USOP Danang 2024: Lakhotia, Mudgal, Kazi, Birewar & Sharma Among Recent Indian Cashers

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The U Series of Poker (USOP) Danang, boasting an impressive VN₫ 60 billion (~$2.45 million) prize pool spread across 71 thrilling events, is nearing its grand finale. Starting on March 19 and scheduled to culminate on April 1, this series has been a captivating spectacle for poker enthusiasts worldwide.

The key highlight of the series is the VN₫ 15 Billion GTD Main Event, which commenced recently and promises an electrifying conclusion on April 1. Drawing players from various corners of the world, the series has become a battleground for both seasoned professionals and aspiring contenders, all vying for substantial rewards and the coveted glory that accompanies victory. With 53 events already in the books, the USOP has witnessed several big winners. Notably, Indian players have emerged as formidable contenders, leaving their mark on multiple tournaments with impressive performances.

Let’s take a closer look at the winners and the achievements of Indians across various events!

Event 11: Mid Week Special

In this event held on March 21, 2024, Hwanho Choe from South Korea emerged victorious, defeating a field of 187 entries and claiming the lion’s share of the prize pool worth VND 1,088,300,000. He banked an impressive VND 270,000,000 in top prize after defeating China’s Hairong You (runner-up for VND 175,600,000) in the heads-up battle. The final spot on the podium went to Korea’s Jin Kim who banked VND 112,000,000. In this event, Prajit Ghambir represented India, securing  9th position and earning an impressive VND 28,900,000. This marked Ghambir’s first cash of the series.

Final 9 Payouts (VND)

Place	Player	Flag	Payout in VND
1	Hwanho Choe	Korea	270,000,000
2	Hairong You	China	175,600,000
3	Jin Kim	Korea	112,000,000
4	Piet Pape	Germany	76,500,000
5	Ledong Zhou	China	60,400,000
6	Zening Qiu	China	50,200,000
7	Jiawen Hu	China	41,800,000
8	Haoyuan Li	China	34,700,000
9	Prajit Ghambir	India	28,900,000

Event 18: Mystery Millions

The Mystery Millions event, spanning from March 22 to 24, 2024, witnessed intense competition with a significant bounty pool. Duc Thien Bui from Vietnam clinched the victory, bagging a hefty bounty and a total payout of VND 1,440,000,000. Farukh Tach placed second for VND 843,600,000 in total.

Indian players also made their mark, with Raju Jaruplavath (16^th for VND 63,800,000), Nishant Sharma (20^th for VND 52,200,000), and Pradeep Nudurumati (77^th for VND 20,100,000) finishing in the money.

Final 9 Payouts (VND)

Place	Player	Flag	Total Payout in VND
1	Duc Thien Bui	Vietnam	1,440,000,000
2	Farukh Tach	Afghanistan	843,600,000
3	Xiaotong Yu	China	585,100,000
4	Xichen Li	China	379,700,000
5	Xiaohu Liu	China	305,600,000
6	Michel Alain Romain	France	232,900,000
7	Hyundong Lee	Korea	186,100,000
8	Robert Stephen Emmerson	UK	735,300,000
9	Zeyu Chen	China	416,700,000

Event 25: Big Bounty (3M bounty)

Van Nhut Do from Vietnam emerged victorious in the Big Bounty event held on March 23, 2024, claiming a substantial VND 85,700,000, following a heads-up deal with Japan’s Jun Tsuboi who banked VND 81,000,000 for his efforts. Among the Indian contingent, Vijayvergiya Ashwin secured a notable 16th place finish for VND 6,700,000, showcasing India’s presence on the global poker scene.

Place	Player	Flag	Payout in VND
1	Van Nhut Do	Vietnam	85,700,000*
2	Jun Tsuboi	Japan	81,000,000*
3	Quoc Toan Nguyen	Vietnam	38,800,000
4	Myungil Jun	Korea	27,900,000
5	Xinliang Yang	China	22,300,000
6	Mai Nguyen	Vietnam	18,100,000
7	Withayapool Voradorn	Thailand	14,900,000
8	Miss Methavee Taveekitvatee	Thailand	12,300,000
9	Thi Minh Ngoc Ngo	Vietnam	10,100,000

Event 29: Sunday Superstack

On March 24, 2024, Suya Lee from Korea triumphed in the Sunday Superstack event, earning a handsome payout of VND 503,500,000. Germany’s Erik Rozhynskyi finished runner-up for VND Erik Rozhynskyi, courtesy heads-up deal. Alok Birewar represented India among the event’s cashers, finishing 9^th for VND 67,300,000 and making the country’s presence felt at the ongoing series.

