The official Player of The Year rankings are powered by The Global Poker Index – check out the ten top players from the 2016 World Series of Poker
1. Jason Mercier (USA)
It’s rare to find a player that excels across all formats of poker, live and online, but Mercier is the real deal. He came into the WSOP on the back of a successful SCOOP, where he finished second on the Player of the Series leaderboard. Two bracelets here and 11 cashes across all games means he absolutely smashed it – almost 200 points ahead of Paul Volpe in second.
2. Paul Volpe (USA) 
If the true mark of a poker player is ‘getting it quietly’ people would be making a lot more noise about Paul Volpe. He finished seventh in the WSOP PotY last year and takes the runner-up spot this summer. Volpe cashed nine times, won his second bracelet and finished 29th in the Main Event.
3. Max Silver (UK)
Silver might still be waiting for his first bracelet but he had a big WSOP with ten cashes and some deep runs in massive tournaments. He finished 46th in the Millionaire Maker, 10th in the $5k NLHE and got his biggest cash when he came 33rd in the Main Event for $216,211.
4. James Obst (AU)
The Australian pro had a fantastic summer, with eight cashes and a second place finish in the $10k H.O.R.S.E. But Obst crashed into the Player of the Year race at the last, with a super deep run in the Main Event. On Day 7 it looked like he was set for the November Nine but he crashed out, agonisingly close, in 13th. It was unlucky for Obst as he was forced to make a stand with his short stack. He had Fives but ran into the pocket Tens of Qui Nguyen.
5. John Edward Monnet (USA)
You might not have heard of Monnett but he’s been cashing at the WSOP for over ten years and has two bracelets. He couldn’t add a third this year but came close with eight cashes and six top ten nishes. His best result was third in the $10k Dealers Choice for $135k
6. Justin Bonomo (USA) 
Bonomo is a player you either love or hate, but everyone will have a bit of sympathy for him after this WSOP. He cashed six times with two third places and two runner-up nishes. He has one bracelet but he’ll think he should have another, especially in the $50k Poker Players Championship where he blew a big lead heads-up
7. Michael Gathy (GER)
The German pro added his third bracelet and biggest career cash this year in the $5k NLHE 6-Handed event ($560,843). He was unlucky not to add his fourth too, with runner-up finishes in the $1,500 Razz and $10,000 2-7 Triple Draw events.
8. Martin Kozlov (AU)
The Australian pro enjoyed his breakthrough year, winning his first bracelet in the ultra-tough $10k 6-Handed event. He beat Davidi Kitai (2nd), Justin Bonomo (3rd), Chris Ferguson (4th), Nick Petrangelo (5th) and Jack Salter (6th) to the gold. That’s some way to win your rst. Kozlov cashed seven times and notched a fifth place finish in the $3k 6-Handed.
9. David Vamplew (UK)
Vampy had a prolific WSOP with 11 cashes, although he couldn’t convert any of them to final table finishes. He came closest in the $3k NLHE 6-Handed event where he came 10th for his biggest cash of the summer ($42,918). He also enjoyed a deep run in the Main Event where he finished 258th.
10. Chris Ferguson (USA)
Oh dear. If people were hoping Ferguson’s skills had rusted over since the Full Tilt scandal and his subsequent five year lay-off from the WSOP, they were set to be sorely disappointed. Ferguson launched himself back into poker with a vengeance and soaked up all the abuse the rail – and certain players at his table – threw at him. He made a final table in the $10k 6-Handed event for his biggest summer cash of $183,989. And he still hasn’t apologised to the players.
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