A South Korean native living out of Washington has taken down the 22nd iteration of the coveted tour player of the year award.
24-year-old Yunkyu Song has taken down the Season 22 WPT Player of the Year title after a remarkable 2024.
He most notably won the WPT Prime Playground event for CAD $222,270, but a series of deep runs in other events secured the victory.
Song kicked off the year with a strong performance, securing fourth place in the $3,500 WPT Rolling Thunder Championship in March, earning 450 points. He added 50 points on the WPT Voyage shortly after. His breakout moment came in October with a victory in Montreal, earning him 900 points.
He nearly claimed another title at the WPT bestbet Scramble, finishing second for 800 points. He capped off his year with an additional 75 points from the WPT Seminole Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open Championship, rounding out his impressive total.
This is the Top 10 of the leaderboard:
| Rank | Player | POY Points | Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yunkyu Song | 2,275 | $539,586 |
| 2 | Dylan Smith | 2,150 | $988,700 |
| 3 | Eric Afriat | 1,750 | $434,352 |
| 4 | Landon Tice | 1,700 | $795,000 |
| 5 | Zak VanKeuren | 1,550 | $1,172,715 |
| 6 | Dan Stavila | 1,525 | $277,306 |
| 7 | Josh Reichard | 1,425 | $853,400 |
| 8 | Travis Endersby | 1,400 | $392,330 |
| 9 | Michael Wang | 1,325 | $377,788 |
| 10 | Jim Casement | 1,200 | $759,890 |
For winning the Season 22 WPT Player of the Year title, Song receives $15,000 in WPT Passports. Claiming second place with a total of 2,025 points is the 2024 WPT Seminole Rock ‘N’ Roll Champion, Dylan Smith, who earns $10,000 in WPT Passports. Meanwhile, three-time WPT Champion Eric Afriat secured third place with 1,750 points and was awarded $5,000 in WPT Passports. These passport prizes must be redeemed during the upcoming Season 23.
“It is amazing to see the ledger of Yunkyu’s accomplishments throughout the year, earning points in so many different events across North America,” said WPT CEO Adam Pliska. “We congratulate the young competitor and look forward to seeing him next season.”
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