This Week in Poker: April 12 – 18

In the PokerGuru feature ‘This Week in Poker,’ we bring you the weekly roundup of the most significant online scores by Indian MTT players and the top stories from both the live and online poker circuits. Here are this week’s top stories!

The past week saw intense competition waging on both the online and offline felts. Poker legend Doyle Brunson’s famous words, “Poker is war. People pretend it is a game,” rang true with the best poker players in the country battling it out for life-changing money and glory at the World Poker Tour Prime India and in PokerBaazi’s National Poker Series India 2023!

The NPS India 2023, also known as the “Olympics of Indian Poker,” concluded on Sunday with a record-breaking 1,25,195 entries and over ₹32 Crores in prize money awarded, making it the biggest ever NPS edition.

Bringing the series to a thrilling closure on Sunday was old-timer Prateek Bhartia, who returned triumphantly to the spotlight by shipping the NPS India Main Event for a whopping ₹30.93 Lakhs. He topped the online charts convincingly, netting ₹31.22 Lakhs in weekly earnings.

But Bhartia was not the only online poker star to shine. Anuj Yadav, the NPS Super HighRoller champion, and Kunal Bhatia, the runner-up finisher, along with other top players such as Sparsh Gupta, Anirban D Das, Kartik Ved, Sanat Mehrotra, Vishal Tulsyan, Sushil Kumar, Nishaanth Shanmughasundaram, Debapriya Manna, Saurabh Rohila, and Vikram Mishra all put in outstanding performances.

The other big story came from the coastal shores of Goa, where WPT Prime India broke several records during its week-long run. Scripting the biggest headlines in the series was Prasit Chowdhury’s impressive victory in the ₹65K WPT Prime India Main Event. The Kolkata-based player took home a staggering ₹86.60 Lakhs and a seat worth $10,400 in the season-ending WPT World Championship. The Main Event win landed Chowdhury the coveted POF trophy and a $5,000 WPT passport, making him our “PokerGuru Star of the Week!”

Amit Tejura also collected an impressive ₹57.75 Lakhs for his runner-up finish in the WPT Prime Main Event.

Gagandeep Malik, a two-time DPT title holder, also made his mark in the series, emerging victorious in the record-breaking ₹125K WPT Prime High Roller for ₹59.60 Lakhs.

The other WPT Prime India title winners included Adithya NG, Nitesh Baliyan, Mithun Mahesh, Vineet Kumar, Gaurav Kalra, Rajeesh Rajpopat-Nikhil Jalan, two-title winner Gokul Raj, and Young Gun Kanchan Sharma.

We recently received good news from The Grosvenor Victoria Casino, UK. Poker stalwart and the 2019 APT Ho Chi Minh Main Event champion Akshay Nasa shipped the 888Poker LIVE London Mini Main Event, beating a field of 416 entries, to capture his first live title of the year and £40,210 in first-place prize money!

With various online poker tournaments and promotions in full swing, poker players have much to look forward to. India’s first PLO-only tournament series, PokerBaazi’s PLO Championship, is back for its second edition from April 20 to 30. The festival features a packed schedule of PLO-4, PLO-5, and PLO-6 tournaments and a whopping ₹5-plus Crores in guaranteed prizes.

PokerMatch India has extended the special weekend tournament, PokerMatch Legend PKO, for a month. Running every Saturday at 10:30 PM (IST) from April 15 to May 6, there is a guaranteed ₹1.10 Crores in cash prizes to chase down across the four editions.

PokerStars India celebrated its fifth anniversary on April 17 with a special anniversary promotion called “5-Year Fiesta.” The celebration runs from April 17 to 30, offering boosted guaranteed leaderboards, massive tournaments, juicy anniversary freerolls, and rakeback promotions, guaranteeing altogether ₹1.50 Crores in rewards.

With the IPL frenzy sweeping across the nation, PokerDangal has launched a unique promotion called “Predict & Win,” where everyone can earn up to 50% cashback on their deposits. Simply deposit between ₹1,000 to ₹1 Lakh using a special deposit code to predict the correct batting score of the listed IPL match for the day for a shot at winning from a range of rewards.

First Games Poker, a newcomer in the Indian online poker scene, is fast gaining attention for its safe gaming environment and attractive tournament and cash game offerings.

