John Phan, affectionately named “The Razor” in the world of poker, was recently named Bluff Magazine’s 2008 Player of the Year, with $2.1 million in earnings translating into 1,214.1 points according to its rating system. He edged out Michael Binger, who hauled in $1.1 million for 1,183.7 points.
Phan started the year off in March by making the final table and finishing sixth in the World Poker Tour’s (WPT) Bay 101 Shooting Star event for $135,000. That tournament, which was won by Brandon Cantu, featured a final table that also included Steve Sung and Jennifer Harman. Then, it was on to the 2008 World Series of Poker, where Phan took down not one, but two bracelets, the coveted hardware awarded to the winner of each tournament. Phan conquered a field of 716 players in a $3,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em event, defeating John Neckar heads-up. Full Tilt Poker pro David Singer also reached that tournament’s final table.
One bracelet wasn’t enough for one of the most feared poker players in the world, however. Phan bested a field of 238 players en route to a win in a $2,500 buy-in 2-7 Triple Draw tournament (Event #40) for $151,911. The top six finishers in that event included poker author David Sklansky and Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi’s brother, Robert. Also held in Las Vegas was the WPT’s Bellagio Cup IV, which occurred about two weeks after Phan’s second bracelet win. The $15,000 buy-in televised WPT event was ultimately won by Mike Watson. However, Phan once again found himself in the spotlight, taking fifth for $193,915; Watson won $1.6 million.
The highlight of the 2008 calendar year for the California native came in August, when Phan was crowned the winner of the WPT’s Legends of Poker. Truly a legend in his own right after his 2008 performance, he raked in $1.1 million for his efforts. The 373 player field saw Phan go toe to toe with online poker sensation Amit “amak316” Makhija, who took second in the Legends of Poker for over a half-million dollars.
Points are the ultimate determinant of Bluff’s Player of the Year standings. Last year, Bill Edler took first place with 707.57. This year, Phan trumped that total, capturing 1,214.1 points. David “The Dragon” Pham, J.C. Tran, Jonathan “FieryJustice” Little, and Ted Lawson rounded out the top five on the leader board in 2007. This year, the top ten players in the standings were as follows:
1st Place: John “The Razor” Phan, 1,214.08 points
2nd Place: Michael Binger, 1,183.67 points
3rd Place: David “The Dragon” Pham, 1,148.05 points
4th Place: Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier, 1,114.32 points
5th Place: Men “The Master” Nguyen, 1,090.31 points
6th Place: Toto Leonidas, 1,087.13 points
7th Place: Nam Le, 940.03 points
8th Place: David Benyamine, 905.07 points
9th Place: Shannon Shorr, 882.44 points
10th Place: Jason Mercier, 877.10 points
Other notable names who found themselves perched near the top of Bluff Magazine’s Player of the Year standings were:
11th Place: Erik Seidel, 844.30 points
12th Place: John Juanda, 822.18 points
18th Place: Hevad Khan, 741.33 points
22nd Place: David “Chino” Rheem, 729.93 points
24th Place: Peter Eastgate, 722.45 points
29th Place: Ivan Demidov, 694.50 points
30th Place: Mike Matusow, 665.15 points
Points are awarded based on a player’s finish, the amount of the tournament’s buy-in, and the number of entrants. Short-handed, shootout, and heads-up tournaments are treated differently than standard events. In addition, each variation of poker features a different point structure.
One of the world’s largest poker print periodicals, Bluff is based in Atlanta, Georgia and managed by Eric Morris. Eddy Kleid, Jeff Markley, and Michael Casselli all play a prominent role in the organization.
