The Asian Poker Tour Series of 2023 in Vietnam’s Phu Quoc island is heating up. The event saw a great turnout and offered some amazing poker action. With so many experienced players, the gameplay was sure to keep everyone on the edge of their seats.
In particular, one player seemed to have a very lucky day, Jinwoo Kim who was able to nab his second Asian Poker Tour (APT) title. Jinwoo represented the United States in the APT and joined the High Roller category of the APT and after several days of intense playing and betting, walked away as the winner of the competition.
How did Jinwoo Kim Win?
The last day of the APT Phu Quoc 2023 saw five events still to be played, including the thrilling ₫50,000,000+5,000,000 Event #38 APT High Roller – 8 Max. Although one of the final events, it was well worth the wait.
Out of the 102 players who participated in the tournament, only 31 returned to compete in the final match. This round was for the grand prize of ₫1,263,940,000, which is equivalent to about $54,350. With such a huge prize at stake, it is unsurprising to hear that the competition was fierce. Less than half of the players would receive a payout. This gave all of them plenty of incentive to secure one of those limited spots. Among those who participated in this competition was Jinwoo Kim.
Jinwoo Kim isn’t new to the APT and had previously the APT High Roller tournament in Seoul back in 2018. This year, he faced off against Ngoc Minh Le, another experienced player from Vietnam. From the start of the match, Jinwoo enjoyed an advantage over his opponent, having a starting stack of 6 million compared to Ngoc Minh Le’s 4 million.
Despite the early advantage, the competition was far from easy for the former APT champion. Ngoc Minh Le made an impressive comeback, even managing to gain the lead at several points in the match. Kim was determined to win, though, and put up a strong fight against his Vietnamese opponent.
Their match lasted intense two-and-a-half 40-minute levels. Both players put up an excellent match, but n the end it was Jinwoo who managed to score the win.
Despite a tough challenge from Ngoc Minh Le, Jinwoo Kim kept calm and slowly closed the game between them. eventually managing to score a win. Their match lasted intense two-and-a-half 40-minute levels. Both players put up an excellent match, but n the end it was Jinwoo who managed to score the win. In the end, Kim managed to turn the tables and eventually emerged as the winner of the APT High Roller tournament and won his second title.
Breakdown of the Match Results
Both players put up an excellent match, but n the end it was Jinwoo Kim who managed to score the win. In the end, Kim managed to turn the tables and eventually emerged as the winner of the APT High Roller tournament. With a straight in hand, Kim made a decisive move and confidently placed bets on all three rounds, ultimately securing his second APT title and the grand prize of ₫1,263,940,000 (~$54,350).
Unfortunately for Le, he had to settle for the runner-up spot and the consolation prize of ₫870,670,000 (~$37,440), as he was unable to overcome Kim’s impressive performance. The winner’s podium was rounded out by Japan’s Yamamoto Kazuo, who claimed third place and a prize of ₫571,380,000 ($24,570). The rest of the final table payout is as follows: (insert payout information here).
- Jinwoo Kim (United States) – ₫1,263,940,000
- Ngoc Minh Le (Vietnam) – ₫870,670,000
- Yamamoto Kazuo (Japan) – ₫571,380,000
- William Jia (Australia) – ₫462,540,000
- Nikolay Ponomarenko (Russia) – ₫373,500,000
- Yuhang Chen (China) – ₫291,870,000
- Shunsuke Tokoo (Japan) – ₫230,040,000
- Jose Catela (Portugal) – ₫175,620,000
If the APT circuit isn’t enough excitement, don’t worry because there are more upcoming poker tournaments happening in Vietnam. One of those is USOP Vietnam.
To learn more about this event, you can check our news article on the USOP Hanoi Countdown.