British Poker Awards Honor Top Players, Contributors

The second annual British Poker Awards were held Saturday, honoring the best poker players in the UK over the past year. The awards ceremony was held at the main stage of Poker in the Park in London, and was free to attend.

Several awards were given to the top British poker players in a variety of different formats. Sam Trickett took down the award for Best Cash Player, while Richard Ashby was named the Best Mixed Game Player. JP Kelly scooped the Best Pot Limit Omaha Player award. Tournament players were also honored, with Jake Cody taking the Best Tournament Player award over such notables as Chris Moorman and Sam Trickett. Moorman took down his own award as the Best Online Player.

However, the awards weren’t just about honoring poker players. In fact, perhaps the most important role of the ceremony was to honor those who had made important contributions to the poker community. Several awards were given out to people who played various roles in promoting poker. The winners were as follows:

Best Social Media User: Vickey Coren

Best Blogger: Neil Channing’s Black Belt Poker Blog

Best Poker League: Champions Poker League

Best Poker Forum: twoplustwo.com

Best Contribution to Poker: John Duthie

Poker Personality of the Year: Kara Scott

However, the two most anticipated announcements may have been the awards for Player of the Year and International Player of the Year. The UK Player of the Year was announced as Jake Cody, who recently completed his “Triple Crown,” winning a World Series of Poker bracelet, a World Poker Tour title, and a European Poker Tour title.

The International Player of the Year award featured several strong nominees, including Phil Ivey, Tom Dwan, Bertrand Grospellier and Erik Seidel. But the winner was none other than Jason Mercier, who has been on an unstoppable tear over the last twelve months.

The British Poker Awards were hosted by Lucy Porter and Michael Caselli. The ceremony also featured an auction that raised money for Peace and Sport.