Poker Central Power Rankings: Putting Respect on David Peters' Name!

These last two weeks, the eyes of all poker fans were locked in on the ongoings at the PokerGO Studio. As the U.S. Poker Open saw, arguably, its most fascinating outcome with a battle for the overall trophy as well as the $100,000 Main Event culminate at the same time. Because of this 11-day stretch of high stakes events, the rankings this week are absolutely dominated by these results.

The Poker Central Power Rankings are voted on each week by five-panel members who use their own criteria to determine player relevance leading to a list of 25 players that score points from 65 down to 1. The criteria loosely include player results, social media influence, some good ol’ drama or other things of note that make ear perk up and our eyes grow bigger. Got beef with our decisions on a week-to-week basis? Hit us up on @PokerCentral on Twitter and jump into the conversation.

Read up on the previous weeks: Week 7– Week 6 – Week 5 – Week 4 – Week 3.

The Week 8 Poker Central Power Rankings

	Last Week	This Week
David Peters	Unranked	1

It’s an abomination! No, I’m not talking about David Peters being ranked first overall this week, but I’m taking issue with the entire panel – myself included – for not having Peters ranked at all these last few weeks. The quiet assassin that he is, Peters largely flies under the radar despite ranking fifth on the all-time money list and already having cashed for more than $2 million this year.

There are no arguments to be made for Peters not being ranked other than the panel overlooking his consistency. Having won the U.S. Poker Open $100,000 Main Event, as well as the overall USPO Championship, make Peters a deserving No. 1, and it’s highly likely he’ll be hovering near the top of the ranks for many weeks to come as the international high roller circuit travels to Jeju for the Triton Super High Roller Series. Watch more from David Peters right here. Peters was voted the unanimous No. 1 this week, becoming the third unanimous leader after Chino Rheem and Stephen Chidwick earlier this year.

	Last Week	This Week
Sean Winter	2	2

Holding steady at No. 2 is Sean Winter. For Winter, this No. 2 place comes with a sour taste as he had the No. 1 spot well within reach. Last week, Winter was a large favorite to win the U.S. Poker Open Championship but an unlikely outright win by David Peters in the $100k changed everything. All things considered, it was a tremendous week for the soon-to-be father who got a bit choked up speaking to Maria Ho after his elimination from the Main Event. Read more about Sean Winter here.

	Last Week	This Week
Dan Bilzerian	10	10

Oh hi, Dan. While appearing in an Instagram photo with Cardi B was seen by many as good exposure for the game of poker, him then photoshopping her seemed to be the opposite. Even the not-so-politically correct people at Barstool Sports thought that this was out of line, but for now Bilzerian remains to be ranked in the Top 10 due to his appeal to the masses as a “poker player.”

On The Bubble

Dropping out of the Top 10 this week are Ben Yu, Phil Galfond, Kristen Bicknell and Jordan Cristos. While still getting plenty of votes, it wasn’t enough to stay at the top and the same can be said for Phil Hellmuth, Maria Ho, and others that received votes such as Raine Kempe, Jeff Platt, Brent Hanks, and Bill Perkins.

Tune in again next week for the latest Poker Central Power Rankings! Until then, listen to Brent Hanks and me discuss this week’s rankings on the Poker Central Podcast. Looking to watch the latest live and on-demand poker action? Subscribe to PokerGO right now.