Poker Hall of Fame 2022 nominees are announced
A few days ago, the World Series of Poker announced the top ten nominees for this year's Poker Hall of Fame.
This procedure takes place annually, and after an open vote on the WSOP.com website among all comers the living members of the Poker Hall of Fame finally determine the annual winner.
Last year, an American poker player and winner of four WSOP bracelets, Eli Elezra, became another member of the Poker Hall of Fame.
This year was not special in terms of the selection of applicants. The list traditionally included seven professional poker players and three people who have made a significant contribution to poker world and community.
Read also: American player Huck Seed entered the Poker Hall of Fame
It would not be superfluous to recall the criteria by which applicants are selected: you need to be over 40 years old, play at high limits against strong and successful players, consistently show a good game and pass the test of time.
These criteria do not apply to invited non-professionals. For three of the ten applicants, there is only one weighty criterion: to do a great job of popularizing and promoting poker around the world.
Let's take a look at this year's Poker Hall of Fame nominees:
- Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier – former esports player and two-time WSOP bracelet winner with over $14.6 million in total winnings over his entire poker career;
- Brian Rast – American player who earned $22.3 million in live tournaments and has five WSOP gold bracelets to his credit; plays a lot of cash games with high stakes;
- Josh Arieh – over the past few years has shown very impressive results, receiving three of its five largest payouts; in total, he earned over $10.6 million in live tournaments and 4 World Series of Poker bracelets;
- Kathy Liebert – earned over $6 695 500 in her poker career and won a WSOP Gold Bracelet in Limit Hold'em in 2004; she was the first female player to win a seven-figure payout;
- Layne Flack (posthumously) – the six-time WSOP champion passed away in his sleep at his home last year; he was friends with popular poker pros and was a huge influence in shaping the poker scene as we know it today;
- Michael Mizrachi – the five-time WSOP bracelet winner and two-time WPT Main Event champion has received over $17 400 000 in payouts during his poker career; repeatedly won the tournament of champions for $50 000;
- Mike "The Mouth" Matusow – American poker player who is famous for his eccentric behavior; he has nearly 10 million live event cashes, four World Series of Poker bracelets and the poker book "Check-Raising the Devil".
Non-players in the list include Matt Savage (CEO of the WPT), Isai Scheinberg (founder of the PokerStars poker room), a duet of famous commentators Lon McEachern and Norman Chad. These people were nominated for their huge contribution to the development of the poker industry. The newly inducted member of the Poker Hall of Fame will be unveiled on July 10th.
