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The High Roller of the Year race is off and running. Each week, Poker Central is your home for the results, stats, and stories from the world’s biggest events. From 2019 U.S. Poker Open to Super High Roller Bowl VI and everything in between, Poker Central is your High Roller of the Year headquarters.

After an extended winter, Ali Imsirivoc enters the first extended break of the 2019 High Roller of the Year season atop the leaderboard. Imsirovic dominated the spring schedule, winning three HROY events through the first three weeks of April to take the top spot from Sean Winter. The Poker Masters champion will hold that top spot for the next month, before HROY events return May 23.

The current top-five is shown below and more High Roller of the Year information, including an upcoming schedule, can be found here.

Ali’s Ascent

Since rewriting the High Roller Triple Crown record books at Poker Masters, Ali Imsirovic has been one the best players on the planet. A few months removed from his Purple Jacket win, Imsirovic cashed his first $300,000 event at Super High Roller Bowl V. He then opened the year with his first U.S. Poker Open win and has spent the rest of 2019 ascending the High Roller of the Year standings.

Imsirovic’s impressive run has doubled his tally since the USPO, while also pushing his 2019 earnings dangerously close to $1 million. David Peters is the only player that has eclipsed that number so far this year. If Imsirovic decides to spend a majority of his time at ARIA, he will surely join Peters in the Millionaire’s Club and extend his High Roller of the Year lead over the USPO Champion.

Soverel’s Surge

Sam Soverel quietly won the inaugural High Roller of the Year race and after a slow start to his title defense, Soverel is quietly climbing the standings. The reigning champion recorded a third cash and second podium finish of 2019 in this weekend’s $25,000 NLH finale.

A majority of Soverel’s 2018 HROY points came during the summer. He won five separate High Roller of the Year events and cashed a dozen times from June to August. If Soverel is able to replicate that kind of run this year, his slow start will be quickly forgotten.

Quick Hits

Under 250 points separate Rainer Kempe and Maria Ho (15th & 14th) and Stephen Chidwick (5th)…Ben Yu moved into 11th, thanks to a $25,000 NLH event victory on Friday. Yu defeated Jake Schindler heads up to push his point total to 350…Jake Schindler’s fourth cash of 2019 moved him into the top-10 on 355 points. Schindler and Brandon Adams (9th/365 points) are the only players in the top-10 without victories in 2019.

Looking Ahead

The High Roller of the Year race continues this summer with ARIA High Roller Series events. The first week of events is provided below:

Follow Poker Central for weekly High Roller of the Year updates and subscribe to watch High Roller of the Year qualifying events exclusively on PokerGO. A complete HROY schedule can be found here and more information about the year-long points race can be found here.

PokerGO, WSOP, Sam Soverel, David Peters, Jake Schindler, Ali Imsirovic, Ben Yu, High Roller of the Year