This Week in Poker: March 8 – March 14

This Week in Poker: March 8 – March 14
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  • Naman Sharma March 15, 2023
  • 7 Minutes Read

In the PokerGuru feature, ‘This Week in Poker,’ we bring you the weekly round-up 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 second week of March brought abundant action on the online and offline felts! The weekend was especially electrifying as Spartan Poker’s Final Table Series 6.0, PokerBaazi’s 1000X Seriers 3.0, PokerStars India’s MicroMillions 5.0, and IndiaPlays’ The Dominator Series reached a crescendo.

The live tournament action was equally astounding as the 2023 WPT Prime Cambodia went underway at the NagaWorld Integrated Resorts with a large Indian contingent in attendance.

The Sunday magnum opus was Spartan Poker’s ₹2 Crores GTD FTS #58 G.O.D. Ashish Ahuja became the first-ever FTS G.O.D champion, banking a jaw-dropping ₹27.55 Lakhs following a three-way deal. Despite his stellar win, Ahuja was not the week`s top scorer as WSOP bracelet winner Abhinav Iyer stole the show. The Young Gun‘s spectacular runs saw him accumulating ₹54.80 Lakhs this week, including two FTS gold medallions and The Master Table victory that landed him a Las Vegas package worth ₹10 Lakhs. For his phenomenal performance, Iyer is our “PokerGuru Star of the Week!”

Ashish Munot, Sreekanth Narayan, Srihari Bang, and Ankit Wadhawan were the other top scorers this past week.

After a hectic two weeks, the online poker crowd gets a few weeks of downtime before the biggest-ever National Poker Series India returns on PokerBaazi on March 29.

In the meantime, PokerDangal’s Dangal Micro Value Series will keep the micro-stakes player engaged from March 16 to 19 alongside IndiaPlays’ inaugural ₹35 Lakhs GTD Micro Poker League, which runs until April 2.

PokerMatch India is all set to host the much-awaited Poker Episode 2 – Turbo Weekend mini-series, which guarantees a staggering ₹1.70 Crores (over €200,000) in guaranteed prize money across 20 fast-paced tournaments from March 16 to 19.

PokerSaint has recently launched a captivating promotion named ‘Ace It,’ which spans 28 days and offers cash game players an opportunity to win from the guaranteed ₹10.50 Crores in rewards on the cash tables.

While the online tournaments have been low-key since the start of the week, the live action at the 2023 WPT Prime Cambodia has not. As of March 14, the Indian contingent at the series has registered 36 cashes, including 12 final table finishes and a title win.

Headlining the Indian scorecard in Cambodia is Vikaash Shah, with his runner-up finish in the NagaWorld Millions for $35,170. Taiwan’s Maggie Chien Chih Weng shipped the event for a personal-best $50,150, claiming her maiden live title and becoming the first woman to lift a WPT trophy at the ongoing series.

Bringing India her first WPT title of the year was Alok Birewar, who took down the Deepstack NLH Freezeout for $7,748 and his second WPT trophy.

With the 2023 WPT Prime Cambodia slated to run till March 21, the Indian rail will likely see many more title sweats from our Indian challengers.

In other news, Meghalaya’s Chief Minister, Conrad K Sangma, announced the government’s decision to repeal the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act 2021, which legalized regulated gaming and casinos in select locations in the state. The government plans to table an amendment bill during the assembly budget session starting on March 20.

The first-ever outing for the Triton Poker Super High Roller Series at the Hoiana Resort & Golf in Quang Nam, Vietnam, ran from March 1 to 13, comprising 15 high-stakes tournaments. Two days after Talal Shakerchi won the $100K NLHE Main Event for a career-best $3.25 Million, Aaron Zang championed the $100K Short Deck Main Event for $1.54 Million.

Danny Tang (Won Event #11: $25K Short Deck for $427,000), Mike Watson (Won Event #12: $50K Short Deck for $695,000), and Sam Greenwood (Won Event #14: $20K Short Deck Turbo for $207,000) won the other Short Deck titles wrapping up the series.

The first-ever PGT PLO Series kicked off on March 12 at the PokerGO Studio inside the ARIA Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Daniyal Iqbal (Event #1: $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha for $160,000) and Allen Shen (Event #2: $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Bounty for $127,290) shipped the first two tournaments at the series.

 

Online Railbird Report

One of India’s top poker stalwarts, Abhinav Iyer, was on a lush scoring spree throughout the week. He added a jaw-dropping ₹54.80 Lakhs in cash prizes and a Las Vegas package worth ₹10 Lakhs this past week, courtesy of two title victories and two podium finishes. The country’s first solo WSOP bracelet winner set the virtual felts ablaze with his extravagant performance, making him the week’s top scorer and our “PokerGuru Star of the Week!

