Poker Hall of Fame

The Poker Hall of Fame is a group of poker players who have played poker well against top competition for high stakes over a long period of time. Originally established by the Horseshoe Casino, membership is now awarded by Harrah's World Series of Poker.

Requirements

The requirements for the Poker Hall of Fame are:

# Player must have played high stakes.
# Player must have played against acknowledged top competition.
# Player must have played well consistently and gained the respect of his peers.
# Player must have stood the test of time.

While the above are the official criteria, some members have been inducted for other reasons. Edmund Hoyle, for example, never played a game of poker in his life, but he was the first card player to standardize rules.Shapiro, Max. [http://www.cardplayer.com/magazine/article/16937 Barbara and the Poker Hall of Fame] Aug 15, 2007 Accessed 3 March 2008] Wild Bill Hickock was the most famous poker player prior to poker's recent popularity. He was not known for playing top competition, but rather in the way he died. Hickock is one of three Hall of Famers to have died while playing poker. While playing a hand where he had been dealt two aces and two eights, now known as "a deadman's hand", Hickock was shot in the back three times. The other two inductees to die while playing poker were Jack "Treetop" Straus and Tom Abdo. Both suffered heart attacks while playing high stakes poker.

Prestige

Being admitted to the Poker Hall of Fame is considered one of the biggest honors in poker. In his acceptance speech, T.J. Cloutier declared, "It's one of two things I've always wanted to win." [ [http://www.pokerlistings.com/player-interviews/the-press-conference-part-1-this-years-poker-hall-of-famers The Press Conference Part 1: This Year's Poker Hall of Famers] August 1 2006. Accessed 3 March 2008 ] Barbara Enright considers her induction as a "lifetime achievement honor." [ [http://pokerworks.com/article-1081.html Hellmuth, Enright join Poker Hall of Fame] Accessed 3 March 2008]

The Award

Prior to being acquired by Harrah's Casino, R.S. Owens and Co was commissioned to design an award for Poker Hall of Famers. The award was an 8 inch tall piece of glass with a hand of cards sandblasted at the bottom, the winners name, and the words, "Poker Hall of Fame" in a circle. The circle had a gold emblem bonded to the glass and had Binion's Horseshoe Casino logo in it. There was a gold plated base with three gold-plated stacks of chips. [ [http://www.rsowens.com/galleries/custom/product.asp?ITEM_ID=2013 Poker Hall of Fame Custom Award] accessed March 3 2008]

Membership

Members of the Poker Hall of Fame include (with year of induction):
*Johnny Moss, 1979
*"Nick the Greek" Dandolos, 1979
*Felton "Corky" McCorquodale, 1979
*Red Winn, 1979
*Sid Wyman, 1979
*"Wild Bill" Hickok, 1979
*Edmond Hoyle, 1979
*T. "Blondie" Forbes, 1980
*Bill Boyd, 1981
*Tom Abdo, 1982
*Joe Bernstein, 1983
*Murph Harrold, 1984
*Red Hodges, 1985
*Henry Green, 1986
*Walter Clyde "Puggy" Pearson, 1987
*Doyle Brunson, 1988
*Jack "Treetop" Straus, 1988
*Fred "Sarge" Ferris, 1989
*Benny Binion, 1990
*David "Chip" Reese, 1991
*Thomas Austin "Amarillo Slim" Preston, 1992
*Jack Keller, 1993
*Julius Oral "Little Man" Popwell, 1996
*Roger Moore, 1997
*Stu Ungar, 2001
*Lyle Berman, 2002
*Johnny Chan, 2002
*Bobby Baldwin, 2003
*Berry Johnston, 2004
*Jack Binion, 2005
*Crandell Addington, 2005
*T. J. Cloutier, 2006
*Billy Baxter, 2006
*Barbara Enright, 2007
*Phil Hellmuth, 2007

ee also

*World Poker Tour Walk of Fame

Notes

External links

* [http://www.pokerpages.com/pokerinfo/hallofame/ Poker Hall of Fame page]
* [http://video.aol.com/video-detail/doyle-room-poker-hall-of-fame-legends-jack-binion-and-crandell-addington/2440914465 Doyle Room Poker Hall of Fame Legends Jack Binion & Crandell Addington] Accessed March 3 2008