button in SafariInaugural Hendon Mob Championship Asian Champion Set During SPT Manila
The luxurious City of Dreams Hotel & Casino in Manila, Philippines, has hosted dozens of high-profile poker tournaments over the years. It will soon be able to add The Hendon Mob (THM) Asian Championship to that ever-growing list at the beginning of June.
The inaugural THM Asian Championship is part of the upcoming SiGMA poker Tour Manila festival, which runs from May 30 through June 4, guaranteeing ₱20 million ($333,333) across the six-day series.
Eman Pulis, SiGMA's founder, is excited to expand the fledgling tour into the vibrant Asian market.
"Following the success of our inaugural SiGMA Poker Tour event in Brazil, expanding to Manila and launching the THM Asian Championship represents another major step in building a truly global poker circuit alongside our partners at The Hendon Mob and Global Poker Index (GPI). This partnership represents more than an event; it's a convergence of leading brands committed to growing the game worldwide."
The SiGMA Poker Tour (SPT) Manila festival begins on May 30 with a satellite into the SPT Main Event, a ₱36,000 buy-in ($600) tournament with a ₱15 million guaranteed ($250,000) prize pool.
Five Day 1s are available, starting at 1:00 p.m. local time on May 31, and ending with a turbo-structured Day 1e on June 2. Day 2 starts at 1:00 p.m. local time on June 3, ending when the final table is reached. Those finalists return to their seats at 1:00 p.m. local time on June 4 and continue battling until a champion emerges.
June 3 at 2:00 p.m. local time is when the inaugural THM Asian Championship shuffles up and deals. It costs ₱12,000 ($200) to enter and features a ₱3,000,000 ($50,000) guarantee on its prize pool.
The second and final day of this historic tournament commences at 2:00 p.m. local time on June 4, the perfect way to bring the curtain down on the SPT Manila festivities.
"From the moment the GPI x THM team began expanding our live events offering, the ambition became to build a truly global live event circuit," said Roland Boothby, Head of Partnerships for GPI x THM. "It's especially exciting to make it happen with our partners at SiGMA Poker Tour, who also hosted our first South American event in Brazil last year."
"There's no better place to launch the THM Asian Championship than City of Dreams Manila, a venue that has been delivering world-class poker events for more than a decade. We're excited to welcome players from across Asia and give many the opportunity to experience playing a THMC event for the very first time."
SiGMA Poker Tour Manila Schedule
Conversion rate is approximately ₱60 per $1
Whoever comes out on top in the THM Asian Championship will receive more than first-place prize money and bragging rights; they'll also get their hands on a South African Million 2026 package worth approximately €2,500. That package includes transfers to the venue, seven nights' accommodation, and entry to the THMC South Africa Million, worth R8,000 ($500).
This huge event is part of the Sunbet Poker Tour & THMC Cape Town Million, scheduled for November 20 to December 1 at the GrandWest Casino and Entertainment World. The R8,000 ($500) Main Event guarantees R4,000,000 ($250).
When this tournament ran in 2023, Switzerland's Rachid Amamou topped a field of 210 entrants and returned home with the equivalent of $20,036. South African Muaaz Gani triumphed in 2024, scooping $20,989 after a heads-up deal, as the tournament's attendance swelled to 299 entries.
Sean Bloom is the reigning champion. He left 353 opponents in his wake in 2025 on his way to collecting $20,153. That prize would have been larger, but he was part of a three-handed deal at the business end of the tournament.
