GPI300: World Champ Riess Enters 300 in Time for WSOP

We’re only days away from the start of the 45th World Series of Poker and the reigning Main Event Champion made sure he was part of the GPI300 prior to defending his crown…

VIEW FROM THE TOP

It’s good to be king as Ole Schemion (GPI#1, -) sits atop the GPI300 for the fifth week in a row, matching his career-best for consecutive weeks at #1. He has been a member of the GPI Top 10 for 46 straight weeks. The news isn’t all good for Schemion as he lost points for the second straight week, dropping to under 4,000 points for the first time in four weeks.

Philipp Gruissem (GPI#6, -3) drops three spots this week while Byron Kaverman (GPI#3 CB, +1), Vanessa Selbst (GPI#4, +1) and Marvin Rettenmaier (GPI#5, +1) all move up a spot inside the Top 5.

Just like they did last week, Mike McDonald (GPI#9, +7) and 2010 WSOP World Champion Jonathan Duhamel (GPI#11, -1) play a little game of switcheroo as Timex moves back in while the Champ moves back to the Top 10 bubble.

Meanwhile, Duhamel, Davidi Kitai (GPI#12, -1), former World #1 Daniel Negreanu (GPI#13, -), Joseph Serock (GPI#14, -2) and Jeffrey Rossiter (GPI#15, -1) are all knocking on the Top 10 doorstep.

GPI TOP 10:

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SWIMMING UPSTREAM

Earning a fourth win on the live tournament circuit so far this season sees three-time WSOP bracelet winner Jeff Madsen (GPI#46 CB, +12) move up to a career-best #46 on the GPI300 this week. Madsen won the Heartland Poker Tour Main Event at the 2014 California State Poker Championship near Los Angeles earlier this week.

Steve Watts (GPI#177 CB, +43), Nicolas Cardyn (GPI#218, +19), Todd Terry (GPI#94, +18), Andrew Chen (GPI#74, +16) and Justin Young (GPI#133, +16) are a few of the other name players who move up inside the GPI300 this week.

This week’s Top 10 Movers within the GPI300:

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DOWN THE LADDER

WSOP and WPT Champion Rocco Palumbo (GPI#231, -57) drops the farthest inside the GPI300 this week. Palumbo, who was ranked inside the GPI Top 100 last summer, drops over 50 places this week to #231 in the World.

WPT Champions Club members David Rheem (GPI#178, -51), Jonathan Roy (GPI#141, -41) and Jared Jaffee (GPI#125, -36) and Team PartyPoker Pro Scott Baumstein (GPI#217, -31) are a few notables who, like Palumbo, take a tumble in this week’s rankings.

This week’s Top 10 Drops within the GPI300:

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IN-N-OUT

The Champ is back! After spending the past four weeks on the outside, reigning and defending WSOP World Champion Ryan Riess (GPI#300) returns to the 300 in time for this year’s Series. The WSOP kicks off next Tuesday and Riess has already committed to playing a full schedule. He’ll have to wait until July to begin his defence of the World Championship.

Proud new papa and Team PokerStars Pro Jake Cody (GPI#289), Jesse Yaginuma (GPI#265) and recent WPT World Championship final table participant Tom Dobrilovic (GPI#286) all re-enter the GPI300 this week.

Erick Lindgren (GPI#316), who won his second WSOP bracelet last summer at the 44th World Series of Poker, drops out of the GPI300 this week. Lindgren will hope that his previous performances at the WSOP will help him move back up the charts in the coming weeks.

Brazilian star Nicolau Villa-Lobos and Vinny Pahuja (GPI#362), who continues his regular In-n-Out of the GPI300 routine this week, are two other names out this week.

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ON THE BUBBLE

We have the very first back-to-back bubble player since we’ve added the “On The Bubble” feature to the GPI300 Update. Bulgarian Atanas Kavrakov (GPI#301) is once again on the bubble. Kavrakov has totalled nine cashes – all of them on the European Poker Tour – in the past two months of the 2014 poker season.

CB = Career Best GPI Ranking