September 22 2011, Mickey Doft

Each week, the Global Poker Index releases a list of the top 300 tournament poker players in the world. There was little change in the top ten as Erik Seidel remains on top with a minuscule lead over Jason Mercier, though there is one new addition. For a look at the entire list of 300, visit the official GPI website.

The Top 10 as of September 19, 2011

The only change to the top ten this week was Shawn Buchanan sneaking in at No. 10, taking John Juanda’s place. Buchanan’s last tournament cash was in August, so why did he jump eight spots? In March, Buchanan min-cashed in the WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star Championship. That result slipped from Period 1 to Period 2, leading to a slight decrease in Buchanan’s Period 1 score because it was replaced by another result. However, that min-cash in the WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star Championship now gives Buchanan a full complement of Period 2 scores to be calculated by the GPI, therefore resulting in his top ten appearance.

It’s a similar story for Juanda, but the opposite result. His 25th-place finish in the WPT Bay 101 Shooting Star Championship slipped to Period 2, as well, also giving him a full complement of Period 2 scores to be calculated. However, unlike Buchanan, Juanda doesn’t have a fourth cash in Period 1 to replace it, resulting in his three-spot drop to No. 13 on the GPI.

Welcome to the GPI

Six players are new to this week’s rankings, including a few familiar names from week’s past.

New Additions

Who dropped from the top 300 on the GPI this week? A few very big names, that’s who. No longer on the list are Jeff Madsen, Kathy Liebert, Ted Forrest, Michael Tureniec, Phillippe Ktorza, and Kent Lundmark.

Ups and Downs

The biggest jump of the week belongs to Frenchman Antony Lellouche. Davidi Kitai also saw a big jump in his rankings thanks to a first and second finish for the duo at the WPT Rendez-Vous à Paris in a pot-limit Omaha side event. Each earned more than $100,000 for their respective performances. Also rising in the GPI ranks this week was Alexander Kravchenko, who cracked the top 50 in the process. In a similar situation to Buchanan, Kravchenko had a score move from Period 1 to Period 2, thus giving him a full complement of Period 2 scores to be calculated, while a similar recent score just about made up the difference in Period 1.

Biggest Gains

Suffering the steepest fall this week was Joe Serock. A second-place finish in the £5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha event at the 2010 WSOPE fell from Period 2 to Period 3, leaving Serock’s Period 2 composed of three very minor results. Jeff Papola experienced a similar drop. His seventh-place showing at the 2010 WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship Event also slipped from Period 2 to Period 3.

Biggest Drops

What’s In Store?

The World Poker Tour is in full swing right now with stops on both sides of globe running. The 2010 WPT Malta is just under way, while, at the time of writing, the 2011 WPT Borgata Poker Open Championship Event is down to 27 players. Will “The Thrill” Failla’s heater continues as he sits atop the chip counts. Will his hot streak lead to a spot in the GPI top ten? Vanessa Selbst is also still in field. Might she make a return trip toward the top of the GPI?

On the other hand, there are those who are due for a fall. Dmitry Gromov, currently No. 72 on the GPI, will drop a bit next week since his win at the 2011 WPT Vienna Main Event in March will move from Period 1 to Period 2. McLean Karr will also slide next week because two of his GPI results will fall to other Periods. His 16th-place finish in the £10,000 No-Limit Hold’em High-Roller Heads-Up at the 2010 WSOPE will fall from Period 2 to Period 3. Also due to fall (though, it may occur in two weeks because of the cutoff date) from Period to Period 2 is Karr’s victory in the 2011 WPT Vienna High-Roller.

To look at the entire list of 300, visit the official GPI website. While you’re at it, follow the GPI on Twitter and its Facebook page.

