The race to be crowned the 2024 Grosvenor Casinos Player of the Year is nearing its conclusion, with Matthew Davenport and Callum Gordon neck-and-neck at the top of the National Poker League (NPL) standings. Whoever comes out on top once the final qualifying event crowns its champion will receive a £75,000 sponsorship package for 2025. The stakes are high, but these players know all about that.
Since the turn of the year, players cashing in Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT), Grosvenor 25/50, 888poker UK Poker League (UKPL), UK Open, and Goliath events earn NPL leaderboard points. With less than two months until Auld Lang Syne rings out around the United Kingdom, time is running out to climb the ladder and secure one of the more lucrative prizes.
| Rank | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matthew Davenport | 760.30 |
| 2 | Callum Gordon | 758.56 |
| 3 | Calogero Morreale | 683.10 |
| 4 | Robert Douras | 574.94 |
| 5 | Abdulkadir Ahmed | 535.94 |
| 6 | Thomas Clack | 514.65 |
| 7 | Glen Gaines | 447.73 |
| 8 | Sinead Priestley | 443.15 |
| 9 | John Bousfield | 407.03 |
| 10 | David Johnson | 363.02 |
Davenport captured the NPL title in 2022, finishing 147.89 points ahead of Andrew Bak. Things look to be a little closer two years on, with Davenport's lead a mere 1.74 over Gordon. Davenport's dedication to the grind must be commended. When a top-tier poker player adheres to a high-volume schedule, excellent results tend to follow.
In February, a runner-up finish in the £1,650 High Roller at GUKPT Manchester kicked off 2024 in style for Davenport. Since then, he has racked up another four dozen qualifying cashes, including 23 final table finishes!
Second-placed Gordon has been even more prolific, cashing in 50 qualifying events, including 23 final table appearances. Gordon finished second in the £1,250 GUKPT Blackpool Main Event in March for £42,080.
Reigning Player of the Year, Calogero Morreale, occupies third place. He finished third in 2022, won in 2023, and is still within touching distance of the 2024 title, as he is only 77.2 points behind Davenport. Morreale has managed six wins this year, including a pair of £250 buy-in 25/50 events worth £41,610 and £22,965.
The overall winner of the NPL receives a £75,000 sponsorship package, which is more than enough to play every big event on the 2025 GUKPT circuit. Second and third place win a £30,000 package, with fourth and fifth place bagging a £15,000 package. A £10,000 package is awarded to sixth, seventh, and eighth place.
Those finishing ninth through 79th get to play in a live tournament, where £5,000 packages are in the prize pool. The exact number of packages is yet to be determined, as they are linked to total entries in live events up to the end of the year.
Anyone finishing in the top 209 who doesn't win a package is invited to an online second-chance playoff, where £10,000 worth of NPL tickets are waiting to be won.
| Rank | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | £75,000 Sponsorship package + Grosvenor Casinos Player of the Year trophy |
| 2-3 | £30,000 Diamond package |
| 4-5 | £15,000 Diamond package |
| 6-8 | £10,000 Diamond package |
| 9-79 | £5,000 Diamond package |
| 9-209 | £10K in added NPL tickets |
With only a couple of months remaining of 2024, time is running out to earn NPL leaderboard points.
The 888poker LIVE Coventry double-header runs between October 10-20, which includes eight UKPL tournaments. Between October 30 and November 10 is the GUKPT Blackpool leg, followed by the GUKPT Grand Final from November 21 to December 1.
There are also 15 Grosvenor 25/50 tournaments between October 23 and the end of the year. However, some occur on the same days, so you will be hard-pressed to play them all! The table below shows the remaining 25/50 events.
| Round | Venues | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Reading South, Manchester BNR, Leeds, Glasgow | Oct. 23-27 |
| 11 | Liverpool, Portsmouth, Birmingham, Leeds, Edinburgh | Nov. 13-17 |
| 12 | Walsall, Reading South, Manchester BNR, Sheffield, Glasgow | Dec. 4-8 |
You can win your way into most of the NPL points-awarding tournaments live at their respective venues, Grosvenor Poker has a plethora of online satellites for the bigger buy-in GUKPT events and for live credit amounts ranging from £250 to £1,250.
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