Abhinav Iyer
Abhinav Iyer

 

His top finishes include:

> 1st in Spartan Poker’s FTS #40 Thursday Grande (6-Max) for ₹22,00,000

> 1st in Spartan Poker’s FTS #57 Sunday Grande (6-Max) for ₹17,06,250

> 1st in Spartan Poker’s FTS -Master Table (6 Max) for ₹10,00,000 Vegas Package

> 6th in Spartan Poker’s FTS #46 Super High Roller (6-Max) for ₹9,79,600

> 3rd in Spartan Poker’s FTS #49 Saturday Titan – Beat The Pro – PKO for ₹3,86,331

 

The IOPC 14.0 Super High Roller champion Ashish Munot has been the talk of the poker community ever since he won Spartan poker FTS #46 Super High Roller – his second SHR title of the year – for a career-best payday worth ₹46.06 Lakhs.

Munot`s breakout Friday score catapulted the poker pro to the top of the annual rankings, making him the first player to cross ₹1 Crore in yearly profits. This week, he added a hefty ₹52.42 Lakhs to his poker bankroll.

Ashish Munot
Ashish Munot

 

His top finishes include:

> 1st in Spartan Poker’s FTS #46 Super High Roller (6-Max) for ₹46,05,700

> 5th in Spartan Poker’s FTS #57 Sunday Grande (6-Max) for ₹5,00,500

 

Sunday’s top scorer, Sreekanth Narayan, finished third on the week`s online charts, netting a whopping ₹36.85 Lakhs overall. Even though Narayan missed out on a title victory, he fired a string of masterful finishes in some of the biggest guaranteed tournaments.

Sreekanth Narayan
Sreekanth Narayan

 

His top finishes include:

> 3rd in Spartan Poker’s FTS #58 – 2 Crore GTD – G.O.D (Game Of Diamonds) for ₹26,40,255

> 3rd in Adda52 Millions for ₹3,75,718

> 3rd in PokerBaazi’s BSS SuperStack for ₹2,17,086

> 4th in Spartan Poker’s FTS #43 Marathon for ₹1,88,100

> 2nd in PokerStars India’s Micro Millions-28 [KO Low Roller] for ₹1,17,677

 

The former IOPC The Millionaire champion, Srihari Bang, surfed through Spartan Poker’s FTS in grand style, thrashing out a lofty ₹35.70 Lakhs this past week. He most notably won Spartan Poker’s FTS #35 Wednesday Grande (₹15.84 Lakhs) and came second in FTS #57 Sunday Grande (6-Max) (₹11.96 Lakhs).

Srihari Bang
Srihari Bang

 

His top finishes include:

> 1st in Spartan Poker’s FTS #35 Wednesday Grande for ₹15,84,100

> 2nd in Spartan Poker’s FTS #57 Sunday Grande (6-Max) for ₹11,96,000

> 1st in PokerBaazi’s The Summit for ₹4,80,246

 

Ankit Wadhawan placed fifth on the week`s online charts, adding ₹32.22 Lakhs to his poker bankroll. His biggest score came from a scintillating runner-up finish in Spartan Poker’s FTS #58 – 2 Crore GTD – G.O.D (Game Of Diamonds) (₹26.65 Lakhs).

Ankit Wadhawan
Ankit Wadhawan

 

His top finishes include:

> 2nd in Spartan Poker’s FTS #58 – 2 Crore GTD – G.O.D (Game Of Diamonds) for ₹26,64,580

> 4th in PokerBaazi’s BSS SuperStack for ₹1,65,579

 

Harshit Sanghi, Vikrant Varma, Ashish Ahuja, Manish Lakhotia, Aditya Agarwal, and Myron Pereira were the week`s other top online scorers.

 

