The king of all poker championships is here. Join in and get ‘crowned’

Hooked to poker? It’s time to polish up your game and join the biggest poker tournament in the country in recent times with a GTD of a whopping ₹25 crore. This is your chance to win ₹50 lakh in cash and a real gold and diamond studded crown. In keeping with the changing times following the spread of Covid-19 pandemic, the India Online Poker Championship (IOPC) 2020 is being held on the web, allowing you to be a part of the big fat poker party from the safety and comfort of your home.

As part of IOPC 2020, 113 tournaments of varied formats will be played on Spartanpoker.com from July 9 to July 26 with buy-ins ranging from ₹550 to ₹1.05 lakh. The 19-day-long championship promises to challenge the brightest minds in the country with the highest IQs to put their best strategies forward and take home high-stake prizes and a chance to win the grand crown.

“In these challenging times, we are constantly identifying opportunities to make online poker an efficient platform where a player uses his high intellect and instincts to be in the right spot at the right time. We are pleased to announce the itinerary of the second edition of our flagship tournament, IOPC with the highest GTD till now. With a mission to make IOPC the best online platform in the world, we are dedicated to bring a lot of excitement to the table and inspire poker players through higher GTDs and prestigious crown,” said Amin Rozani, Co-founder and Managing Director (MD) of Spartan Poker.

The championship promises to be bigger and grander than its first edition, which was a roaring success. IOPC 2020 will be an upgraded gaming experience with the highest GTD. To draw in high-stake players into the championship, IOPC has incorporated Millionaires like Millionaire United ₹1.5 crore GTD, Millionaire Legends ₹1.5 crore GTD and The Crown main event ₹3 crore GTD in to it.

Online poker has really picked up in the country in the recent past and the lockdown has only made it more popular as an increasing number of poker enthusiasts are turning online to polish their game and play with friends and family alike.

“In the initial few days of the lockdown, everyone from shopping and entertainment to work and gaming moved to digital. Spartan Poker saw a surge too. Even today, the number of hours a poker player spends on the site everyday has improved more than 30 per cent,” Rozani further said. This has prompted the gaming site to scale up in terms of technology and customer support to support this growing player base.

There is also a change in perception about the game itself. Poker is no longer seen as a gambling sport which was looked down upon. It is now considered a game of skill and intellect. “Earlier even 4-5 years ago, when I told people that I am a professional poker player, their tone was very skeptical. But that has changed a lot now with penetration of technology, globalization. So many of my friends who have graduated from IITs and IIMs have left high-paying jobs at reputable financial institutions to take up Poker professionally,” said Nikita Luther, a professional Poker player.

Interestingly, a large number of women are also participating in Poker games, both online and offline, breaking stereotypes of poker being a predominantly male bastion.

“Poker as a game is gender-neutral. The reason the ratio is skewed is because that is the inherent nature of all sports. I feel that women can be better at the game of poker than men because it is a game of extreme discipline and patience and women don’t let ego mix with their emotion and strategy. Also, men are more likely to overstretch their budget while playing while women are more likely to stick to their pre-set budgets,” Luther said.

IOPC will see thousands of people come together and compete for the crown, which will be awarded to the winner of the main event to be held at the end of the 19-day tournament.

“The overwhelming response from the players across the country has been our motivation to strive and make IOPC a better experience every season. I am confident that our initiative will help players to be their best and expand horizons in this mind sport,” Rozani said.

To enable higher participation, Spartan Poker is offering options to players where they can win tournament tickets for as low as even ₹50 or ₹100. “We create a lot of options where a player doesn’t have to invest a lot. At the same time, we also see this as an opportunity for players to make money – if you are home and you have the time, invest it in poker just as you would do for the share market. Use your math skills, complex problem-solving skills, and who knows your return could be higher than the share market also,” he added.

One of India’s leading digital gaming platforms, Spartan Poker has emerged as a hotspot for poker lovers in recent times. It offers world-class gaming quality to players in the country with a range of Poker tournaments, offers, and game options.