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Tournament Report: IPS Chapter 11
2011 Recap: Stars of 2011
Spotlight: Interview with Ashutosh Naik
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Tournament Report: IPS Chapter 11
IPS Chapter 11 inaugurated the 2012 Indian Tournament Calendar and saw both tournament regulars and quite a few new faces joining the 4-day (or in this case Night) Poker Festival, which was held at Casino Royale (Goa) from 12th-15th January 2012.
Below we have summaries of all the events from IPS Chapter 11:
Day 1 – Thu 12th January at 9 PM – 5K Double Re-buy Tournament
31 players inaugurated the 1st tournament this year, which along with rebuys, and add-ons made for a total prizepool of ₹4,05,000. Rohitash Khanduja who came to the final table 4th in chips, fought his way to the top outlasting Vikram Verma (Final Table chip-leader) in the heads up duel.
The payouts for the event were
Position Player Prize
1 Rohitash Khanduja 1,75,000
2 Vikram Verma 1,10,000
3 Nitin Gupta 75,000
4 Vasudev Desai 55,000
Read the complete live coverage of this event here.
Day 2 – Fri 13th January at 9 PM – 7.5K Re-Entry Flight to Main Event Tournament
This tournament saw 33 players fighting it out for a share of the ₹4,37,000 prizepool along with one of the 4 Main Event seats worth ₹20K each which were up for grabs for the top 4 finishers. PokerGuru Tour December Edition Champion – Amant Nauhria made a deep run but busted on the seat bubble in 5th place taking home ₹32,000. IPS POY 2011 winner – Ashutosh Naik too was looking dangerous on the final table but a few lost flips and he went out in 4th place when his AJ failed to catch up against Niranjan`s pocket rocket`s. Tournament regular Rahul Melwani was the last man standing and went home ₹2,00,000 richer along with a seat to the IPS ₹20K Main Event.
The payouts for this event were:
Position Player Prize
1 Rahul Melwani 2,00,000
2 Niranjan N J 1,10,000
3 Amit Shetty 80,000
4 Ashutosh Naik 35,000
5 Amant Nauhria 32,000
Read the complete live coverage of this event here.
Day 3 – Sat 14th January at 9PM – 20K Re-Entry Tournament (MAIN EVENT)
The featured event of IPS Chapter 11 – ₹20K Re-Entry tournament received 33 players who joined the proceedings for the crowning of the IPS Chapter 11 Champion. The Main Event saw Tournament Pro Rajesh Goyal return to the felt after a long gap and he made this appearance count with a deep run but busted on the final table bubble. Team PokerGuru mentor Raman Gujral made it to the final table but hit the rails in 6th place. The series however belonged to Vikram Verma who continued his consistency at IPS 11 following up his runners-up finish at Event 1 with an impressive 3rd place finish in the Main Event. IPS Director “Bharat Agarwalla” too had a great series as along with the rake he made ₹66,000 from his 4th place finish in the event. In the end it was James D’Agostino who beat Tournament Regular “Dhaval Mudgal” to win the IPS Main Event.
Final payouts for the event were:
Position Player Prize
1 James D’Agostino 3,00,000
2 Dhaval Mudgal 2,00,000
3 Vikram Verma 1,00,000
4 Bharat Agarwalla 66,000
Read the complete live coverage of this event here.
Day 4 – Sun 15th January at 9PM – 10K Re-Entry Tournament
The last event of the series – ₹10K Re-Entry Tournament had 19 players which along with 14 Re-Entries ballooned the prizepool to ₹2,97,000. IPS Director Bharat Agarwalla made consecutive cashes with a 3rd place finish in the tournament. It was Mikhail Emelianov from Russia who ousted Vineet Bailur in 2nd place to eventually win the event for a payday of ₹1,30,000.
The payouts were as follows:
Position Player Prize
1 Mikhail Emelianov 1,30,000
2 Vineet Bailur 90,000
3 Bharat Agarwalla 55,000
4 Marga G 22,000
For information on upcoming tournaments visit the Tournament Database section.
2011 Recap: Stars of 2011
A glorious year for Indian Poker has come to an end and as we step into the New Year, here is a recap of some players who left their mark in 2011.
Our list of Top 5 Indian Poker Players of 2011
1. Sangeeth “Samohh” Mohan: Sangeeth is our pick as the top Indian Poker Player of 2011. He may be no 3 in points on the Indian Tournament Leaderboard but he has been dominating the Tournament scene ever since his Main Event win at the PGT in September.
