World Poker Tour tales from two continents as Erkut Yilmaz wins the World Poker Tour Season XVII Player of the Year, and Ken Chan takes down WPT New Zealand.

[Image credit: World Poker Tour via flickr]

Eight players could have been named The World Poker Tour (WPT) Season XVII Hublot Player of the Year as the $10,000 buy-in WPT ARIA Summer Championships began, and by the end of Day 1, three remained, hoping to raise a teacup full of champagne, or a flute of tea depending on their taste.

Erkut Yilmaz was the man in the Apache Attack Helicopter; Jake Schwartz and Anthony Zinno were wearing wings pieced together by Icarus. Schwartz needed to finish fourth or higher to gazump Yilmaz, and Zinno had to win the thing to beat them both and become the first player to be bestowed twice.