The fourth annual GPI American Poker Awards were handed out on Thursday evening in West Hollywood, California. The event is presented by PokerStars and celebrates the game of poker in North America.

1. Ema Zajmovic - Pros - PokerTube
2. Largest Live Poker Database - Poker Hendon Mob

On Tuesday, Ema Zajmovic gave the poker world some answers. Zajmovic won the Season XV partypoker.net WPT Playground Main Event, becoming the second female WPT champion and the first to ever win an open buy-in event on the tour, as Nguyen’s title came in the WPT Celebrity Invitational in 2008. Final Table; Place Name Prize 1st: Rens Feenstra: €156,370 2nd: Ema Zajmovic: €100,260 3rd: Firoz Mangroe: €60,140 4th: Gary Miller: €36,795 5th: Louis Salter. Poker Database Featured Results. $ 10,000 No Limit Hold'em Wynn High Rollers Wynn Las Vegas, Las Vegas Saturday 12th December 2020.

A total of 20 awards were presented in a variety of categories.

The nominees and winners

Two winners were known before the ceremony, as trophies went to the top-ranked American GPI player and the top-ranked female player:

• 2017 GPI American Player of the Year: Bryn Kenney
• 2017 GPI Female Player of the Year: Kristen Bicknell

Four other APA awards went to the following people:

• Award for Lifetime Achievement in Poker: Norman Chad and Lon McEachern
• Charitable Initiative: Jacob Zalewski, One Step Closer Foundation
• Jury Prize: Eric Danis
• PocketFives Legacy Award: Ari Engel

The final 14 APA trophy winners were selected from a predetermined group of finalists, voted on by a nine-member jury vote.

The jury consisted of:

• Eric Danis
• David Tuchman
• Ari Engel
• Ryan Feldman
• Maria Ho
• Adam Levy
• Kevin Mathers
• Donnie Peters
• Robbie Strazynski

Here’s a look at the finalists and winners in each category.

BREAKOUT PLAYER

• Dejuante “DJ” Alexander
• Michael Del Vecchio
• William Alex Foxen
• Artur Papazyan

Winner: Artur Papazyan

TOURNAMENT PERFORMANCE

• Scott Blumstein (WSOP Main Event)
• Darren Elias (WPT Fallsview)
• Bryn Kenney (PokerStars Championship Monte Carlo Super High Roller)
• Doug Polk (WSOP One Drop High Roller)

Winner: Scott Blumstein

MOMENT OF THE YEAR

• 70-year-old John Smith makes back-to-back WSOP 10K Heads-Up finals
• Ema Zajmovic becomes first female player to win open event on World Poker Tour
• Vanessa Selbst’s Full House loses to Gaelle Baumann’s Quads early in the WSOP Main Event
• Tom Dwan makes his return to America, stars on Poker After Dark reboot on PokerGo

Winner: Ema Zejmovic

EVENT OF THE YEAR

• Super High Roller Bowl (ARIA Las Vegas)
• partypoker MILLIONS North America (Playground Poker Club Montreal)
• Poker Masters Event #1 (ARIA Las Vegas)
• World Series of Poker Main Event (Rio Las Vegas)

Winner: partypoker MILLIONS North America

MID-MAJOR CIRCUIT

• Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT)
• RUNGOOD Poker Series
• WPTDeepStacks (WPTDS)
• World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC)

Winner: WPTDeepStacks

JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR

• Drew Amato
• Lance Bradley
• BJ Nemeth
• Steve Ruddock
• Jessica Welman

Winner: Lance Bradley

BROADCASTER OF THE YEAR

• Nick Schulman
• Joseph Stapleton
• Lon McEachern
• Ali Nejad

Winner: Nick Schulman

MEDIA CONTENT

• Adrian Moreno in tears after Little One for One Drop win; days after losing his friend (Drew Amato, photo for WSOP.com)
• Dead Money: A Super High Roller Bowl Story (PokerCentral documentary)
• Poker Brat: The Phill Hellmuth Story (Phil Hellmuth, published by D&B Publishing)
• Resilience Defined: Sheddy Siddiqui Raising his Two Boys #ForCathy (Lance Bradley, article for PocketFives)

Winner: Dead Money: A Super High Roller Bowl Story

PODCAST

• PokerCentral Podcast (Brent Hanks, Will O’Connor, Remko Rinkema)
• PokerNews Podcast (Brent Harrington, Sarah Herring, Matt Parvis)
• Poker Life Podcast (Joe Ingram)
• TwoPlusTwo Podcast (Terrence Chan, Ross Henry, Adam Schwartz)

