2017 American Poker Awards Results
Last night, the fourth annual Global Poker Index American Poker Awards presented by PokerStars were held at the Andaz Hotel in West Hollywood, Los Angeles. Lynn Gilmartin took to the stage to host the evening which attracted a legion of poker players and industry insiders.
Both Ari Engel and PocketFives' Lance Bradley walked away with awards in back to back years.
Engel won the PocketFives Legacy Award after grinding years online and now performing at the highest levels in live play. Last year, he won the Tournament Performance of the Year for his win in the Aussie Millions Main Event, easily the biggest live cash of his illustrious career. This year, Scott Blumstein claimed the award for the Tournament Performance of the Year for winning the World Series of Poker Main Event in dominating fashion.
Lance Bradley won the Poker Journalist of the Year award after being nominated for this award last year when he fell short to Joe Stapleton who claimed the honors. Bradley did win another award last year, he won the award for Media Content of the Year with "Bob, Charlie and a Life-Changing WSOP Main Event Journey".
The 20 award winners can be found underneath in bold.
GPI American Player of the Year
Presented to the player who scored the most points Global Poker Index (GPI) Points during the 2017 poker season. A player’s Top 13 qualifying GPI scores for events played starting between January 1 and December 31, 2017 are tabulated to determine total GPI Points for 2017.
Bryn Kenney
GPI Female Player of the Year
Presented to the female poker player who scored the most points Global Poker Index (GPI) Points during the 2017 poker season. A player’s Top 13 qualifying GPI scores for events played starting between January 1 and December 31, 2017 are tabulated to determine total GPI Points for 2017.
Kristen Bicknell
Poker Journalist of the Year
Looking to place the spotlight on those who shine brightest in the poker journalism, this Award is presented to the person judged to have been a leader in their field during 2017.
The most talented poker journalists have the ability to connect poker fans with the poker world through articles, live reporting, and photography.
Drew Amato
Lance Bradley
BJ Nemeth
Steve Ruddock
Jessica Welman
Industry Person of the Year
Presented to the casino employee, tournament staff member or tour operating worker deemed to have gone over and beyond for the game of poker during the 2017 poker season.
Tony Burns
Sean McCormack
Adam Pliska
Matt Savage
Breakout Player of the Year
Presented to the player judged to have enjoyed a breakout campaign on the live tournament circuit in 2017. A player cannot have won a major poker title prior to 2017.
Dejuante “DJ” Alexander
Michael Del Vecchio
William Alex Foxen
Artur Papazyan
Tournament Performance of the Year
Awarded to the American player judged to have had the single best tournament performance on the worldwide live circuit during the 2017 poker season.
Scott Blumstein (WSOP Main Event)
Darren Elias (WPT Fallsview)
Bryn Kenney (PSC Monte Carlo Super High Roller)
Doug Polk (WSOP One Drop High Roller)
Mid-Major Circuit of the Year
Presented to the organization who presented the best Mid-Major Circuit events and festivals during the 2017 poker season.
Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT)
RUNGOOD Poker Series
WPTDeepStacks (WPTDS)
World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC)
Event of the Year
Presented to the event judged to have been the best single tournament event presented during the 2017 campaign.
Super High Roller Bowl (ARIA Las Vegas)
partypoker MILLIONS North America (Playground Poker Club, Montreal)
Poker Masters Event #1 (ARIA Las Vegas)
World Series of Poker Main Event (Rio Las Vegas)
Charitable Initiative of the Year
Presented to an individual, organization, venue, tournament or tournament series that raises awareness as well raise funds for a noteworthy charitable cause.
One Step Closer Foundation (https://www.1scf.org)
Award for Lifetime Achievement in Poker
Presented to the person judged to have devoted a significant portion of their life to poker; a person who has positively impacted the poker world. These accomplishments will be celebrated with the presentation of this special Award. This trophy is to be Awarded at the Jury’s discretion.
Lon Mceachern and Norman Chad
Moment of the Year
Each year poker produces extraordinary moments. From a historic victory to a jaw-dropping elimination and everything in between, this Award is presented to the person who created THE moment that will remain forever etched in every poker fan’s memory.
70-year-old John Smith makes back-to-back WSOP 10K Heads-Up finals
Ema Zajmovic becomes first female player to win open event on World Poker Tour
Vanessa Selbst’s Full House loses to Gaelle Baumann’s Quads early in the WSOP Main Event
Tom Dwan makes his return to America, stars on Poker After Dark reboot on PokerGo
Poker Media Content of the Year
Presented to the best poker article, blog post, book, picture or interview published by a journalist, industry member, blogger, player or media contributor during 2017.
Adrian Moreno in tears after Little One for One Drop win; days after losing his friend (Drew Amato photo for WSOP.com)
Dead Money: A Super High Roller Bowl Story (PokerCentral documentary)
Poker Brat: The Phil Hellmuth Story (Phil Hellmuth book published by D&B Publishing)
Resilience Defined: Sheddy Siddiqui raising his two boys #FORCATHY (Lance Bradley article for PocketFives)
Poker Streamer of the Year
Presented to the most dedicated poker streamer who continued to provide quality entertainment to their most dedicated fans while attracting and educating the most novice of players.
Jeff Gross
Bill Perkins
Jason Somerville
Jaime Staples
Parker Talbot
Poker Broadcaster of the Year
Presented to the best poker broadcaster in the business.
Nick Schulman
Joseph Stapleton
Lon McEachern
Ali Nejad
Video Blogger of the Year
Presented to the “vlogger” who not only releases quality, well-produced, content but must also show the ability to connect with the audience
Joe Ingram
Daniel Negreanu
Andrew Neeme
Doug Polk
Poker Podcast of the Year
Presented to the podcast series judged to be the best for 2017. Nomination Panel and Jury members should focus on overall quality and frequency of published episodes
PokerCentral Podcast (Brent Hanks, Will O’Connor, Remko Rinkema)
PokerNews Podcast (Brent Harrington, Sarah Herring, Matt Parvis)
Poker Life Podcast (Joe Ingram)
TwoPlusTwo Podcast (Terrence Chan, Ross Henry, Adam Schwartz)
PocketFives Legacy Award
Presented to an online poker legend who has also made significant contributions on the live tournament circuit.
Ari Engel
Biggest Influencer in Poker
Presented to the individual who moves the needle most in the poker world. Whether it’s a player, an industry member or even a celebrity, this Award winner is judged to have been one of the biggest influencers in the game in 2017.
Cary Katz
Daniel Negreanu
Doug Polk
Matt Savage
Jury Prize
A special Award may be presented by the members of the Jury to a person, group or organization who deserve special recognition for their contributions to poker in 2017.
Eric Danis
People's Choice Award for Poker Personality of the Year
Presented to the poker personality judged to have been one of the game’s best ambassadors in 2017, making a positive impact in the poker world while engaging his or her audience.
Poker fans will determine the winner of this Award. This Award isn’t a simple popularity vote; the winner should be someone who works hard on and/or off the felt; someone who promotes the game of poker
Andrew Neeme
Photos courtesy of revolutionpix for GPI (Global Poker Index)
Andrew Neeme photos courtesy of Tambet Kask/Unibet
