Punnat Punsri Makes History as GPI Player of the Year, Kristen Foxen Wins Fifth Women’s Title
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Punnat Punsri and Kristen Foxen were confirmed as the GPI Player of the Year and GPI Female Player of the Year on Wednesday, capping off historic 2025 seasons for both players.
Punsri's maiden Player of the Year victory marks a watershed moment for Asian poker, with the Thai native becoming the first player from the continent to capture the Global Poker Index's most prestigious annual honor.
Meanwhile, Foxen continues her remarkable run as one of poker's foremost female stars, securing a record fifth GPI Female Player of the Year title in just eight years.
The race to be crowned the world's top poker player of 2025 proved to be a thriller, as Punsri, Jesse Lonis, and Artur Martirosian served up an epic three-way battle, with the eventual winner still unclear even as we entered the final days of December. However, Punsri would emerge from the nailbiting contest victorious, edging out Lonis in second — who suffers agonizing back-to-back near misses — and Martirosian in third.
For Foxen, however, the outcome was never in doubt. Her stellar year, which also saw her rise to the top of the Women's All-Time Money List, left her with a commanding lead over previous champion Cherish Andrews in second and Meng Ling Lin in third, making the confirmation of her fifth Female Player of the Year award all but a formality.
While both players' titles are confirmed, there will be no ceremony to formally collect them after organizers announced last November the cancellation of this year's Global Poker Awards, citing time constraints as the primary reason.
Punsri Crowned in Historic Moment for Thai Poker
Punsri's victory was built on remarkable consistency throughout 2025, with a string of deep runs and marquee results separating Asia's first Player of the Year from a world-class chasing pack.
A regular on the Triton Poker circuit, Punsri continued his remarkable record of making at least one final table at every single Triton stop since 2022, adding three more titles in 2025 on poker's most exclusive high-stakes tour to collect just under $11 million total in live tournament earnings.
But Punsri's success stretched far beyond Triton. The Thai pro scored major cashes at WSOP, EPT, and APT events throughout an exceptional season that culminated with a trip to Las Vegas in December for the WPT World Championship, where he secured just enough points to clinch the crown.
"I Gave It Absolutely Everything"
Speaking with PokerNews, Punsri described being named the world’s best tournament poker player of 2025 as “incredibly surreal,” adding, “The title is especially meaningful to me because it reflects success across a wide range of stakes and formats around the world ... Consistency across those environments is something I take great pride in.”
Reflecting on his long-standing ambition to become the world's number one, Punsri said, “I always aspired to reach the top of the GPI rankings since I pursued the full circuit in 2022, despite how challenging it is for an Asian player. As 2025 progressed, it became clear that winning POY was potentially attainable, so with the encouragement of people closest to me, I gave it absolutely everything.”
While the achievement marks a significant personal milestone, Punsri was quick to shift the focus to his home country, describing the title as “even more special” as it coincided with Thailand’s official recognition of poker as a Mind Sport in 2025.
"A future I once only imagined now feels within reach."
“This landmark decision affirms poker as a game defined by strategy, decision-making, emotional control, and mental endurance — qualities that proved especially vital to me throughout a challenging year. The opportunity to continually develop and refine these skills is what made me fall in love with the game in the first place.”
Looking ahead, Punsri also spoke of his hopes for the game’s bright future in Thailand, adding, “With poker continuing to gain recognition in Thailand, a future I once only imagined now feels within reach."
"I’m excited to envision Thailand as a vibrant hub for the game — welcoming familiar faces from the tour, bringing players together over the food I love, and fostering a thriving, passionate poker community. I look forward to seeing more Thai talent excel and succeed on the global stage.”
