In a major shake-up to the Poker Hall of Fame, the induction process is shifting away from its traditional "winner-takes-all" format. A brand-new voting system has been introduced, paving the way for up to six of the eight nominees to be inducted in a single year.
Nominations are now open for the 2026 Poker Hall of Fame. Once the public determines the top eight nominees, the final decision will rest with the 33 living Hall of Fame members.
How the New Voting System Works
As announced on The Countdown, the WSOP’s official pregame show, once the nominees are determined, each living member will receive four votes. They can vote for up to four players, with one vote each.
The benchmark for induction is straightforward: any nominee who receive votes from 22 or more members earns an automatic induction. However, if no single nominee reaches that 22-vote threshold, the individual with the highest overall vote count will secure the lone spot.
As David Williams explained, tactical voting among members could realistically see as many as six nominees inducted at once.
PokerNews spoke to Poker Hall of Famer Phil Hellmuth, who said that six might be too many inductees at once.
"That's not good," he said. "I think two a year is the right number. They should just let two in per year, I don't care about the voting [system]."
Furthermore, the WSOP confirmed that the final voting results will be made public. This transparency will allow the poker community to see exactly how close their favorite players came to making the cut, likely opening the door for more coordinated, fan-driven campaigns in subsequent years.
The 2026 inductees will be officially announced live on ESPN during the WSOP Main Event final table.
"Too Many Deserving People Out There"
This is exactly what I've been wanting for years. It mirrors the Baseball Hall of Fame induction process, which I feel is not perfect, but is the best process out there in sports.
I've always thought that one nominee isn't enough. There are too many deserving people out there.
The Poker Hall of Fame (PHOF) was founded in 1979 by Benny Binion, owner of the Horseshoe Casino, as a way to preserve the legacy of the game's greatest players and attract tourists to Las Vegas.
Initially, the hall inducted a foundational class of seven icons, including Johnny Moss, Red Winn, and Wild Bill Hickok.
In 2004, Caesars Entertainment (then Harrah's) acquired the rights to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) and took over the stewardship of the Poker Hall of Fame.
Over the decades, the selection criteria evolved to ensure prestige, establishing strict requirements:
Respected by Peers: A player must have played poker against acknowledged top competition.
Age of Experience: Be a minimum of 40 years old at time of nomination.
High Stakes Experience: Played for high stakes.
Consistent Excellence: Played consistently well, gaining the respect of peers.
Legacy That Lasts: Stood the test of time.
Shaped the Game: Or, for non-players, contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results.
From 2005 to 2019, the Poker Hall of Fame traditionally honored two individuals each year, with the sole exception of 2009, when beloved World Poker Tour commentator and ambassador Mike Sexton was the lone inductee.
The Hall shifted its policy in 2020, restricting the standard intake to just a single inductee per year. This strict "one-person rule" has intensified annual debate among fans and peers, as a mounting backlog of legendary high-stakes crushers and industry icons vie for a solitary spot.
After Nick Schulman's induction last year, a special exception was made to induct Michael Mizrachi alongside the standard ballot. "The Grinder" forced the Hall's hand by pulling off an unprecedented summer double, capturing his record-extending fourth Poker Players Championship (PPC) and winning the WSOP Main Event in the same year
The new change should open up avenues for long-overlooked individuals such as Mike Matusow and Matt Savage to potentially be inducted in the coming years.
Based in the United Kingdom, Will started working for PokerNews as a freelance live reporter in 2015 and joined the full-time staff in 2019. He now works as Managing Editor.
He graduated from the University of Kent in 2017 with a B.A. in German. He also holds an NCTJ Diploma in Sports Journalism.
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