April 05 2012, by Eric Faulkner
GPI Update: Big Moves from EPT Campione; Jannick Wrang Wins and Makes His GPI Debut
The Global Poker Index ranks professional level tournament performance over a rolling 36-month period where more recent results are weighted more heavily than older results. Learn more about how the Global Poker Index is calculated.
EPT Campione Main Event Shakes Up the Top Twenty and Beyond; Duhamel Moves Closer to the Top Ten
The EPT Campione €5,000 NLHE Main Event drew to a close over the weekend withJannick Wrang finishing on top of the field of 570. Wrang has started 2012 strong, cashing in three Main Events in as many months. In January he cashed in the PCA Main Event followed by the WPT National Series Main Event in February and now adds his EPT Campione win for March. With the addition of the 484 points he earns for his win he makes his Global Poker Index debut at GPI#240 this week. Finishing just behind him in 2nd and 3rd place were Olivier Busquet (GPI#15 +20) and Fabrice Soulier (GPI#7 +19). They have two of the largest overall score gains this week moving Busquet into the Top Twenty for the first time and Soulier back into the Top Ten. Soulier spent the second half of last year in the Top Ten but fell out in December and had not returned. With the addition of close to 400 points earned for this cash he is back up to GPI#7. Another Top Ten ranked player that cashed in the event was Bertrand Grospellier. Grospellier’s score and rank, however, remain the same. His strong recent play has given him nine scores in Period 1, therefore the 171 points for this cash is excluded by the cap and he remains at GPI#2. Balazs Botond finished 4th in the Main Event and like Wrang makes his GPI debut this week. The 379 points he earned for the event was enough to put him at GPI#248.Koen De Visscher finished in 5th place and makes the largest jump in the rankings this week. The 362 points he earned in the event moves him up 124 spots to his highest rank to date at GPI#100.
Not needing to cash to move up this week is Jonathan Duhamel. He moves up six spots to GPI#14 due to score aging. Like Grospellier, Duhamel has played so well of late he also has many scores in Period 1, including one from the EPT/UK & Ireland £2,000 NLHE event last year that was being excluded by the cap. However, it ages into Period 2 this week where he previously only had one score raising his overall score 140 points and moving him up in the rankings.
Other Events at EPT Campione Produce Big Gains
The Global Poker Index was not only well represented at the EPT Campione Main Event final table but at the final tables of the other events as well. Seven other events were held at the tournament which meet the qualifications for inclusion into a player’s GPI score, four of which were won by players who have been on the Index and all had GPI ranked players at their final tables.
The €2000 NLHE Turbo Bounty was won by Konstantin Puchkov (GPI#43) who gains 225 points and moves up 32 spots. 2nd place finisher Andrew Badecker (GPI#76) moves up 46 spots on a net 154 point gain.
In the €2000 NLHE Event, Stefan Huber took the top prize and returns to the Index at GPI#212.
Govert Metaal (GPI#47) won the €10,000 NLHE 8 Max Event, helping to push him up 7 spots and into the Top Fifty. Zimnan Ziyard finished 5th earning 162 points which moves him up 63 spots to GPI#194.
There were two €2000 NLHE 8 Max Turbo Bounty Events at the tournament. In the first contest, Guillaume Darcourt (GPI#141) took 3rd place helping him move up 57 spots.Kevin Vandersmissen (GPI#206) finished 5th earning 119 points and a 46 spot jump. The second event was won by McLean Karr who moves up 9 spots to GPI #24. Also at the final table were GPI newcomer Jose Manuel Nadal (GPI#201) and Vandersmissen.
Three GPI ranked players earned points for their play in the €5000 NLHE 6 Max Turbo event – Bryn Kenney (GPI#21) finished 2nd, Martin Finger (GPI#224) finished 4th, and GPI powerhouse Eugene Katchalov took 5th place. Katchalov would have fallen in the rankings this week because his score for cashing in the EPT London High Roller ages into Period 5, but the addition of the 122 points he earned in this event gives him a net gain of 2 points and he holds steady at GPI#4. Ondrej Vinklarek (GPI#253 -7) also cashed in this event finishing 3rd overall. However, he has more than four scores in Period 1 and therefore this score is excluded by the cap.
Finally, in the €2000 PLO 8 Max Turbo Bounty, 2nd place finisher Alessio Isaia (GPI#45) gains 126 points moving up 10 spots to renter the Top Fifty for the first time since December 2011.
Debuting on the Global Poker Index
In addition to EPT Campione Main Event winner Jannick Wrang (GPI#240) and 4th place finisher Balazs Botond (GPI#248), Jose Manuel Nadal (GPI#201), Sergio Castelluccio(GPI#242), and Massimo Mosele (GPI#278) all make their GPI debut this week due to cashing in the Main Event. Rounding out the new entrants to the GPI is Christopher Lastiwka. Lastiwka had a solid run from August to November of last year giving him more than four scores in Period 1. With the aging of one of those scores into Period 2 this week he picks up an additional score making him GPI#287.
Returning to the Global Poker Index
Stefan Huber (GPI#212) isn’t the only player returning to the Index this week. Also returning are EPT Campione Main Event cashers Nicolas Chouity (GPI#214), Per Linde(GPI#218), Liv Boeree (GPI#222), and Andrea Benelli (GPI#262). Final tablers in the EPT Campione 8 Max Turbo Bounty Mihails Morozovs (GPI#238) and Alexander Debus(GPI#299) return to the Index this week as well. Rajesh Vohra (GPI#258) also makes his return with a final table appearance in the Battle of the Beach Main Event.
Exiting the Global Poker Index
With so many great results in Campione and elsewhere, the Index saw fourteen new names added this week. To make room for fourteen new entrants, fourteen others must exit. Contributing to the departure of four players was the aging this week of the EPT/UK & Ireland Poker Tour – London events into Period 2. Kevin Iacofano, Laurence Houghton,Humberto Brenes, and Daniel Neilson all had scores from that festival. Markus Ristola’s cash in the European Masters of Poker III – Barcelona aging into Period 2 contributed to his exit this week as well. Other players departing this week are Steve Brecher, John Juanda, Justin Schwartz, Timothy Finne, Stuart Fox, David Pham, Christophe Benzimra,Dana Kellstrom, and Timothy West.
Related articles
About the author
Eric Faulkner is a poker fan, technology executive, and one of the creators of the Global Poker Index.
