POKER HALL OF FAME

A Brief History of 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 16 living members, and to date 37 members have been bestowed the honor of Poker Hall of Famer.

The Poker Hall of Fame traditionally elects one or two new members annually. The enshrinement ceremony is now held in concert with the final table of the Main Event of the World Series of Poker, held each November in Las Vegas. The main criteria for the Poker Hall of Fame 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 list of the 37 Poker Hall of Fame members are as follows:

1979 Nick “The Greek” Dandolos
James Butler “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” Straus
1989 Fred “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 Crandell Addington
Jack Binion
2006 Billy Baxter
T.J. Cloutier
2007 Barbara Enright
Phil Hellmuth
2008 Henry Orenstein
Duane “Dewey” Tomko
2009 Mike Sexton

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