Poker News / Short-Stacked Shamus / 07 October 2011 / Leave a Comment

As Matthew Pitt reported earlier this week, the 10 finalists for the 2011 Poker Hall of Fame have been announced. Official ballots will be sent to voters in the next couple of days, after which they will have one week to make their picks. As has happened the last two years, those inducted will be honored as part of the festivities at this year's "November Nine" when the 2011 WSOP Main Event finally gets decided.

The 18 current living members of the Poker Hall of Fame get to vote, as do a 17-person panel of poker media. Like last year, I have been given the distinct honor and privilege to participate in the process, which means over the next week I will be studying the 10 nominees as I try to decide how I will be filling out my ballot.

Assuming the process is similar to last year, voters will each get 10 points they can award to at most three of the nominees. (We can vote for two, one, or none, if we wish.) The points will then be tallied and the two nominees receiving the most will be enshrined. I believe there's also a threshold (i.e., a minimum number of points) a nominee must exceed to get in, meaning it is possible only one could get elected. Most likely, though, we'll see two of these 10 make the cut.

A new rule was instituted this year making 40 a minimum age for nominees, the so-called "Chip Reese Rule." (Reese was 40 when he was made a Poker Hall of Famer back in 1991.) Thus two players who appeared on last year's ballot -- Daniel Negreanu and Phil Ivey -- didn't make it this time as both are still in their 30s. Others on last year's ballot who aren't there this year are Dan Harrington and Erik Seidel -- both of whom were inducted in 2010 -- and Chris "Jesus" Ferguson.

Here are the criteria voters must consider when deciding how to vote:

• A player must have played poker against acknowledged top competition
• Played for high stakes
• Played consistently well, gaining the respect of peers
• Stood the test of time
• Or, for non-players, contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results

And here's a rundown of all 10 candidates:

Annie Duke receives her first nomination this year, a year that saw her end her long-time position as a spokesperson for UltimateBet, help launch a new professional poker league (the Epic Poker League), and co-author a strategy book (Decide to Play Great Poker). While Duke has largely stepped away from the tables in 2011, her prior poker achievements include a WSOP bracelet in an "open" event (in 2004) and more than $4 million in lifetime earnings.

For a variety of reasons, Duke is one of the most compelling individuals in poker, a person about whom many have strong opinions (both favorable and otherwise). Along with that of Harman-Traniello and Johnson, her nomination helps draw attention to the fact that of the 40 current members of the Poker Hall of Fame only one is a woman (Barbara Enright)

Barry Greenstein is considered by many a favorite this year to land a HOF spot. A long-time winner at high-stakes cash games, Greenstein has also gathered more than $7 million in career tourney winnings over the last two decades, including three WSOP bracelets and two WPT titles. He's additionally authored a well-regarded book focusing on delivering advice to the would-be poker pro, Ace on the River.

While he no longer contributes all of his tourney winnings to charity as he once did, the "Robin Hood of Poker" tag has nonetheless stuck with Greenstein thanks to his continued philanthropy as well as what many regard as a conscious, ongoing efforts to try to provide constructive input to benefit the poker community.

Jennifer Harman-Traniello has been long regarded as a top player thanks to her participation in high-stakes cash games as well as her two WSOP bracelets, both earned in "open" events. She has 26 WSOP cashes totaling nearly $1 million, and more than $2.5 million in tourney winnings overall.

For many years, Harman-Traniello's name has formed an important part of all conversations about the best woman player, with many arguing that she deserves the honor.

Linda Johnson, a.k.a. "The First Lady of Poker," is being recognized again this year with a nomination. While her accomplishments at the tables aren't as extensive as that of most of the other nominees -- around $320,000 in career tourney earnings, plus one WSOP bracelet in an "open" event (1997, $1,500 razz) -- her status as a pioneer of sorts for women players gets her deserved attention and praise.

