2001 Players of the Year - By Game

In the last issue, the Card Player 2001 Player of the Year award was presented, featuring Player of the Year Men "The Master" Nguyen and the next 19 top overall players. In this issue, 2001 standings by individual game category are presented. Of interest is the fact that "Miami" John Cernuto was the only player to win two individual game categories. Enjoy reading about all of the individual game winners, and be sure to read the new criteria for the 2002 Player of the Year award on Page 109.

No-Limit Hold'em

Points Final Tables

1. Amir Vahedi, Los Angeles, CA 2,422 7

2. Men "The Master" Nguyen, Bell Gardens, CA 2,133 8

3. John Juanda, Alhambra, CA 1,988 7

4. Toto "The Ripper" Leonidas, Los Angeles, CA 1,975 8

5. David "The Dragon" Pham, Bell Gardens, CA 1,819 6

Honorable Mention: Carlos Mortensen – Won the $10,000 buy-in world championship at the World Series of Poker; Phil Hellmuth Jr. – Won the $2,500 buy-in event at the WSOP; Erik Seidel – Won the $3,500 buy-in event at the WSOP

2000 Winner: David Pham

Men "The Master" Nguyen had four wins in no-limit hold'em. They were at the World Poker Open, the National Championship of Poker, the Tom McEvoy Tournament, and the United States Poker Championship. Amir Vahedi won three no-limit hold'em events, one at the Orleans Open and two at the World Poker Finals. John Juanda won two no-limit hold'em events. They were at the World Poker Open and the Four Queens Classic.

The $5,000-$10,000 buy-in no-limit hold'em champions for the year in chronological order were Mike Laing (World Poker Challenge), Young Phan (L.A. Poker Classic), John Juanda (WPO), Carlos Mortensen (WSOP), James Hoeppner (Legends of Poker), Barry Shulman (Four Queens), Scotty Nguyen (WPF), and Men "The Master" Nguyen (USPC).

Pot-Limit Hold'em

Points Final Tables

1. Men "The Master" Nguyen, Bell Gardens, CA 1,128 2

2. Burt Boutin, Henderson, NV 1,080 2

3. John Juanda, Alhambra, CA 948 5

4. "Syracuse" Chris Tsiprailidis, Syracuse, NY 900 2

5. Kenny Goldstein, Los Angeles, CA 878 3

Honorable Mention: Tony Ma – Had the most wins (2); Steve Zolotow – Won the $3,000 buy-in event at the WSOP

2000 Winner: Mike Carson

Burt Boutin won the $2,000 buy-in event at the WSOP. John Juanda made five final tables and won the $500 buy-in event at the Legends of Poker. (110). Men "The Master" Nguyen finished third in the $500 buy-in event at the WPO and the $2,000 buy-in event at WSOP. "Syracuse" Chris Tsipailidis came in fifth in the $2,000 and $3,000 buy-in events at the WSOP. Kenny Goldstein finished second in the $500 buy-in event at the Legends of Poker, and third in the $3,000 buy-in event at the WSOP and the $1,000 buy-in event at the Four Queens.

Limit Hold'em

Points Final Tables

1. Paul Ladanyi, Los Angeles, CA 2,263 8

2. Cheu Lim, El Monte, CA 1,880 4

3. Men "The Master" Nguyen, Bell Gardens, CA 1,844 8

4. Tom Cawley, Whittier, CA 1,641 7

5. Kenny "The Kid" Tran, Downey, CA 1,551 4

Honorable Mention: Nani Dollison – Had the most wins (3), including the $2,000 buy-in opening event at the WSOP that had 615 players; Hemish Shah – Won the $5,000 buy-in event at the WSOP; Jim Lester – Won the $3,000 buy-in event at the WSOP

2000 Winner: "Syracuse" Chris Tsiprailidis

Tom Cawley tied with Nani Dollison with three wins in limit hold'em. He won at the California State Poker Championship, the Legends of Poker, and the Four Queens. Paul Ladanyi won the $300 buy-in unlimited rebuy event at the Legends of Poker, and made the final table of three limit hold'em events at the Legends of Poker, two at the WSOP, and two at the World Poker Finals, and finished fourth at the LAPC. Cheu Lim won two events, one at the LAPC and the other at the Legends of Poker. Men "The Master" Nguyen won the $100 buy-in event at the Winnin' o' the Green. Kenny "The Kid" Tran won the $300 buy-in unlimited rebuy event at the LAPC.

