Kristen Bicknell is staying at the top of the Ladies Global Poker Index (GPI) bringing her excellent performance from 2018 into 2019 as well. The Canadian poker pro is also currently number one in her home country and has also managed to consistently sit at the peak of the POY rankings.
Bicknell ended 2018 with a bang as she secured the female GPI Player of the Year title for the second consecutive year. She was also ranked first in Canada, besting fellow pros Daniel Negreanu, Mike “GoLeafsGoEh” Leah, Timothy Adams, Sam Greenwood and Ari Angel.
A Great Start for Bicknell
Bicknell has continued to do well in 2019 by having a great run at the inaugural $25,000 PokerStars Players NL Hold’em Championship (PSPC) in the Bahamas which took place in January, where she almost reached her seven-figure goal by finishing in 11^th place for $328,500. That win earned her as many as 410.92 GPI points.
It was followed by a 6^th place victory at the A$ 98,000 + 2,000 No Limit Hold’em – Challenge #20 at this year’s Aussie Millions Poker Championship in Melbourne which netted her $209,010. Her most recent victory was at the US Poker Open on February 17 where she won $118,000 after finishing 5^th at the $25,000 No Limit’s Hold’em Event #5.
Some of the other cashes for Bicknell this year include clinching the 82^nd spot out of 865 players in the $10,000 PCA Main Event, as well as finishing 19^th out of 300 entries at an A$2,500 side event at the 2019 Aussie Millions.
The future looks bright for Bicknell as she maintains her momentum and continues to sit at the top of the ladies GPI and POY lists, with a number 12 and number 8 ranking in the overall GPI and POY standings respectively. If Bicknell can sustain her strong performance moving forward, she could very well exit 2019 with another GPI Female Player of the Year title under her belt.
Latest GPI Player of the Year Standings
Bicknell (1^st), Kitty Kuo (8^th), and Maria Ho (9^th) are some of the familiar faces who are still holding some of the spots in the top 10 list of the POY race. However, there are some new names that are making their way up the points ladder.
Kiwi Sosia Jiang is currently in the number 2 spot, after a series of strong performances earlier this year. Jiang landed the 28^th spot in the $25,000 PSPC Bahamas event, and finished 2^nd in a $10,000 side event at the PCA. She also did well at the Aussie Millions, clinching the 11^th spot in the A$25,000 Challenge which attracted 151 players.
Following Jiang in the rankings is Kelly Becker, who also bagged three cashes at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) in the Bahamas, which include finishing 5^th out of 94 entries in a $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em KO Turbo. She earned a total of 555.98 points for those wins.
Another fresh name on the top-10 list is fourth placer Jessica Dawley. The Florida poker pro managed to score 226.40 GPI points after an eighth-place finish in the recently-concluded WSOP Circuit Coconut Creek Main Event which drew 805 entries. Dawley walked away with $29,014 in prize money. China’s Li Yan rounded out the top five, cashing in three PCA events, which include finishing in 54^th in the PSPC and in 65^th place at the $10,000 PCA Main Event respectively.
Sitting in sixth place is Lauren Roberts, a high-stakes regular who grabbed her first cash of the year by finishing 19^th of 164 entries in a $2,200 side event at the PCA, taking home $4,000. She also scored two more victories at the US Poker Open, the latest being a ninth-place win in a $25,000 event, the result of which is expected to push Roberts up the third spot of the ladies POY rankings.
The four remaining spots are occupied by American circuit grinder Lakisha Slaughter (7^th), Judith Bielan of New Jersey (8^th), Australian pro Sarah Bilney (9^th), and the UK’s Catherine Ivgi.
Overall Ladies GPI Stats
Taking into account the players’ results over the past six months, Bicknell leads the GPI female POY list with 3,152.19 points. She is followed by Maria Ho with 2,213.68 points. Maria Lampropulos clinches the third spot with 2,203.87 points, with Loni Harwood in 4^th place scoring 1,827.01 points. They are the same players who occupied the top 4 spots at the end of 2018.