A couple of weeks ago, we looked at the CardPlayer Magazine Player of the Year race in the early going of 2023. We didn’t touch on the Global Poker Index POY battle because…well, at that time, they hadn’t released a ranking because they were still garnering information. As we begin the month of March, the GPI has issued its first POY for 2023, with a familiar face sitting atop the standings.
Meet the New Boss…Same as the Old Boss
One year ago, Jeremy Ausmus used his work in the 2022 PokerGO Cup to catapult him to the top of the GPI POY. Winning one event and seizing the overall title, Ausmus took a position in the Top Ten that he wouldn’t relinquish for the entirety of the year. As 2023 kicks off on the GPI ratings, it seems Ausmus wants a second chance at the title.
While Ausmus did make a couple of scores in the 2023 PokerGO Cup, the Las Vegas pro utilized his trip to the Bahamas quite well. Taking part in the 2023 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, Ausmus earned five cashes over the roster of events during the festival. Some of the highlights of Ausmus’ time in the sunny climes were a victory in a Deep Stack event, a third-place finish in a Pot Limit Omaha High Roller tournament, and three deep runs in other tournaments including the PokerStars Players’ Championship.
Put all those tournaments together – ten in total – and Ausmus has been able to rack up 2039.09 points to seize the lead in the GPI POY. By the GPI rules, that means that Ausmus still has three more points counting events toward his best thirteen finishes. There are players behind Ausmus, however, that have been able to put together a decent resume so far with far fewer tournaments played.
Intriguing Mix Down the Leaderboard
The remainder of the Top Ten is a decent mix of familiar names and newcomers who have come out of the gate on fire in 2023.
Taking the second place slot at this time is the USA’s Tony Lin. Many in the poker world might not have heard of him, but all he’s done is cashed on every tournament schedule he’s taken part in. Lin started the year with a cash at The Borgata, followed it up with a trip to Hollywood, FL, and the Lucky Hearts Poker Open, then hit the Bahamas (PCA) and Paris (European Poker Tour). Over those ten cashes, Lin has earned 2027.13 points to slide into the #2 slot.
There are a couple of familiar faces that pop up in the next couple of slots. High Roller denizen Justin Saliba has picked up enough points for the third place position, while former POY Alex Foxen earns the fourth place position. Rounding out the Top Five for the GPI POY is Anthony Hu, but he is only about 554 points behind Ausmus (a couple of strong finishes in tournaments) for first.
Here’s a look at the Top Ten for the first Global Poker Index Player of the Year standings:
1. Jeremy Ausmus, 2039.09 points
2. Tony Lin, 2027.13
3. Justin Saliba, 1780.13
4. Alex Foxen, 1574.21
5. Anthony Hu, 1517.70
6. Bin Weng, 1485.85
7. Michael Rossitto, 1467.48
8. Dylan Linde, 1462.30
9. Adrian Mateos, 1397.29
10. Preston McEwen, 1391.95
All these players and many others have yet to completely fill out their full roster of qualifying tournaments. With that in mind, this list could be completely different when we look at it in a couple of months. The battle has just begun for those in pursuit of the Global Poker Index Player of the Year honors.