The APT Kickoff 2017 concluded at Resorts World Manila with a plethora of memorable moments. The 9-day poker festival, running January 11th-19th Jan, featured 18 side events and a US$1,650 buy-in Main Event wherein Japan’s musician and amateur poker player Takumi Samejima rose to the top, winning the top prize US$38,020 for his efforts. While the APT Kickoff 2017 had several highlights, it awarded Japan’s Yoichi Uesugi the APT Player of the Series Champion for his several deep runs.
The APT POS is the newest poker incentive awarded to top three poker players at the conclusion of the series. Uesugi cashed in several big events, which included an 8th place finish at the Main Event and 4th place at the High Rollers. He finished 5th place at the Main Event Warm-up and 5th place at the MSW Deep Stack Turbo. For his valuable achievements through the series, he received the APT POS winner’s trophy, an APT POS customized ring, an exclusive luxury watch. Uesugi also leads the APT Player of the Year 2017 race. Thus, the Japanese poker player is going to have a rocking year ahead.
Anthony Gabitan & Lester Edoc Secure 2nd and 3rd place in the APT POYS
Taking second place in the APT Player of the Series was Filipino poker player Anthony Gabitan who trailed Uesugi by a just small margin. Gabitan finished 9th at the US$1,650 buy-in Main Event and cashed in two other events. He was awarded an APT POS 2nd place trophy and he also qualifies to the APT Game of Champions along with Yoichi Uesugi. Another Filipino player Lester Edoc won three trophies in the series. He took down the Main Event Warm-Up, the WeLoveSport.com Deep Stack Turbo, and the Deep Stack Hyper Turbo event. Also, he cashed at the MSW event finishing in the 4th place. He got 3rd place in the APT POS for his achievements. He earned an APT POS 3rd place trophy and he qualifies to the APT Game of Champions.