APPT Cambodia 2025: Spadies Fly as Ajay Abrol & Arun Godiyal Lead an Early Indian Onslaught!
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- RUPAM THAKUR May 7, 2025
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5 Minutes Read
The Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) is officially back, and it’s kicking off the 2025 season with some serious heat at Phnom Penh, Cambodia! This is the tour’s fourth touchdown in the Cambodian capital, and with the stunning NagaWorld Integrated Resort playing host, the buzz is that this stop might just blow past all previous APPT Cambodia records.
With an enormous $1.50 Million guaranteed across 68 tournaments (satellites included) from May 2 to 13, a packed house and an electric atmosphere are practically a sure thing. And for the first time on Cambodian soil, the APPT Main Event boasts a massive $1 Million guarantee. The scene is set, the cards are beautifully in motion, and those highly sought-after PokerStars shard trophies – the “spadies” – are gleaming under the lights, ready to be claimed.
Team India: Charging Out of the Gates With 16 Cashes and Two Titles Already!
We’re just four days into this poker marathon, and the Indian players have already made it crystal clear they’re here to play, and play hard. They’ve already bagged an incredible 16 cashes, hit 11 final tables, locked up two runner-up finishes, and proudly hoisted two spadie trophies. After their striking run at the record-smashing APT Taipei, Team India is riding a wave of pure confidence.
Ajay Abrol: Singapore-Based Indian Grabs First Live Title in a Family Showdown!
Spearheading this early Indian blitz is Ajay Abrol (cover image – left), who’s been on an absolute tear. This Singapore-based ace has already hit three final tables, raking in a sweet $11,215 (~₹9.45 Lakhs)—crucially, his first live tournament win!
Ajay’s magic moment came in Event #12: $300 Shot Clock. He expertly navigated a 73-entry field to get his hands on that coveted PokerStars spadie and $5,222 (~₹4.40 Lakhs). And get this for a storyline – his heads-up opponent for the title was none other than his better half, Anju Abrol! By the way, Anju has a rather decorated poker resume herself, even more so than her husband. She collected $3,396 (~₹2.86 Lakhs) for her runner-up finish in that memorable family face-off.
But Ajay wasn’t finished lighting up the tables. He nearly doubled down in Event #22: $250 6-Handed Turbo, battling to second place out of 100 entries for another $3,673 (~₹3.10 Lakhs). China’s Kexin Gu just managed to pip him to the post in that one.
His strong Cambodian campaign kicked off with a fifth-place run in Event #5: $300 SuperStack, which added a tasty $2,320 (~₹1.96 Lakhs) to his pocket!
With six live cashes this year alone (three right here at this festival), Ajay Abrol’s career live earnings have now soared past ₹29 Lakhs, with scores from Macau, Las Vegas, and Manila. Though, in a fun fact, Anju’s career earnings are over four times that! Right now, though, all the momentum feels like it’s with Ajay.
Anju Abrol: APPT Macau Champ Nearly Adds Another Spadie to Her Collection
Anju Abrol, a real force on the circuit for years and a former APPT Macau 2014 side-event champion, also came incredibly close to what would have been her third live title and second APPT spadie. She finished second in Event #12: $300 Shot Clock in that amazing heads-up against her husband. She also added a seventh-place finish in Event #22: $250 6-Handed Turbo for $1,033 (~₹87,064).
With two cashes already on her series scorecard, she’s currently the second-biggest Indian earner at this festival with $4,429 (~₹3.73 Lakhs). This bumps her live tournament earnings to over ₹1.23 Crores.
Arun Godiyal: From Poker Debut to Double Spadie Champ in Six Short Months!
Then there’s Arun Godiyal (cover image – right), a name quickly becoming synonymous with winner’s photos! He’s been doing a fantastic job keeping the Indian flag flying high. After that memorable first spadie win (his first live title too!) last November right here at APPT Cambodia 2024, Godiyal stormed back with undeniable flair, taking down Event #3: $300 Knockout Turbo. He outmanoeuvred a field of 55 to snatch his second PokerStars trophy and $2,789 (~₹2.35 Lakhs) (not counting the bounties), leaving France’s Jean Philipp Testa to collect the runner-up prize of $1,846.
Godiyal didn’t stop there, quickly following up with a strong third-place finish in Event #14: $300 Win The Button – Hyper Turbo for $1,248 (~₹1.05 Lakhs). With these two deep runs, he’s already racked up $4,037 (~₹3.40 Lakhs) this series!
What’s truly stunning about Godiyal’s story is that he only posted his first live cash last November. Now, with just six live scores to his name, he’s already a two-time PokerStars spadie champion and has built a live poker resume boasting ₹9.68 Lakhs in total winnings! That’s making a quick impact.
With the series still in its early days and the biggest tournaments—including that ground-breaking $1 Million GTD Main Event—yet to unfold, Team India is well and truly off to a flyer at APPT Cambodia 2025. If these explosive first four days are any sign, we could be looking at India’s best-ever showing in the APPT!
