David Coleman crowned 2024 GPI Player of the Year
6 Jan 2025
It was a battle until the year's final days as Coleman and 2024 GPI PoY runner-up Jesse Lonis, who ended 2024 ranked #1 on the Global Poker Index, fought to improve their score with less than 10 points separating them. Ultimately, Coleman’s 4,383.70 total across his top 13 qualifying results secured the victory and honor of calling himself the 2024 world’s best poker player.
Cherish Andrews is again reigning atop the female rankings as she held off four-time GPI Female Player of the Year Kristen Foxen to claim the 2024 title. Andrews, from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, USA, won the 2022 GPI Female PoY before losing to Foxen in 2023. Andrews’ best 13 qualifying results of 2024 scored her 3,115.65, which gave her just under a 100-point gap between 2nd place Foxen. The two top female forces have combined for six of the last seven Female PoY.
Andrews was close to closing two Player of the Year races as she finished runner-up in the GPI Mid-Major PoY race to San Antonio, Texas, USA native Han Feng. Feng capped off 2024 with 3,014.45 points in qualifying live events with buy-ins under $2,500. Feng had an impressive year, finishing 79th place for most 2024 cashes with 60. Ultimately, Feng’s 1st place finishes in the Champions Club Fall Poker Open Main Event, WSOPC Tulsa Main Event, and Moneymaker Poker Tour Houston Main Event lifted him to the top spot.
GPI National Players of the Year
Ninety players scored at least 1,000 points to win GPI National Player of the Year (NPoY) titles for 2024, including three countries for the first time. Amani Ezatulla became Afghanistan's first National Player of the Year, along with Steinn Thanh Du Karlsson from Iceland and Eddie Quinn of Jersey.
Among the most impressive NPoY winners was Farid Jattin, who topped Colombia’s ranking for the 10th time and continues to be the only player from Colombia to win the title. Adrian Mateos, who finished 3rd in the 2024 GPI PoY race and is currently 3rd overall, closed out Spain’s national ranking for the 9th time. England’s Stephen Chidwick also picked up his 9th NPoY title and 7th in a row.
Nick Yunis was the top Chilean for the 8th time. Omar Lakhdari (Algeria), Jose Nacho Barbero (Argentina), Vlado Banicevic (Montenegro), Joao Vieira (Portugal), and Igor Yaroshevskyy (Ukraine) all won NPoY titles for the 7th time.
There were tight races across the globe, including some first-time NPoY winners who had put up huge totals. David Coleman (USA - 4,383.70), Enrico Camosci (Italy - 3,507.39), Paulius Vaitiekunas (Lithuania - 3,344.30), Kayhan Mokri Roshanfekr (Norway - 3,341.13), Steve Yea (South Korea - 3,233.85), Santhosh Suvarna (India - 3,145.42), Alexandros Theologis (Greece - 3,071.86), Justin Chi Jen Chu (Taiwan - 3,028.01), and Masashi Oya (Japan - 3,005.11) all scored over 3,000 points to win their national races.
Pieter Aerts (Belgium - 2,991.83), Niklas Astedt (Sweden - 2,884.06), Daniel Neilson (Australia - 2,872.92), and Felipe Fontoura Ketzer (Brazil - 2,866.68) narrowly missed the 3,000-point mark but were also able to win a national title for the first time.