Final 9 Payouts (VND)

Place	Player	Flag	Payout in VND
1	Suya Lee	Korea	503,500,000*
2	Erik Rozhynskyi	Germany	600,000,000*
3	Chaopeng Chen	China	291,100,000
4	Khoi Nguyen	Vietnam	189,200,000
5	Tien Thanh Nguyen	Vietnam	144,900,000
6	Salim William	Indonesia	118,400,000
7	Termsinvanit Dacha	Thailand	97,500,000
8	Bien Mai	Vietnam	80,700,000
9	Alok Pradip Birewar	India	67,300,000

Event 35: Mini Main

The Mini Main event, spanning from March 25 to 27, 2024, witnessed intense action with a massive prize pool of VND 11,649,300,000. Manh Hung Nguyen from Vietnam emerged as the champion, bagging VND 1,810,000,000 in top prize.

India’s Raju Jaruplavath (28^th for VND 69,800,000), Pradeep Nudurumati (30^th for 69,800,000), Bhavik Harshilbhai Khasturia (36^th for VND 69,800,000), Daniyal Mohamed Kazi (85^th for 29,100,000), and Alok Birewar (129^th for VND 18,500,000) secured cash finishes in the marquee event.

Final 9 Payouts (VND)

Place	Player	Flag	Payout in VND
1	Manh Hung Nguyen	Vietnam	1,810,000,000
2	Xiao Tong Yu	China	1,066,000,000
3	Junghyun Lee	Korea	715,300,000
4	Zhiyuan Xu	China	530,900,000
5	Bartlomiej Stanislaw Swieboda	Poland	417,900,000
6	Giuseppe Murabito	Italy	332,500,000
7	Yu Ying Chou	China	264,600,000
8	Weichen Lu	China	216,500,000
9	Haozhao Wang	China	185,000,000

Event 37: Freezeout

Vladimir Litasov from Russia claimed the top spot in this Freezeout event on March 25, 2024,securing VND 205,700,000 in top prize money. Jungsup Yun from Korea placed runner-up for VND 126,800,000.

Indian player Vijayvergiya Ashwin also made his presence felt, securing a spot among the cashers in the tournament. He walked away with VND 17,000,000 for his 10^th-place finish in the event.

Place	Player	Flag	Payout in VND
1	Vladimir Litasov	Russia	205,700,000
2	Jungsup Yun	Korea	126,800,000
3	Thanh Hung Tran	Vietnam	78,900,000
4	Haoyuan Li	China	55,900,000
5	Jinlong Hu	China	43,600,000
6	Crossley Young Thomas	Indonesia	35,900,000
7	Wai Lun Ng	Hong Kong	30,200,000
8	Yong Quan Teo	Singapore	25,100,000
9	Dinh Giang Truong	Vietnam	20,500,000

Event 45: Midweek Superstack

Date: March 27, 2024
Buy in: VND 10,000,000 (~USD 412)
Guarantee: VND 900,000,000 (~USD 36,320)
Entries: 342 (251 unique)
Prize pool: VND 2,985,600,000 (~USD 120,500)
ITM: 43 places

In this event of the ongoing USOP series held on March 27, 2024, Kisoo Byun from Korea emerged victorious, claiming a substantial payout of VND 637,800,000. Finishing behind him was Hernan Jaybee Villa from Philippines, who walked away with VND 446,900,000 as the runner-up finisher.

Headlining the Indian cashers in this event was Manish Lakhotia, who finished 5^th on the final table and walked away with VND 142,700,000. Daniyal Mohamed Kazi (11^th for VND 53,700,000), Vijayvergiya Ashwin (28^th for VND 18,600,000, and veteran pro Dhaval Mudgal (41^st for VND 15,300,000) also secured cash finishes in the event, highlighting India’s presence in the USOP.

Final 9 Payouts (VND)

Place	Player	Flag	Payout in VND
1	Kisoo Byun	Korea	637,800,000
2	Hernan Jaybee Villa	Philippines	446,900,000
3	Van Thai Nguyen	Vietnam	287,400,000
4	Vladimir Litasov	Russia	185,100,000
5	Manish Lakhotia	India	142,700,000
6	Lan Chi Do	Vietnam	118,100,000
7	Buu Nghia Le	Vietnam	99,100,000
8	King Chun Horace Leung	China	81,400,000
9	Songklot Sermsirimongkol	Thailand	64,000,000

Keep following PokerproNews for the latest updates from the ongoing USOP Danang 2024 series!

Image Credit: SMP & USOP