The Asian Poker Tour (APT) Manila 2024 has wrapped up but what a series it was! This 11-day live poker festival that took place inside the Grand Ballroom at the City of Dreams Manila was a record-breaker, drawing players from 1,321 unique from 53 countries. The mega series drew 8,102 total entries across 101 trophy events and distributed a whopping PHP 349,691,602 (~$5,944,757) in prize money. The series had a dream ending for America’s Daniel Lee, who emerged victorious in the record-breaking Main Event and walked away with a career-best PHP 15,060,000 (~$256,020) and the 24K gold lion APT Main Event trophy.
The just-concluded series had a small but mighty Indian contingent. Indian players made their presence felt, notching up an impressive nine cashes with five final table finishes and two coveted titles. India’s Leon Menezes won India its first trophy by winning Event #75: ₱8K Turbo – Omaholic, claiming his first major live title and PHP 104,555 ($1,778) in prize money. Menezes then followed this up with a third-place finish in Event #97: ₱12K PL Omaha High – Lazy Rivers (Individual River Face Up), winning PHP35,000 for his efforts.
The second player to win a title for India was Rishi Mehra who capped off India’s remarkable campaign with a hard-fought victory in Event #103: PHP 100K High Roller – Last Chance on the final day of the series.
Rishi Mehra has been in sublime form. After narrowly missing out on APT High Roller trophy at the recent APT Taipei Poker Classic where he finished runner-up for a massive INR 90.98 Lakhs, Mehra sealed the deal this time by claiming victory in the PHP 100,000 Event #103: High Roller – Last Chance on the final day of the 2024 APT Manila. Mehra, the only Indian to cash the APT Manila Main Event, overcame a field of 63 entries (49 unique) to take home a massive PHP 1,603,900 (INR 23.17 Lakhs) payday – his maiden live title and second-best live score.
Mehra’s journey to victory was nothing short of spectacular. He overcame a tough final table featuring Natural8 Ambassador Yu Chung Chang (9th), double Masters series title winner Li Ta Hsu (6th), the Philippines’ Christopher Mateo (3rd), and APT Taipei Poker Classic Mini Main Event and Bybit Mystery Bounty champion Tom Verbruggen (runner-up).
The final showdown saw Verbruggen and Mehra battle it out for the coveted title. Eventually, Indian player Mehra came out on top to claim his maiden live tournament title and the coveted trophy trophy, and an impressive PHP 1,603,900 (~$ 27,265) in top prize.
Verbruggen settled in second place for PHP 1,155,000 (~$ 19,635), with Mateo from the Philippines rounding out the podium finishes and pocketing PHP 751,000 (~$12,770) for third place. Only the top nine finishers paid out, with the tournament results as follows:
APT Manila 2024 Event #103: High Roller Last Chance Complete Payouts
| Place | Name | Prize |
| 1st | Rishi Mehra | PHP 1,603,900 (~USD 27,265) |
| 2nd | Tom Verbruggen | PHP 1,155,000 (~USD 19,635) |
| 3rd | Christopher Mateo | PHP 751,000 (~USD 12,770) |
| 4th | Abdulaziz Yousef | PHP 566,000 (~USD 9,620) |
| 5th | Seitaro Aso | PHP 440,000 (~USD 7,480) |
| 6th | Li Ta Hsu | PHP 341,000 (~USD 5,800) |
| 7th | Felix Favre | 269,000 (~USD 4,570) |
| 8th | Wooseok Kim | PHP 209,000 (~USD 3,550) |
| 9th | Yu Chung Chang | PHP 165,000 (~USD 2,805) |
APT Action Continues With APT Phu Quoc 2024
While the 2024 APT Manila series is over, the action continues with APT Phu Quoc 2024 beginning today, November 8. The series features 82 tournaments along with an impressive VND 44 Billion (~$1.70 Million) in guarantees and promises a high-octane poker experience.
Keep following PokerProNews for the latest updates and results from live tournaments.
Source: Asian Poker Tour
Image Credit: Asian Poker Tour
