2 days of poker action at the APT Poker Room Manila crowned the champions in the 3 events and Paawan Bansal has given Team India a fantastic start by winning the Battle of the Nations Team Event with his partner Yao Hui. Sebastian Benz of Germany took down the Welcome event for the top prize of P412,600. Regie Ann Delos Reyes of Philippines won the Ante Up for Charity event on Thursday.
Welcome Event P1,000,000 Guaranteed
The PHP 1 million GTD event drew 287 entries creating a prize pool of PHP 1,670,300. It was a 2-day event with 2 flights on the Wednesday in which 71 players survived for the final day. India’s Kunal Patni and Dhaval Mudgal played this event but couldn’t make it to the Day 2. The survivors returned on Thrusday to battle out for the first title of 2015 APT Finale and in the end it was Germany’s Sebastian Ben who reigned victorious to claim the top prize.
Benz was up against Korea’s Hyungtaek Jo in the heads-up after eliminating Edilberto Gopez in the 3rd place. Jo had a 3:1 chip lead against Benz but it took one double up for Benz to get the grip over the title race. Benz claimed the trophy when his K♦ 5♦ landed a straight on the board of J♥ J♦ 10♠ A♥ Q♣ against Jo’s 10♣ 8♥. Here are the top 10 payouts:
| 1 | Sebastian Benz | Germany | P412,600 |
| 2 | Hyungtaek Jo | Korea | P235,500 |
| 3 | Edilberto Gopez | Philippines | P158,700 |
| 4 | Mary Joy Ocampo | – | P111,900 |
| 5 | Jamie Avila | USA | P90,200 |
| 6 | Jae Chul Chang | Korea | P71,800 |
| 7 | Ronald Dimaano | Philippines | P56,800 |
| 8 | John Carlo Sayo | Philippines | P45,100 |
| 9 | Kevin Kettles | Thailand | P36,700 |
| 10 | Pang Kwong Yuen | Malaysia | P31,200 |
Battle of the Nations Team Event
On Thurday, the teams event was played among 7 teams of 2 players each. Dhaval Mudgal and Kunal Patni tied-up for this team event but couldn’t cash. However, Paawan Bansal teamed up with Yao Hui (China) triumphed this battle of team beating Sam Razavi & Steve Moon of UK to win PHP 70,600. Sam’s team won PHP 38,000 for their runner-up finish.
Ante Up for Charity
The Ante Up for Charity for the Association De Damas De Filipinas Orphanage was another side event with 39 entries generously contributing to the cause. A total of P97,500 was raised and a P195,000 pot generated for the players. Taking home the trophy was Regie Ann Delos Reyes from the Philippines, the only female player left in the field. Here are the payouts:
| 1 | Regie Ann Delos Reyes | Philippines | P78,000 |
| 2 | Richard Marquez | Philippines | P48,700 |
| 3 | Uesugi Yoichi | Japan | P29,200 |
| 4 | Shinobu Tanaka | Japan | P21,500 |
| 5 | Naruyaasu Ota | Japan | P17,600 |
Today, 3 events are being played at the APT Poker Room:
Event #4 – Head Hunter 4,000/Bounty
Event #5 – Ladies of Poker
Event #6 – High Roller OFC Pineapple Shootout 12 Max
Stay Tuned for all the latest updates from the 2015 APT Finale. Get all the latest happenings in the poker world on your social media Facebook, Twitter and Google+.