Spotlight: Interview with Ashutosh Naik
Ashutosh Naik (cover image) is a young poker pro from Bangalore who has recently been making waves in the Indian Poker Circuit by making a record 6 final tables in 7 tournament appearances! We caught up with Ashutosh and asked him to share some of his secret strategies with us. Here is the complete scoop >>>
Great going Ashutosh! You are on a heater of a lifetime! How does it feel to have made in on 6 final tables in your last 7 appearances?
It really feels great and I am really happy. I decided to quit my job in Bangalore and start playing Poker professionally for a living last month, and the results are beginning to show. Initially I was a bit insecure about my decision to play poker full-time, but the recent results in tournaments and cash games are really convincing, and I am happy with my decision to go professional now. When I do it full time, I can focus a lot more on poker, than what I could have, when I was working elsewhere. Since my parents are from Goa, they have been a great support for me, and I love living in beautiful Goa at my home.
You have now joined the elite club which consists of just 4 players
with back to back wins. Tell us your secret?
Haha, the secret is just to play patiently and wait for the right opportunities to make the moves and take the pots down. Everyone gets the same cards, and hence poker is after all a patient game. In tournaments, I try to avoid getting into coin flips early on, that’s why I was able to get onto the final table so many times. Depending upon the situation, sometimes you have to lay down big hands initially. Also when representing a hand, it’s important to keep your
story consistent on all the streets.
You have performed well in all formats of the game. How does your
strategy vary while playing Rebuys, Turbos or deep stacked Main Events?
Each tournament needs a different strategy. In rebuy tournaments, I am willing to gamble initially to build up a stack. I would typically be ready to rebuy at least 4-5 times. In turbo tournaments, you just have to win the coin flips at the right time, and take more risks, because the blinds are increasing really fast. For freezeout tournaments, I am unwilling to risk all my chips or go all-in in early situations unless I am entirely sure I can convince the other person to lay down his hand, or have the nuts. I always keep the M Ratio in mind and play
accordingly. In deep stacked main events, there is always plenty of time to build your stack, and not risk it unnecessarily upfront.
You have played at the Aces, PGT and IPS this season. What are the
unique qualities you find in each of these tournament series?
Firstly I would say that all the tournament organizers and entrepreneurs have done a great job organizing tournaments, in Goan casinos. The PGT was one of the best organized tournaments, and the good thing was that it was rake free. I hope we see the PGT event coming around more often. Similarly Rajeev Kanjani did a great job at Aces Unlimited in the new poker room at Casino Pride. Aces Unlimited also plan to introduce new format called Greed, which will be really good to play. The IPS will always be special for me, as that’s where I won my first medallion. Finally, the Player of the year concept is quite good at Aces Unlimited and IPS.
Which are the tournaments that you are looking forward to play later
this season?
I think a lot of us are looking forward to the Asian Poker Tour, which will be held for the first time in Goa, and it will have many international players and deep prize pools. Similarly I am also looking forward to Champion of Champions event in November, and also the bimonthly events of India Poker Pros, IPS, Aces Unlimited and IPC.
Any role models for you in the Indian Poker Circuit? Any international
players you fancy playing against some day?
On the Indian tournament circuit, I really admire Intervention,
Sangeet Samoh, and Rahul Melwani’s play. Internationally, I would love to play against the pros like Daniel Negreanu, Tom Dwan, Isildur, Patrick Antonius, Johnny Chan, and Doyle Brunson.
What are your views on the poker scenario in India and which is your
favorite place to play poker?
Initially I started playing Home Games in Bangalore, that is where I really started learning the nitty grittes of live games, as prior to that I was only an online player. The poker scene is thriving in most big cities of India in the form of home games, but everyone wants to eventually make it big either in Casino Royale or Casino Pride in Goa. My favorite place to play is of course Goa and Las Vegas. Bellagio, MGM and Stratosphere are my favorite casinos in Vegas and of course Casino Royale and Pride in Goa.
Any advice for poker enthusiasts who are looking at coming to Goa to
play Tournaments or Cash games?
Play patiently, be ready for ups and downs, back your instincts and trust your reads on the players. Always focus and try to profile players, on how they are playing on the particular day. Play the player more than your cards. Also tournaments and cash games need different strategies, hence try to avoid play cash games like the tournaments and vice versa.