The Ace Poker League wrapped up its first event of the year in the Philippines with games taking place from 27 November to 3 December at 2Ace Poker Room in Manila.

The week-long event witnessed a strong local force matched by an equally strong South Korean contingent. The series paid out  P32,328,241 (~$582,570) over 11 events.

APL's James Kim shared news on the brand's plans for next year.

"It is so nice to be back and after all these years I was delighted to see we still have a following here," he said.

As far as hosting more events in the Philippines,  Kim revealed that they will have to see what their  schedule is like in 2024.

"For now, we are looking to host four events in Korea in 2024 and perhaps one or two in China. We are looking to guarantee a minimum KRW 50 billion ($3.9 million), he declared.

The poker scene in Korea, he said is reaching new heights.

"We wanted to focus on building the next generation of poker players. We are closely working with IFMP to take poker to the next level in pursuit of recognition that poker is a sport. As for Taipei, we are working closely with David Tai and Raymond Wong from CTP. We can't disclose details just yet."

On the final day, Main Event champion Vince Nachor walked away the richest, William Teoh shipped the Mini Main, and TJPT champion Hyeon Ho Shin claimed the last APL trophy at the Mini High Roller.

SOMUCHPOKER.COM