Ranking based on the Global Poker Index:
1st: Joanne ‘JJ’ Liu – 1,629.07 pts
Liu has been around for a considerable amount of time now, consistently notching up cashes and final tables throughout her career. The 50 year old from Taiwan is number 1 at national level, number 2 in Asia, and number 308 worldwide. She has cashes spanning across the continents, in Asian tours such as the APPT, and in the prestigious WSOP. Just last year she finished 13th in the WSOP-APAC main event and continues to cement her place as one of the great poker players from Asian shores. She has almost $3 million in live cashes.
2nd: Hui ‘Kitty’ Chen-Kuo – 1,481.48 pts
Kitty is another world renowned poker player to hail from Taiwan, currently occupying the number 2 spot nationally. JJ Liu has 1,629.07 ranking points compared to Kitty’s 1,481.48 so the gap is there to be closed down if Kitty can find a few more big results to become Taiwan’s number 1 player. She currently has over $825,000 in cashes and finished 4th in a WSOP event just last month. She ranks as the number 6 player in Asia, and number 393 in the world.
3rd Celina Lin – 1,106.45 pts
Celina Lin is a Pokerstars sponsored pro with over $546,000 in cashes to her name. She also holds the title of being the best female player in China according to the GPI rankings. She ranks 5th among male and female players from China, and 780th in the world. She is a regular on the Asian tours and has had several big results there, always seeming to excel at the Macau Poker Cup. She ranks 16th among all Asian players, and winning the Macau Poker Cup Red Dragon event has placed her name firmly on the list of top Asian players.
Read again our portrait: The Queen of Poker In Asia
4th Yuri Ishida – 1,104.72 pts
Japan has seen one or two male players start to shine in recent years, but if you’re looking for a potential female star from Japan, Yuri Ishida is the prime candidate. Her first major cash came in 2012 with a deep run in the WSOP Main Event (440th). With a few victories on the APT circuit already, and a 2nd place at a ACOP event, Yuri will surely continue to add to the $237,000 in cashes that she already has. The GPI ranks her as the 4th best player in Japan and 822th in the world.
5th Sixiao ‘Juicy’ Li – 849.42 pts
Another great up and coming female player from China is Sixiao ‘Juicy’ Li. It’s fair to say that she still has a way to go before being recognised as one of the worlds best, but she has many years ahead of her to collect titles. She has $142,000 in live cashes and ranks as the 9th best player in China, and the 1,251st ranked player in the world. She is 27th in Asia. Despite being a regular on the APT and APPT for several years, she has only recently begun to make breakthroughs at the WSOP , Aussie Millions and EPT. Certainly one to watch in the future.
Article in partnership with the Global Poker Index
Louis Hartwell
Graduated in Media Communication at the University of Lausanne, Louis Hartman is a co-founder of somuchpoker.com. He began his career in Cambodia as freelance journalist. In same time he was making his living by playing poker every night at that time. Intense learner, he read dozens of poker strategy books to improve his skills during many years. With a strong interest about poker "behind the scene" in Asia and his communication skills, Louis launched Somuchpoker in 2014.
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