Nevan Chang has won the 10th Asian Poker Tour title of his career after taking down the KRW 37 million Superstar Challenge at APT Jeju for KRW 451,777,500, worth roughly $337,000.
The Taiwanese high-stakes regular beat Rudy Edenata heads-up after navigating a final table featuring Rob Hollink, Renji Mao and several of Asia’s strongest tournament players. The victory also represents the largest live tournament score of Chang’s career and adds another major result to an already outstanding 2026.
Nevan Chang Wins Record-Breaking Superstar Challenge
The Superstar Challenge attracted 51 entries at APT Jeju, creating a prize pool of KRW 1,785,127,500. That made it the largest field for the event since the buy-in moved into the $25,000 range, with 11 players eventually reaching the money.
Chang began the nine-handed final table sitting fifth in chips with 28 big blinds. Rob Hollink started as chip leader with 69 big blinds, but the balance of the table changed quickly once Chang began accumulating chips.
The Taiwanese pro eventually eliminated five of his eight final-table opponents. Hollink was among them, with Chang turning a flush against the Dutchman’s top pair to send him out in fourth place.
By the time play reached heads-up, Chang had built close to a 2:1 advantage over Indonesia’s Rudy Edenata. It did not take long for him to turn that lead into the trophy.
Heads-Up Ends in Just Three Hands
Edenata had already enjoyed a strong APT Jeju festival after winning the APT Jeju Classic High Roller earlier in the year. This time, however, he barely had time to settle into the heads-up battle.
Chang needed only three hands to finish the tournament. On the final deal, he flopped a flush before raising Edenata’s bet, then called when his opponent moved all-in on the turn.
The result ended the Superstar Challenge almost as quickly as the heads-up match had begun. Edenata collected KRW 341,060,000 for second place, while Nang Quang Nguyen completed the podium in third for KRW 243,610,000.
APT Jeju Superstar Challenge Final Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nevan Chang | Taiwan | KRW 451,777,500 |
| 2 | Rudy Edenata | Indonesia | KRW 341,060,000 |
| 3 | Nang Quang Nguyen | Vietnam | KRW 243,610,000 |
| 4 | Rob Hollink | Netherlands | KRW 187,800,000 |
| 5 | Renji Mao | China | KRW 132,880,000 |
| 6 | Johan Pedersen | Denmark | KRW 99,220,000 |
| 7 | Yoko Sasaki | Japan | KRW 77,960,000 |
| 8 | Chih Wei Fan | Taiwan | KRW 67,330,000 |
| 9 | Fabian Gumz | Germany | KRW 60,240,000 |
Christian Harder finished 10th for KRW 56.7 million, while Lester Edoc took 11th for KRW 53.15 million. Even getting into the money meant surviving one of the toughest high-roller fields on the APT schedule.
Tenth APT Title Caps Chang’s Biggest Year Yet
Chang’s 10th APT title arrives during what has already become the strongest live tournament year of his career. His 2026 winnings have now moved beyond $1.4 million, with repeated deep runs in some of the largest tournaments on the Asian circuit.
The Superstar Challenge victory was particularly satisfying because Chang had played the event several times previously without cashing. His first trip into the money ended with the trophy, the biggest score of his career and another piece of APT hardware.
It also reinforces just how comfortable Chang has become in these high buy-in fields. The Superstar Challenge was packed with experienced pros, yet he moved from a middle-of-the-pack final-table stack to controlling much of the action by the closing stages.
That fits neatly with the wider development of Jeju itself. Poker Type recently looked at how Jeju became a high-stakes poker hub, with Triton, APT and other major tours repeatedly bringing some of the biggest games in Asia to the island.
Another Huge APT Jeju Festival
Chang’s victory comes during another enormous APT festival in South Korea. The current APT Jeju schedule features 135 events and a Main Event carrying a KRW 2.2 billion guarantee.
The Main Event has already surged beyond that figure, with more than 1,100 entries creating a prize pool above KRW 2.7 billion before registration had completely closed. Jeju’s ability to attract large international fields is becoming increasingly difficult to dismiss as a short-term trend.
The opening days have already produced several notable winners. Malaysia’s Lee Wee Liew won the Korea National Cup after denying Zhiyi Wang a successful title defence, while Chang has now taken down one of the biggest high-roller events on the schedule.
Chang Heads to Taipei With Momentum
Chang’s Superstar Challenge victory also earned him a seat into the APT Championship Main Event in Taipei later this year. That gives him another opportunity to add to a title count that has now reached double figures.
Ten APT trophies already puts Chang among the tour’s most successful modern players, but his current form suggests he is unlikely to spend much time admiring the collection. With the APT Championship still to come and his best live poker year still running, title number 11 may not be particularly far away.