Omaha High/Pot-Limit Omaha

Points Final Tables

1. Tony Cousineau, Daytona Beach, FL 714 4

2. Jim Lester, Cincinnati, OH 690 4

3. Phillip Ivey, Atlantic City, NJ 660 3

4. Bob Walker, Las Vegas, NV 650 3

5. Jay Heimowitz, Bethel, NY 480 2

Honorable Mention: Galen Kester – Won the $1,500 buy-in pot-limit Omaha event at the WSOP; Scotty Nguyen – Won the $2,500 pot-limit Omaha event at the WSOP; Eduard Scharf – Won the $1,500 Omaha high event at the WSOP

2000 Winner: Phil Hellmuth Jr.

Bob Walker won the $500 buy-in pot-limit Omaha event at the WPC, and made both final tables at the WSOP in pot-limit Omaha. Tony Cousineau made both final tables at the WPC in pot-limit Omaha, and finished fourth in the $1,500 buy-in Omaha high event at the WSOP and the $1,000 pot-limit Omaha event at the Four Queens. Phil Ivey came in second at the $1,000 buy-in pot-limit Omaha event at the WPC, and made both final tables in pot-limit Omaha at the WPO. Jim Lester made both final tables at the WSOP in pot-limit Omaha, including a second-place finish in the $2,500 buy-in event. Jay Heimowitz came in fourth in the $1,000 buy-in event at the WPC and fifth in the $1,500 buy-in event at the WSOP.

Omaha High-Low Split

Points Final Tables

1. Sirous Baghchehsaraie, Marina Del Rey, CA 1,201 9

2. Tony Ma, S. El Monte, CA 1,050 4

3. Chris Ferguson, Pacific Palisades, CA 1,010 2

4. "Miami" John Cernuto, Las Vegas, NV 985 5

5. Dale Phillips, Darien, IL 864 3

Honorable Mention: Bob Slezak – Won the $2,500 buy-in event at the WSOP; Scotty Nguyen – Won the $5,000 buy-in event at the WSOP; Phil Hellmuth Jr. – Won the $500 buy-in event at the Shooting Star and finished second in the $5,000 buy-in event at the WSOP

2000 Winner: Brent Carter

Sirous made nine final tables in Omaha high-low split, which was four more than the next highest number. All nine final tables were in California, and he won the $500 buy-in event at the America's Poker Classic. Tony Ma finished second in both the WSOP $2,500 buy-in event and the $1,000 buy-in event at the USPC. Chris Ferguson won the $1,500 buy-in event at the WSOP. "Miami" John Cernuto made five final tables, including a first-place finish in the $500 buy-in event at the USPC. Dale Phillips won the $550 buy-in event at the TOC, came in third in the $300 buy-in event at the World Poker Finals, and finished fourth in the $500 buy-in event at the USPC.

Seven-Card Stud

Points Final Tables

1. "Miami" John Cernuto, Las Vegas, NV 1,014 4

2. Paul Darden, New Haven, CT 990 3

3. Allen Cunningham, Marina Del Rey, CA 940 4

4. Adam Roberts, Las Vegas, NV 870 2

5. Randy Holland, Tallahassee, FL 806 4

Honorable Mention: Ross Lichen – Made three final tables, including a win in the $1,000 buy-in event at the USPC; Tony Ma – Made two final tables, including a win in the $300 buy-in event at the WPF; John Juanda – Made three final tables, including a third-place finish in the $4,000 buy-in championship event at the USPC

