The Asian Poker Tour has been a frequent visitor to Taiwan since 2019 and several stops have taken place in one of South East Asia’s hotbeds of live poker action. It will be the ninth time that the fastest-growing series heads to the island and the editions can be divided into two broad categories – prior to and after the launch of the new era.
Six of the stops took place between February 2019 and September 2022 before the revamped tour saw the attendance figures skyrocket throughout the last two years. Even bigger field sizes can be expected for the upcoming stop from September 27 until October 7, 2024, at the Asia Poker Arena (APA) in Taipei City.
The latest live poker festival takes place in cooperation with the Chinese Mahjong League (CML) and the Chinese Texas Hold’em Poker Association, the latter of which has set numerous attendance and prize pool records for Taiwan. An incredible 114 trophy events await for poker enthusiasts from near and far as the live poker operator returns from the summer hiatus with a bang.
APT Taipei Poker Classic 2024 at a Glance
Both previous two APT Taipei stops under new ownership attracted record fields and set prize pool records for the entire region, which sets the bar and expectations very high for the APT Taipei Poker Classic 2024. Two venues have been set in motion to combat the upcoming flood of poker players with the entire series featuring more than TWD 150 million (~USD 4.6 million) in guaranteed prize pools.
Two of the marquee events boast the biggest headline figures with the iconic Lion Trophies up for grabs in the TWD 300,000 APT Super High Roller and the TWD 110,000 APT High Roller with six-figure USD prize pools set in stone. However, the largest tally has been set for the flagship tournamnt, the APT Main Event.
With a buy-in of TWD 50,000 (~USD 1,530), at least TWD 65 Million (~USD 2 Million) in prize money will be distributed, that’s double of last year’s guarantee! Defending champion Daisuke Ogita came out on top of an 1,182-entry strong field to claim the top prize of TWD 12.94 million (~USD 409,730).
Four different starting days with different level durations are scheduled from September 29 until October 1 and the late registration remains open before the cards go in the air for Day 2 at 11 a.m. Local time on October 2, 2024.
Other Key Events
More affordable are the entry fees for the respective Mini Main Event (TWD 22,000 / ~USD 675) and Micro Main Event (TWD 11,000 / ~USD 338) with a combined TWD 9 Million across both tournaments, which mimic the structure of the keystone event.
Deeper pockets are required to take part in the popular APT High Roller, which costs TWD 110,000 (~USD 3,375) to enter and comes with a guarantee of TWD 11 Million (~USD 339,000). The high-stakes highlight on the schedule takes place on the tail end of the series on October 5 and 6. A similar buy-in level and guarantee is also featured in the Zodiac Classic sponsored by Natural8: For TWD80,000 (~USD 2,455), all players compete for a share of at least TWD 20 Million (~USD 613,000).
These price tags are only topped by the APT Super High Roller, set to run on September 28 and 29, 2024. With a mighty buy-in of TWD 300,000 (~USD 9,200), a smaller elite field is expected and the guarantee for this high-stakes contest was set at TWD 11 Million (~USD 339,000).
One event to feature a similar guarantee of TWD 10 Million (~USD 308,000) is the Mystery Bounty Hunter, which has a bargain buy-in of just TWD 15,000 (~USD 460). It will run from September 28 to 29, following right after the equally popular APT National Cup that kicks off with three flights on September 27. It has the same guarantee and comes at a slightly cheaper price tag of TWD 10,000 (~USD 300).
Beyond that, the mammoth schedule contains a plethora of mixed game variants in which players can snatch one of the many trophies. For a full overview of the extensive tournament list, check out the APT website – some details of key events can be found right below.
Event #1 APT National Cup
Date: Sept 27-28, 2024
Buy-In: TWD 10,000 (~USD 307)
Guarantee: TWD 10 Million (~USD 306,800)
Event #10 Mystery Bounty Hunter
Date: Sept 28-29, 202
4Buy-In: TWD 15,000 (~USD 460)
Guarantee: TWD 10 Million (~USD 306,800)
Event #12: APT Super High Roller
Date: Sept 28-29, 2024
Buy-In: TWD 300,000 (~USD 9,205)
Guarantee: TWD 11 Million (~USD 339,000)
Event #22: Sunday Super Stack
Date: Sept 29, 2024
Buy-In: TWD 25,000 (~USD 767)
Guarantee: TWD 4 Million (~USD 125,614)
Event #69: Zodiac Classic
Date: Oct 3-4, 2024
Buy-In: TWD 80,000 (~USD 2,455)
Guarantee: TWD 20 Million (~USD 613,000)
Event #77: Double Stack
Date: Oct 4-5, 2024
Buy-In: TWD 20,000 (~USD 614)
Guarantee: TWD 7 Million (~USD 219,825)
Event #89: Mini Main Event
Date: Oct 4-5, 2024
Buy-In: TWD 22,000 (~USD 675)
Guarantee: TWD 6 Million (~USD 188,422)
Event #91: APT High Roller
Date: Oct 5-6, 2024
Buy-In: TWD 110,000 (~USD 3,375)
Guarantee: TWD 11 Million (~USD 339,000)
Event #97: Micro Main Event
Date: Oct 6-7, 2024
Buy-In: TWD 11,000 (~USD 338)
Guarantee: TWD 3 Million (~USD 94,211)
Event #108: The Closer
Date: Oct 7, 2024
Buy-In: TWD 10,000 (~USD 307)
Guarantee: TWD 1 Million (~USD 31,404)