Winner: PokerCentral Podcast

VIDEO BLOGGER

• Joe Ingram
• Daniel Negreanu
• Andrew Neeme
• Doug Polk

Winner: Andrew Neeme

POKER STREAMER

• Jeff Gross
• Bill Perkins
• Jason Somerville
• Jaime Staples
• Parker Talbot

Winner: Jaime Staples

INDUSTRY PERSON

• Tony Burns
• Sean McCormack
• Adam Pliska
• Matt Savage

Winner: Matt Savage

POKER’S BIGGEST INFLUENCER

• Cary Katz
• Daniel Negreanu
• Doug Polk
• Matt Savage

Winner: Cary Katz

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD FOR POKER PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR

• Jonathan Little
• Andrew Neeme
• Daniel Negreanu
• Doug Polk

Winner: Andrew Neeme

Who we think should have won

Since the American Poker Awards uses a handpicked jury to decide most of its winners, US Poker decided to put together its own jury, and here’s the final results of our voting.

Author’s note: This shouldn’t be seen as criticism of the GPI selections, or as US Poker disagreeing with the winners, this was just a fun exercise we did several days before the APA ceremony.

BREAKOUT PLAYER

• Bart Shirley: William Alex Foxen
• Kim Yuhl: William Alex Foxen
• Dustin Gouker: Dejuante “DJ” Alexander
• Matt Clark: Artur Papazyan
• Brett Collson: William Alex Foxen
• Steve Ruddock: William Alex Foxen

US Poker winner: William Alex Foxen

After receiving four of the US Poker six votes, William Alex Foxen was our clear choice in the Breakout Player of the Year category.

TOURNAMENT PERFORMANCE

• Bart Shirley: Scott Blumstein (WSOP Main Event)
• Kim Yuhl: Bryn Kenney (PokerStars Championship Monte Carlo Super High Roller)
• Dustin Gouker: Doug Polk (WSOP One Drop High Roller)
• Matt Clark: Scott Blumstein (WSOP Main Event)
• Brett Collson: Scott Blumstein (WSOP Main Event)
• Steve Ruddock: Scott Blumstein (WSOP Main Event)

US Poker winner: Scott Blumstein

It would take something really special to beat the WSOP Main Event, and despite some good performances, the trophy belongs to Scott Blumstein.

MOMENT OF THE YEAR

• Bart Shirley: Ema Zajmovic becomes first female player to win open event on World Poker Tour
• Kim Yuhl: 70-year-old John Smith makes back-to-back WSOP 10K Heads-Up finals
• Dustin Gouker: 70-year-old John Smith makes back-to-back WSOP 10K Heads-Up finals
• Matt Clark: Tom Dwan makes his return to America, stars on Poker After Dark reboot on PokerGo
• Brett Collson: 70-year-old John Smith makes back-to-back WSOP 10K Heads-Up finals
• Steve Ruddock: 70-year-old John Smith makes back-to-back WSOP 10K Heads-Up finals

US Poker winner: John Smith

The APA jury went with the Ema Zajmovic’s historic win, but the US Poker jury has a soft spot for the story arc of the old guy putting the whippersnappers in their place.

EVENT OF THE YEAR

• Bart Shirley: Poker Masters Event #1 (ARIA Las Vegas)
• Kim Yuhl: World Series of Poker Main Event (Rio Las Vegas)
• Dustin Gouker: World Series of Poker Main Event (Rio Las Vegas)
• Matt Clark: Super High Roller Bowl (ARIA Las Vegas)
• Brett Collson: partypoker MILLIONS North America (Playground Poker Club Montreal)
• Steve Ruddock: World Series of Poker Main Event (Rio Las Vegas)

US Poker winner: WSOP Main Event

With three votes, the trophy goes to the WSOP Main Event. Only Brett Collson was in agreement with the APA jury.

MID-MAJOR CIRCUIT

• Bart Shirley: Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT)
• Kim Yuhl: Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT)
• Dustin Gouker: Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT)
• Matt Clark: WPTDeepStacks (WPTDS)
• Brett Collson: WPTDeepStacks (WPTDS)
• Steve Ruddock: WPTDeepStacks (WPTDS)

US Poker winner: WPTDS and MSPT

We have a tie! The MSPT and WPT DeepStacks split the votes from our jury.

JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR

• Bart Shirley: Steve Ruddock
• Kim Yuhl: Steve Ruddock
• Dustin Gouker: Steve Ruddock
• Matt Clark: Lance Bradley
• Brett Collson: Steve Ruddock
• Steve Ruddock: Abstain from voting

US Poker winner: Steve Ruddock

I wouldn’t put much stock in this one, as I suspect my coworkers are angling for me to pick up a dinner check or something.

BROADCASTER OF THE YEAR

• Bart Shirley: Ali Nejad
• Kim Yuhl: Nick Schulman
• Dustin Gouker: Nick Schulman
• Matt Clark: Nick Schulman
• Brett Collson: Nick Schulman
• Steve Ruddock: Nick Schulman

US Poker winner: Nick Schulman

Nick was the APA trophy winner, and US Poker’s near consensus choice.

MEDIA CONTENT

• Bart Shirley: Adrian Moreno in tears after Little One for One Drop win; days after losing his friend (Drew Amato, photo for WSOP.com)
• Kim Yuhl: Dead Money: A Super High Roller Bowl Story (PokerCentral documentary)
• Dustin Gouker: Dead Money: A Super High Roller Bowl Story (PokerCentral documentary)
• Matt Clark: Adrian Moreno in tears after Little One for One Drop win; days after losing his friend (Drew Amato, photo for WSOP.com)
• Brett Collson: Dead Money: A Super High Roller Bowl Story (PokerCentral documentary)
• Steve Ruddock: Dead Money: A Super High Roller Bowl Story (PokerCentral documentary)

US Poker winner: Dead Money

Poker Central’s Dead Money was the APA jury pick, as well as our favorite in the Content of the Year category. The 30-for-30-esque documentary was well received and expanded the boundaries of poker content.

PODCAST

• Bart Shirley: TwoPlusTwo Podcast (Terrence Chan, Ross Henry, Adam Schwartz)
• Kim Yuhl: PokerNews Podcast (Brent Harrington, Sarah Herring, Matt Parvis)
• Dustin Gouker: TwoPlusTwo Podcast (Terrence Chan, Ross Henry, Adam Schwartz)
• Matt Clark: PokerCentral Podcast (Brent Hanks, Will O’Connor, Remko Rinkema)
• Brett Collson: Poker Life Podcast (Joe Ingram)
• Steve Ruddock: TwoPlusTwo Podcast (Terrence Chan, Ross Henry, Adam Schwartz)

US Poker winner: TwoPlusTwo Podcast

Each of the finalists received a vote from the US Poker panel, but the TwoPlusTwo Podcast edged out the other contenders. PokerCentral was the actual winner.

VIDEO BLOGGER

• Bart Shirley: Doug Polk
• Kim Yuhl: Andrew Neeme
• Dustin Gouker: Andrew Neeme
• Matt Clark: Andrew Neeme
• Brett Collson: Andrew Neeme
• Steve Ruddock: Andrew Neeme

US Poker winner: Andrew Neeme

Neeme was a runaway winner in the Video Blogger category.

POKER STREAMER

• Bart Shirley: Jason Somerville
• Kim Yuhl: Bill Perkins
• Dustin Gouker: Jason Somerville
• Matt Clark: Jeff Gross
• Brett Collson: Parker Talbot
• Steve Ruddock: Jaime Staples

US Poker winner: Jason Somerville

Every finalist got a vote in this category as well, so with just a plurality of the vote, Jason Somerville is our winner. I’ll point out that I was the only voter to pick the actual winner here, Jaime Staples.

INDUSTRY PERSON

• Bart Shirley: Matt Savage
• Kim Yuhl: Tony Burns
• Dustin Gouker: Matt Savage
• Matt Clark: Matt Savage
• Brett Collson: Sean McCormack
• Steve Ruddock: Matt Savage

US Poker winner: Matt Savage

The US Poker jury lined up with the APA jury here, as Matt Savage received four of the six votes, making him the clear-cut winner in this category.

POKER’S BIGGEST INFLUENCER

• Bart Shirley: Doug Polk
• Kim Yuhl: Cary Katz
• Dustin Gouker: Daniel Negreanu
• Matt Clark: Cary Katz
• Brett Collson: Cary Katz
• Steve Ruddock: Cary Katz

US Poker winner: Cary Katz

Once again, the US Poker jury and the APA jury were in agreement. The unique and innovative content coming out of Poker Central garnered Katz four of the six votes in this category.