Team India Scorecard
Rank Player Name Event Name Prize (USD)
26 Avneesh Munjal Event #1:Â NAGAWORLD Kickoff $853
1 Arun Godiyal Event #3: Knockout Turbo [$100 Bounty] $2,789
5 Ajay Abrol Event #5: SuperStack ($300) $2,320
19 Anirban Kundu Event #5: SuperStack ($300) $466
22 Sumit Supra Event #6: Mystery Bounty ($750) $907
20 Gagandeep Singh Malik Event #6: Mystery Bounty ($750) $1,043
3 Amit Kaushik Event #9: Megastack Turbo ($300) $2,426
4 Romit Advani Event #9: Megastack Turbo ($300) $1,867
7 Umang Kakarania Event #9: Megastack Turbo ($300) $913
9 Nikesh Chawla Event #9: Megastack Turbo ($300) $584
1 Ajay Abrol Event #12: Shot Clock ($300) $5,222
2 Anju Abrol Event #12: Shot Clock ($300) $3,396
3 Arun Godiyal Event #14: Win The Button - Hyper Turbo ($300) $1,248
2 Ajay Abrol Event #22: 6-Handed Turbo ($250) $3,673
4 Romit Advani Event #22: 6-Handed Turbo ($250) $2,018
7 Anju Abrol Event #22: 6-Handed Turbo ($250) $1,033
3 Somasekhar Sanampuri Event #25: Knockout High Roller ($1000 Bounty) ($2,500) $4,653
7 Romit Advani Event #26: PLO Knockout [$200 Bounty] ($500) $595
14 Somasekhar Sanampuri Event #19: APPT National ($1,000) $3,891
2 Somashekar Kurkhepally Nahadeva Event #30: Super Knockout [$350 Bounty] Final ($750) $5,245
7 Amit Kaushik Event #30: Super Knockout [$350 Bounty] Final ($750) $1,475
8 Somasekhar Sanampuri Event #30: Super Knockout [$350 Bounty] Final ($750) $1,180
9 Romit Advani Event #30: Super Knockout [$350 Bounty] Final ($750) $944
1 Nikesh Vijay Chawla Event #35: High Roller Turbo ($2,000) $17,634
5 Somasekhar Sanampuri Event #38: 6-Handed ($300) $1,691
2 Somashekar Kurkhepally Nahadeva Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $155,225
8 Abhishek Paul Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $22,970
11 Amit Kaushik Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $13,654
18 Sumit Sapra Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $7,174
29 Umang Kakarania Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $4,724
31 Abhijith Cheruku Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $4,724
33 Pranav Bathija Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $4,108
41 Arjun Dhingra Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $3,572
53 Sameer Agarwal Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $3,572
71 Anil Adiani Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $3,106
5 Vineet Kumar Event #43: Deepstack Turbo ($300) $2,186
10 Sahil Nair Event #43: Deepstack Turbo ($300) $769
16 Anirban Kundu Event #43: Deepstack Turbo ($300) $506
17 Gagandeep Singh Malik Event #43: Deepstack Turbo ($300) $506
5 Bagaria Raj Vardhan Event #45: Megastack ($500) $3,283
14 Kaushal Vasa Event #45: Megastack ($500) $780
8 Talita Setyady Event #51: NLH 20/15/10 ($300) $615
8 Kaushal Vasa Event #57: Survivor Knockout [$1K Bounty] ($600) $2,200
10 Avneesh Munjal Event #57: Survivor Knockout [$1K Bounty] ($600) $3,670
17 Gagandeep Singh Malik Event #57: Survivor Knockout [$1K Bounty] ($600) $2,100
18 Nishant Kumar Event #57: Survivor Knockout [$1K Bounty] ($600) $1,950
20 Somasekhar Sanampuri Event #57: Survivor Knockout [$1K Bounty] ($600) $950
23 Sahil Nair Event #57: Survivor Knockout [$1K Bounty] ($600) $1,830
27 Romit Advani Event #57: Survivor Knockout [$1K Bounty] ($600) $720
4 Somasekhar Sanampuri Event #61: APPT Mini Main Event ($400) $5,449
5 Vineet Kumar Event #61: APPT Mini Main Event ($400) $4,192
7 Pranav Bathija Event #61: APPT Mini Main Event ($400) $2,728
14 Bagaria Raj Vardhan Event #61: APPT Mini Main Event ($400) $1,300
20 Aditya Agarwal Event #61: APPT Mini Main Event ($400) $983
30 Talita Setyady Event #61: APPT Mini Main Event ($400) $646
1 Avneesh Munjal Event #62: Knockout High Roller ($500 Bounty) ($2,000) $12,695
