Card Player's Player of the Year Update: EPT Loutraki and WPT Jacksonville

Here is a look at the Card Player Player of the Year movement from Nov. 16-23. Be sure to check back each week for another update from the world of tournament poker.

EPT Loutraki

The first ever European Poker Tour event to take place in Greece wrapped up this week in the seaside resort town of Loutraki. The Club Hotel Casino Loutraki played host to 19 tournaments, including the €4,400 no-limit hold’em main event, which attracted a field of 336 players. In the end British poker pro Zimnan Ziyard came out on top, earning the €347,000 first place prize.

In addition to the prize money, Ziyard was also awarded 1,632 POY points, moving him into 55th place in the overall Player of the Year standings with 2,280.

Ziyard has made a total of four final tables this year, including a sixth-place finish in a World Series of Poker $3,000 pot-limit Omaha event. Interestingly, the runner-up in that event was none other than current points leader Ben Lamb, who lost heads-up to current fifth-place resident Sam Stein.

The side events at EPT Loutraki also had some interesting results. Notable winners include Mohsin Charania, who took down a €2,000 no-limit hold’em turbo bounty event for €24,850 and Steve O’Dwyer, who won a €1,000 pot-limit Omaha rebuy and finished second in a €400 no-limit hold’em turbo bounty. O’Dwyer now sits in 17th place in the overall standings with 3,544 POY points.

Also making a crucial score to move up in the standings was Eugene Katchalov, who finished runner-up in the sixth event of the series, a €2,200 no-limit hold’em event that drew 72 entrants. For his second-place finish Katchalov earned €36,300 and 210 POY points, moving him into eighth place in the overall standings, trading places with Sam Trickett. Also at the final table were Vanessa Rousso and Brandon Cantu. Kenny Hallaert won the event.

WPT Jacksonville

Florida native Anthony Ruberto defeated Sam Soverel heads-up to take down the WPT Jacksonville $3,500 main event title, earning $325,928.

Ruberto topped a field of 393 players at the Orange Park Kennel Club just south of Jacksonville. This solid turnout generated a $1,277,250 prize pool, the largest ever in North Florida.

Joining Ruberto at the final table was fellow Floridian and previous WPT finalist Darryll Fish, and the 2009 WSOP ladies event champion Lisa Hamilton.

Here is a look at the payouts and Card Player Player of the Year points awarded at the final table:

1. Anthony Ruberto — $325,928 (1,404 POY points)

2. Sam Soverel — $187,762 (1,170 POY points)

3. Lisa Hamilton — $112,657 (936 POY points)

4. Vitor Coelho — $75,105 (702 POY points)

5. Artie Rodriguez — $55,077 (585 POY points)

6. Darryll Fish — $46,315 (468 POY points)

Looking Ahead

There are a number of big tournaments series going on or just on the horizon, with plenty of POY points still up for grabs with just over a month left in the year.

The 2011 Borgata Fall Poker Open featured 21 events, and is almost wrapped up, with only its main event still ongoing, with notables Victor Ramdin, Todd Terry and lLiff Josephy making the final day.

The PokerStars.com Asian Pacific Poker Tour Macau series is also underway, running from Nov. 17-27 at the Casino Grand Lisboa. The series features 14 events including its $30,000 Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) main event, which converts to roughly a $3,800 USD event. The event has a $6,000,000 HKD guarantee, or roughly $770,000 USD.

The WPT Marrakech festival began on Nov. 20 in Morocco and will run to the 30th, with its €5,000 main event beginning on the 24th.

Back in the states, the 2011 Five Diamond World Poker Classic will kick off at Bellagio beginning on Nov. 25, and features 18 events running all the way until Dec. 11. Highlighting the whole affair is the WPT $10,000 main event, running from Dec. 6-11.

A Look At The Standings

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