On Monday, the World Series of Poker has released the list of the 10 finalists eligible for the 2018 Poker Hall of Fame class. Just one or two will be inducted.
The list of 10 poker players was created after a process of public nomination and a vetting of these nominations by the Poker Hall of Fame Governing Council. The decision now falls in the hands of 28 living members and a few journalists to determine who gets inducted.
Which one or two of these 10 legends of the game will be the lucky ones to be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame come July 13?
Everyone except for Hennigan and Oppenheim have been among the final 10 at least one of the past years. Last year, it was Phil Ivey and the late David ‘Devilfish' Ulliott were inducted. Ivey was a first-ballot Hall of Famer right after he turned 40 years old.
The age requirement for being eligible for the Poker Hall of Fame is 40 years and above. Aside from that, other criteria state that the player must have competed "against acknowledged top competition" and "for high stakes," while playing "consistently well" and "gaining the respect of peers." Also, the player must have "stood the test of time." For those in the industry but are not or were not professional poker players, they must have "contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results." As of now, there are 54 people who have met those requirements.
The 2018 Poker Hall of Fame class shall be inducted as part of the World Series of Poker Main Event final table celebration in Las Vegas on July 13.
Source:
https://www.pokernews.com/news/2018/07/ten-poker-hall-of-fame-candidates-for-2018-announced-31338.htm?itm_content=pn-hp-hero-3