PGT Leaderboard On The Fringe: Will Phil Ivey, Chance Kornuth, Scott Seiver, and Alex Foxen Remain in the Top 40?

Only six qualifying events remain in the 2024 PGT season before the season finale PGT $1,000,000 Championship freeroll takes center stage at the PokerGO Studio from January 10-11, 2025. The final series of the PGT season is PGT Last Chance, running from January 2-9, 2025, and will provide players one final chance to qualify for the PGT $1,000,000 Championship. 

PGT Last Chance also offers a unique series leaderboard that will award a Dream Seat to the three highest-ranked players who do not qualify for the PGT $1,000,000 Championship via the Top 40. In addition, the next five players on the series leaderboard will receive a Dream Pass and be granted entry into the exclusive Dream Seat Invitational. They will compete against other Dream Pass winners for one of the final six Dream Seats into the PGT $1,000,000 Championship.

There are nine players in the Top 30 of the PGT leaderboard who are not qualified to participate in the PGT $1,000,000 Championship, and due to that, the next set of players will all feel more comfortable with their position on the PGT leaderboard heading into PGT Last Chance. 

Will Finish PLO Superstars Samuli Sipila and Eelis Parssinen Travel Back to Las Vegas?

Samuli Sipila won two events this season, including being crowned the PGT PLO Series champion, and sits 31st on the PGT leaderboard with 1,096 PGT points. Eelis Parssinen also won two events this season and sits 38th on the PGT leaderboard with 1,015 PGT points. Both players are based in Finland, and to go along with that, they rarely play No-Limit Hold'em as they are considered among the best Pot-Limit Omaha players in the world. Both players were made aware of the PGT $1,000,000 Championship back when they attended PGT PLO Series II in October, and with their seats nearly locked in as they climb to 22nd and 29th, respectively, considering eligibility requirements, the question will be if the EV in starting stacks is worth traveling back to Las Vegas.

PokerGO Studio Regulars Sam Soverel, Alex Foxen, Jonathan Little, and Justin Saliba Looking to Capitalize

One of the benefits of competing on the PGT is the added value throughout the entire season, from the PGT $1,000,000 Championship freeroll to bonuses paid to the series champions. For players that compete at nearly every series, the PGT $1,000,000 Championship is the event to capitalize and realize their season-long EV by making a run at winning the $500,000 first-place prize. Four PGT stalwarts are Sam Soverel, Alex Foxen, Jonathan Little, and Justin Saliba, who round out the Top 40. Soverel sits 33rd on the PGT leaderboard with 1,077 PGT points, Foxen sits 37th on the PGT leaderboard with 1,022 PGT points, Little sits 39th on the PGT leaderboard with 923 PGT points, and Saliba sits 40th on the PGT leaderboard with 921 PGT points. 

Those four players will all move up the PGT leaderboard due to player ineligibility and sit 24th, 28th, 30th, and 31st, respectively. That also means that if the ineligible players don't collect the additional cashes needed to qualify, Soverel, Foxen, Little, and Saliba will begin the PGT $1,000,000 Championship with 210 big blinds, 190 big blinds, 180 big blinds, and 175 big blinds, respectively. 

WSOP Crushers Phil Ivey, Chance Kornuth, Calvin Anderson, and Scott Seiver Return to the PokerGO Studio

The next four players have all played in the PokerGO Studio but don't participate as regularly as others. They also all had exceptional WSOP campaigns, which included winning WSOP bracelets and found themselves among the Top 40 of the PGT leaderboard as the season's end approached. Phil Ivey sits 34th on the PGT leaderboard with 1,067 PGT points from his 11 cashes. Ivey also won his 11th WSOP bracelet and amassed $1,608,316 in PGT earnings. Chance Kornuth sits 35th on the PGT leaderboard with 1,041 PGT points after winning his fourth WSOP bracelet and cashing four times for $2,385,298 in PGT earnings. 

Scott Seiver won three WSOP bracelets and was crowned 2024 WSOP Player of the Year. He sits 36th on the PGT leaderboard with 1,028 PGT points, two PGT wins, eight PGT cashes, and $1,101,245 in PGT earnings. Calvin Anderson won his fifth WSOP bracelet and sits 32nd on the PGT leaderboard with 1,085 PGT points. He cashed four times for $1,085,103 in PGT earnings. Taking into account the players above who aren't eligible to participate, Anderson, Ivey, Kornuth, and Seiver will begin the PGT $1,000,000 Championship with 215 big blinds, 205 big blinds, 200 big blinds, and 195 big blinds, respectively.

PGT Leaderboard - Ranks #31 to #40 

These are the leaderboard standings as of Friday, December 13, 2024. The complete and current PGT leaderboard is at pgt.com/leaderboard.

Remaining Events in the 2024 PGT Season

• PGT Last Chance (January 2-9) | Structure Sheet
• Dream Seat Invitational (January 9) | Structure Sheet
• PGT $1,000,000 Championship Freeroll (January 10-11) | Structure Sheet

For information on the upcoming PGT schedule, check out pgt.com/schedule.

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