Global Poker Index: Winter Again Tops POY, Foxen Still Leads Overall
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. Below we look at the 2019 Player of the Year race and overall GPI rankings as of May 1.
2019 GPI Player of the Year
| Rank | Player | 2019 GPI POY Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sean Winter | 2447.24 |
| 2 | Brian Altman | 2218.96 |
| 3 | Rainer Kempe | 1891.32 |
| 4 | James Romero | 1877.16 |
| 5 | Sonny Franco | 1790.53 |
| 6 | Aaron Massey | 1772.45 |
| 7 | Bryn Kenney | 1767.30 |
| 8 | Nick Pupillo | 1741.92 |
| 9 | Ari Engel | 1737.08 |
| 10 | Ariel Celestino | 1679.71 |
Just as was the case a month ago during our last look-in upon the 2019 Global Poker Index Player of the Year race, Sean Winter is once again the frontrunner.
Winter is actually beginning a new streak at No. 1 this week after having lost the lead for a couple of weeks to the current No. 2, Brian Altman. Altman rose up the rankings during April after a strong showing at the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown series that included three final tables and two first-place finishes.
Rainer Kempe is at No. 3 to maintain his place near the top, while James Romero (No. 4), Sonny Franco (No. 5), and Aaron Massey (No. 6) all made their first appearances in the POY Top 10 during the past month.
Romero also cashed a couple of times at the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown, then earned another big boost for his fourth-place finish in the €1,100 French National Championship at the 2019 PokerStars and Monte-Carlo®Casino European Poker Tour in which Stefano Schiano topped a 1,425-entry field.
Franco spent April cashing several times at the World Series of Poker International Circuit Cannes stop and a couple more in Monaco, while Massey collected POY points in events at the Seminole and the WSOP Circuit Cherokee stop.
Bryn Kenney (No. 7), Ari Engel (No. 9), and Ariel Celestino (No. 10) all continue to appear in the POY Top 10, and Nick Pupillo (No. 8) jumped up 10 spots last week to join the list after a final table appearance in an EPT Monte-Carlo side event.
Overall GPI Top 10
| Rank | Player | Overall GPI Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alex Foxen | 3910.47 |
| 2 | Rainer Kempe | 3496.19 |
| 3 | Stephen Chidwick | 3491.28 |
| 4 | David Peters | 3464.15 |
| 5 | Steve O'Dwyer | 3387.09 |
| 6 | Justin Bonomo | 3367.97 |
| 7 | Bryn Kenney | 3343.37 |
| 8 | Michael Soyza | 3297.32 |
| 9 | Jake Schindler | 3279.33 |
| 10 | Jason Koon | 3250.84 |
Looking again at the overall GPI rankings, things have remained essentially stable over the last month with Alex Foxen having remained the top-ranked tournament player in the world for 30 straight weeks.
Foxen added five more cashes to his ever-lengthening tournament résumé during April, all coming in five-figure buy-in events and all ending with final-table finishes (two runner-ups, and a third, fourth, and fifth). One of those second-place finishes came earlier this week when Foxen took second in the €50K High Roller to Matthias Eibinger at EPT Monte-Carlo.
Kempe has moved back up to No. 2, equaling his highest-career ranking first achieved earlier this year. Meanwhile Stephen Chidwick (No. 3), David Peters (No. 4), and Steve O'Dwyer (No. 5) — all of whom have been No. 1 before — remain close to the top. Justin Bonono has made it to No. 2 before, and currently resides at No. 6, while another former No. 1 Bryn Kenney is No. 7.
Michael Soyza has moved up to No. 8 — his career peak — after winning both the Triton Poker Super High Roller Series Jeju HK$500K Six-Max and the APPT Super High Roller early in April.
Jake Schindler (No. 9) and Jason Koon (No. 10) — both of whom have made it as high as No. 5 before — round out the Top 10.
Looking just outside the list, Michael Addamo moved up from No. 22 to No. 12 last week, and with another cash he could crack the overall Top 10 for the first time.
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.