In an important development, word came out that the Directorate-General of GST Intelligence is about to complete its investigation on alleged GST evasion by 12 online gaming operators.

Delta Corp disclosed its Q4 results for the quarter ending March 31 on Tuesday, reporting a net profit of ₹51.20 Crores for the January-March quarter. However, its net profits showed a 40% decline QoQ.

The 54th edition of the World Series of Poker, to be hosted at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas Hotels & Casinos in Las Vegas, is around the corner. PokerGO, WSOP’s broadcast partner, has unveiled the most extensive streaming schedule of poker`s grandest festival and will be streaming for an unprecedented 47 consecutive weeks this year.

Online Railbird Report

Prateek Bhartia took the virtual poker felts by storm on Sunday, banking the single-largest paycheque in the National Poker Series India 2023. The old-timer broke out of a long-drawn absence in uber-cool fashion by topping the 5,849-strong field in the Main Event and the 688 qualifiers who converged for the Sunday finale. Ultimately, he struck a heads-up deal with Sparsh Gupta to take home the most coveted gold medal of the series and a personal-best ₹30.93 Lakhs. Not surprisingly, he topped the weekly online rankings with ₹31.22 Lakhs in total earnings.

His top finishes include:

> 1st in PokerBaazi’s NPS#106 Main Event for ₹30,92,895 (heads-up deal)

The online reg Kunal Bhatia placed second in the weekly standings with a haul of ₹19.81 Lakhs. He made a smashing run in PokerBaazi`s NPS#92 Super HighRoller, going toe-to-toe with the 2022 POY Anuj Yadav. Although he could only win a silver medal, a heads-up deal landed him the better cash prize.

His top finishes include:

> 2nd in PokerBaazi’s NPS#92 Super HighRoller for ₹18,53,660 (heads-up deal)

A player who hardly needs any introduction, Young Gun Anuj Yadav was right there among the weekly top scorers. He ranked #3 with scores worth at least ₹18.44 Lakhs. And all he did to get to the top was bag away the gold medal in NPS#92 Super HighRoller, making it look like a cakewalk!

His top finishes include:

> 1st in PokerBaazi’s NPS#92 Super HighRoller for ₹17,96,340 (heads-up deal)

A slightly lesser-known Sparsh Gupta was chasing his maiden online title, which led him towards his career-best online score in PokerBaazi’s NPS#106 Main Event (3rd for ₹15.15 Lakhs). Although the #BB8 EndBoss finalist missed the title, he earned himself the NPS bronze medal, boosting his weekly earnings to ₹15.33 Lakhs.

His top finishes include:

> 3rd in PokerBaazi’s NPS#106 Main Event for ₹15,15,000

Anirban D Das went all guns blazing in the last week of NPS India 2023, bagging three gold medals in a row. The online crusher earned almost ₹14.56 Lakhs this week and two additional perks worth ₹12.75 Lakhs for finishing #2 (Las Vegas package worth ₹7.50 Lakhs) & #3 (₹5.25 Lakhs Real Cash Bonus) on the NPS Podium and Series leaderboards, respectively.

His top finishes include:

> 1st in PokerBaazi’s NPS#103 Sunday Marathon for ₹6,47,386

> 1st in PokerBaazi’s NPS#87 SPRINT for ₹2,15,424

> 1st in PokerBaazi’s NPS#99 Megadive for ₹1,72,845

The WSOP bracelet winner Kartik Ved briefly returned to the online grind and made it count, raking in a decent ₹13.22 Lakhs in winnings. His most notable score was a bronze medal finish in PokerBaazi’s NPS#92 Super HighRoller (3rd for ₹12.75 Lakhs).

His top finishes include:

> 3rd in PokerBaazi’s NPS#92 Super HighRoller for ₹12,75,000

Young Gun Sanat Mehrotra had the most arduous route to a seven-figure paycheque, for he accumulated ₹12.84 Lakhs across a well-fought 12 scores. The best of them was his top finish in Adda52’s The Ballers.

His top finishes include:

> 1st in Adda52’s The Ballers for ₹5,01,079

> 2nd in Adda52 Millions for ₹3,36,000

> 2nd in Spartan Poker’s Futuristic – Triple Chance for ₹1,42,473

> 4th in Spartan Poker’s Armageddon for ₹93,500

Vishal Tulsyan, Sushil Kumar, Nishaanth Shanmughasundaram, Debapriya Manna, Saurabh Rohila, and Vikram Mishra were the week`s other top online scorers.

