The Deltin Poker Tournament (DPT) emerged in 2016 as a collaboration between two industry titans: Adda52, India’s leading poker site, and Deltin Royale, Goa’s premier offshore casino. Its maiden event in January 2016 promised a ₹1 Crore guaranteed Main Event, signalling a bright future. The series sustained its momentum with a subsequent festival held from November 9 to 14 of the same year.
In 2017, the DPT continued to gain ground with Adda52’s backing, presenting a February series with a prize pool that had ballooned to ₹1.50 Crores. This growing success prompted organizers to hike the stakes even higher to ₹2 Crores for the July edition. The enthusiasm and competitive spirit culminated in another series from September 13 to 18.
In 2018, the DPT hosted three notable editions. The year kicked off with the February edition, featuring a ₹35K Main Event boasting a ₹1 Crore guarantee. April saw a grander ₹2 Crore prize pool, with the series concluding its annual run with another outing in July.
Beyond the regular series, 2018 was remarkable for DPT. Deltin Royale rolled out the high-stakes DPT Colossus Super High Roller Series from April 26 to 29. Furthermore, the debut of DPT Xpress (DPTX), catering to small-to-mid-stake players, took place from September 27 to 30 in Deltin Denzong, Sikkim.
2019 began on a high note with DPT’s early edition from February 7 to 11, hosted at the Adda52 Live Poker Room aboard Casino Deltin Royale in Goa, consisting of four thrilling events. This February extravaganza was succeeded by DPT Xpress at Casino Deltin Denzong from March 14 to 17. The DPT Colossus Super High Roller’s second edition graced the Casino Deltin Royale from May 2 to 5, culminating with the year’s final DPT series in July.
The plans for 2020 included three series in the first half. However, the February DPT Xpress event unexpectedly became the last live series before the pandemic enforced a global shutdown. The subsequent events were called off as a precautionary measure.
The pandemic years of 2020 and 2021 saw live poker tournaments on a standstill. However, as live cash games started to bounce back in 2021 amidst travel and occupancy restrictions, DPT Xpress made a cautious return in March aboard the Casino Deltin Royale, becoming the first live tournament post-lockdown.
Come 2022, with eased restrictions and a successful mass vaccination campaign curbing the virus spread, the poker industry began its anticipated revival. After a hiatus of over two years, the DPT made a grand comeback in April. Running from April 14 to 19, the series featured seven tournaments, with Sumit Lalchandani clinching the lion`s share of the DPT Main Event’s ₹1.20 Crore prize pool, earning himself ₹35.65 Lakhs.
Fast forward to November, the 13th DPT edition unfolded from November 8 to 14. The series showstopper, the ₹45K DPT Main Event, drew a record 710 entries, culminating in a colossal ₹2.91 Crores prize pool. The title and a whopping ₹55.13 Lakhs top prize went to the triumphant Abhishek Paul.
Sandwiched between these DPT editions, Deltin Royale showcased the Adda52 Colossus – High Roller Series from August 2 to 7, 2022. Standout performances included Young Gun Siddhanth Kripalani winning the ₹200K High Roller with a ₹45.28 Lakhs prize, Nishant Sharma capturing the ₹100K Main Event for ₹33.15 Lakhs, and Shravan Chhabria taking home ₹8.96 Lakhs from the ₹50K Warm Up Bounty.
The 14th edition of DPT ran from July 18 to 24, 2023, powered by Adda52. Featuring an unprecedented lineup of 12 tournaments, this edition introduced three fresh events: Teams Event, Flip and Ship, and the Mini Main Event.
Vasu Bansal stole the spotlight by emerging triumphant in the Main Event. Overcoming 641 competitors and besting Krishna Khaitan in a riveting final duel, Bansal bagged a whopping ₹54 Lakhs prize, while Khaitan took home ₹40 Lakhs.
In the DPT High Roller, Young Gun Arsh Grover clinched victory, securing ₹30.62 Lakhs following a three-way deal. Hot on his heels were Nitin Rawat and Roshan Bharadwaj, earning impressive sums of ₹32.95 Lakhs and ₹15 Lakhs, respectively.
The DPT Mini Main Event witnessed Vijay Revankar‘s dominant performance, netting him ₹10.81 Lakhs. Chasing him closely was Goldi Babbar with ₹7.21 Lakhs and Himanshu Chhikara pocketing ₹4.50 Lakhs.
By the time the 15th edition of the series rolled out from October 11 to 16, the DPT had distinguished itself as India’s longest-standing live poker tournament series. Dubbed the “DPT Deltin Jubilee Edition,” it was hosted just 11 weeks after the July series, celebrating Deltin Royale’s 10-year anniversary.
Significantly, this series was the first live series after the new GST rules became operational on October 1. With the buy-ins increased due to the newly imposed 28% GST on player deposits and many Indian players leaning towards the South-Asian circuit, DPT 15.0 didn’t replicate the success of its forebears.
Nevertheless, veteran pro Sahil Chutani bested a 258-player field in the ₹50K Main Event, seizing his maiden DPT title with a ₹20.19 Lakhs purse.
Other notable victors included Prajit Gambhir (Won NLH Bounty Event for ₹2.52 Lakhs), Anirudh (Won DPT PLO Bounty for ₹1.92 Lakhs), Rising Star Ritwik Khanna (Won DPT Warm-Up NLH Turbo for ₹4.13 Lakhs), Abhishek Grover (Won DPT Super Hold’em Turbo for ₹2.09 Lakhs), Raghav Bansal (High Roller for ₹16.86 Lakhs) and Animesh Thakur (Turbo Closer for ₹2.40 Lakhs).