Global Poker Index: Philipp Gruissem Returns to the Top 10
Each week, the Global Poker Index releases a list of the top 300 tournament poker players in the world using a formula that takes a player's results over six half-year periods. For a look at the entire list of 300, visit the official GPI website.
Top 10 as of March 4, 2013
| Rank | Player | Total Score | Rank Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marvin Rettenmaier | 3,263.36 | -- |
| 2 | Jason Mercier | 3,055.44 | -- |
| 3 | Dan Smith | 3,053.03 | -- |
| 4 | Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier | 2,985.81 | -- |
| 5 | Mike Watson | 2,915.02 | -- |
| 6 | Joseph Cheong | 2,904.72 | -- |
| 7 | Bryn Kenney | 2,842.37 | -- |
| 8 | Philipp Gruissem | 2,838.76 | +6 |
| 9 | Andrew Lichtenberger | 2,798.09 | -1 |
| 10 | Vanessa Selbst | 2,788.75 | -1 |
Philipp Gruissem is back in the top 10 this week thanks to an aging score. His 10th-place finish in the $260,000 Super High Roller at the 2012 Macau High Stakes Challenge for $587,778 aged into Period 2, improving his score in that period, but Gruissem's Period 1 didn't take too much of a hit; it still contains four six-figure results.
Welcome to the GPI
Fourteen players are new to this week's GPI, led by Amir Lehavot at No. 202. He took down a $1,900 No-Limit Hold'em side event at the Bay 101 Shooting Star series for $140,500, topping a field of 344.
Making his debut on the GPI top 300 this week is Aaron Massey at No. 212, fresh off a win in a $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em Heads-Up event at the 2013 Chicago Poker Classic. He bested a field of 49 for $73,721.
New Additions
| Player | Total GPI Score | GPI Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Amir Lehavot | 1,306.49 | 202nd |
| Aaron Massey | 1,286.95 | 212th |
| Jesse Yaginuma | 1,285.45 | 213th |
| Eric Froehlich | 1,224.06 | 234th |
| David Tuthill | 1,202.94 | 246th |
| John Hennigan | 1,156.03 | 267th |
| Ryan Eriquezzo | 1,155.53 | 268th |
| Jesse Sylvia | 1,148.92 | 271st |
| Trevor Pope | 1,141.85 | 276th |
| Carlos Mortensen | 1,137.88 | 280th |
| Roland Israelashvili | 1,130.61 | 285th |
| Harrison Gimbel | 1,129.66 | 287th |
| David Diaz | 1,128.61 | 290th |
| Gilbert Diaz | 1,120.51 | 295th |
Falling from the GPI this week were Athanasios Polychronopoulos, Chris Tryba, Daniel Idema, Daniel Neilson, Enver Abduraimov, Frederik Jensen, Grant Levy, Jeremy Kottler, Michel Abecassis, Mikhail Petrov, Nicolas Cardyn, Sergio Castelluccio, Stephane Benadiba, and Viliyan Petleshkov.
Ups and Downs
The biggest rise of the week belonged to Rodger Johnson following his win in the $25,000 No-Limit Hold'em High Roller event at the L.A. Poker Classic for $182,315. Meanwhile, Paul Volpe placed second in the Main Event there for $651,170 and rose 87 places as a result.
Biggest Gains
| Rank | Player | Total Score | Change in Rank From Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|
| 42nd | Noah Schwartz | 2,116.11 | +34 |
| 60th | Jeremy Ausmus | 1,942.45 | +47 |
| 67th | Ana Marquez | 1,868.01 | +35 |
| 69th | Taylor Paur | 1,850.69 | +32 |
| 79th | Paul Volpe | 1,817.87 | +87 |
| 101st | Alex Venovski | 1,696.73 | +81 |
| 116th | Galen Hall | 1,632.11 | +69 |
| 121st | David Peters | 1,615.55 | +40 |
| 144th | Nicholad Verkaik | 1,529.38 | +109 |
| 152nd | Rodger Johnson | 1,502.48 | +118 |
| 170th | John Racener | 1,419.75 | +42 |
| 174th | Thomas Gabriel | 1,407.71 | +56 |
Vadzim Kursevich fell the furthest on the GPI 300 as his third-place finish in a �5,000 PLO event at the 2011 WPT Paris aged into Period 4.
Biggest Drops
| Rank | Player | Total Score | Change in Rank From Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|
| 86th | John Juanda | 1,772.41 | -29 |
| 91st | Phil Ivey | 1,748.32 | -38 |
| 158th | JP Kelly | 1,454.80 | -48 |
| 216th | Tomeu Gomila | 1,271.66 | -29 |
| 235th | Sam Trickett | 1,223.76 | -29 |
| 273rd | Artem Litvinov | 1,146.20 | -32 |
| 274th | Alex Kravchenko | 1,143.63 | -34 |
| 275th | Vadzim Kursevich | 1,143.43 | -51 |
| 297th | Jake Bazeley | 1,116.20 | -34 |
| 300th | Dmitry Gromov | 1,114.17 | -48 |
What's In Store?
Results from the Bay 101 Series will continue to take GPI form as the High Roller and Main Event will wrap up shortly. Among the players that will rise are David Sands (No. 13) and Nick Schulman (No. 48) from their High Roller cashes. From the Main Event, Paul Volpe (No. 79) and Erik Seidel (No. 76) are at the final table and will see big boosts. Antonio Esfandiari (No. 71), Christian Harder (No. 52), and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier (No. 4) also made deep runs and should rise. In ElkY's case, we think he has a chance to climb to No. 2.
GPI Fantasy Poker Value Pick of the Week
With the recent launch of the GPI Fantasy Poker Manager on Facebook, we thought we'd lend a helping hand in putting together your roster.
Here's how the GPI Fantasy Poker Manager works: Much like other fantasy sports, you are given a budget with which to pick a number of poker players for your team. When these poker players finish in the money of real poker events, you are awarded points. Finish with the most points and you win. It's that simple.
We'll be providing at least one "value" pick each week for your fantasy poker team. Here's our top selections for the EPT London Main Event, which begins Sunday, March 10.
Tim Reilly �� 25,860: He cashed in the EPT Deauville Main Event and took second in the Super High Roller there, too, so the Massachusetts native is finding a groove overseas.
Griffin Benger �� 10,000: One of the best online tournament players you're probably not too familiar with, "FlushEntity" is starting to make his mark on the live scene. Most recently, he finished 33 of 987 in the PCA Main Event, so for 10,000 he's a bargain.
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.
