Cream of the Crop: Card Player's 2006 World Series of Poker Leader Board

It was a record year in many ways for the 37th this year's WSOP. The tournament featured the the largest fields in WSOP history, the youngest bracelet ever, two multiple bracelet winners (Bill Chen and Jeff Madsen) and Phil Hellmuth Jr. winning his 10th bracelet.

Card Player tracked the top five performances at this year's WSOP. Using a points system adopted for its Player of the Year standings, Card Player presents poker warriors who survived huge field, bad beats, and long hours to take home their share of the WSOP prize pools and glory (standings do no include main-event points, which were unavailable at press time)

1. Jeff Madsen
July saw Madsen turn on his own form of heat, winning two bracelets and taking home $1,467,852.

In addition to becoming the youngest WSOP bracelet winner ever, Madsen, a 21-year-old film studies student from California, proved he can make the grade at the poker table no matter who the competition is.

Madsen won the $2,000 no-limit hold em ($660,948) and $5,000 shorthanded no-limit hold em ($643,381) events. And, showing that he was more than just a no limit tournament specialist, he also finished third in the $1,000 seven card stud eight or better ($65,971) and $2,000 Omaha eight or better ($97,552) events.

2. Phil Hellmuth Jr.
THE "POKER BRAT" had a huge WSOP. He pulled into a three way tie with Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan for the most World Series of Poker bracelets at 10. After making three final tables and cashing six times, Hellmuth finally closed the deal on victory No. 10 in the $1,000 no-limit hold em event, taking home $631,863 in the process.

Hellmuth came close earlier in the WSOP, finishing second in the $5,000 no-limit hold em event ($423,893) and sixth in the Omaha eight-or better event ($48,576). In total, he pocketed $1,130,559 at this year's WSOP.

3. Bill Chen
This yoga practicing mathematician won two bracelets and cashed five times at this year's Series. After winning his first bracelet in the $3,000 limit hold em event ($343,618), Chen went on to win the $2,500 no-limit hold'em shorthanded event ($442,511).

Chen holds a Ph.D. in math from U.C. Berkeley. He is so confident of the role of math in the modern field of poker warfare that he has co written a book aptly titled The Mathematics of Poker. In the book, Chen teaches correct mathematical theories for various games. His book will be available this fall.

4. Joseph Hachem
The reigning World Series of Poker main event champion has done nothing but improve people's perceptions of his game with his stellar performances at this year s WSOP. He cashed three times and made two final tables, in the $2,500 no-limit hold'em shorthanded event, where he finished second ($256,800), and the $2,500 pot-limit hold em tournament, where he finished fourth ($90,482). All told, Hachem won nearly $400,000 at the WSOP.

5. Tom Franklin
Known affectionately as Captain Tom Franklin, this poker veteran cashed in six events and made two final tables - in the $1,000 no-limit hold'em ($185,431) and $5,000 no limit hold em short-handed ($214,461) events.

Franklin is one of the game's elder statesmen, having started his poker career in the 1970s. He showed that he still has a lot of game, and that he is an experienced player of many forms of poker, cashing in pot-limit hold em, no-limit hold'em, and seven card stud eight-or-better tournaments.