2000 Winner: Men "The Master" Nguyen

"Miami" John Cernuto won the $2,500 buy-in event at the WPF, and finished third in the $300 buy-in event at the USPC and fourth in the $1,000 buy-in event at the WPF. All three of those events were in the East, which is the stud capital of the country. Paul Darden won the $2,500 buy-in event at the WSOP, and came in second in both the $500 buy-in event and the $4,000 buy-in championship event at the USPC. Allen Cunningham won the $5,000 buy-in event at the WSOP, and finished second in the $540 buy-in event at the California State Poker Championship and third in the $300 buy-in event at the LAPC. Adam Roberts had a great WSOP in stud, including a win in the $1,500 buy-in event and a fourth in the $5,000 buy-in event. Randy Holland was the only player with two wins in stud. He won the $500 buy-in event at the WPO and the $100 buy-in event at the Winnin' o' the Green.

Seven-Card Stud High-Low Split

Points Final Tables

1. John Juanda, Alhambra, CA 1,216 5

2. Stan Goldstein, Los Angeles, CA 990 3

3. Chris Grigorian, Los Angeles, CA 786 3

4. Barry Shulman, Las Vegas, NV 690 1

5. Scott Aigner, Dubuque, IA 636 2

Honorable Mention: Rich Korbin – Won the $2,500 buy-in event at the WSOP

2000 Winner: Alex Papachatzakis

John Juanda won the $500 buy-in event at the WPF, and made final tables in the $300, $500, and $1,000 buy-in events at the Legends of Poker. Stan Goldstein had three wins in this category, in the $300 and $500 buy-in events at the Legends of Poker and the $1,000 buy-in event at the LAPC. Chris Grigorian finished third in the $300 buy-in event at the Legends of Poker and the $500 buy-in event at the LAPC, and fourth in the $500 buy-in event at the WPO. Barry Shulman won the $1,500 buy-in event at the WSOP. Scott Aigner won the $500 buy-in event at the WPO and came in second in the $500 buy-in event at the WPC.

Lowball (ace-to-five, razz, and deuce-to-seven)

Points Final Tables

1. Steve Flicker, Los Angeles, CA 494 2

2. Berry Johnston, Las Vegas, NV 420 1

3. Cliff Yamagawa, Covina, CA 390 1

4. Mike Wattel, Gilbert, AZ 378 1

5. David Rabbi, Las Vegas, NV 351 1

Honorable Mention: Howard Lederer – won the $5,000 buy-in deuce-to-seven event at the WSOP

2000 Winner: John Spadavecchia

There are only a few events each year in this category, which makes the WSOP events a large factor in the points race. Steve Flicker was the only player to make two final tables in this category. He finished third in the $1,500 buy-in lowball event at the WSOP and fourth in the $300 buy-in lowball event at the Legends of Poker. Berry Johnston won the $1,500 buy-in razz event at the WSOP, and Mike Wattel finished second. Cliff Yamagawa won the $1,500 buy-in lowball event at the WSOP and David Rabbi finished second.

Mixed Games (new category)

Points Final Tables

1. "Miami" John Cernuto, Las Vegas, NV 1,080 3

2. Scotty Nguyen, Henderson, NV 1,020 2

3. Brian Saltus, Boise, ID 996 2

4. T.J. Cloutier, Richardson, TX 810 1

5. David Pham, Bell Gardens, CA 540 1

Honorable Mention: Vince Burgio – Finished second in the $1,000 buy-in H.O.R.S.E. event at the LAPC

"Miami" John Cernuto finished fourth in both the $2,000 buy-in S.H.O.E. event at the WSOP and the $2,000 buy-in TOC championship, and made the final table of the $500 buy-in H.O.E. event at the Legends of Poker. Scotty Nguyen won the $1,000 buy-in H.O.R.S.E event at the LAPC, and came in third in the $2,000 buy-in TOC championship. Brian Saltus won the $2,000 buy-in TOC championship (H.O.S.). T.J. Cloutier finished second in the $2,000 buy-in TOC championship. David Pham won the $2,000 buy-in S.H.O.E event at the WSOP.