put at risk by the French player's pocket sixes. A safe flop looked to be the end of Sun but a seven on the turn kept him alive and put a small dent in Bahri's stack.

The problems didn't stop there for Bahri as his stack dwindled even further in the seventh hand of play. Bahri, Ogita, and Jung Chuan "Ivan" Liao had seen a flop in a three-bet pot and after the French player made a continuation bet with king-queen, he was priced in to call Liao's shove who was holding pocket kings. No runner-runner arrived for Bahri and in less than an orbit he had lost half of his stack.

Bahri's situation went from bad to worse the very next hand after he raised with pocket sevens and called the shove of Chi-Jen "Justin" Chu, who held ace-king. An ace on the flop sealed the deal for Chu and left Bahri wondering where it all went wrong as he was sent tumbling down the leaderboard into unfamiliar territory with the second-shortest stack.

Safwane Bahri

Singapore's Steve Ng came into the final table fourth in chips but was the first to be eliminated after he shoved all in with king-queen and ran head-first into Ogita's pocket kings. Despite flopping an open-ended straight draw, no help arrived for the Singaporean meaning he was out in ninth with a career-best score of TWD 959,000 (~$30,360). After that elimination, Ogita had taken the chip lead for the first time in the tournament and would not once relinquish that position to any of his rivals seated at the table throughout the entirety of the final table.

It was hard not to feel bad for Bahri after his disastrous start but a cooler situation would send him packing on hand twenty-two after he three-bet shoved ace-king right into the pocket aces of Xi. The Frenchman was dead by the turn and he picked up TWD 1,236,000 (~$39,125) for his run.

Seungmook Jung and Pitipong Posri had both been quiet in the early goings of the final table but found themselves in a three-way all-in situation with Chu. Posri had shoved with ace-jack, and Chu had called with the same hand only for Jung to look down at pocket queens which prompted him to drop in his remaining chips. A clean board saw Jung almost quadruple up and left Posri with less than two big blinds in his stack.

Pitipong Posri

The next hand Posri was forced all in from the big blind with king-four but had to play bystander as he had no decision to make after his two opponents took it to the streets. Liao and Xi had both limped in and checked down to the river to try and thin down the field and earn a pay jump. A king hit the river and Liao fired a bet, which got Xi to fold and the cards were flipped up. Posri's hand had been counterfeited by the king-nine of Liao as a pair on the board gave the Taiwanese player kings-up with a better kicker and sent Posri to the rail in seventh. The cash of TWD 1,734,000 (~$54,890) over doubled Posri's lifetime live poker earnings and crushed his previous career-best score by a factor of almost five.

Day 3 chip leader Sun then got all of his chips in preflop with pocket kings after he called the four-bet shove of Liao, who held ace-king. A dry board propelled Sun up the counts but left Liao with a little over three big blinds and a lot of work to do.

It took four hands for those three big blinds to vanish from Liao's stack and subsequently end his Main Event run. Ogita had raised with ace-four, Sun had called, and Liao had committed the last of his chips with eight-five suited. After Ogita's flop bet got Sun to fold, the cards were exposed and Liao saw that he was live. The Taiwanese player improved to a flush draw on the turn but a brick river meant he was eliminated in sixth for a payday of TWD 2,275,000 (~$72,010).

Jung Chuan "Ivan" Liao

A crucial flip then went the way of Jung after he had called the preflop shove of Sun with pocket eights and had to hold against the Taiwanese player's ace-ten. A ten on the flop looked to have won the flip for Sun but an eight on the turn revived Jung and gave him a much more comfortable stack to play with.

Moments later, in the fifty-sixth hand of the final table, Sun's stack was decimated to just over a single big blind as another flip didn't go his way. Chu had shoved with ace-nine and Sun had called with pocket deuces to find himself in another coinflip situation. Sun's deuces were counterfeited after the board contained two pair meaning Chu's ace kicker played which earned him the pot and left his compatriot with crumbs.

Sun didn't last another hand after his queen-eight was committed to the pot from the small blind and Xi's nine-ten put him at risk. A nine on the flop ended Sun's run in the Main Event but successfully laddering up to fifth after entering as the short stack is something the Taiwanese player can be proud of. A career-best score of TWD 3,077,000 (~$97,400) will also help ease the pain on the journey home.

Seungmook Jung

Ogita then switched it up a gear and won pot after pot with the application of relentless ICM pressure onto the shorter stacks. On hand sixty-nine, Ogita open-shoved with king-ten and Jung made the call with pocket eights — the same hand that won him a vital flip earlier on. A dry flop kept the snowmen in the lead but a ten on the turn made Ogita a huge favorite. South Korea's Jung needed to find a two-outer to remain alive but history didn't repeat itself meaning he was out in fourth for TWD 4,016,000 (~$127,120). This score, although not a career-best, sees Jung break into the top ten on South Korea's All-Time Money List.

