Global Poker Index: Benjamin Pollak Reaches Top 10, Bryn Kenney Still Tops
Each week, the Global Poker Index releases a list of the top tournament poker players in the world using a formula that takes into account a player's results over six half-year periods. For a look at the entire list, visit the official GPI website. Here's a look at the rankings as of September 13.
2017 GPI Player of the Year
| Rank | Player | GPI Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bryn Kenney | 3284.93 | - |
| 2 | Koray Aldemir | 3149.15 | - |
| 3 | Nick Petrangelo | 3058.14 | - |
| 4 | Dario Sammartino | 2928.47 | - |
| 5 | Dan Smith | 2841.98 | - |
| 6 | Sergio Aido | 2809.01 | - |
| 7 | Pete Chen | 2781.40 | - |
| 8 | Stephen Chidwick | 2778.51 | - |
| 9 | Anthony Spinella | 2769.89 | - |
| 10 | Dejuante Alexander | 2769.61 | - |
There was nary a change among the top 10 this week in the 2017 Global Poker Index Player of the Year race, with Bryn Kenney remaining in the top spot for a fourth-straight week and everyone else staying right where they were a week ago.
Those following the Poker Masters series of high-stakes tournaments being staged at the ARIA Resort & Casino already know many of those atop the 2017 GPI POY rankings are helping make up the fields.
In last night’s first event — a $50,000 buy-in tournament that drew 51 total entries — Bryn Kenney, Koray Aldemir, Dan Smith, Sergio Aido, and Stephen Chidwick all took part, with Aldemir among the seven players who survived to today’s second and final day of play. A first-place prize of $918,000 awaits the winner, with PokerNews on hand delivering live updates from start to finish.
Looking down the POY leaderboard, Yan Tsang made the most notable upward move since the last update, going from No. 76 to No. 36 after collecting a couple of cashes at the Macau Poker Cup 27.
Martin Finger also made a couple of final tables in high roller events in Macau, helping him jump up from No. 161 to No. 84 on the list.
GPI 300 Top 10
| Rank | Player | GPI Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bryn Kenney | 3385.08 | - |
| 2 | Nick Petrangelo | 3307.33 | - |
| 3 | David Peters | 3262.53 | - |
| 4 | Justin Bonomo | 3254.93 | - |
| 5 | Stephen Chidwick | 3219.23 | - |
| 6 | Adrian Mateos | 3205.37 | - |
| 7 | Ari Engel | 3128.20 | - |
| 8 | Dan Smith | 3085.40 | - |
| 9 | Koray Aldemir | 3029.66 | +1 |
| 10 | Benjamin Pollak | 2975.08 | +2 |
It’s mostly the same story looking at the latest Top 10 of the overall GPI rankings. The top eight remain unchanged from a week ago, with Kenney on top again for a fourth week in a row.
Aldemir moved up a spot from No. 10 to No. 9, while Benjamin Pollak cracked the list after elevating from No. 12 to No. 10. The third-place finisher in the 2017 World Series of Poker Main Event added another third-place showing in the PokerStars Championship Barcelona High Roller not long ago, enabling Pollak to reach the GPI Top 10 for the first time in his career.
In fact, according to the Global Poker Index, Pollak’s entry onto the list marks the first time a French player has been ranked in the Top 10 for over four years. Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, the Team PokerStars Pro who shared some World Championship of Online Poker advice earlier this week, was the last to accomplish the feat back in August 2013.
Welcome to the GPI Top 300
| Rank | Player | Total Score |
|---|---|---|
| 214 | Scott Davies | 1968.15 |
| 238 | Marshall White | 1928.76 |
| 255 | Martin Kabrhel | 1893.49 |
| 268 | Stoyan Obreshkov | 1866.98 |
| 292 | Massoud Eskandari | 1830.15 |
| 293 | Brett Apter | 1829.48 |
Just six players managed to move up into the overall GPI Top 300 this week, with the always-on-the-go Scott Davies the highest-ranked of the group after moving from No. 311 to No. 214.
Davies — winner of the World Series of Poker Asia Pacific Main Event in 2014 — picked up a couple of cashes in Macau as well to enable his upward climb. His highest previous GPI ranking has been No. 72 (in September 2015).
Biggest Gains
| Rank | Player | Total GPI Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 214 | Scott Davies | 1968.15 | +97 |
| 142 | Chris Hunichen | 2122.02 | +94 |
| 171 | Jonathan Karamalikis | 2051.64 | +83 |
| 238 | Marshall White | 1928.76 | +80 |
| 133 | Diego Zeiter | 2141.84 | +74 |
Davies likewise topped the “Biggest Gains” list this week (looking only at those inside the GPI Top 300). Chris Hunichen improved almost as much after going from No. 236 to No. 142 to this week. The “Big Huni” has made it inside the GPI Top 100 once before, reaching No. 98 in June of this year.
Biggest Drops
| Rank | Player | Total GPI Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 220 | James Chen | 1959.08 | -83 |
| 283 | Michael Del Vecchio | 1839.48 | -67 |
| 267 | Sorel Mizzi | 1875.52 | -64 |
| 243 | Rajaee Wazwaz | 1911.68 | -63 |
| 205 | Eric Baldwin | 1982.19 | -44 |
Meanwhile James Chen tops the “Biggest Drops” list this week rating those slipping the furthest in the rankings while still remaining inside the Top 300.
What to Expect Next Week
The partypoker Millions Russia series continues in Sochi, with the Main Event already having reached its fifth and final day. PokerNews is there providing live updates, so click over to see how that event concludes today.
Also in action this week are the World Poker Tour Borgata Open in Atlantic City, the World Series of Poker Circuit Biloxi and the Gulf Coast Poker Championship (both in Biloxi), and the Commerce Poker Series in Los Angeles. Also next week begins the Winamax Poker Open in Dublin, Ireland.
Keep an eye on that aforementioned Poker Masters series as well, where it looks as though the fields will be plenty big to qualify for GPI points and therefore affect both the 2017 POY race and overall rankings.
To view the GPI overall rankings in their entirety, visit the official GPI website. While you're at it, follow the GPI on Twitter and its Facebook page.