To stay on top of the GPI and other happenings in the poker world, follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

Follow Mickey Doft on Twitter – @mrdoft

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September 15 2011, Mickey Doft

Each week, the Global Poker Index releases a list of the top 300 tournament poker players in the world. This week, there is a new No. 1. Overtaking Jason Mercier by the slimmest of margins, Erik Seidel now sits atop the GPI for the first time. There was some more movement in the top ten that we’ll also delve into. For a look at the entire list of 300, visit the official GPI website.

The Top 10 as of September 12, 2011

Thanks to his fourth-place finish in the Epic Poker League #2 Main Event, Seidel’s Period 1 score improved. Why? This finish trumped his second-place finish in the 2011 World Poker Tour Hollywood Poker Open, leading to an ever-so-slight GPI-score gain of 6.06. That alone was was not enough to trump Mercier’s score from last week, but don’t forget that the GPI calculates a player’s top three scores over six periods of six months.

Mercier’s GPI score dropped by 14.19 because of a cash from 2008. His second-largest Period 6 score was a sixth-place finish at the 2008 European Poker Tour Barcelona Main Event. However, that score is now more than three years ago and not only does that finish drop from Mercier’s Period 6 calculations, but it no longer counts in his GPI score at all.

Sorel Mizzi and Fabrice Soulier also increased their GPI scores in the past week thanks to impressive results. Mizzi took down the “15,000 High Roller event at the World Poker Tour in Paris last week, giving his Period 1 results a much-needed boost. Soulier, meanwhile, finished in third place at the Epic Poker League #2 Main Event to up his score, as well.

Welcome to the GPI

Thirteen players are new to the GPI this week. Among them are Adam Levy and David Steicke, thanks to their respective showings in the Epic Poker League #2 Main Event.

New Additions

With 13 new additions, there were also 13 people who fell off the list. Gone from the GPI this week are Alex Keating, Alex Wice, Brett Richey, Georges Yazbeck, Hasan Habib, James Mitchell, Joe Elpayaa, Morten Mortensen, Simon Ravnsbaek, Shawn Busse, Sebastian Ruthenberg, Ville Haavisto, and Yuval Bronshtein.

Ups and Downs

A win at the 2011 WPT Grand Prix de Paris vaulted Matt Waxman to the No. 16 ranking on the GPI. The biggest rise of the week belonged to Tyler Bonkowski. Although his only recent result was a 36th-place finish in the aforementioned 2011 WPT Grand Prix de Paris, that is Bonkowski’s third cash in the last six months, giving him a full complement of Period 1 scores to be counted toward the GPI.

Biggest Gains

On the other end of the spectrum, Nicolas Chouity suffered a very steep drop in the GPI. A fifth-place score in the 2011 Merit Spring Open Main Event slipped from Period 1 to 2, resulting in a 93-spot plummet. Sam Trickett also fell from his previous rank of No. 31 due to a result counting for a new period. In his case, his win in the PartyPoker.com World Open VI last September is now a part of his Period 3 calculations, rather than Period 2.

Biggest Drops

What’s In Store?

Currently taking place is the 2011 Partouche Poker Tour Main Event. There is still a long way to go, but among the 101 players remaining (at the time of the writing of this article) are Juha Helppi, Will “The Thrill” Failla, John Eames, and Sam Trickett. Holding down the No. 21, No. 23, No. 47, and No. 88 spots respectively, will any of these players make a big leap up the GPI next week? Also, Christian Harder topped a field in a $3,000 Heads-Up event at the Borgata in Atlantic City on Wednesday. Might that result in a rise from his current No. 40 ranking?

Though he jumped into the top 20 this week, Matt Waxman may be due for a slide back down. His third-place finish in the 2011 Wynn Classic Main Event is due to slip from Period 1 to 2 either next week or the following (depending on the cutoff date), so his Period 1 results will dip a little bit.

To look at the entire list of 300, visit the official GPI website. While you’re at it, follow the GPI on Twitter and its Facebook page.

To stay on top of the GPI and other happenings in the poker world, follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

Follow Mickey Doft on Twitter – @mrdoft

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