Players Left Stunned as APT Cancels Hanoi Main Event Amidst Series

​A few months ago, it was announced that a grand poker festival would be held in the capital of Vietnam called APT Hanoi Billions in early December. However, this series ended with an unexpected twist. Last Friday, the participants of the Asian Poker Tour received unbelievable news – the organizers of the series suddenly decided to end the festival in the city of Hanoi. The festival was expected to last until December 10.

The APT was canceled right in the middle of the Main Event – this grand tournament had already reached day four. The organizers announced the closure of the festival on the X social network, but did not give specific reasons. It is known that the closure was connected with some "security issues".

"The safety and welfare of our players and staff is of the utmost importance to us, so we must put these concerns above all else. We are very sorry and we appreciate your understanding in this situation," APT respresentatives said.​

As for the Main Event, the tournament collected more than $3,000,000 in prize money and was the largest such event in the series' 17-year history with 2,350 entries. The title of champion was awarded to Vietnam's Nguyen Van Sang, who had the largest stack at the time the game was stopped. Along with the championship trophy, he received a payout of $180,000.

Nguyen Van Sang – the first champion in APT history to win the Main Event without even reaching the final table

Other participants in the Main Event also received compensation: payments were distributed among 47 players according to the number of their chips at the time the tournament was stopped.​