The third time was the charm for Barry Greenstein and Linda Johnson as, after being nominated for the last two years, both finally received enough votes to qualify for induction into Poker’s Hall of Fame. They become the newest inductees, following Erik Seidel and Dan Harrington, who were voted in last year.
Greenstein is the holder of 3 WSOP bracelets, 2 WPT titles, and has won almost $8 million in poker tournaments over his career. He is known for giving a signed copy of his book, “Ace on the River”, to any player who eliminates him from a high profile poker tournament. Known as the “Robin Hood of Poker”, Greenstein has long been donating his poker tournament winnings to charity, an attribute that landed him the #4 spot on Cardplayer Lifestyle’s list of the Top 10 Jews in Poker.
Linda Johnson hasn’t had as much success on the felt with just 1 WSOP bracelet win, but that’s not why she’s a poker Hall of Famer. Johnson was voted into the Hall of Fame for her tireless involvement in promoting the game of poker over the last couple decades. A former co-owner of Cardplayer magazine for almost 8 years, Johnson still writes occasionally for the poker publication. She is currently on the Board of Directors of the Poker Players Alliance (PPA) and was instrumental in founding poker’s Tournament Directors Association. She also owns Card Player Cruises (I’m dying to go on one; anyone want to send this poker blogger on a junket?) and is the studio announcer for the WPT. With her induction, Johnson becomes just the second ever woman to be admitted into poker’s Hall of Fame, after Barbara Enright (2007).
Poker’s Hall of Fame induction committee is made up of 35 people, including all living members of the Hall of Fame and select members of the poker media. Prerequisites for consideration as a nominee include:
- Player must be at least 40 years old
- Player must have played consistently well against top competition for high stakes
- Player must have stood the test of time and gained the respect of his/her peers
- A non-player must have contributed to poker’s overall growth and success
The induction ceremonies are scheduled to take place just before the November Nine resumes playing at the Rio in Las Vegas on November 8th.
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