Mohsin Charania: Poker's Newest Triple Crown Winner

Mohsin Charania began playing World Series of Poker events dating back to 2009 after learning the game as mostly an online player. Since then, he’s gone on to become a successful live tournament pro with $5.6 million in earnings and 45 WSOP cashes without a win. But on the last day of June Charania broke through to win his first bracelet joined the exclusive “Triple Crown” club in poker.

Charania won Event #52: $1,500 No Limit Hold’em for $364,438 after defeating Cary Katz heads-up in a final table that streamed live exclusively on PokerGO with a large rail of friends watching. “This one was different – not in the sense that I thought it was any more prestigious because it’s a bracelet, but I think it’s actually harder to win an EPT or a WPT,” he said. “But it was different because most times when you play a live tournament it takes five to six days and most of your friends leave before the final table because they don’t live there or they’re going on to the next stop.”

“So, it’s nice that everyone was stuck here for the summer and had to rail me. There were a lot more people there – they were a lot drunker and rowdier, so in that sense, it was – it’s not one of those tournaments where you fist bump someone two days later,” Charania added. “Your rail isn’t going to let you forget it. It was a different experience to win and we were in the Thunderdome – which I don’t think most of the $1,500s have been, so it worked out really well.”

Charania was able to close out the distractions and concentrate on the moment. “I don’t think it was the prize pool, I think anytime you get deep in a tournament you have the same kind of adrenaline and drive, no matter what first place is,” he said. “I think you get that from playing online poker – so winning a $100 tournament for $11 grand or winning a $10,000 tournament for a million dollars – it gives you a sense of completion from finishing out a tournament. I think that gives you enough adrenaline.”

Charania at the final table considering his action. (Photo: PokerPhotoArchive.com
“I don’t think it was the bracelet that motivated me, the last time I won a tournament was December 2014, so ending the drought was nice,” Charania said. “The natural instinct kicked in with about 30 some people left. Then you look up and see there’s 20 left and you think ‘I got this’, then you look up and you’re four-handed and you’re like ‘Wow, it’s almost done.’”

“The concept of completion is tough because even if you get second, it’s a disappointment,” Charania explained. “Which is kind of a dumb thing to say because second place was probably a couple hundred grand. But when you’re playing purely for the competition and the sport of winning a tournament, I don’t think it matters what’s on the line as long as you’re competitive enough.”

Poker’s Triple Crown – an EPT Main Event title, a World Poker Tour title and a WSOP bracelet – is exclusive group with Charania becoming the sixth member and it’s been five years since a player joined the group of Gavin Griffin, Roland De Wolfe, Jake Cody, Bertrand Grospellier and Davdi Kitai.

Charania was excited to win the final leg – “It’s awesome, there’s not any EPTs anymore so I don’t think anyone can join anymore,” he said. “Any time you do something in a profession that something only a few people do, it’s amazing and fortunate.”

“It’s a matter of playing well and running good,” he continued. “No one that has won Player of the Year or multiple tournaments can tell you that they’re the best player in the world. They’re lying if they don’t tell you that they’re running good as well. I’m sure there will be some new tournaments coming along and a new term if you win four or five (different events) even.”

Mohsin can’t put a date to when he’ll leave the game. (Photo: PokerPhotoArchive.com)
Charania’s not shy about his love/hate relationship with poker and spoke in the past in interviews about retiring from the game. After winning a bracelet, we asked if that put some finality to his career. “That’s a tough question because I feel like in interviews I’ve said I’m towards the end (of career) but I’m still here playing. That’s the nature of the game.”

“I would guess, over the last year and a half, I’ve been playing a lot less. I don’t really travel abroad, I don’t go to the WPTs in obscure stops and I don’t go to WSOP Europe anymore,” said Charania. “I would guess I’m probably towards the end or close to the end.”

“I still enjoy playing online a ton. I’d rather live in Toronto and play online – I still enjoy the game,” he said. “It’s tough when you’re running bad, awesome when you’re running good. I don’t know – I don’t want to answer that because I don’t know the answer. I could run really good for the next couple months and win more tournaments or I could run really bad and say I’m quitting. It just depends really – no one can give you a correct answer.”

Not only a first #WSOP bracelet but @chicagocards1 is now a ?????? winner! pic.twitter.com/dlEuyGEK2C

— PokerGO (@PokerGO) June 30, 2017