2005 Player of the Year Criteria

Thanks for all of your feedback regarding criteria for the 2005 Player of the Year award. Everything here that is in boldface is new for 2005.

Events: A new tournament has to have at least a $750,000 overall prize pool. Tournaments that had at least a $500,000 overall prize pool in 2004 will count.

An individual tournament like Bellagio's Friday night tournament will count if the prize pool is greater than $250,000. On the same note, if the overall prize pool of a tournament is less than $750,000 but it has an individual event with a prize pool of more than $250,000, the individual event will count. Card Player has the right to add tournaments.

Events must have at least a $300 total buy-in, which includes fees. Only the scheduled main events will count (second-chance tournaments will not count). Events such as those for seniors, dealers, and ladies only will not count. Invitational events with at least a $250,000 prize pool and at least 100 players will count. If the invitational is a freeroll, the buy-in will be calculated by dividing the prize pool by the number of entrants. Events must take place in the United States, or if held outside the United States, must be part of the World Poker Tour.

Points: There are three criteria for calculating points: amount of the buy-in, number of entrants, and place finished. If there is a tie between two or more players, each will receive the average number of points available. Players will receive points only if they are in the money. A final table is defined as eight players in stud events and nine players elsewhere. Total points are calculated by multiplying the point factors by the three criteria.

Place finished: First place receives 120 points, second place 100, third place 80, fourth place 60, fifth place 50, sixth place 40, seventh place 30, eighth place 20, and ninth place 10. In events with at least a $10,000 buy-in, the entire second table will receive 6 points and the entire third table will receive 3 points.

Buy-ins: $300-$999 = 1 point, $1,000-$2,499 = 2 points, $2,500-$9,999 = 3 points, and $10,000+ = 4 points. The buy-in for rebuy tournaments is calculated by dividing the total gross prize pool by the number of entrants.

Number of entrants:40-100 players = 1 point. Every 10 additional entrants increases the number of points by .1. The number of entrants is rounded to the nearest 10. The maximum number of points is 4, whether there are 400 players or 2,000 players. Examples: 39 players = 0 points, 135 players = 1.4 points, and 1,564 players = 4 points.

We will calculate the points for you at CardPlayer.com, and the criteria will always be there, as well. Feel free to check the day after an event to see the current standings. Good luck!