Ladies Global Poker Index Report: Bicknell and Lampropulos Top Two
While our readers have had the benefit of a monthly Global Poker Index report for some time now, we at PokerNews felt there was another GPI race that merited some attention.
Welcome to the brand-new monthly Ladies GPI Report. Similar to the overall GPI article that comes out on the first Thursday of every month, this one will highlight the rankings of the best female poker players in the world, updated on the third Thursday each month.
The GPI rankings are based on a points system that factors in tournament buy-in level, entries and place finished. Here, we take a look at both the top 10 female 2018 Player of the Year standings and the ladies overall GPI rankings, which considers players' results over six half-year periods.
At first glance, they look to be about the same with the top two spots matching, but the rest of the list varies for each. For a look at the entire list of ladies GPI rankings, head to the official GPI website. Before diving into the standings as of Oct. 17, let's have a quick look at the female POY for the past five years.
Ladies GPI Player of the Year 2013-2017
| Year | Female POY | GPI Points |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Kristen Bicknell | 2,627.75 |
| 2016 | Cate Hall | 2,383.64 |
| 2015 | Kelly Minkin | 1,748.99 |
| 2014 | Vanessa Selbst | 2,431.88 |
| 2013 | Vanessa Selbst | 798.55 |
2018 Ladies GPI Player of the Year Top 10
Canada’s Kristen Bicknell and Argentina’s Maria Lampropulos (both pictured above) represent No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, on both lists.
Since taking her poker career to the live arena in 2016, Bicknell has excelled, having better results each year. This year has been by far her best as she has nearly doubled her live tournament earnings in 2018 alone after racking up over $1 million in cashes, with more than two months left to go.
Bicknell landed second in the 2016 POY race behind Cate Hall and just above Lampropulos. The next year, Bicknell finished at the top, where she currently sits again, looking for back-to-back titles. Lampropulos finished runner-up to Bicknell in 2017, and once more is occupying that second-place spot in the current standings.
| Rank | Player | 2018 GPI POY Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kristen Bicknell | 2,983.58 |
| 2 | Maria Lampropulos | 2,393.58 |
| 3 | Loni Harwood | 2,213.24 |
| 4 | Maria Ho | 1,974.97 |
| 5 | Maria Konnikova | 1,902.99 |
| 6 | Aylar Lie | 1,723.18 |
| 7 | Wendy Freedman | 1,699.55 |
| 8 | Gao Wenling | 1,694.78 |
| 9 | Kitty Kuo | 1,688.69 |
| 10 | Anna Antimony | 1,615.63 |
Speaking of consistency, Maria Ho finished third on the 2017 POY race and currently holds the No. 4 spot. With the exception of 2015, Ho has finished in the top 10 female POY ranks in five of the last six years and is poised for another top-five finish for 2018.
Lampropulos seems to be putting in a good amount of volume to give Bicknell a run for her money. Lampropulos has already collected 450 GPI points this month alone with three points-earning cashes in the MILLIONS UK and the WSOPE which is still in progress.
Loni Harwood is unlikely to catch Bicknell, not for lack of skill, but lack of volume. Despite playing primarily local tournaments in and around Florida with the occasional Vegas trip, she has still managed to stay in the top five POY and overall GPI ranks, propelled by deep runs at Seminole Hard Rock and two WSOP Circuit wins in Coconut Creek and Las Vegas back in February.
But not many put in more live volume than Bicknell does these days. Along with her partner Alex Foxen, who just last week climbed into the top overall and top GPI POY spot, the couple keeps a packed tournament schedule and consistent results.
Bicknell’s most recent 18th-place finish in the £5,300 MILLIONS UK Main Event and fourth place in the C$2,200 WSOP-C Playground High Roller within the past two months have netted her 510 GPI points, and you can bet she'll be playing more events before ringing in the New Year.
Overall Ladies GPI Top 10
| Rank | Player | Overall GPI Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kristen Bicknell | 3,073.46 |
| 2 | Maria Lampropulos | 2,542.51 |
| 3 | Maria Ho | 2,252.48 |
| 4 | Loni Harwood | 2,153.54 |
| 5 | Wendy Freedman | 1,841.78 |
| 6 | Gao Wenling | 1,812.92 |
| 7 | Kitty Kuo Thomas | 1,764.90 |
| 8 | Anna Antimony | 1,682.57 |
| 9 | Maria Konnikova | 1,636.10 |
| 10 | Nadya Magnus | 1,604.29 |
Only Bicknell (14th) and Lampropulos (59th) currently reside within the Overall Top 100 GPI, with Bicknell closing in on the top ten. In fact, Bicknell is just 133.04 points from the current No. 10 Jason Koon, within striking distance.
Maria Ho recently moved up to third overall with her latest win, which came in the $1,000 WPT DeepStacks Johannesburg Main Event for $69,166 and 256.61 GPI points.
Wendy Freedman collected 353.76 points and $167,696 for her win last month in the $1,650 HPT Golden Gates Main Event, putting her in the top five in the overall GPI standings, and also making 2018 her best ever in terms of money won, according to Hendon Mob.
China’s Gao Wenling is also a relatively new player in the female top ten lists, having a breakout year with many deep runs, most of those coming in Macau. Wenling has racked up right around $400,000 so far for 2018, her biggest cash of $155,000 for a fifth-place finish in a HK$100K APPT High Roller in March.
Writer-turned-poker player Maria Konnikova’s recent 20th-place finish in the $3,500 WPT Borgata Main Event also has her on an upward trend, as she collected 229.70 GPI points along with $24,695 for her run. After winning the PCA National Championship in January following some intensive mentoring by Erik Seidel, Konnikova’s amazing poker story goes on as she continues to put in volume and climb the GPI ranks while her book remains on hold.
You can follow the GPI Ladies races on the official GPI website. Also feel free to follow the GPI on Twitter and its Facebook page.