2 Arjun Dhingra Event #65: Deepstack ($300) $4,275
5 Nageshwara Alaparthy Event #65: Deepstack ($300) $1,878
5 Gagandeep Singh Malik Event #67: Knockout ($100 Bounty) Turbo ($300) $618
2 Amit Kaushik Event #69: 1K NLH ($1,000) $5,347
List of Winners
Player Event Prize (USD)
Cheuk Wai Wong Event #1:Â NAGAWORLD Kickoff $13,879
Mauricio Sanchez Event #2: Warm-up High Roller ($1,500) $9,370
Arun Godiyal Event #3: Knockout Turbo [$100 Bounty] $2,789
Wattana Sophontanakup Event #5: SuperStack ($300) $8,782
Hao Lin Event #6: Mystery Bounty ($750) $33,476
Aleksandr Diudiaev Event #7: Megastack High Roller ($2,500) $15,617
Chang Hyeon Kim Event #8: Bubble Rush ($400) $2,349
Manh Tuong Ha Event #9: Megastack Turbo ($300) $5,267
Ajay Abrol Event #12: Shot Clock ($300) $5,222
Yoke Wei Woon Event #13: PLO ($1,000) $8,957
Christian Lortie Cloutier Event #14: Win The Button - Hyper Turbo ($300) $2,728
Naotsugu Kimura Event #16: Mini High Roller - Hyper Turbo ($1,500) $6,024
Hiroya Kurushima Event #18: Double Stack - PLO ($300) $3,710
Fabian Rolli Event #19: APPT National ($1,000) $52,342
Craig Jones Event #20: Mini High Roller ($2,000) $15,087
Bin Yuan Event #21: Split hold'em ($400) $3,377
Kexin Gu Event #22: 6-Handed Turbo ($250) $5,689
Jia Yi Low Event #24:Â NLHÂ ($300) $4,765
Jinlong Hu Event #25: Knockout High Roller ($1000 Bounty) ($2,500) $11,116
Nicolas Maillaud Event #26: PLO Knockout [$200 Bounty] ($500) $3,687
Cliff Chow Event #27: Showtime Hold'em - Hyper Turbo ($250) $1,652
Artur Akhmetzianov Event #30: Super Knockout [$350 Bounty] Final ($750) $8,126
Mauricio Salazar Sanchez Event#31: $10,000 APPT Super High Roller $42,811
Aike Ing Event #34: PLO Turbo ($400) $4,477
Nikesh Vijay Chawla Event #35: High Roller Turbo ($2,000) $17,634
Christian Lortie Cloutier Event #36: NLH - 10/10/10 ($200) $2,664
Richard Marquez Event #38: 6-Handed ($300) $5,063
Hai Ha Tran Event #40: APPT Main Event ($1,750) $155,225
Danny Huynh Event #42: Mix NLH/PLO ($500) $4,136
Jaewoo Jung Event #43: Deepstack Turbo ($300) $6,060
Christian Lortie Cloutier Event #45: Megastack ($500) $12,041
Alberto Morales Flores Event #47: Mystery Big Bounty [$1500 Bounty] - High Roller ($3,500) $10,151
Zeyu Sun Event #48: 6+ Hold'em (Short Deck) ($400) $3,891
Chee Hoong Yeoh Event #49: Run it Twice - Turbo ($300) $3,251
Samnang Prom Event #51: NLH 20/15/10 ($300) $4,916
Kyosuke Nagami Event #53: Freezeout Challenge ($2,000) $14,582
Danny Huynh Event #54: Teams Event ($600) $3,603
Ronald Haverkamp Event #55: 5 Card PLO - Turbo ($500) $4,200
Jakkapong Sreprasom Event #56: High Roller Hyper Turbo ($2,000) $2,000
Sanjeev Kapoor Event #57: Survivor Knockout [$1K Bounty] ($600) $25,560
Daniel Neilson Event #58: APPT High Roller ($3,000) $65,599
Alfie Adam Event #59: PLO Bomb pot - Turbo ($400) $2,349
Dewen Aloysius Lim Event #60: 6+ Hold'em (Short Deck) - Hyper Turbo ($300) $1,024
Chak Hei Chan Event #61: APPT Mini Main Event ($400) $15,863
Avneesh Munjal Event #62: Knockout High Roller ($500 Bounty) ($2,000) $12,695
Rindra Norodom Event #63: Double Stack NLH ($500) $5,595
Ilya Firstov Event #64: NLH 15/10/5 ($300) $3,004
Richard Marquez Event #65: Deepstack ($300) $6,625
Dinesh Alt Event #66: Last Chance - High Roller Turbo ($2,000) $13,386
Quoc Cuong Khoang Event #67: Knockout ($100 Bounty) Turbo ($300) $2,370
Sirimas Thanalertlap Event #68: Last Chance - Super Hyper Turbo ($200) $2,033
Jakkapong Sreprasom Event #69: 1K NLH ($1,000) $8,294
Adelina Egorova Event #70: Ladies Event ($300) $1,409
Content and Images Courtesy: Asia-Pacific Poker Tour & SOMUCHPKOER
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- KeywordsTags: Kexin Gu, Arun Godiyal, Jean Philipp Testa., Anju Abrol, Ajay Abrol, APPT, Live Poker
