Prashanth Sekar Wins King’s Big Thursday at the German Pokerclub Championship (₹2.06 Lakhs)

The King’s Casino in Rozvadov has gained an enviable reputation as one of the top poker rooms in Europe. It is no surprise then that the poker room has become an attractive poker venue for the Indian players.

A small group of Indians had traveled to Rozvadov late last month to participate in the German Poker Days series, which ran from August 26 to September 1. Many of them have now stayed back to attend the German Pokerclub Championship (GPC). One such player is Prashanth Sekar (cover image). Known mostly for his online exploits, Sekar famously took down India’s biggest-ever online tournament – PokerBaazi’s The Game Changer 1.0 – in February 2019. The landmark event had registered a record-breaking 3,777 entries, generating ₹3.7 Crores in the prize pool. Sekar had championed the event, winning a life-changing ₹33 Lakhs in prize money. The inaugural Game Changer’s record was surpassed by its predecessor The Game Changer 2.0 in August, which crowned a winner in Shagun Jain.

Incidentally, this is Sekar’s first international poker trip. He was last seen participating in the German Poker Days Main Event just days ago. While he failed to score in that tournament, he more than made up for it by clinching his career-first live title in the King’s Big Thursday event yesterday. He trounced a field of 91 entries and netted a best-ever live score of €2,611 (~₹2.06 Lakhs) in the process.

However, Sekar wasn’t the only Indian to score at the ongoing GPC series. Vikas Yadav finished ninth in the King’s Big Monday event for €158 (~₹12,492) with Alessandro Predaroli taking down the title for €1,521. Gaurav Gupta narrowly missed the title in the King’s Big Tuesday event, finishing third for €817 (~₹64,596).

Presently, Indian challenger Ankit Kapoor (1,915,000) is headlining the 19 Day 1A survivors of the GPC Main Event which includes another Indian contender Tanveer Singh Kohli (295,000). With five more starting flights left to play, we can expect to see many more Indian players in action.

King’s Big Thursday Recap

King’s Big Thursday was a fast-paced event that attracted 91 entries (76 unique and 15 re-entries). Sporting a buy-in of €115 (~₹9,092), the event created a prize pool worth €9,500 (~₹7.51 Lakhs).

India’s Prashanth Sekar bested Russia’s Anton Pivovarov heads-up to claim his career-first live title along with a personal-best live score of €2,611 (~₹2.06 Lakhs).

Sekar, who is best known for taking down PokerBaazi’s The Game Changer 1.0 in February earlier this year, has been in Rozvadov for quite some time now. He was last seen playing the German Poker Days €175 NLHE Main Event, alongside fellow countrymen Manish Goenka and Sameer Tavanandi. While Goenka cashed the event, pocketing €2,658 (~₹2.09 Lakhs) with an 11^th place finish, Sekar and Tavanandi fell short of crossing the money line.

Nevertheless, Sekar managed to final table the GPC Welcome Bounty where he finished eighth for €253 (~₹20,003).

PokerGuru caught up with Sekar who expressed his delight at taking down his first-ever live title. “It feels great winning a live title, especially since it’s my first international series and first title. It was an exhilarating experience.”

Talking about his experience of playing at one of the most popular casinos in Europe, the champion said, “King’s Casino has great series throughout the year, and there are plenty of big value events. I am super pumped to win an event here and going for more.”

While Sekar has bagged his first international title, he isn’t done yet and is looking forward to participating in the GPC Main Event next.

“I am planning on playing the GPC Main Event because the value is insane, and the fields are good. The structure is very deep though, which makes it an enjoyable poker experience,” Sekar added.

Final Table Results (EURO)

1. Prashanth Sekar – €2,611
2. Anton Pivovarov – €1,857
   
3. Bart van Dijk – €1,216
4. Kevin Klebe – €936
5. Artur Vartikian – €741
6. Unknown – €580
7. Brigitte Klotzin – €456
8. Grinberg Yair – €356
9. Aleksandras Kotliancuk – €271

GPC Main Event

Featuring a buy-in of €285 (~₹22,533), the German Pokerclub Championship (GPC) Main Event offers a massive €500,000 (~₹3.95 Crores) prize pool guarantee. The first starting flight of the event kicked off on September 5 attracting 140 entries (112 unique and 28 re-entries).

After several hours of play, only 19 runners made it through to Day 2. Headlining the Day 1A survivors was Indian pro Ankit Kapoor. A well-known name on the domestic circuit, Kapoor is another returning patron for King’s Casino. He enjoyed quite a hot run earlier this year at this very venue, first when he final tabled King’s Special Tuesday event at the German Poker Days in March, finishing sixth for €464 (~₹36,773). He followed that up by taking down the €115 Pot Limit Omaha Turbo at the TIPS & KENTA series four days later, banking a winner’s payday of €2,746 (~₹2.20 Lakhs).

Kapoor amassed a stack of 1,915,000 on Day 1A of the GPC Main Event.

PokerGuru reached out to Kapoor who talking about the benefits of playing in Rozvadov, said, “I believe the field here at Rozvadov is definitely softer than battling it out amongst the good players in India. Also barring the service fees (rake) and some local tax on the buy-in, there is no tax on your winnings here, thus giving more value to the players.”

Talking about his journey through Day 1A, Kapoor discussed some of the significant hands that he played. “There was one hand where I lost a considerable amount of chips. 1010 vs JJ on x10JJx board. Opponent shrugged his shoulders in pain and still raised me, so I thought he must be strong, and I just flatted his raise. Then I was trying to read and play right, happy with the calls and folds decisions I made. And running good which is definitely required for deep runs in any tourneys.

Good to finally find a bag after a while in live MTTs!”

Besides the Main Event, Kapoor will also be eyeing the PLO tournaments and cash games at King’s Casino. “I’d be playing in the series of some PLO tournaments which King’s is hosting starting on 10th Sep. Would also indulge in some cash games alongside.”

Kapoor’s fellow compatriot Tanveer Singh Kohli also bagged a stack of 295,000 heading into Day 2.

Top 10 Chip Counts at the End of Day 1A

1. Ankit Kapoor – 1,915,000
2. Andreas Thomas Gondrom – 1,100,000
3. Jan Boye – 1,070,000
4. Alon Gutman – 1,040,000
5. Yakov Bar El – 930,000
6. Milan Skacel – 870,000
7. Oxymiron – 840,000
8. Daniel Hoehr – 765,000
9. Justin Julien Frolian – 755,000
10. Manuela Johana Thiel – 640,000

Content & Images Courtesy: King’s Casino

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