Every year, some of the best poker players (or people from the poker industry) are inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame. The list has been released for 2020, and several poker giants are up for the honor.
The Hall of Fame induction process started with an open-nomination procedure aimed to help the poker world narrow down the selection of eligible nominees. In the end, the final list consists of 11 people, but not all of them are poker players.
Who Is Up For Induction?
The commentating pair of Lon McEachern and Norman Chad are on the list as well. They make up one entry, so if they win, both of them will be inducted to the Poker Hall of Fame.
Another poker personality that’s not a poker player but managed to make it to the list is Isai Scheinberg, the founder of PokerStars. Scheinberg had a turbulent history, having operated PokerStar when online poker was still not legal, facing numerous charges, and being prosecuted for a long time. This is his first nomination for the Poker Hall of Fame.
Scheinberg wasn’t the only person to see their name for the first time on the list of nominees. The other one was Patrik Antonius, the legendary high-stakes poker player from Finland and a former tennis player.
The nominees who returned to the final list are Eli Elezra, Chris Ferguson, Mike Matusow, Huck Seed, Antonio Esfandiari, and Ted Forest. Matt Savage, the praised film director, also made it to the final list once again. However, only one individual (or nomination in the case of McEachern and Chad) will be inducted in the 2020 ceremony.
What’s Next in the Selection Process?
The list containing all the names that are listed above will now be sent to the Hall of Fame members, who will cast their votes and decided on the winner. There are currently 31 living members in the HoF. What’s different this time is that poker media will not have an opportunity to vote on the winners.
The winner will be announced on December 30, after the WSOP Main Event heads-up finale. That’s also when the honoring ceremony will take place.
Whoever gets an opportunity to be inducted to the Poker Hall of Fame will become the 59th inductee, following David Oppenheim and Chris Moneymaker, who were the inductees last year.
So, who can become nominated for the Poker Hall of Fame? Well, there are certain criteria that they need to meet.
First of all, for players, the individual must have the acknowledgment from the poker world that they are top-of-the-class, usually determined through a number of wins or consistently high finishes. Next, they need to be at least 40 years old and have played high-stakes poker. They need to have played well throughout their career, making consistently good results and gaining their peer respect. They also need to have “stood the test of time.”
If they are not players, their overall contribution to the growth and success of poker is taken into account. This success needs to have made indelible positive and lasting results. All nominees met the criteria, and we now have to wait to see who’ll become the next inductee in the Poker Hall of Fame.
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