Poker Masters Shakes Up PGT Leaderboard

Stephen Chidwick was awarded the Poker Masters Purple Jacket this week after he won 2023 Poker Masters Event #8 for $400,000 and made three additional final tables. Chidwick collected 688 PGT points throughout the series and climbed to sixth on the PGT leaderboard.

Defending World Series of Poker Main Event champion Daniel Weinman still sits atop the PGT leaderboard with 2,300 PGT points, but Chris Brewer has closed the gap after cashing four times at the 2023 Poker Masters. Isaac Haxton retains his spot in third after cashing in the event that Chidwick won, while Steven Jones played two events at the 2023 Poker Masters, but could not add to his 1,700 PGT points. 

Sam Soverel moved from seventh to fifth on the PGT leaderboard after cashing twice at the Poker Masters. Two other big movers on the PGT leaderboard following the completion of the 2023 Poker Masters were Alex Foxen and Ren Lin. Foxen climbed from 23rd to seventh overall after cashing five times and reaching the final table on four occasions. Ren Lin moved from 20th to ninth overall on the PGT leaderboard following his four Poker Masters cashes that included a runner-up and third-place finish.

Phil Hellmuth, Daniel Negreanu, and Cary Katz remain in the top 40 heading into Super High Roller Bowl VIII and a very busy October on the PGT. Hellmuth didn't attend the 2023 Poker Masters, but might appear at the upcoming PGT Mixed Games and PGT PLO Series. Katz didn't collect a Poker Masters cash through ten events, while Negreanu fell short of expectations with only two cashes.

Three international players who traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada, included Orpen Kisacikoglu, Adrian Mateos, and Talal Shakerchi. Kisacikoglu won 2023 Poker Masters Event #6 for $218,500, followed by winning ARIA High Roller #13 for $216,000. Mateos won ARIA High Roller #12 for $216,000, while Shakerchi finished runner-up in both ARIA High Rollers for $120,000 each time. On the PGT leaderboard, Mateos sits in 33rd place with 898 PGT points, Kisacikoglu sits in 60th place with 643 PGT points, and Shakerchi sits in 69th place with 536 PGT points.

At the end of the 2023 PGT season, the season-ending PGT Championship $1,000,000 freeroll tournament will occur. The top 40 players, as ranked by the official PGT leaderboard, will qualify to compete in that event, alongside a select group of Dream Seat winners. Two Dream Seat winners have already been announced, with Albert Hart and Julio Clavell winning their seats from the PokerGO Annual Subscriber Dream Seat Giveaway.

This season's PGT Championship will award a $500,000 first-place prize, and additional payouts will be offered for the final table. Qualifying players from the PGT leaderboard will have their starting stacks determined by the number of points earned during the season. The player who finishes the 2023 PGT season with the most leaderboard points will be named PGT Player of the Year and awarded a $50,000 prize.

PGT Leaderboard Top 40 Through September 2023

Leaderboard standings as of Thursday, September 28, 2023. See the complete and current PGT leaderboard at pgt.com/leaderboard.

What's Next for the PGT?

Still to come this PGT season is Super High Roller Bowl VIII, PGT Mixed Games II, Super High Roller Bowl: Pot-Limit Omaha, and the PGT PLO Series II. Super High Roller Bowl VIII is scheduled for September 28-30, while the PGT Mixed Games II begins on October 5, with the nine-event schedule ending on October 14. The series leaderboard winner for PGT Mixed Games will take home the $25,000 championship bonus and the PGT Gold Cup.

For full PGT schedule information, check out pgt.com/schedule.

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