Manuel Martin Fritz won his first Asian Poker Tour title at APT Jeju 2026, taking down Event #78: Baby Superstar Challenge for KRW 166,930,000 (~USD 123,196).
The tournament drew 119 entries and generated KRW 799,680,000 (~USD 590,170) in prize money. It ranked as the second-largest Baby Superstar Challenge overall, while setting new highs for both field size and prize pool among editions held by the APT in South Korea.
Fritz Wins After Heads-Up Deal With Weiran Pu
Five players returned on October 3 to finish the event after play had stopped the previous night. Fritz resumed with the chip lead over Jieming Xu, Elmer Kalaquian, Weiran Pu and Wengang Wang.
The field eventually came down to Fritz and Pu. Before deciding the title, they agreed to a deal that left KRW 6,500,000 (~USD 4,797) and the trophy in play.
Pu locked up the larger guaranteed share of the prize money, but Fritz won the remaining heads-up contest. Champion Fritz received KRW 166,930,000, while runner-up Pu collected KRW 170,250,000 (~USD 125,646).
Fritz’s victory gave him his first APT title and left his career live tournament earnings just short of USD 8 million.
Pu, who has more than USD 4 million in live tournament earnings, narrowly missed his first APT title. Elmer Kalaquian finished third for KRW 88,360,000 (~USD 65,210) while chasing what would have been his fourth APT title.
Seventeen players finished in the money.
Taiwan’s Chi Jen Chen Leads Ultra Stack Into Final Day
Event #85: Ultra Stack attracted 274 entries across three opening flights, surpassing its KRW 150 million guarantee with a KRW 284 million prize pool.
Forty players advanced to the Final Day, where the first-place prize was set at KRW 57,673,200 (~USD 42,563).
Taiwan’s Chi Jen Chen built the largest stack of the opening flights, finishing Flight A with 2,671,000 chips. Masayuki Tsuchida led Flight C with 1,770,000, while Cheng Xin topped Flight B with 1,689,000.
Tran Hanh Reaches 10 Career APT Titles
Tran Hanh claimed his 10th APT title by winning Event #86: Open Face Chinese Poker – Heads Up.
The Austrian defeated Japan’s Daisuke Someya and earned KRW 4,294,400 (~USD 3,169). Hanh began APT Jeju 2026 with eight APT titles and had already added a ninth earlier in the festival by winning Event #55: Masters Fixed Limit Draw Poker.
Hanh and Someya agreed to an ICM deal heads-up before playing on for the trophy. Someya finished runner-up for KRW 4,000,000 (~USD 2,952).
Seven Players Win Their First APT Titles
Anqi Luo earned her first APT title in Event #88: Fixed Limit – Choose Your Own Adventure. She defeated Xinze Li heads-up and collected KRW 1,310,217 (~USD 967).
Mikhail Fedotov won the 23-entry Event #89: Masters – Big Bet for KRW 12,508,000 (~USD 9,231). He had previously finished runner-up in another event during the festival, making this his first APT title.
Jingwei Cheng had never recorded an APT cash before Event #90: NL Hold'em – Freezeout. He went on to win the 68-entry tournament for KRW 25,688,000 (~USD 18,958).
Yuri Yamagata also recorded her first APT cash with a victory. The Japanese player topped the 30-entry Event #91: Women's Event and earned KRW 2,660,576 (~USD 1,964).
Tsz Yeung Ka was the exception to the run of first-time winners, adding a second career APT title in Event #92: Fixed Limit – Dealer's Choice Stud. He earned KRW 4,705,216 (~USD 3,472).
Kento Nasu won Event #93: Turbo – NLH for KRW 9,868,457 (~USD 7,283), securing his first APT title after several previous final-table appearances.
Shota Utsunomiya followed with his first APT title in Event #94: Turbo – NL – Triple Draw Mix (A-5, 2-7), earning KRW 4,914,518 (~USD 3,627).
Paulo Villena Gini won Event #95: Super Hyper Turbo – NLH Bomb Pot – Double Board for KRW 3,200,691 (~USD 2,362). The Brazilian had already cashed four times at APT Jeju 2026 before securing his first APT title.
