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The Poker Hall of Fame has just released the names of the Top 10 finalists that will be voted on by the Hall of Fame committee. I thought I would take a few minutes and go over my thoughts on the 10 finalists.

The 10 nominees are:

Chris “Jesus” Ferguson
Barry Greenstein
Dan Harrington
Phil Ivey
Linda Johnson
Tom McEvoy
Jennifer Harman-Traniello
Daniel Negreanu
Scotty Nguyen
Erik Seidel

The criteria for induction into the Hall of Fame is as follows:

1. A player must have played poker against acknowledged top competition
2. Played for high stakes
3. Played consistently well, gaining the respect of peers
4. Stood the test of time
5. Or, for non-players, contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results

For the sake of argument, I am going to assume that 2 people will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year. As such, my arguments are below:

Chris “Jesus” Ferguson

Chris is by far one of the best tournament players alive. His track record over the years, including his Main Event win in 2000, attest to his prowess.

However, the “played for high stakes” requirement makes me wonder if he will get considered. He has played high stakes some but is it enough for the committee to vote him in?

Prediction: No real shot to get in this year.

Barry Greenstein

If you want to talk about someone that clearly fits the criteria for Hall of Fame induction, Barry meets each and every one. He has played against top competition for decades and holds his own or has beaten them all.

His tournament track record also speaks for itself, and don’t forget the money he has donated to charity. If you go strictly by the requirements, Barry should be inducted this year. With Ivey and Seidel on the list, however, I don’t know if that will happen.

Prediction: If Seidel and Ivey don’t both get in, Greenstein is inducted.

Dan Harrington

Dan performed what’s considered by many to be the greatest back-to-back performances in the history of the WSOP, making the final table of the 2003 and 2004 Main Events. He also has 2 WSOP bracelets, including the 1995 Main Event, and a WPT title.

His case is strengthened by the fact he helped write the Harrington on Hold’em series of books that has revolutionized tournament poker. However, I don’t think that it is nearly enough to get him in this year due to the class strength.

Prediction: Harrington will have to wait until a year with a weaker class to get elected.

THE MAN! goes into the Poker Hall of Fame this year. So say we all.

Phil Ivey

Forget the fact that I am a Ivey homer. Just look at the stats. Ivey has won 8 bracelets and is the #1 money winner in the history of tournament poker.

He is considered the best in the game today if not the greatest of all time. I think it is a crime he wasn’t inducted last year, but I expect that to change this year.

Prediction: Ivey is easily inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Linda Johnson

Does Linda Johnson deserve to be in the Poker Hall of Fame? Yes. No doubt. Will she get in this year? No.

I think the class is too strong and there are at least three women players that I think deserve it ahead of her.

Prediction: Unless sentiment gets in the way, Linda will have to wait for a weaker class.

Tom McEvoy

Tom has a solid poker resume, including being the first player to win a WSOP Main Event entry via satellite and then becoming the first satellite winner to win the Main Event.

I think that if McEvoy gets in it will be due to strong consideration of the wealth of poker knowledge he has printed over the years. However, this is not the year he gets in.

Prediction: Give it about 3 years before we see him inducted.

Jennifer Harman-Traniello

By far the greatest female poker player of all-time. Jennifer should be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

She clearly meets the criteria, but I don’t know whether she will get in this year due to the fact that the list of candidates is so strong.

Prediction: Next year Jennifer should be the front runner should both Ivey and Seidel get inducted this year.

Daniel Negreanu

You know, while Daniel has a great resume in poker, I don’t put him as being quite there yet.

He has 4 bracelets and 2 WPT titles and is indeed 2nd on the all-time money list. He is clearly one of the most popular pros, but can he be considered as someone that has played consistently well at high stakes?

Just look at High Stakes Poker and his history there. Yes, that is televised poker, but he has never won there. Also, I think that his feud with Annie Duke might hurt his chances this year.

Prediction: Unless he gets popularity votes, he will not be inducted for about 2 years.

Scotty Nguyen

While most of the fans love Scotty baby, and he has a great poker resume, he does not play consistently at high stakes.

In fact, does he even play high stakes anymore? Also, I think his past is going to hold him back for a while.

Prediction: Won’t get in until the classes are much weaker.

Only a Barry Greenstein induction stops Seidel from going into the Hall of Fame this year.

Erik Seidel

The first stat that should jump out when looking at Seidel is eight WSOP bracelets. He also has 1 WPT title and is 10th on the all-time money list.

Seidel has been one of the great players over the years, especially in tournaments. The only knock may be how much he plays “high stake” poker.

Personally, I think that his resume should be worthy of induction. Anyone that has eight bracelets or more in the modern era of poker I think should be in the Hall of Fame. Seidel is well respected and I think he should be inducted.

Prediction: Seidel should be inducted this year. If Barry gets picked over Erik, then Erik gets in almost automatically next year.

While this may have been a long blog post, I felt the need to comment on the nominees.

Every player on the list I think should get into the hall at some point, but only Ivey, Seidel, and Greenstein I think have the best shot of getting in this year.

Of course, we will find out in a couple of months if I am right.