In 2024, the poker world saw the meteoric rise of several players who left an indelible mark on the scene. From Vladimir Korzinin to Shiina Okamoto, many poker players across the world etched their names as the rising stars in the world of poker. Here is a quick look at some of the players who shone brightly and rose to poker stardom during 2024.
Vladimir Korzinin’s Rise To Poker’s Newest High-Stakes Wizard
The white-bearded high-stakes newcomer Vladimir Korzinin took the world by storm with his bold play on the felts. The newcomer from Estonia, who burst onto the live poker scene in 2024 with a third-place finish in the Mystery Bounty at European Poker Tour (EPT) Cyprus in October 2024, went on to dominate Triton Poker Super High Roller Series in Monte Carlo.
Dubbed by as “Gambledore”by fans, he played some crazy poker, stunning the field with a second-place finish in Event #8 – $200K Triton Invitational. Not resting on his laurels, he then went on to defeat some of the best players in the game to win Event#12 $150K NLH 8-Handed for $4.35 million prize money, establishing him poker’s newest high-stakes wizard.
Shiina Okamoto Claims WSOP Bracelet & GPI Japan Female POY Honor
Another player who made big waves in 2024 was Shiina Okamoto from Japan. She scored over 12 dozen final table finishes, including four titles victories. She started the year on a historic note by winning the WSOP Ladies Event for a career-best $171,732 and then followed up that score with a win in Jeju Dragon Quest of Red Dragon Poker Tour for $ 64,564 and a victory in the Single Day High Roller (Event H2) at Taiwan Millions Tournament (TMT) Championship. Okamoto’s last victory of the year came in the Win the Button Hyper Turbo of WPT Korea where she won $ 7,977.
With her power-packed performance through 2024, she wrapped up the year with 1,733.72 GPI points, topping the GPI Japan Female POY race and establishing herself as one of the rising stars in the world of poker.
Masashi Oya Claims Two Massive Wins & GPI Japan POY Title
Another poker player from Japan whose career witnessed a meteoric rise in 2024 was Masashi Oya. He had a breakout year with 12 final table scores, including two prestigious live titles. The young prodigy started the year with a victory for $539,347 in the€ 24,010 + 990 NLH Event at EPT Monte Carlo in April. He then followed up that live score with a win for $ 535,000 in the $50,000 + 1,500 NLH SHRB #04 7-Max at Super High Roller Bowl Series Cyprus (SHRB) in August. The two massive victories coupled with deep runs across several prestigious events earned coveted the GPI Japan Player of the Year honor for this rising star of poker.
Thomas Santerne Rises To Stardom With Four Major Victories
2024 turned out to be a breakout year for Thomas Santerne, a French player, who started his career just last year. He went on to record over an impressive 8 final table scores and 4 EPT titles, displaying exceptional skill, determination, and a passion for the game to cement his place among a new wave of rising stars in the world of poker. Sentence started 2024 on a grand note by winning the European Poker Tour (EPT) Super High Roller in Paris for $ 958,719 in February and followed that with another three EPT titles. His fourth EPT victory of the year came in December when he won the EPT Prague Super High Roller Second Chance for $138,287.
Japanese-Filipino John Matsuda’s Rise To Prominence
Japanese-Filipino John Matsuda also had a break-out year with over 14 final table scores and four live titles. Until July 2024, his highest score was around $8,932 but then in August,he finished as a runner-up in the APPT Manila 15 Main Event for a career-high PHP 9,320,000 ($159,687) to set a new top score. He continued his momentum and won the APPT Manila Championship High Roller in October before scoring two more APT high roller wins and a runner-up finish for a total $292,842 in winnings.
His last victory came in December when he won the USOP Grand Finale Hai Phong Championship Event for VND 2,503,800,300 ($98,701) for his first title outside of the Philippines. With four major victories and plenty of deep runs, he also etched his name in a new wave of rising stars in 2024.
Jia Chi Lee’s Rise To Stardom in Women’s Poker
Another player who made it to the list of rising stars in 2024 was Taiwan’s Jia Chi Lee, who scored over 14 final table finishes and two victories in 2024, earning her recognition as a rising star of poker on home turf. Lee started the year with a third-place finish in the 15th Taiwan Millions Tournament (TMT) Main Event for $56,730 and followed that score with several final table finishes and two victories in the prestigious live events.
Harsh Bubna And Harshdev Jhirmiria’s Rise To International Glory
The Year 2024 witnessed the rise of several Indian players, including Harsh Bubna and Harshdev Jhirmiria. The former scored three final table finishes, including a victory and a runner-up finish. He started the year on a grand note, winning the DPT Mini Main Event in May for INR 787,668. He followed that live score with several deep runs and ended the year with a career-best $75,250 for his runner-up finish in the USOP Grand Finale Hai Phong Championship, earning a place among the rising stars of poker.
Talking about Jhirmiria, he started participating in international events only this year and made a strong impact, scoring over seven final table finishes and two live victories. The first of his victories came in Malaysia in April when he took down the Poker Dream 9 Mystery Bounty for RM 286,000 (including RM 98K in bounty prize). His second victory came on home turf when he shipped the DPT High Roller for INR 34,30,180 ($ 41,175).
Other Poker Players Who Rose To Prominence in 2024
Among other players who rose to prominence in 2024 were Japan’s Sachiko Uchihara (won APT Women’s Event and scored 10 final table scores), Simone Andrian (won Merit Poker Western Series warm-up event for $ 165,000 and the 2024 WSOPE Main Event for $ 1,434,451), Boris Angelov (won EPT Barcelona Mystery Bounty for $ 123,581 and scored deep runs in multiple EPT and WSOP events), and Adam Thaggard (won an incredible seven live poker titles including WPT and APL victories) were the other notable players who rose to poker stardom in the year 2024.
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