It seemed to be a one-horse race as Ogita held almost eighty percent of the chips in play with three players remaining, but Chu managed to dodge a plethora of outs in the first hand dealt to the final three to double up. Ogita had shoved all in with king-four and Chu made the call with king-queen, but an all-diamond flop gave the Japanese player a flush draw. More outs were added on the turn as Ogita added an open-ended straight draw to the array of cards he could connect with but the river bricked off meaning had Chu clung onto his tournament life.

Xi was lucky not to have been eliminated after his king-jack managed to hit a flush on the turn against the pocket aces of Ogita - much to the dismay of Chu who missed out on a $71,000 pay jump. Though Chu did score another double-up after he called off his last six big blinds with pocket jacks and held against the king-ten of Ogita.

Guo Zhang Xi

Ogita continued his aggression and scooped up the blinds & antes on multiple occasions before shoving all in with ace-jack and being called by Chu's pocket nines. Winning this flip would see Chu take a huge leap on his way to making it into heads-up play and earning that pay jump he should have made previously. If there was a hand to show how well Ogita had been running, this one would stand out as he flopped Broadway to leave Chu needing running cards to stay alive. Miracles do sometimes happen but not on this occasion which left Chu out in 3rd for TWD 5,360,000 (~$169,665).

Ogita entered heads-up play with an over eight-to-one chip advantage and it took just seven hands for the tournament to reach its climax. Xi limped in with jack-nine, Ogita shoved all in holding jack-seven, and Xi called to put himself at risk. The Taiwanese player was a favorite to win the hand and maintained his lead after both players paired their jack on the flop. However, there was no stopping Ogita on his rampage to the title as he hit his seven on the river to scoop the pot and the Main Event title.

Xi had to settle for the runner-up spot and the enormous payday of TWD 7,620,000 (~$241,205) in what we think, quite unbelievably, is his first-ever live tournament cash.

That left just one man with all of the chips - Daisuke Ogita. Upon hitting that river card, the Japanese player lifted the prestigious trophy high into the air and to applause around the venue.

Congratulations to Ogita and all of the finalists.

Daisuke Ogita

Daisuke Ogita has won the APT Taipei Main Event for TWD 12,944,020 (~$409,730).

Congratulations, Ogita!

A full write-up of the day's action will follow shortly.

Xi Guo Zhang

Xi Guo Zhang has been eliminated in 2nd place for TWD 7,620,000 (~$241,205).

Hand 95 Xi Guo Zhang limped in and Daisuke Ogita shoved all in. Zhang made the call for 5,000,000.

Ogita J♦ 7♦

Zhang J♥ 9♥

Zhang was in a perfect spot to double up early in this heads-up duel and give himself a chance at making a comeback. The Taiwanese player still had some work to do though as five cards were yet to be revealed on the board.

The first three came 6♦ K♣ J♣ which paired them both but Zhang's kicker was playing. Some chop opportunities were on the cards as any six would give them both two pair with a king kicker.

More chops outs arrived on the 5♥ turn as any five now would also result in a chop. The title would belong to Ogita if a seven landed on the river but Zhang remained the favorite to win the hand and double up.

The way that Ogita had been running over this final table, it came as no surprise to see the 7♠ hit the river which improved him to two pair and won him the Main Event.

Zhang will have to settle for the runner-up spot but a great run from the local player and a valiant effort.

Xi Guo Zhang and Daisuke Ogita

Hand 89 Xi Guo Zhang limped and Daisuke Ogita shoved all in. Zhang folded.

Hand 90 Ogita limped in and Zhang shoved. Ogita folded.

Hand 91 Zhang limped in and Ogita shoved. Zhang folded.

Hand 92 Ogita limped and Zhang shoved. Ogita folded.

Hand 93 Xio Guo Zhang limped in and Daisuke Ogita shoved. Zhang folded.

Hand 94 Daisuke Ogita limped in and Xi Guo Zhang shoved all in. Ogita folded.

The award-winning APT 24K Gold Lion trophy

Here are the payouts for the final two spots.

Here are the chip counts going into heads-up play.

Daisuke Ogita holds over an eight-to-one chip lead and is the heavy favorite to lift the 24K Gold Lion trophy.

Xi Guo Zhang and Daisuke Ogita

We are now heads up!

Chi-Jen Chu

Chi-Jen Chu has been eliminated in 3rd place for TWD 5,360,000 (~$169,665)

Hand 88 Daisuke Ogita shoved all in from the small blind and Chi-Jen Chu called off his 5,700,000-chip stack which put the Taiwanese player at risk.

Ogita A♣ J♦

Chu 9♠ 9♣

It took just three hands for Ogita to have any shot at bringing the final table down to heads up but first he would need to win a flip.

That flip looked to be won by Ogita on the Q♥ T♠ K♥ flop as the Japanese player flopped the nuts and left Chu drawing extremely thin.

By the time the 6♠ turn was dealt it was all over as Chu was drawing dead. A 7♥ completed the runout and Ogita was pushed the pot which left Chu out in 3rd.

Hand 86 Xi Guo Zhang got a walk.

Hand 87 Chi-Jen Chu shoved all in and won the pot.

Players are on a 15-minute break.