Japan's Akira Takasugi Wins the Asian Poker Tour's Latest Stop in Taipei

The Asian Poker Tour’s latest stop in Taipei has been a record-setter in every sense. Hosted by the Chinese Texas Hold'em Poker Club (CTP) at the brand-new Red Space venue, APT Taipei 2025 delivered one of the most memorable Main Events in the tour’s history.

This TWD 55,000 buy-in Main Event wasn’t just big; it was monumental. A staggering 2,547 entries were logged (from 1,276 unique players across 45 regions), making it the largest Main Event field in the APT’s storied 19-year history. The turnout demolished the TWD 70 Million guarantee, creating the richest prize pool ever seen in Taiwan – a jaw-dropping TWD 121,033,440 (~$3.74 Million), nearly double that of the 2023 edition. The eventual first-place prize was a life-altering TWD 19,009,440 (~$586k / ~₹5 Crores) – the richest ever awarded in an APT Main Event.

After five days of relentless action and a final table that lasted over ten hours, Japan’s Akira Takasugi (cover image – left) emerged as the champion of this landmark event. He picked up TWD 19,009,440 for the win and earned himself a TWD 350,000 seat to the upcoming Asian Poker Tour Championship (APTC) Main Event. It was his first APT title and one that will undoubtedly be remembered for years to come.

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While many Indians participated, the story that truly captivated everyone back home was the incredible charge of Nishant Kumar (cover image – right), who placed fifth for a career-best TWD 4,419,500 (~₹1.15 Crores!)

Macau’s Iat Man Leong finished runner-up and bagged TWD 10,133,000, while Wayne Lam from Hong Kong took home TWD 6,867,000 for third place. Both Leong and Lam also won seats to the season-ending APTC Main Event.

An accounts manager by trade, 28-year-old Takasugi entered the Main Event with limited live tournament experience and just about $37K in prior cashes. His journey to the title was the stuff of legends, particularly his incredible survival story.

Takasugi confessed the most challenging part was midway through Day 2 when bad beats left him crippled. “At one point on Day 2, I dropped down to just 4,400 chips,” he recalled – less than two big blinds then!

He battled back from the brink, navigated Day 3, played well below average stack, and entered the final table fourth in chips. Despite lacking the seasoned experience of several players at the final table, Takasugi played with fearless aggression, putting pedal to the metal once he gained chips and personally eliminating three players en route to victory.

India`s Nishant Kumar delivered one of the standout performances of the series. Known as a serious online regular (with over ₹5.76 Crores in tracked winning and The MoneyMaker hardware and a runner-up finish), Kumar parlayed an all-expenses-paid trip won via the Natural8 India APT Taipei – Exclusive Tournament (where he finished 8th) into the performance of his life.

Making his first APT cash count in one of the most spectacular ways possible, Kumar battled through the enormous field to reach the final nine.

His journey wasn’t without heart-stopping moments. At one point on the final table, needing chips badly, he managed a stunning comeback by cracking Shinichiro Kano’s pocket aces with a rivered backdoor flush – a hand that sent the Indian rail following the live stream into hysterics!

Despite that incredible double-up, the huge blinds and intense pressure took their toll. Just 22 hands after cracking aces, Kumar’s deep run ended in fifth place. His exit hand was a brutal coin flip where his pocket fives couldn’t hold against Iat Man Leong’s , after Leong spiked trip jacks. Still, Kumar walked away with TWD 4,419,500 (an incredible ~₹1.15 Crores!), easily the biggest score of his career (live or online) and the largest cash by any Indian player at the series!

Kumar headlined a strong overall showing for Team India. Rishi Mehra, who busted the Main Event on Day 4 (44th place; TWD 307,500 / ~₹8.46 Lak