The APT Championship Experience

Abby Merk

Like I said earlier, I was going to shout out to friends. Thing I love about the APT series is that everyone here - dealers, floor managers, tour directors, media colleagues, big bosses, players - they're all like family. 

As a live reporting covering the action on the poker table, I get to witness some of the highs and lows of some of the players at the poker table. Professionally - I'm just supposed to do my job and not react, but then some of them are already personal friends, so when I swing by their seat I wish them a polite good luck.

When I see the hands they play well, I also say good job or nice hand. And when they get hurt, sometimes I hear them out during the breaks. I'll be like - I saw that, that was brutal. And the players sometimes need someone - not a fellow player - to talk about it subjectively or just to give support. 

Like, for example, APT Jeju 2025 Main Event Champion Abraham Ceesvin was in hand where he hit top pair and had a nut flush draw. A solid hand. So it was easy for him to make the call in the end, but didn't expect that his opponent- Benjamin Leblond - to show pocket kings. Ceesvin had ace-jack spades and spiked the jack on the flop with two spades on board. Although the third spade didn't come, he hit top pair and had the best kicker. 

I was standing behind him taking down notes on the hand when he lifted his cards. I saw them. And when the table chatter happened post-hand, Ceesvin did confess that he did have ace-jack spades although he didn't show it because he mucked. No need to show when you are the losing hand. However, a few did not really believe him. I wanted to interject on his behalf but I can't since I'm just a reporter on the sidelines.

However, later on in the break, I went to Abraham and said, "I was standing behind you when you lifted your hand before you mucked. I saw the ace-jack spade." 

And for him, that was enough, that someone validated. And we went on to talk about the monster pot and how his stack got hurt by that hand. And I just listened and wished him good luck on his journey.

Anyway - that's that.

Not that my shout out endorses a big deal, but I am just thankful I got to run into my favorite "players/friends" like John Matsuda, David "Spade" Erquiaga, Tom Verbruggen, Joris Michl, Jun Li, Min Sung Lee, Napat, Kunal Patni, Abraham Ceesvin, Nick Go, Andrew Ong.

Also, I was fan-boying. I rarely do the selfie thing but John Juanda is Poker Hall of Famer. Around 20 years ago before poker swept Asia, I e-mailed Juanda and asked him about bringing the Full Tilt Poker gang to Manila. Of course, poker hadn't been established then, so that was the difficult part. But he replied and I was very thankful for that. 

JJ meets the OG JJ - John Juanda

When you look up at superstars in sports - you admire them for the excitement they bring - how fast they can drive an F1 car, how well they shoot a three-pointer, how well they score Champions League goals or how well they can tackle a quarterback, swing a golf club or tennis racket or hit a homer. 

In poker - the playing field is level and the swings of poker doesn't really have any one person be as dominant. And in poker, the people are nice, friendly... Personally, I like them because they are approachable, easy to talk to. I mean - you spend hours together on the felt, so the conversations can turn personal. Even something just as simple as recommending a place to eat or something to watch on Netflix - these little things make the superstar poker player accessible and more human. Even if you lost and they win, you are happy for them. Because poker players realize that while the skill is there, there is no real advantage because as we all know - the poker gods control the outcome and we are just along for the ride. 

And the thing about the players is that is easy to identify with them and emulate them. It is easy to step into their shoes and win a trophy. Well, not that easy, but is is possible. It can be done. Unlike say, entering the NBA or the PGA Tour, where some things are not as possible.

Speaking of fan-boying, I ran into Abby Merk aka Abbypoker, one of the freshest, most delightful people in the world. If you don't know, she runs vlogs about her poker journey and I like the fact that she shares lifestyle, her adventures is another relatable thing. It's a positive energy, not only good for poker content, but awesome in the way you see how poker ambitions can be grounded and simple.

She has a small goal to reach $25,000 in winnings and her journey to reach that has brought her to poker rooms around the world. I'm so glad she came to Taipei. The minute she entered and ran up to registration, I already went over for a selfie. She wasn't even probably 5 minutes in the venue and I didn't waste the opportunity. And she was so cool. Such a sweet person.

Anyway, I've raved enough. Just want to say I'm so thankful for you all.