Switzerland is a country that is producing an ever increasing amount of talented poker players, and the poker fever there seems to be expanding. Some of our own members here at PocketFives are adamant supporters of the Swiss poker revolution and hope to encourage the growth of the Swiss population on the net. Hopefully this article can contribute to their efforts as we take a look at the top ten ranked players in The Land of the Alps.

Occupying the #1 spot for the country is 47-year-old "942003" from Lausanne, Vaud. He plays primarily on PokerStars but can also be found on several other sites from time to time. He has made 11 final tables this year, four of which were in the $109 Rebuy on Stars. Serge's largest score to date came a little over one month ago when he won over $13k for a 2nd place finish in one of the $109 Rebuys. He also had two 2nd place finishes in the $55 Rebuy, one for $7,899 and the other for $6,825. The other eight final tables he made add up to $33,166. These results put him at the top with 1,599 PLB points and a 591 point buffer between him and the next closest player.

MrJoeyGee from Zurich is ranked 2nd. He puts in minimal volume but has had success across three different sites: PartyPoker, PokerStars, and FullTilt. Of his 42 cashes this year, 12 have been final tables. His biggest win was on PartyPoker when he took 4th place in the $300k Guaranteed Sunday for $16,350. He also has a 2nd place finish in the PartyPoker Super Tuesday, a 3rd place finish in a $55 Rebuy on Stars, and a 3rd place finish in a $75 NL Turbo tournament on FullTilt. These performances boosted his bankroll by over $10k. The other eight final tables earned him a little over $1k each. Currently, he has 1,008 PLB points and an opportunity to make a move on 942003 with either a little more volume or a big score.

Coming in at #3 is Herby "Banane03" Widmer from Uerikon. He has played buy-ins ranging from $3 to $215, all on PokerStars, and has made ten final tables and accumulated $8,523 in cashes since January. His largest win was for $2,256 when he took 3rd place in the $10k guaranteed. He also placed 4th in the $10k guaranteed for $1,557. His PLB score at the moment is 585.

Next on the Switzerland list is 23-year-old risiko13 from Basel–for the most part a low-stakes player on PokerStars. The majority of his winnings have come in MTT SnG's, where he has nine wins and six 2nd place finishes, earning him just over $7k. He also has over $5k in MTT cashes. As a result, he has 452 PLB points and is within striking distance of Banane03.

5th is 20-year-old da produca from Kloten. He has bought into tournaments for as little as $3 and for as much as $215 on PokerStars. Just last month, he placed 5th in the $22 Cubed for $1,153. A few months before that he got 4th in the same tournament for $1,622. His biggest score, however, was a 2nd place finish in a $22 NL Freezeout, which he won for $2,803. His current PLB score is 420, right behind risiko13.

45-year-old Lesage88 from Geneve is the 6th man. Similar to some of the previous players, Lesage88 plays exclusively on PokerStars and has entered tournaments ranging from $2 to $215. His biggest cash came courtesy of a run in the Sunday Million where he won $841. Additionally, he has proved that he is capable of consistently, maneuvering his way through satellites, as he has won several worth $2,481 in total. At this time, he has 398 PLB points which put him within breathing distance of da produca.

Lucky #7 from Zurich is freshballs, known as balthazarr on FullTilt. He's know to make a final table from time to time, specifically 11 of them this year. He took down $704 in the $4,000 guaranteed for his 3rd place finish, and he has also won a $2 Rebuy for $501. His other final table appearances produced another $2,405. He currently has 361 PLB points.

Coming in at #8 and #9 respectively are Markus "MountWood" Holzer and Marco "ostarr" Orlandi. Mountwood is from Bern and plays mostly on PokerStars. His biggest score was in a $5 tourney where he took 2nd place for $604. Ostarr, from Baden, plays the majority of his poker on PokerStars as well and has won several satellites among other things

The last player to make it into the top ten in Switzerland is Pat "swissturtel" Breitenmoser (pictured top) from Wittenbach, Sakt Gallen. I had a chance to ask him about poker in his country, and he said this: "Poker is getting pretty big in Switzerland. When I started playing one and a half years ago, not many people were interested in poker. Now every casino is spreading poker games and almost everyone knows how to play." We continued to talk for a while, and he eventually shared an anectdote with me concerning karma and poker:

"One day I was in my office when I decided to go outside on break. I saw two old ladies walking past me. They were asking for directions and when I looked at them I saw that they were all sweaty in the face. It was a really hot summer day. I asked what had happened to them, and they told me that they had been walking for three miles. After that, I went to my boss and told him I had to take a little longer break than usual in order to take the two old ladies to where they were going. Later that night, I placed 2nd in the $100k Guaranteed on Mansion. After that day, I am always looking for little old ladies to help cross the streets!"

That wraps up the top 10 in Switzerland. Hopefully this exposure will encourage other Swiss players to give poker a chance and realize it for the game it truly is. In the future, you can expect Closer Looks on a variety of countries and cities, regardless of whether they include big names or not. Exposure is good for the stars, but it's also good for those that have aspirations of making it big one day. This means that anyone at anytime can have their face on the front page.

Until next time, find out where YOU stand in the P5s Sortable Rankings.