With half of the 2015 World Series of Poker in the books, two players that have not yet won a WSOP bracelet – Paul Volpe and Mike Gorodinsky – sit atop the standings for the 2015 WSOP Player of the Year race.
Both men have had outstanding starts over the first three weeks of the WSOP. Volpe has been able to accrue points through making two final tables in two different $10,000 buy-in tournaments, Heads Up Hold’em and Pot Limit Hold’em. Volpe was the runner-up in each of those tournaments and, alongside his 12th place finish in Event #7, the $10,000 Deuce to Seven Triple Draw Lowball World Championship, and a 36th place finish in the $5000 Eight Handed No Limit Hold’em tournament, has put together 1258.56 points to this mark in the WSOP.
That is barely enough to stay ahead of Gorodinsky, however, as Gorodinsky has put together his own decent run in May and June. Gorodinsky has amassed four cashes of his own and is tied with Volpe in final tables 2-2. Gorodinsky was the runner-up to Phil Hellmuth in the $10,000 Seven Card Razz World Championship before coming back to barely miss the final table in the $10,000 Seven Card Stud World Championship. Gorodinsky’s last cash was his third place finish in the $5000 Six Handed No Limit Hold’em event, which earned the latest of his 1240.08 points.
These two men aren’t running away from the pack, however. Three 2015 bracelet winners – Phil Galfond (1113.19 points), Shaun Deeb (1049.82) and Brian Hastings (1013.57) – round out the Top Five of the 2015 WSOP POY. While each man has taken down a bracelet, they also have been able to put together four cashes to this point in the 2015 WSOP to keep themselves very much in the hunt for the POY title.
The Second Five are all players that, as of yet, have been unable to win at the Rio All Suites Hotel and Casino. Former November Niner Jeremy Ausmus has put together an astounding six cashes over the first three weeks of the WSOP, which gives him 1006.4 points and, should he take down a bracelet in the next four weeks, a serious shot at surging into the lead. Lurking just behind Ausmus is the first foreign player on the POY list, Greece’s Georgios Sotiropoulos (985.62), who has picked up five cashes over the first half of the WSOP.
Rounding out the Top Ten are three men who have come close to capturing gold at this year’s WSOP. Ronald Lee (960.87 points) has tied Ausmus for most cashes with six (although none are final table finishes) while Ismael Bojang (938.33) has made the most of his four 2015 WSOP cashes. Australia’s James Obst (929.43) draws the final slot in the Top Ten after his four cashes in three weeks.
Lurking under the Top Ten are several players just looking for that one big break or a bracelet win that will catapult them up the standings. Perhaps the most surprising name of those that are lurking under the Top Ten is Jorryt van Hoof (17th, 833.13), who saw his chance at WSOP glory fade away at last year’s WSOP Championship Event. To give van Hoof’s achievement a bit more shine, no other member of that “November Nine” final table is even in the Top 100 on the POY list.
Like van Hoof, others in the pack have yet to taste WSOP gold this year, but former World Champion Greg Merson (11th place, 911.32 points), Pierre Milan (13th, 905.28) Mark Radoja (15th, 867.58) and Mike Leah (16th, 849.87) all are looking to add to their WSOP trophy cases. Add in Olivier Busquet (14th, 903.58) and Mike Watson (18th, 817.11) and there are plenty of players who could challenge for the POY crown.
There is still so much of the 2015 WSOP remaining – not to mention the 2015 World Series of Poker Europe this fall in Berlin – that it is entirely possible that none of these players will even be in the mix when it comes down to the “November Nine” this fall. With their excellent start, however, many of the players mentioned here have put themselves in prime position to win the 2015 WSOP Player of the Year award.