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD

• Bart Shirley: Doug Polk
• Kim Yuhl: Andrew Neeme
• Dustin Gouker: Daniel Negreanu
• Matt Clark: Doug Polk
• Brett Collson: Doug Polk
• Steve Ruddock: Daniel Negreanu

US Poker winner: Doug Polk

Kim Yuhl was the only vote that lined up with the APA jury. Everyone else was for Negreanu or Polk.

History has been made once again at Playground Poker Club!

After 34 levels of play spread across 4 action packed days, Ema Zajmovic plowed through a field of 380 entries and joined an elite group of players by claiming the title of champion at the partypoker.net WPT Playground. Ema has also just become the first woman to have won a WPT title in an open-championship event, securing nearly a quarter-million in earnings along the way.

The World Poker Tour Main Tour returned to Playground Poker Club for the third time this season in its 20 stop program. This time the structure was a little different compared to previous visits to Kahnawake, as there were only 2 starting flights to the $3,200 + $300 NLHE event, however a single same-day re-entry was permitted on top of the usual next-day re-entry formula. A combined total of 380 entries took place, in turn generating a prize-pool of $1,179,520.

Through the two starting flights, 157 players managed to bag chips onto Day 2 of which 48 secured a cash prize of at least $5,670. A few notable players were eliminated shortly after the money-bubble burst, including the likes of Marc-Etienne McLaughlin (41st – $6,120), Christian Harder (40th – $6,120) and Marc-Andre Ladouceur (35th – $6,720).

Once the clock struck zero in Day 2, there were only 28 players remaining with Hendrik Latz leading the pack. His stack was closely rivalled by 3 other players, as Jean-Pascal Savard, Eric Afriat and Kelly Kellner bagged within a handful of big blinds of the chip-leader.

Henry Tran was the highlight at the start of Day 3, as he ran his average stack into a monster chip-lead in only a few orbits of play. His at-one-point chip-stack of 2.3 million towered over his opponents in early play, but began being chipped away at bit by bit as the day progressed. All-stars Jake Schwartz (27th – $8,100) and Anthony Zinno (24th – $9,600) were shown the door fairly early, and they were followed by Hendrik Latz (20th – $11,580), Patrick Blye (13th – $17,160) and Pascal Lefrancois (11th – $20,160) before the 10-handed final table was formed. The 10 finalists played for 17 minutes before Day 3 was declared over, and it was none other than Ema Zajmovic who was sitting atop the leaderboard, en route to her second consecutive WPT final table here at Playground Poker Club.

Early action saw Henry Tran (10th – $15,508) be the first eliminated in Day 4, followed by Ryan Tack Yu (9th – $18,554) and local hero Carter Swidler (8th – $24,000). Danny Li (7th – $29,446) was then sent to the rail by Tam Ho, and the official WPT Playground Final Table was formed.

Ema Zajmovic - Pros - PokerTube

Tam Ho started 6-handed play with the chip-lead as he watched Jean-Pascal Savard (6th – $45,690) get eliminated by Jean-Francois Bouchard. Ema eliminated Mekhail Mekhail (5th – $55,200) in 5th place to regain the lead, but it was quickly taken away by Eric Afriat during 4-way action. After Ema eliminated Tam (4th place – $71,670) to bring the field down to 3, the stacks started to even out – until a huge hand occurred between Jean-Francois and Eric, leading to Eric’s elimination (3rd place – $108,690).

Jean-Francois began heads-up play with 6,850,000 in chips, ahead of Ema’s 4,525,000, but after only 2 levels of play Ema tilted the balance in her favour and took a 2-to-1 chip lead over her opponent. Jean-Francois was on his way to evening the counts up until the final hand of play took place.

Ema was on the button / small blind, and therefore first-to-act, but before she had the chance, Jean-Francois announced all-in out-of-turn. Ema confirmed with the floor staff regarding the procedures in this case, and then made a passive-action to ensure her opponent’s out-of-turn play remained binding. The dealer then threw the “All-In” card in front of Jean-Francois, and Ema made the call – forming a pot of nearly 90% of the chips in play.

Ema tabled and was racing versus the of Jean-Francois. She took the lead on the flop by pairing her king, and faded the turn and river to secure the win on the board.

Her radiant smile described the immense joy she felt after the river dropped – she was now a WPT champion!

partypoker.net WPT Playground Champion: Ema Zajmovic – $241,500.00

partypoker.net WPT Playground Runner-Up: Jean-Francois Bouchard – $169,270.00

Largest Live Poker Database - Poker Hendon Mob

Last hand of play