Aditya Agarwal Exclusive Interview

Aditya Agarwal is a top ranked Indian poker player as well as a PokerStars pro. He currently sits at #3 on the India All-time money list according to the Hendonmob DB. He is also an extremely successful online grinder. We recently got a chance to catch up with him after he won his first TCOOPtitle.

What first got you interested in poker, Aditya?

So, I was an international student in the U.S. and I was studying at Drexel University in Philadelphia. My freshman year was the year Chris Moneymaker won, so we had that on ESPN, and that’s when I actually learned the game, in the dorms. That’s what initially got me interested in the game, watching it on TV and playing it with the other freshmen.

A whole lot of people got swept in that year. Is Chris Moneymaker a pro that you look up to, and are there any other pros that inspire you?

Well Chris Moneymaker was obviously the first pro I looked up to. Him winning that tournament showed that anyone could do it. After that, Phil Ivey and Daniel Negreanu, those are definitely the pros that I have looked up to over the years.

So poker is your main profession, you’re a PokerStars Pro after all. Do you think being a professional poker player lends itself to an abnormal lifestyle?

I mean, it’s very difficult in India. I play online, and you know, there is a significant time difference. Most of the tournaments for me start at night. On Sundays I’m up all night playing the Sunday schedule. During the week it varies, but on the weekends I play very late.

I have a list of your tournament cashes here, and as I look over it, I see that after 2014 there is a significant drop off in live cashes. Did you switch to more online play, and if so, how is that working out?

I’ve been playing a lot more online recently and that's been good. I recently got a big score in the TCOOP ( 1st place in TCOOP 2016 Event #50 for $160,000), and that definitely boosted my volume a lot more too.

Speaking of online play, as a big online player, I’m sure you are aware that there has been some recent controversy over the use of H.U.D.s and seating scripts. Care to share your thoughts?

I do feel like (their use) does give an edge to players. I don’t use one, but I have used one in the past. It is definitely helpful, so I see why people use it. But if you are trying to replicate a real life setting, then you know… it's not right. There is definitely an additional advantage for players using them.

I know that you largely play online, but you have certainly played a lot of live poker too. Are you friends with any other professional players? Do you play with any other pros outside of major tournaments?

I’m friendly with a lot of the pros as I’ve been in the industry for ten years, and I’m very friendly with a lot of the Asian pro teams. You know we meet every few months for live tournaments. But as for people I’m close to, there’s Chris Dombrowski and Jeff Papola. I’m not sure if they’re really well known, but they are very good players and have been my friends for a very long time.

Who do you think is the world’s best poker player, past or present?

I would have to pick Phil Ivey.

Ivey has been having a rough time recently.

Yes recently, but he’s just been so good for so long that two years really isn’t that bad. Let’s see how he does in the future before I remove him from the top of my list.

Variance, am I right?

There’s so much variance, you know? And it takes a while to adjust whenever the games change, and games are changing really fast right now. I also don’t think Ivey has been putting in a lot of volume recently. He’s been working more on the business side, and he has that new DFS site, so I don’t think we can judge based on the past few years.

Since we are talking about Phil Ivey, I have to ask if you have a take on the edge sorting scandal that Phil has had to deal with recently.

I still feel like he didn’t do anything wrong. He found an edge and exploited it. It’s kind of in a grey area what he did, but I don’t really think he did anything wrong. I don’t really see how you can cheat the casino.

That’s all we had time to talk about, unfortunately, but it’s always great to pick the brain of a truly successful online grinder. That isn’t to minimize Aditya’s longstanding successful live play record, but if you look at the numbers, he cashes night after night in his online forays. It really shows not only the dedication that it takes to make poker your profession, but also the success you can find if you put in the time and effort.

I hope you enjoyed reading our little interview, and check back soon for more one-on-ones with the greatest stars of modern poker.