Global Poker Awards – Voting Process

STEP 1  |  VOTING PANELS

• Each individual votable category will have its own voting panel. This panel will decide the finalists, nominees and winner for each votable category, ending the previous process of one single nomination panel and jury for ALL eligible categories
• The GPI team will vet all voters in each category
• Members are prohibited from announcing they are part of any voting panel until after the Global Poker Awards ceremony
• • Voting panel members and total number of votes received for each category will be announced in the days following the Global Poker Awards ceremony – however, how each individual person voted will remain confidential

STEP 2  |  PRELIMINARY LISTS

• The GPI team will put together preliminary lists in each voting category in order to help voters
• The GPI team will reach out to the general public to ask for candidates in each voting category
• The GPI team will reach out to voting panel members in each category to ask for names that should appear on the preliminary lists
• The GPI team will also work throughout the year to find deserving candidates in each category
• The GPI team will vet the preliminary lists in each category
• Voting panel members are prohibited from revealing the names of any candidate that appears on the preliminary lists

STEP 3  |  PRELIMINARY VOTING ROUND

• A preliminary ballot will be sent to the voting panel members in each eligible voting category
• Voting panel members will be asked to select 5 candidates they judge to be deserving of appearing on the final ballot
• Voting panel members will be given the opportunity to abstain from voting in a category should they chose to do so
• Voting panel members cannot vote for themselves
• Out of their five selections, a voting panel member can only select a total of 2 candidates that they work with or for. This goes for individual and group categories (voters are encouraged to reach out if they require clarification)
• Each selection shall count as one vote
• Voting panel members are prohibited from revealing who they voted for in the preliminary round – they can reveal their choices after the Global Poker Awards ceremony is completed

STEP 4  |  FINAL BALLOTS

• Using a system similar to the Oscars, a mathematical equation is used to find the “magic number” for each category:
  • To find the magic number, we take the total number of ballots submitted for the category and divide it by 5 (4 expected nominees +1)
  • Example: a category receives 54 ballots. We then divide that number by 5 (54/5) and the magic number (10.8) is rounded up to 11
• Any candidate receiving the number of votes that matches or exceeds the magic number is automatically placed on the final ballot
• Please note that a minimum of 8 candidates will appear on the final ballot. Should less than 8 candidates meet the magic number, those receiving the most votes will fill in the missing slots on the ballot
• Voting panel members are prohibited from revealing the names of any candidate that appears on the final ballots

STEP 5  |  FINAL VOTING ROUND

• Individual category voting ballots are sent to the respective voting panels. Members will be given enough time to thoroughly research the final list candidates
• Using a similar system to the NBA, NFL, NHL and MLB, voters will be instructed to select three candidates in each category, ranking them 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd 
• First place votes count for 5 points, second place votes count for 3 points and third place votes earn each candidate 1 point
• Voting panel members will be given the opportunity to abstain from voting in a category should they chose to do so
• Voting panel members are prohibited from voting for themselves in any individual category where their name appears
• A voting panel member cannot place a candidate they work for or with in 1st place. Example: People that work for the XPT cannot award a first place vote for a XPT event in the Event of the Year category. Voters can, however, place candidates they work for or with in 2nd and 3rd
• Any voting panel member that does not follow these guidelines or any voting panel member that is deemed to have attempted to manipulate their ballot in any way will see their ballots cancelled for that individual category and may be removed from any other voting panel going forward
• Voting panel members are prohibited from revealing who they voted for in any category until after the Global Poker Awards ceremony has ended. Anyone revealing their votes beforehand may see their votes voided and be removed from any other voting panel going forward

STEP 6  |  NOMINEES & RESULTS

• The final phase will see the GPI team tabulate all of the scores (votes)
• • The final four in each category will be revealed to the public in February with the winner being announced on the night of the awards ceremony on February 24th, 2024
• Tiebreaker: Should two or more candidates have the same number of points, the candidate with the most 1st place votes would finish ahead. Should two or candidates have the same number of points and the same amount of 1st place votes, then the candidate with the most 2nd place votes would finish ahead. In a situation where two or more candidates have the same amount of 1st, 2nd and 3rd place votes, a draw will be announced
• Scoring for each individual category will be revealed in the days following the awards, however, who each individual voting panel member voted for will remain confidential

VOTABLE CATEGORIES

GPI Breakout Player, Final Table Performance, Best Event, Twitter Personality, Industry Person, Tournament Director, Streamer, Vlogger, Best Short-Form Content Creator, Podcast, Broadcaster, Media Content: Photo, Media Content: Video, Media Content: Written, Mid-Major Tour/Circuit, Best Hand, Best Trophy, Best Live Stream, Best Stand-Alone Festival/Series

NOTES

*Breakout Player: The preliminary list for Breakout Player will not use the typical format, instead the preliminary list will be populated with players who rank high on the 2023 GPI Player of the Year leaderboard without ever having finished inside the Top 500 during any other poker season. 

The rest of the voting process remains the same for these two categories.

**Hand/Trophy: Voting panel members will determine which hands, and which trophies and which live streams will make the final list as per usual. Once the final list is determined, these three trophies will go to fan voting as part of the Fans Choice Awards.

PROCESS – PLAYERS CHOICE

The Top 100 ranked players on the Global Poker Index (GPI) Global Rankings as of January 3, 2024 will determine the winner of the Players Choice for Toughest Opponent Award:

• The Top 100 ranked players will be asked to submit their 1st, 2nd and 3rd toughest opponents (or players they believe would have been their toughest opponents) from the 2023 poker season
• Totals will then be tabulated: 5 points for first place votes, 3 points for second player votes, 1 point for third place votes

PROCESS – FAN CHOICE AWARDS

Poker fans will once again have their say at the Global Poker Awards as they will determine the winner in Four categories:

• Best Hand
• Best Trophy
• People’s Choice Award for Poker Personality
• Best Live Stream Production

As explained above, the traditional voting panels will first determine the finalists for the Best Hand, Best Trophy and Best Live Stream categories. Once those finalists are set, the fans will then vote on the winners.

The traditional process for People’s Choice Award for Poker Personality:

FAN VOTING ROUND 1  |  POKER PERSONALITY

• Fans will fill an online ballot with the name of the person they deemed to have been the People’s Choice Award for Poker Personality in 2023
• Each fan gets one vote per name/IP address – all other votes will be voided

FAN VOTING ROUND 2  |  POKER PERSONALITY

• After all Round 1 votes are tabulated, the top 4 vote getters will be announced as the official nominees for the category
• Fans will once again be asked to vote for one of those four nominees in Round 2
• Votes from Round 1 will carry-over to Round 2
• All those that have voted in Round 1 are once again able to cast a ballot in Round 2
• Anyone that didn’t vote in Round 1 can still vote in Round 2
• Each fan gets one vote per name/IP address – all other votes will be voided

PROCESS – PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARDS

The following award winners are pre-determined by GPI and PokerGO scoring systems:

• GPI Poker Player of the Year
• GPI Female Player of the Year
• GPI Mid-Major Player of the Year
• PokerGO Tour Player of the Year

PROCESS – SELECTED AWARDS

The following award winners are selected by the GPI/THM team:

• Poker ICON
• GPI Award of Merit
• The Hendon Mob Achievement Award
• Charitable/Community Initiative