2009 Poker Hall of Fame Finalists Named

The official ballot has been released … so basically I\’ve got about three weeks to choose Mike Sexton and one other guy from this list, in alphabetical order:

BARRY GREENSTEIN
DAN HARRINGTON
PHIL IVEY
TOM McEVOY
MEN NGUYEN
SCOTTY NGUYEN
DANIEL NEGREANU
ERIK SEIDEL
MIKE SEXTON

I see two who definitely won\’t get my vote. As for the rest, will have to give them some thought. It\’s gonna be a tough call. I\’ll probably do a bracket.

Click below for the official press release on it all, giving the criteria, PHOF schedule, etc.:

POKER HALL OF FAME ANNOUNCES FINALISTS LIST FOR 2009 CLASS
LIST NOW GOES TO HOF MEMBERS & MEDIA PANEL FOR FINAL VOTE

LAS VEGAS (September 8, 2009) – The Poker Hall of Fame has narrowed the list of nominees for the 2009 Class and all that remains is for the 15 living Hall of Fame members and the 15-member Media Panel to cast their votes before we know the inductees.

A total of nine people remain eligible for induction in 2009.

The Induction Ceremony will be part of a special Hall of Fame dinner ceremony on Saturday, November 7 at the Rio Hotel in Las Vegas during the dinner break of the Main Event Final Table.

The eligible candidates, in alphabetical order, are as follows:

BARRY GREENSTEIN
DAN HARRINGTON
PHIL IVEY
TOM McEVOY
MEN NGUYEN
SCOTTY NGUYEN
DANIEL NEGREANU
ERIK SEIDEL
MIKE SEXTON

The voters must determine who among the above list most deserves to be inducted this year. The additional criteria they will consider in their vote are as follows:
• 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.

The Poker Hall of Fame Governing Council commented on Tom Dwan, an initial nominee in 2009: \”With all due respect to Mr. Dwan, one of the games most exciting young players, he does not currently meet the criteria for Hall of Fame selection. We wish him well and expect he will again be considered once he has ‘stood the test of time.’\”

Names on the finalist list but not receiving more than 75% of the votes this year will still be eligible for induction in the future.

The voting members will receive their ballots this week and have until October 2, 2009 to submit their completed forms.

Current Hall of Fame members also have the ability to add a write-in candidate – someone they feel deserves consideration for the PHOF – but were not among the list of finalists this year. This write-in candidate will be added to the 2010 nomination list automatically.

For the first time, the inductees will be invited to a special dinner held and hosted in their honor where they will give their induction speech and be awarded their commemorative trophy. All nine of the above finalists will be invited to the dinner, and room will be reserved for additional family, friends, the current Hall of Famers and the media voting panel.

A select handful of seats will be made available to the public via the dinner’s presenting sponsor, JAQK Cellars. For more information on how to be part of this special evening, visit: http://jaqkcellars.com/wine-poker-hall-of-fame-dinner/high-roller-and-world-series-of-poker-vip-ticket

ABOUT THE POKER HALL OF FAME
The Poker Hall of Fame, established in 1979, was acquired by Harrah’s Entertainment along with the World Series of Poker in 2004. Though the Hall of Fame is virtual in nature, its membership includes poker\’s most influential players and other important contributors to the game. There are 15 living members, and 37 members have been bestowed the honor of Poker Hall of Famer. The Poker Hall of Fame traditionally elects one or two members annually. The enshrinement ceremony is now held in concert with the final table of the Main Event of the WSOP, held each November in Las Vegas.

ABOUT JAQK CELLARS
For its three founders, acclaimed winemaker Craig MacLean with Katie Jain and Joel Templin, JAQK Cellars is a passion born out of a love for wine and poker. JAQK, named after the Jack, Ace, Queen and King from a deck of playing cards, was launched in October 2008 in San Francisco, CA. JAQK’s collection of eight limited-production wines are hand-crafted from the Napa Valley and are packaged with an edgy, playful design bringing pleasure to wine lovers before the first sip is even taken. To learn more about JAQK Cellars, visit www.jaqkcellars.com.

POKER HALL OF FAME – 2009 BALLOT PROCESS/TIMELINE

Eligible Voters:
• 15 Living Members of the Poker Hall of Fame
• 15-member Media Panel

Process:
• All eligible voters to receive the ballot with the 9 names eligible for induction in 2009
• Eligible voters to return ballot with up to 3 names they consider worthy of induction in 2009. (Can vote for less, but no more than 3 names)
• Simple “yes” or “no” next to each candidate will determine inductees. Those receiving at least 75% “yes” votes will be the 2009 Class of the Poker Hall of Fame.

Timeline:
• September 10 – Ballots sent to eligible voters from Poker Hall of Fame Governing Council
• October 2 – Deadline to return final ballots
• November 7 – Induction Ceremony/Dinner – Rio Hotel, Las Vegas

Criteria:
• Among finalists, who is most deserving to be elected this year
• 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.

Other:
• Current Hall of Fame members also have the ability to add a write-in candidate – someone they feel deserves consideration for the PHOF – but were not among the list of finalists this year. This write-in candidate will be added to the 2010 nomination list automatically.
• Any voter who fails to return ballot by deadline will not be counted, and vote-percentage will be based on all voters who returned ballots.

The list of the 37 Poker Hall of Fame members is as follows:

1979: Nick “The Greek” Dandolos; “Wild Bill Hickok”; Edmond Hoyle; Felton “Corky” McCorquodale; Johnny Moss; Red Winn; Sid Wyman
1980: T “Blondie” Forbes
1981: Bill Boyd
1982: Tom Abdo
1983: Joe Bernstein
1984: Murph Harrold
1985: Red Hodges
1986: Henry Green
1987: Walter Clyde “Puggy” Pearson
1988: Doyle Brunson; Jack “Treetop” Strauss
1989: Fed “Sarge” Ferris
1990: Benny Binion
1991: David “Chip” Reese
1992: Thomas Austin “Amarillo Slim” Preston
1993: Jack Keller
1996: Julius Oral “Little Man” Popwell
1997: Roger Moore
2001: Stu “The Kid” Ungar
2002: Lyle Berman; Johnny Chan
2003: Bobby Baldwin
2004: Berry Johnston
2005: Crandall Addington; Jack Binion
2006: Billy Baxter; T.J. Cloutier
2007: Barbara Enright; Phil Hellmuth
2008: Henry Orenstein; Duane “Dewey” Tomko
2009: ???