Biggest Cash Game Winners of 2022 (3rd Part)
We’re finally at the third part of this topic and will be looking at the high-stake no-limit poker games.
As with the NL100 to NL500 games, we have started to see an equal division from where the top players are playing, with the lower-stake players mostly playing on PokerStars and 888poker. Read further to find out the best high-stake players of 2022.
Best Players By Limit
Using Smarthand’s database, we looked at the rankings for 2022, how each player performed, their hands, profits, bb/100, and EV bb/100.
NL1000 Best Player
The best player in the NL1000 category doesn’t come from PokerStars or GGPoker, but instead from the iPoker network. BigFatherrr has played 92,156 hands and won a total of $148,179. While he played fewer hands than the No. 2 and No. 3 players, he outshone everyone with his returns.
He has a 14.7 bb/100, while his EV win rate is 9.9 EV bb/100 with an EV of $99,896. BigFatherrr played mainly on SH tables, with 68,631 hands in three- to six-player tables, leading to $121,359 in winnings from SH tables altogether.
NL2000 Best Player
Avr0ra is a WPN network player who has played 28,987 hands, 24,044 of which were at SH tables. He made $133,176, while his estimated return was $117,462. These results give him a 20.3 EV bb/100 and a 23 bb/100.
Besides the SH tables, where he was the top player of the six-max rankings, Avr0ra also gained a profit of $17,074 by playing 4,929 hands in heads-up poker games.
NL5000 Best Player
T Duthweiler from the GGPoker network cleared the field with his 7.1 bb/100 and 5.4 EV bb/100 score. He won $405,020 over 114,781 hands, which is at least 14,000 hands more than anyone else in the top 10. The expected value of his winnings is $308,685, and the majority of it originates from SH games.
2011 Results Compared
As always, we look back at the golden age of poker in 2011 to compare the past results with current ones.
While we didn’t consider the NL5000 category, we can see in the NL1000 and NL2000 categories that players in 2011 won significantly more, but with a much lower bb/100 and EV bb/100. However, despite their lower ratings, they would still have placed first in the categories, as they won more thanks to better rakeback bonuses and other factors.
In 2011, katallo would win the NL1000 with a $185,132 profit over 324,072 hands, while timmo1122 would win the NL2000 with a $222,854 profit over 116,350 hands.
NL1000:
NL2000:
Top Winners in 2022
While players in 2011 might have performed better with higher profits, we should consider the exceptional results of 2022 players despite the challenges they face. Fewer rakeback bonuses are available, yet players still deliver excellent results, ensuring the poker limit field remains exciting and competitive.
