It is thirty days until the Oscars, but only twelve until the Player of the Year Awards Banquet Gala. Which is more exciting? If you are a poker player, I can only hope your answer is the latter. The event will be held on February 15th at the Henry Fonda Music Box Theater in Los Angeles, and is sponsored by Card Player Magazine along with Bodog, who are also producing the show. Set to emcee the event is none other than Brad Garrett - best known for his role on Everybody loves Raymond, though he is also an avid poker player himself.

Even though we already know who wins Player of the Year, (Men Nguyen, in case you haven't been paying attention) the other winners will be kept secret until the night of the event.

Additional categories are:

• Best Cash Game Player
• Poker's Top Ambassador
• Most Entertaining Player
• Best Heads-Up Player
• Best No-Limit Player
• Best Mixed Game Player
• Most Feared Player
• Most Underrated Player

Card Player has also been taking votes for the People's Choice Awards in the following two categories:

Favorite Overall Player (Final nominees listed)

• Doyle Brunson
• Chris Ferguson
• Phil Ivey
• Mike Matusow
• Daniel Negreanu

Best Celebrity Poker Player

• Gabe Kaplan
• Tobey McGuire
• Jennifer Tilly

UPDATE: You can read the full list of winners via this link!