2025 GPI Player of the Year Top 10 Standings
| Ranking | Player | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Punnat Punsri | 4,458.06 pts |
| 2 | Jesse Lonis | 4,450.65 pts |
| 3 | Artur Martirosian | 4,323.49 pts |
| 4 | William Alex Foxen | 4,295.95 pts |
| 5 | Brandon Wilson | 4,219.89 pts |
| 6 | Daniel Rezaei | 4,016.51 pts |
| 7 | Quan Zhou | 4,016.43 pts |
| 8 | Nacho Barbero | 4,001.86 pts |
| 9 | Klemens Roiter | 3,997.79 pts |
| 10 | Thomas Boivin | 3,973.15 pts |
Five-Time Foxen Floors the Field Again
In what turned out to be a procession for the GPI Female Player of the Year award, Foxen easily secured her fifth title in eight years after an incredible season that saw her earn more than $4.6 million in live tournament winnings throughout 2025.
Her year was highlighted by a string of high-profile results, including three PokerGO Tour wins by April and multiple final tables at Triton Super High Roller Series stops. The pinnacle came at Triton Jeju II, where her third-place finish in the $125k No Limit Hold’em earned $1.1 million — the largest cash of her career — and propelled her past Vanessa Selbst on the Women’s All-Time Money List.
Yet more success would follow on the PGT and at NAPT, before several strong WSOP Paradise results rounded out a year that left her with an unassailable lead by December.
"Amazing" 2025 For Women's Poker
Catching up with PokerNews at WSOP Paradise in December, Foxen was keen to highlight the “many amazing accomplishments” for women in poker in 2025 beyond her own record-breaking season.
“The Triton title being won for the first time by a lady [Xuan Liu], Shiina [Okamoto] with her back-to-back wins,” she said, referring to other standout performers of the year. Turning to her nearest rival in the Female Player of the Year race, Foxen added, “I think one person who has been left out is Cherish Andrews, who had a fantastic year and a lot of success and is now establishing herself in the high-stakes community.”
"It's very cool, I imagine we'll see that continue"
Reflecting on the broader momentum for women in poker, she continued, “It's very cool [to be part of such a big 2025 for women in poker], I imagine we'll see that continue, I think.”
2025 GPI Female Player of the Year Top 10 Standings
| Ranking | Player | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kristen Foxen | 3,734.64 pts |
| 2 | Cherish Andrews | 2,993.49 pts |
| 3 | Meng Ling Lin | 2,836.78 pts |
| 4 | Cecile Ticherfatine | 2,722.87 pts |
| 5 | Victoria Livschitz | 2,583.25 pts |
| 6 | Thi Xoa Nguyen | 2,353.46 pts |
| 7 | Ebony Kenney | 2,210.32 pts |
| 8 | Kitty Kuo | 2,179.01 pts |
| 9 | Jessica Vierling | 2,139.38 pts |
| 10 | Shundan Xiao | 2,098.06 pts |
Omar Lakhdari Wins GPI Mid-Major POY
Congratulations are in order to Omar Lakhdari from Algeria, who claimed the GPI Mid-Major Player of the Year award, confirming his status as the season's most successful sub-$2,500 buy-in player by dominating the category.
Lakhdari finished nearly 150 points in front of American Evan Sandberg, as he made nine top-three finishes across several major events throughout the year that included a WSOPC Main Event win in Middelkerke, a WPT Prime Championship Chamada title, and two Chamada Poker Series Main Event wins.
The GPI Continental Player of the Year rankings also recognized some of poker’s finest performers: Jesse Lonis, who finished second overall, was crowned North American POY; Nacho Barbero earned Latin America’s POY title; Artur Martirosian, third overall, claimed Europe’s POY; and Punsri secured both the Asian and overall GPI Player of the Year awards.
A full list of GPI National Player of the Year winners is available on the GPI website, with 93 players reaching the minimum 1,000 points required to be crowned. Highlights include Stephen Chidwick, who secured the UK’s top spot for a tenth time, including eight consecutive titles, while three countries celebrated their first-ever GPI National POY winners: Patrick Stacey from the Cayman Islands, Ali Muthana Al-Kubasi from Iraq, and Ghassan Bitar from Monaco.
*Photos courtesy of Triton and Global Poker Index
