2016 Player of the Year

With the 2016 WSOP at a close, we now have a clearer picture of who will the player of the year race. We also know for sure who won the 2016 WSOP player of the year. The WSOP player of the year race was all but sown up once Jason Mercier won his 2nd bracelet a few weeks in. He had a 500 point or more lead at one stage, and no one looked like they could catch him. That point lead would hold, but the race ended closer than many thought. Justin Bonomo, and Paul Volpe had the best chance if any, to catch Mercier. Although a long shot, they did their best to win the title. Points wise, Mercier had the best series, but many would argue that Paul Volpe had a better showing. Mercier had a good run placing 1st, 2nd and 1st again in 3 events in a row. But, all of those events were small fields. Tough competition for sure in those higher buy in events, but winning an event with less than 100 players, is always easier than one with a few thousand, regardless of competition. Volpe finished the series with 9 cashes and one bracelet. His bracelet came in a 6 max event winning $150,000. Prior to his win, he made 3 final tables in a row. Just missing out in another 2 events later when he placed 10th. Mercier had a bit of a scare when Volpe started to make a deep run in the main event. Making the final table and winning the main event was perhaps the only chance he had to overtake Mercier. He came close, but busted out in 29th place. Max Silver, James Obst, and John Monnette round out the top 5, all having success at this year's WSOP. Just missing out of the top 10 was Chris Ferguson. Ferguson made his return to poker after a 4-year hiatus. Like him or not, he still has the chops to play with the best in the world. November Nine member, Gordon Vayo also had a nice series, placing 13th in the player of the year race. Jason Les, Michael Mizrachi and Eli Elezra also cracked the top 20 in the points race. Elezra, primarily known for his cash game prowess, had a nice summer and showed he can still play with the best of the best.