Notable Winners of the Week

PlayerPrize AmountEventPoker Site
Gokul Raj₹29.87 LakhsMHW Colossus ₹1 Crore GTDAdda52
Laksh Pal Singh₹26.51 LakhsFTS #9 High Roller (6-Max) ₹1 Crore GTDSpartan Poker
Rajat Sharma₹16.93 LakhsFTS #19 Sunday Grande ₹60 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Ashish Ahuja₹15.89 LakhsFTS #18 Sunday Titan ₹1 Crore GTDSpartan Poker
Monam Hayat₹14.80 LakhsFTS #8 Friday Titan ₹70 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Advait Rajguru₹14.75 LakhsMHW Big Game ₹50 Lakhs GTDAdda52
Vinayak Bajaj₹13.91 LakhsFTS #4 Thursday Grande (6-Max) ₹60 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Sanjay Mohan₹13.26 LakhsThe MoneyMaker ₹2 Crores GTDPokerBaazi
Amit Gehani₹12.89 LakhsFTS #29 Tuesday Titan ₹65 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Sahil Nair₹11.83 LakhsFTS #20 Marathon ₹50 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Rahul Jain₹11.29 LakhsFTS #30 Tuesday Grande ₹50 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Laksh Pal Singh₹9.10 LakhsFTS #3 Thursday Titan ₹50 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Satyam Verma₹5.55 LakhsFTS #16 ₹25 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
“Slothers”₹5.43 LakhsFTS #21 Turbo ₹20 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Avinash Koneru₹5.30 Lakhs1000X#12 Sunday Prime ₹40 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Karan Kapur₹5.24 Lakhs(7-Max) BSS Championship ₹35 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Avneesh Munjal₹5.17 LakhsDestiny 26.0 ₹20 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Maddhav Kohli₹5.40 LakhsThe Summit ₹20 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Aditya Sushant₹5.16 LakhsThe Weekly Highroller ₹12 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Mahesh Shyamsundar₹5.11 LakhsWednesday High Roller (6-Max) ₹20 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Siddharth Gangwar₹4.77 LakhsBSS HighRoller ₹20 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Kunal Patni₹4.65 LakhsGodfather ₹25 Lakhs GTDAdda52
Vaidik Murkar₹4.38 LakhsFTS #1 Big Bang ₹25 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Dhaval Mudgal₹4.11 LakhsMaverick ₹15 Lakhs GTDAdda52
Ankit Wadhawan₹4.05 Lakhs1000X#3 Friday Prime ₹35 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Sriharsha Doddapaneni₹3.81 LakhsThe Endeavour ₹20 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“Squeezeit”₹3.72 Lakhs1000X#20 Tuesday Prime ₹25 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“saifjolly”₹3.70 LakhsThe Pride ₹15 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“kartikhaha”₹3.63 LakhsThe Mint ₹14 Lakhs GTDAdda52
Gaurang Bhatti₹3.14 LakhsFTS #17 Triple Chance ₹15 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Satyam Bhalla₹3.11 LakhsFTS #31 Turbo Deepstack ₹15 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Ganesh Kamat₹3.07 LakhsFTS #5 Turbo ₹15 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Areyann Gurbaxani
₹3.02 LakhsSunday Special [8-Max] PKO ₹15 Lakhs GTDPokerStars India
“ansh91174000000”₹2.64 Lakhs1000X#9 Sunday Kickoff ₹20 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Ravi Jain₹2.42 LakhsFTS #2 ₹10 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Gautam Bansal₹2.30 Lakhs1000X#13 ₹15 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Vijay Maithani₹2.28 LakhsFTS #10 Turbo – Monster Stack ₹10 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Bhanu Prakash KC₹2.19 LakhsFTS #28 ₹10 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Kanishka Samant₹2.19 Lakhs(7-Max) SPRINT ₹12 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Pankaj Khandelwal₹2.10 Lakhs(7-Max) SPRINT ₹12 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“1299sanj”₹2.02 Lakhs(7-Max) SPRINT ₹12 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Rajat Sharma₹2.01 LakhsThe Colosseum [6-Max] ₹12 Lakhs GTDPokerStars India
“ToiDoi11”₹1.97 LakhsThe Big Bash [8-Max] PKO ₹10 Lakhs GTDPokerStars India
Rishab Malik₹1.92 LakhsSunday Showdown ₹10 Lakhs GTD
Adda52
Pradip Ghosh₹1.81 Lakhs(7-Max) SPRINT ₹12 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Parag Shah₹1.69 LakhsDaily Value Boost ₹10 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Kanishka Samant₹1.61 LakhsFTS #6 ₹8 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Jimmy Arora₹1.58 LakhsFTS #27 Triple Chance ₹8 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Lourembam Joshima Devi₹1.57 Lakhs1000X#1 Kickoff ₹15 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Rishab Malik₹1.52 LakhsDaily Value Boost ₹10 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Ridhav Chawla₹1.35 Lakhs1000X#11 ₹12.5 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Amol Nimsarkar₹1.32 LakhsFTS #7 Triple Chance ₹10 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Rajneesh Thakur₹1.31 Lakhs1000X#4 (6-Max) ₹10 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“Haydos21”₹1.18 Lakhs1000X#21 ₹10 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Rahul Purohit₹1.16 Lakhs1000X#19 ₹8 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Surbhit Grover₹1.01 Lakhs(7-Max) Afternoon Boost ₹5 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Karan Malhotra₹1 LakhMaster Minds [8-Max] ₹5 Lakhs GTDPokerStars India
“SetAlight”₹1.02 LakhsDaily Turbo (6-Max) ₹4.50 Lakhs GTDSpartan Poker
Vinay B
₹99K(7-Max) Daily SPRINT ₹5 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“Whoarewe”
₹93K(7-Max) Daily SPRINT ₹5 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“SHIPITUP18”
₹86K(7-Max) Afternoon Boost ₹5 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“Amod”
₹83K1000X #18 ₹7 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“sabkabaaapkc”₹82K(7-Max) Afternoon Boost ₹5 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
“BHARATSINGH01”₹80K(7-Max) Afternoon Boost ₹5 Lakhs GTDPokerBaazi
Piyush Nanda
₹74KMicro Millions-13 [Uppercut Mini] ₹3.5 Lakhs GTD
PokerStars India
Cherag Batliwalla₹73K1000X#2 Turbo ₹6 Lakhs GTD
PokerBaazi