Notable Winners of the Week

PokerBaazi’s ₹5-plus Crores PLO Championship is Back (April 20 – 30)

India’s first PLO-only tournament series, PokerBaazi’s PLO Championship, is back for its second run from April 20 to 30. With over ₹5 Crores in guaranteed prizes, it offers non-stop PLO-4, PLO-5, and PLO-6 action. The schedule includes 13 trophy events, and players ranked on the series’ leaderboard get a share of ₹10 Lakhs in real cash bonus.

Read the complete report here

PokerMatch India Launches Saturday-Special Legend PKO Tournament Offering ₹1.10 Crores in Guaranteed Prizes (April 15, 22, 29, May 6)

Given the encouraging turnout in the first-ever Legend PKO two weeks back, PokerMatch India has made the Saturday special tournament a weekly staple running every Saturday at 10:30 PM (IST) from April 15 to May 6, dishing out a combined ₹1.10 Crores in guaranteed prizes.

Read the complete report here

PokerStars India Celebrates Turning FIVE With ₹1.50 Crores GTD 5-Year Fiesta

PokerStars India completed five years of operations on April 17, and marking the occasion, it is hosting the anniversary-special “5-Year Fiesta, ” offering boosted guaranteed leaderboards and MTTs, massive anniversary freerolls, and rakeback promotions – guaranteeing a whopping ₹1.50 Crores.

Read the complete report here

First Games Poker Offers a Top-Tier Gaming Experience & Attractive Rewards

First Games Poker is the latest contender in the market, backed by a renowned Indian digital payment and financial services behemoth. The platform has quickly established itself as the go-to gaming platform for online gamers and introduced attractive tournaments and cash game offerings.

Read the complete report here

PokerDangal’s “Predict & Win” Offers Up To 50% Cashback (April 2 – 30)

If you are a poker player with the hots for cricket, PokerDangal’s “Predict & Win” promotion can earn up to 50% cashback on your deposits! Deposit between ₹1,000 to ₹1 Lakh using specific deposit codes to predict the correct batting score of the listed IPL match for the day, and win from a range of rewards if your prediction is right.

Read the complete report here

WPT Prime India

The 2023 World Poker Tour Prime India kept the active poker community busy from April 12 – 18. The floating Casino Deltin Royale hosted the festival for the fourth time. The highly anticipated festival was a massive hit, with encouraging turnouts in all 13 tournaments.

The biggest success was the series showstopper, ₹65K WPT Prime India Main Event, which drew a massive 857 entries, generating a record ₹5.07-plus Crores in prize money, the most ever recorded in a live tournament in India. Prasit Chowdhury from Kolkata championed the tournament to collect an impressive ₹86.60 Lakhs and a seat worth $10,400 in the season-ending WPT World Championship.

The breakout victory catapulted Chowdhury to the top of the WPT Player of the Festival leaderboard, earning him the POF trophy and a $5,000 WPT passport. Among other accolades, the latest WPT Prime India champion is also our “PokerGuru Star of the Week!”

Amit Tejura collected an equally enviable ₹57.75 Lakhs in second place.

The two-time DPT title holder Gagandeep Malik stormed past the record-breaking 227-entry field in the ₹125K High Roller, winning his second WPT title and a first-place finisher’s due worth a whopping ₹59.60 Lakhs. Guneet Kwatra scooped up a career-best ₹39.55 Lakhs as the runner-up.

Gokul Raj was another circuit reg who posted an attention-grabbing run in the series. On Saturday, he first trounced the 100-player field in the ₹15K Ship It NLHE, bagging away his first-ever WPT title and ₹4.25 Lakhs in prize money. Not stopping at that, he went on to stack the 105-player field in the ₹20K Turbo Closer NLHE on the last day of the series for ₹5.71 Lakhs, picking up his second WPT trophy in four days.

Adithya NG, Nitesh Baliyan, Mithun Mahesh, Vineet Kumar, Gaurav Kalra, Rajeesh Rajpopat & Nikhil Jalan, Young Gun Kanchan Sharma, and Ritik Khanna won the other side events.

WPT Prime India Winners

With this, we conclude this week’s round-up of the latest news updates and developments from the poker world. We will return next week with another weekly report. Stay tuned.