Card Player's Player of the Year race heats up

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- (PRESS RELEASE) -- The movers and shakers of tournament poker have made 2007 a memorable year in the race for one of the most anticipated awards in poker.

Card Player's Player of the Year award, established in 1997, is the oldest and most respected tournament poker ranking system in the industry. Past winners include the likes of Daniel Negreanu, Michael Mizrachi, and Men "The Master" Nguyen.

As the year winds down, a handful of poker's top players are jockeying for position atop this prestigious leader board.

The top five in the 2007 Player of the Year standings are:

1. David Pham: 5,410 points, 10 final tables, $1,514,280 in winnings

2. Bill Edler: 4,696 points, 6 final tables, $2,690,704 in winnings

3. J.C. Tran: 4,458 points, 5 final tables, $2,359,257 in winnings

4. Tom Schneider: 3,792 points, 4 final tables, $651,009 in winnings

5. Jonathan Little: 3,618 points, 8 final tables, $1,759,879 in winnings

J.C. Tran held first place in the standings for most of the year after making three World Poker Tour final tables and winning more than $2 million in the first three months of 2007. However, the recent World Poker Tour Legends of Poker event turned the race upside down. David "The Dragon" Pham, the Card Player Player of the Year in 2000, jumped into first place by making his 10th final table of the year. "I feel great," said Pham. "The race this year is going to be tough; it's going to be very close."

Bill Edler then surpassed Tran after emerging victorious at the World Poker Tour's inaugural Gulf Coast Poker Championship. "This race will be fun," said Edler. "It's an honor to compete against some of the finest players in the world."

There will be no lack of opportunity for the players near the top of the leader board to make some moves this fall. With World Poker Tour stops in Turks and Caicos, Barcelona, and Niagara Falls on the slate for the next two months, as well as European Poker Tour events, poker's top players will be jetting across the globe in pursuit of riches and a shot at the 2007 title. The tournament coverage teams from Card Player and Card Player Europe will be there to catch all of the action. Stayed tuned to CardPlayer.com to catch the latest tournament results and Player of the Year updates.