The Nominees For Poker Hall Of Fame: Part 1

Beginning in 1979, the World Series of Poker has inducted 37 of the most influential and legendary gamblers into its Poker Hall of Fame, ranging from Edmond Hoyle, the 18th century inventor of the rules for card playing, to "Wild Bill" Hickock, to modern day superstars such as Doyle =Brunson, Phil Hellmuth, and Johnny Chan.

On November 7, three more names could have been chosen to join that list. The selection process this year was somewhat different than in past years. Previously, a selection committee nominated potential inductees. The public was not involved in the process. This year, however, during the WSOP, the public was invited to nominate a player for consideration. From all the names submitted, the list was narrowed to the top ten vote getters with the final player or players to be chosen by a vote of a select panel comprised of all living Hall of Famers and an equal number of poker media representatives.

A mini-controversy erupted after one of the finalists, Tom "durrrr" Dwan was excluded for consideration. At just 23, it was determined that he had not met the "stand the test of time" criteria for consideration. The remaining list is filled with well-known and well-respected players: Barry Greenstein, Dan Harrington, Phil Ivey, Tom McEvoy, Men Nguyen, Scotty Nguyen, Daniel Negreanu, Erik Seidel and Mike Sexton.

The youngster of this group is Phil Ivey, but in terms of what he has accomplished at only 33, he is deserving of serious consideration this year. Coming off of an amazing 2009 WSOP, in which he won two bracelets and is heading for the Main Event final table, Ivey is clearly at the top of his
game, and has been for quite some time.

Ivey won his first of seven WSOP bracelets at age 23, beating Hall of Famers Phil Hellmuth and Amarillo Slim, and has 35 lifetime WSOP cashes. He is a regular at the Big Game at Bobby's Room at the Bellagio and once took billionaire Andy Beal for $16 million in three days of heads-up play. Whether this is his year depends entirely on whether at an age where he would be too young to run for the United States Senate, he is old enough to deserve this recognition.

Another relative youngster in the group is Daniel "Kid Poker" Negreanu. A fixture on Poker TV shows, the 35-year-old Negreanu is known for his amazing reads as well as his engaging personality. He won the first WSOP tournament he entered, becoming the then-youngest to win a bracelet. In all, he has 4 WSOP bracelets, 42 cashes, 18 final tables, and 2 WPT titles. He was the WSOP player of the year in 2004 and the 2005 WPT player of the year as well. He is third behind Ivey in total WSOP winnings and is also a regular at the Big Game.

Negreanu has also been an active member of the WSOP player's advisory board and a frequent writer and commentator as well, offering his insight and experience in a number of different venues. With cameos in movies and a recent music video, and even had a brief stint on Reality TV as a poker tutor, Negreanu is the face of poker.

In a recent video blog, Negreanu called Ivey the best poker player in the world. But his choice for the Hall of Fame this year? Mike Sexton. In part two we'll talk about nominees who weren't elected this year, and speculate on who stands the best chance of future enshrinement.

Shari Geller is an attorney, journalist, reporter, blogger, poker player, and observer of the poker scene. You can write her at BurnThis2@aol.com, and read her blog at www.
burnthistoo.blogspot.com.