Poker Hall of Fame nominees announced

(PRESS RELEASE) -- After a two-month process on WSOP.com, the public has made clear who they think should be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2010. It will now be up to the current Hall of Famers and a panel of media members to determine who actually does join this exclusive club.

The following represents the Top 10 nominated individuals* at WSOP.com from July 1 - August 31.

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

* Listed alphabetically without correlation to amount of nominations received

Now the process moves forward with the vetting of these candidates by the Poker Hall of Fame Governing Council, who will select the final list of candidates eligible for induction in 2010. That will be followed by the voting of the final nominees by the 16 living Hall of Fame members and a 17-person media panel. Only these 33 individuals cast votes for induction.
The criteria they will consider in their vote are as follows:

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

The 2010 Class of the Poker Hall of Fame will be inducted as part of the World Series of Poker Main Event final table festivities in November.

102 valid unique names received nominations during the public nomination process, including 44 who received multiple nominations. All of these individuals are still eligible for future consideration.

ABOUT THE POKER HALL OF FAME
The Poker Hall of Fame, established in 1979, was acquired by Harrah's Entertainment along with the World Series of Poker in 2004. Though the Hall of Fame is virtual in nature, its membership includes poker's most influential players and other important contributors to the game. There are 16 living members, and 38 members have been bestowed the honor of Poker Hall of Famer. The Poker Hall of Fame traditionally elects one or two members annually. The enshrinement ceremony is now held in concert with the final table of the Main Event of the WSOP, held each November in Las Vegas.