Global Poker Index: Kempe Leading POY, Chidwick Back on Top 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 July 3.
2019 GPI Player of the Year
| Rank | Player | 2019 GPI POY Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rainer Kempe | 3217.16 |
| 2 | Bryn Kenney | 3096.18 |
| 3 | Manig Loeser | 2948.84 |
| 4 | Sean Winter | 2852.19 |
| 5 | Alex Foxen | 2636.74 |
| 6 | Kristen Bicknell | 2635.21 |
| 7 | Anthony Zinno | 2546.15 |
| 8 | Ole Schemion | 2543.97 |
| 9 | Ali Imsirovic | 2531.69 |
| 10 | Michael Soyza | 2515.97 |
A month ago Bryn Kenney was leading the 2019 Global Poker Index Player of the Year race with the 2019 World Series of Poker having just gotten underway. Results from Las Vegas from the last several weeks have obviously affected the leaderboard, including helping Rainer Kempe move ahead of Kenney to begin July out in front.
Kempe has cashed five times so far at the WSOP, but he's also been collecting results elsewhere in Sin City, including three third-place finishes in ARIA Summer High Rollers and a seventh-place showing in the partypoker MILLIONS Vegas Main Event won by Tom Marchese.
Following Kenney in second position are Manig Loeser (No. 3) and Sean Winter (No. 4). Both players collected the bulk of their POY points prior to the WSOP getting underway, although Loeser does have six WSOP cashes plus a couple more in the ARIA events and a cash in the partypoker MILLIONS Main as well.
Alex Foxen moved into the 2019 GPI POY Top 10 a month ago, and since then he's moved up a little further to No. 5 after cashing eight times at the WSOP thus far. Forming the other half of a poker power couple with Foxen is Kristen Bicknell, and the pair are close both in life and on the GPI POY list as Bicknell has moved up to No. 6 at present. She's cashed seven times so far at the WSOP, including making one final table.
Anthony Zinno is actually the only player in the GPI POY Top 10 at the moment who has won a bracelet this summer. Zinno claimed his second career WSOP title by winning Event #60: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo. Points from that triumph catapulted him from No. 27 to No. 7 in the POY rankings this week.
Ole Schemion remains in the Top 10 at No. 8 after kicking off June with a victory in the Baccarat Crystal World Poker Tour Tournament of Champions. Ali Imsirovic follows him at No. 9 thanks to numerous cashes in Vegas, including at the WSOP where he took second to Brian Green in Event #2: $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em Super Turbo Bounty and then finished fourth in Event #11: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em won by Daniel Strelitz. Rounding out the list is Michael Soyza (No. 10) who also spent June cashing at the WSOP and elsewhere in Vegas.
Overall GPI Top 10
| Rank | Player | Overall GPI Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stephen Chidwick | 3811.48 |
| 2 | Alex Foxen | 3802.49 |
| 3 | Rainer Kempe | 3558.21 |
| 4 | David Peters | 3381.92 |
| 5 | Manig Loeser | 3361.46 |
| 6 | Bryn Kenney | 3297.53 |
| 7 | Ryan Riess | 3277.14 |
| 8 | Ali Imsirovic | 3258.08 |
| 9 | Mikita Badziakouski | 3199.99 |
| 10 | Benjamin Pollak | 3195.54 |
Turning to the overall GPI rankings, by mid-June Alex Foxen had been at No. 1 on this list for 37 consecutive weeks, the fourth-longest reign at the top behind Jason Mercier (63 weeks), Ole Schemion (41 weeks), and Dan Smith (38 weeks).
Stephen Chidwick enjoyed a 25-week long period at the top last year, and now he's come along to push Foxen out of first and start himself another streak. Chidwick leaped in front after winning his first career WSOP bracelet in the 2019 WSOP Event #45: $25,000 Pot-Limit Omaha High Roller.
The rest of the leaderboard remained fairly steady over the last month, with most of the names in the Top 10 staying the same and only shuffling a spot or two in either direction. However the bottom of the list features three players who weren't in the Top 10 a month ago — Ali Imsirovic (No. 8), Mikita Badziakouski (No. 9), and Benjamin Pollak (No. 10).
We have discussed Imsirovic's June already. Badziakouski collected two ARIA Super High Roller wins on consecutive days earlier this week to move up onto the list. And one WSOP cash at the start of the WSOP helped Pollak nudge up into the 10th spot.
Looking just outside the list, Anthony Zinno's bracelet win helped him climb up to No. 15 last week. Zinno is no stranger to the top of the GPI rankings, having reached No. 1 before in July 2015.
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.