 

IndiaPlays First-Ever Micro Poker League Gets Extra-Rewarding With Attractive Deposit Offers!

IndiaPlays’ first-ever ₹35 Lakhs GTD Micro Poker League kicked off on March 10 and will run until April 2. Sporting affordable tournament buy-ins ranging from ₹1 to ₹880, the low-to-mid-stakes grinders are in for a treat. The site also offers free tickets to tournaments or an Instant Bonus ranging from 5-10% through attractive deposit offers.

IndiaPlays - Mobile

Read the complete report here.

 

PokerMatch India’s Poker Episode 2 – ₹1.70 Crores GTD Turbo Weekend Mini-Series to Run From March 16 – 19

PokerMatch India`s Poker Episode 2 – Turbo Weekend mini-series starts soon for a four-day run, guaranteeing a massive ₹1.70 Crores (over €200,000) across 20 tournaments from March 16 to 19.

The tournament buy-ins in the Turbo Weekend mini-series range from ₹400 (€5) to ₹40,000 (€500), and the top attractions are three multi-flighted tournaments – each sporting a Progressive Knockout format.

PokerMatch India Episode 2

Read the complete report here.

 

PokerSaint’s ‘Ace It’ Promotion Offer a Jaw-Dropping ₹10.50 Crores For Cash Game Enthusiasts (March 13 – April 9)

PokerSaint’s has unveiled a brand-new 28-day ‘Ace It’ promotion that gives all cash game opportunists a chance to win from the guaranteed ₹10.50 Crores in rewards on the cash tables. Play at the stakes you like and collect VIP Points to climb the daily leaderboards to win from ₹37,48,500 daily.

PokerSaint - Ace It - Mobile

Read the complete report here.

 

WPT Prime Cambodia Updates

The 2023 World Poker Tour Prime Cambodia, the second WPT Prime stop of Season XXI, returned to NagaWorld Integrated Resorts on Thursday, March 9. The 30-tournament festival will run until March 21.

A sizable Indian contingent is present at the series, and the scores are piling on. The team scored its first win on Saturday, with Alok Birewar extending his Day 1 chip lead in Deepstack NLH Freezeout to the finish line, lifting his second WPT trophy and $7,748 in first-place prize money.

Alok Birewar
Alok Birewar

 

Read the complete report here.

Team India’s Vikaash Shah was close to binking the NagaWorld Millions but fell one short of the glory, banking $35,170 for his runner-up finish. Spartan Poker Team Pro Zarvan Tumboli finished fourth for $15,150. Taiwan’s Maggie Chien Chih Weng claimed victory, winning her first-ever live title and a personal-best $50,150.

Vikaash Shah
Vikaash Shah

 

Read the complete report here.

India’s Deep Raina finished runner-up in the $300 buy-in NLHE Turbo for $4,094.50 following an even heads-up deal with USA’s Lucas Tae (1st for $4,094.50).

Deep Raina
Deep Raina

 

Read the complete report here.

 

Team India Scores at WPT Prime Cambodia (Until March 14)

RankPlayerEventPrize Amount (USD)
2ndVikaash ShahNagaWorld Millions$35,170
4thZarvan TumboliNagaWorld Millions$15,150
1stAlok BirewarDeepstack NLH Freezeout$7,748
11thDhanesh ChainaniNagaWorld Millions$4,230
2ndDeep Raina$300 NLHE Turbo$4,094.50
4thDhanesh ChainaniNagaWorld Supertsack 50K$3,360
16thRajeev KanjaniNagaWorld Millions$2,900
7thVineet KumarNagaWorld Supertsack 50K$1,832
34thHarsh BubnaNagaWorld Millions$1,375
45thAbhijith CherukuNagaWorld Millions$1,220
37thGaurav SoodNagaWorld Millions$1,220
51stArun SriramNagaWorld Millions$1,100
7thDeep Raina8-Max NLH Single Day$1,062
7thSameer AgarwalDeepstack NLH Freezeout$1,010
13thAnkit JajodiaDeepstack NLHE$701
14thRahul MarwahaDeepstack NLHE$701
25thJasven SaigalNagaWorld Supertsack 50K$403

 

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.

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