APT Philippines Gets Underway in Manila

Attention has turned to the Filipino capital, Manila, this week after the Asian Poker Tour (APT) Philippines officially got underway.

The series got off to a start on Tuesday at the Resorts World Manila and a few tournaments have already been done and dusted.

One of the biggest events to have been played so far at this year’s event was the High Rollers event, which was won by Austrian poker shark Manual Blaschke.

Blaschke beat South Korean player Joenghan Lee in heads-up play to win the event and its $31,000 first place cash prize after his pair of Kings beat Lee’s Ace high in the final hand of the event.

Vietnamese poker pro Linh Tran was the other player who was in-the-money in the High Rollers event. He settled for third place which was good enough for a $12,480 cash prize.

Regie Ann de Los Reyes won what would be the most philanthropic event in this year’s APT Philippines, the Ante Up for Charity tournament.

The event, which had a $180 buy-in, raised $3,367 for the Gawan Kalinga Community Development Foundation.

The Foundation will put the money towards the costs of building a new home for a family who was left homeless in the aftermath of the devastating Typhoon Haiyan, which struck the country in November 2013.

Hometown hero Ferlyn Cabaling showed that she is one of the most dominant female poker players in Asia after she took out the ladies-only Ladies of Poker tournament.

While there were only 20 players who took part in the event, Cabaling’s win marked her fourth title in a ladies event in the APT. She also won the Ladies of Poker event in 2011 and 2012 APT Asian Series Manila as well as the 2013 APT Philippines.

The APT Philippines Main Event will get off to a start today, with the first starting flight set to take place on Friday afternoon Manila time. The Main Event is set to finish next Wednesday, which will also mark the final day of this year’s series in Manila.

Last year’s APT Philippines Main Event attracted 208 participants and similar numbers are expected this year. Singaporean player Feng Zhao was the last year's winner, taking home a very respectable $126,500.

PokerTube will keep readers updated with the results from the 2015 APT Philippines as they come to light.

Photo: tripadvisor.fr