The barista in your local coffee shop will remember your name if you act with all the airs and grace of a person who boils the contents of one’s skull. They will also not forget you if your presence at the till is illuminating enough to melt the darkness of the mind.
In the first instance, there is no utterance of your name – reviled like copperhead snakes, corpses and constipation. Act with the beauty and charm of the latter, and a shower of motivation rises from that optimistic spring.
Honest recognition is a pleasing thing, and it’s for this reason that Poker Award Ceremonies, for all the trolling and teasing, are a critical part of the poker ecology. It is a feedback loop. It informs the people, many of whom don’t have a leader, how well they are doing.
And it doesn’t matter if you are a dirty black crow flying through the filth of our air, or a Golden Eagle sitting in your nest, looking out across a panorama that makes a stone man cry.
We like feeling the work we do matters; because that means we matter.
On Friday, April 5, the Global Poker Index (GPI) merges the American and European Poker Awards to create The Global Poker Awards (GPA).
PokerGO hosts and broadcasts the event live from the PokerGO Studios at the ARIA in Las Vegas. Poker Central is a prominent partner, as is PokerStars.
The nomination process for short-listing the 13 Categories is complete, but not without a large wedge of controversy. Media outlets across the board and a smattering of high profile poker players complained about a nomination process that voted for the likes of Jason Somerville (Streamer of the Year), and Doug Polk (Vlogger of the Year) despite both cutting back to the bare bones of poker content.
The GPI reacted to the controversy by releasing the following statement.
Statement regarding the Global Poker Awards pic.twitter.com/ykZZssfsjC— Global Poker Index (@gpi) March 20, 2019
How Did The High Stakes Strata Feature?
Quite well, actually.
The results of two awards are already common knowledge with the high stakes power couple Alex Foxen and Kristen Bicknell already in situ as The GPI Player of the Year and Female Player of the Year, respectively.
The Hendon Mob All-Time Live Tournament Money Earner, Justin Bonomo received two nominations: The Tournament Performance Category for his win at the Super High Roller Bowl IV, and The Moment of the Year Category for winning the One Drop.
The sight of John Cynn is a common one in high stakes cash games, and the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event matches up with Bonomo in the Tournament Performance Category for that $8.8m win.
Bonomo also faces stiff opposition in the Moment of the Year Category with Doyle Brunson’s deep run in the $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw the likely favourite to win that one.
Two High Rollers appear in The Breakout Player Category showing it’s possible to rise to the highest echelons of the game in a short space of time. Imsirovic receives a nomination for his victory at the Poker Masters, and Michael Soyza’s run that saw him win the GPI Player of the Year for Asia sees him hit the nomination list.
Triton Poker Series broadcaster, Lex Veldhuis, is also in contention for two awards. Veldhuis is one of the favourites to win the Streamer of the Year award, and Maria Ho and former Triton Poker event winner, Nick Schulman, join him in the Broadcaster of the Year Category.
Daniel Negreanu and Doug Polk once again square off in the controversial Vlogger of the Year Category, the community has recognised Rob Yong’s contribution to the growth of partypoker, and ditto Cary Katz for his work with Poker Central. Both Yong and Katz in the running for The Industry Person of the Year.
Finally, High Rollers have decreed that the ARIA Tournament Director, Paul Campbell, should be included in the Tournament Director of the Year Category.
Here is a full list of nominations.
Tournament Performance
Justin Bonomo (Super High Roller Bowl IV)
John Cynn (WSOP Main Event)
Maria Lampropulos (PCA Main Event)
Dylan Linde (WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic)
Breakout Player
Ali Imsirovic
Maria Konnikova
Ping Liu
Michael Soyza
Streamer of the Year
Jeff Gross
Jason Somerville
Jaime Staples
Lex Veldhuis
Vlogger of the Year
Marle Cordeiro
Joe Ingram
Andrew Neeme
Daniel Negreanu
Doug Polk
Podcast
LFG Podcast (Chad Holloway, Jamie Kerstetter)
Poker Central Podcast (Brent Hanks, Remko Rinkema)
PokerNews Podcast (Sarah Herring, Jeff Platt)
The Chip Race Podcast (Dave Lappin, Dara O’Kearney)
The Fives (Lance Bradley, Donnie Peters)
Broadcaster
Maria Ho
Lon McEachern
Nick Schulman
Lex Veldhuis
Poker Journalist
Drew Amato
Sarah Herring
Remko Rinkema
Christian Zetsche
Media Content
Drew Amato (Photo: Brunson Bids Farewell to WSOP)
Lance Bradley (Book: The Pursuit of Poker Success)
Haley Hintze (Article: Vayo v PokerStars)
Poker Central/Poker GO (Super High Roller Club: Schulman & Nejad)
Industry Person
Angelica Hael (World Poker Tour)
Cary Katz (Poker Central)
Matt Savage (World Poker Tour)
Ty Stewart (World Series of Poker)
Rob Yong (Dusk till Dawn, partypoker)
Tournament Director
Tony Burns (Seminole Hard Rock)
Paul Campbell (ARIA)
Jack Effel (WSOP)
Kenny Hallaert (Unibet Open)
Mid-Major Tour/Circuit
888Live
RUNGOOD Poker Series
Unibet Open
WPTDeepStacks
WSOP Circuit
Event of the Year
Partypoker Caribbean Poker Party Main Event
Super High Roller Bowl IV
WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic
WSOP Main Event
Moment of the Year
Jeremy Hilsercop receives PSPC Platinum Pass
Joe Cada wins WSOP The Closer
Doyle Brunson plays his final WSOP event
Justin Bonomo wins Big One for One Drop, completing Super High
Roller Streak of SHRB China, SHRB and One Drop.
Other Trophies Yet to be Determined
2018 GPI Poker Player of the Year – Alex Foxen
2018 GPI Female Poker Player of the Year – Kristen Bicknell
Lifetime Achievement in Poker
Charitable Initiative
Jury Prize
PocketFives Legacy Award
Poker Personality of the Year