Johnson's tenure as the publisher of Card Player magazine for eight years (back in the 1990s) as well as her contributions to the Tournament Directors Association provide further examples of her having contributed to the good of the game. And like Greenstein, she's known for charitable work, too, having founded PokerGives.org, a site that helps poker players more easily donate to charities.

John Juanda receives his first-ever HOF nomination this year after picking up his fifth WSOP bracelet in that memorable $10,000 Deuce-to-Seven Lowball Championship this summer where he outlasted Phil Hellmuth heads-up to take the title. That victory helped push Juanda's career tourney winnings up over $11.8 million worldwide, securing his top 10 spot in the all-time money list.

With Ferguson having dropped off the ballot, Juanda steps in to join Harman-Traniello as representatives of Team Full Tilt this time around. Whether or not that association will affect either Harman-Traniello or Juanda's chances of being inducted remains to be seen. In any case, Juanda's consistently high level of play has unquestionably earned him "the respect of his peers."

Marcel Luske is another first-time nominee, perhaps a bit of a surprise given the fact that it has been a few years since "The Flying Dutchman" was regularly in the poker spotlight via television appearances. But he's been consistently winning over recent years, having pushed his career tourney earnings up close to the $4 million mark.

In addition to his success at the tables, Luske's involvement in the creation of the International Poker Rules (via the Federation Internationale de Poker Association) might be part of the reason for his being recognized here, too, although the FIDPA's place and influence in poker has yet really to take hold. Or perhaps it is his album of poker-themed songs, More Than Just a Game, that helped get him the nod.

Jack McClelland is the only nominee that might be regarded as a non-player, although he does have a few modest scores on his poker résumé, including a couple of WSOP final tables in seven-card stud events. Rather, McClelland is being recognized with his first HOF nomination for his long-time work as a tournament director with the WSOP, WPT, and elsewhere, including helping launch and manage tournaments and series all over the U.S. and the world.

With experience dating back to the early 1980s when tournament poker was really in its infancy, relatively speaking, McClelland remains a respected authority when it comes to tourneys and is thus here no doubt being recognized for having "contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker."

Tom McEvoy snags his third straight nomination, having appeared on the HOF finalists' ballot each year since the current process was introduced in 2009. (Barry Greenstein and Scotty Nguyen have also been among the final 10 all three years.) McEvoy is a WSOP Main Event winner (1983) and has four WSOP bracelets in total. He has nearly $3 million in tourney winnings, and also won the 2009 WSOP Champions Invitational pitting former ME champs.

McEvoy is additionally known for being the first to win a WSOP ME after winning his seat via a satellite, for having co-authored numerous strategy books with Poker Hall of Famer T.J. Cloutier, and for having championed the cause to eliminate smoking in poker rooms. Along with Greenstein, many are suggesting this might well be McEvoy's year, too, to land a HOF spot.

Scotty Nguyen is on the ballot again this year, baby. His accomplishments at the table compare well versus those of the other nominees, with a WSOP Main Event title (in 1998), five WSOP bracelets altogether, and a WPT win. "The Prince of Poker" is nearing $11.5 million on the career tourney earnings list, putting him right up there with Juanda near the top.

Nguyen is especially well-liked by fans -- just go see him play at the WSOP or any other event and watch the rail. But he turned off some media and other players with that heavily-publicized, "bad for poker" display at the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. final table (which he eventually won).

Huckleberry Seed is getting his first nomination this year. Another WSOP Main Event winner (in 1996), Seed has five WSOP bracelets and over $7 million in career tourney earnings. He's also had several high-profile victories including at the 2009 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship and the 2010 WSOP Tournament of Champions.

Seed is also known for being skilled in a variety of games, possessing a modest demeanor, and being an especially adventurous prop-bettor. (Incidentally, Seed was a "red pro" at Full Tilt Poker, not a member of Team Full Tilt like Harman-Traniello or Juanda.)

Matthew says he's leaning toward Greenstein and McEvoy getting in. How would you vote?

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