New Poker Hall Of Fame Process Reduces Exclusivity, Adds Transparency

There is no singular, unanimously agreed upon, perfect system for induction into a hall of fame. But it’s not so rare to find a hall of fame for which it is nearly unanimously agreed upon that the system needs to be improved.

Such has been the case throughout the 2020s with the Poker Hall of Fame. And the World Series of Poker, which operates the HOF, is at long last doing something about it. Over the weekend, the WSOP announced changes to the 2026 Poker Hall of Fame selection process, with the end result being that (probably) the number of inductees each year will increase.

From 2020 through 2024, the WSOP allowed exactly one person to be inducted each year. And the World Series was all set to do the same in 2025 until Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi won last summer’s WSOP Main Event and the Poker Hall of Fame process was spontaneously abandoned so Mizrachi could be instantly inducted.

What is the proper number of inductees in a year? Opinions vary. But a years-long sampling of social media opinions suggests one isn’t enough.

So starting this summer, instead of the highest vote-getter among the finalists getting in and everyone else being told to wait ’til next year, a new system is being used that will likely result in two or three inductees and could theoretically allow up to six.

Details of the new system

The nomination process is currently open to the public and will result in a ballot of eight finalists. The 33 living Hall of Famers will then vote among those eight, and each can vote for up to four of the names on the list.

To gain entry, a nominee must receive a vote on at least 22 of those 33 ballots (a two-thirds threshold). If nobody receives at least 22 votes, then the highest vote-getter will be the sole inductee. But if multiple names on the ballot receive 22 or more votes, each of them will get in.

So with 132 potential votes to go around, it is theoretically possible that six people could receive exactly 22 votes. This could only realistically be achieved, however, if all 33 voters collude and coordinate and agree on which six should go in and organize their votes accordingly.

More likely, the new system will lead to two or three inductees per year, or perhaps four if there is strong agreement among voters as to which four of the eight finalists are most deserving.

The minimum age for nomination/induction remains 40. And every year, several outstanding pros who turned 21 in the early years of the “poker boom” era (peak: 2003-06) cross that threshold, making for a crowded, competitive ballot that would only grow more crowded and competitive with each year featuring a single Hall of Fame inductee.

Among the holdovers from the 2025 ballot: early-40s pros Scott Seiver, Phil Galfond, and Jeremy Ausmus; more veteran pros Mike “The Mouth” Matusow, Ted Forrest, Kathy Liebert, and the late “Miami” John Cernuto; and major industry influences Isai Scheinberg (PokerStars founder) and Matt Savage (tournament director).

This summer, Shaun Deeb, Jason Koon, and Isaac Haxton will all become eligible for the first time, to be followed in 2027 by the likes of Tom Dwan and Andrew Robl.

And these lists ignore those such as Josh Arieh, Norman Chad, Lon McEachern, and others who’ve appeared on past ballots and Vanessa Selbst, 41, who hasn’t quite made a ballot yet.

One more noteworthy change this year: The voting results will become public for the first time, so instead of simply knowing who got in and who didn’t, there will be awareness of how many votes each contender received and, in turn, who came close and who didn’t.

Those voting results will be revealed live on ESPN during the Main Event final table broadcast the first week of August.

Nick’s win!

In perfect coordination with the Hall of Fame process news, on Friday the other 2025 Poker Hall of Fame inductee besides Mizrachi, Nick Schulman, secured his eighth career bracelet. He finished first out of 780 players in the $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. event, good for a payday of $183,366.

A highly respected poker broadcaster as well, Schulman got into the hall in his first year of eligibility at age 40. Now, at 41, he moves into a tie for seventh place on the all-time bracelet list — and arguably becomes the most realistic candidate to someday catch leader Phil Hellmuth, who is 61 years old and has won 17 WSOP events.

Phil Ivey is 49 and has 11 bracelets, while 37-year-old Benny Glaser and 40-year-old Deeb are tied with Schulman at eight wins. There are also plenty of young players with six or seven bracelets apiece who could be on pace to run down Hellmuth’s record.