The Poker Hall of Fame debuted in 1979 at a gala held on the eve of that year’s World Series of Poker Main Event, a championship attended by 54 of the best and richest gamblers at Binion’s Hotel and Casino.
It was another chance for Binion's to tell the stories of its larger-than-life characters, this time by enshrining the game's biggest stars in a gallery on the far wall. Since then, the WSOP has grown into a multiple-casino festival with 100 live bracelets, and it generates income beyond that of Benny Binion's wildest dreams. The Poker Hall of Fame, however, has not grown with it.
The Binion family, innovative marketers in downtown Las Vegas throughout their ownership of the casino, devised the Hall of Fame as both a reception to celebrate the WSOP and a tourist attraction at Binion’s.
Choosing the first class
The WSOP itself was conceived as a marketing gimmick a decade prior, and the draw wasn’t necessarily the poker, since Binion’s didn’t offer poker throughout the rest of the year in 1979. Instead, the WSOP showcased the casino and its characters, centering it as a place for real gamblers who could set their own limits. The WSOP was also an opportunity to wine and dine high rollers and invite them into the pits.
An extension of the WSOP marketing plan, the idea for a Poker Hall of Fame was originally conceived as “a means of honoring the outstanding players and contributors to the game.” It would also find a permanent home in the Gallery of Champions at the famed family-owned casino
A Board of Selectors chose the first selections from a field of 27 potential nominees, considering two categories: Players and Contributors. The board was made up of Jack Binion, Golden Nugget Casino board member Bill Boyd, WSOP Tournament Director Eric Drache, gambling historian John Luckman, and writer John Hill.
The criteria developed in 1979 remains unchanged from an early draft, though provisions were added later to accept nominations from the public and require a minimum age of 40 (the Chip Reese Rule). Here are the original Poker Hall of Fame standards as written on the first announcement:
- The selectee must have played against acknowledged top competition.
- The selectee must have played for high stakes.
- The selectee must have consistently played well.
- The selectee must have the respect of his peers.
- The selectee must have passed the test of time, maintaining his excellence over the years.
Selectees in the Contributor category “must have made an extraordinary impact.” They included writers, historical figures, and “those whose contributions have had far-reaching effects on the game.” Press materials also included a biography for each inductee:
Today, the considerations for entering the PHOF are mostly the same, with the added nomination process and minimum age. Only one player is selected each year for induction under the modern process, with some exceptions.
The original Board of Selectors chose five players and two contributors. Figures like Edmond Hoyle were honored as contributors for writing the first rules of poker, and Wild Bill Hickok was honored for being killed while playing it. The list of players ranged from Doyle Brunson to Red Winn, Nick the Greek, Johnny Moss, Corky McCorquodale, and Sid Wyman, who would probably be considered both player and contributor with a big reputation on the felt and part ownership of the Dunes Hotel and Casino.
Hoyle, Hickok, and Nick the Greek were unable to accept their original Poker Hall of Fame certifications in a ceremony held on May 21 of that year, so the awards now sit in the Binion’s collection at UNLV.
Amateur wins 1979 Main Event
The 1979 Main Event kicked off the following day with 54 players and a plan to settle the championship over three days. The original Day 1 player roster shows table positions and occupations, like Jack Straus, the ‘sports prognosticator’ and Cadillac Jack Grimm of the oil business. Dewey Tomko, who won the $1,000 Limit tournament, is listed as a schoolteacher.
Eventual champion and amateur Hal Fowler, listed as Public Relations, was seated at table six with Jimmy Chagra (a gambler), Bobby Baldwin (defending champ), Joe Bullett of the Chicago trucking business, Barbara Freer (‘cocktail lounge prop’ and 1979 women’s champ), and Frank Murray (no occupation listed). Other interesting jobs included rodeo champion Cowboy Wolford, 1993 Main Event champion Jim Bechtel (a farmer), and J.J. Whalen, a Social Security Administration worker who won something listed as ‘Doyle’s Drawing.’
Fowler beat Bobby Hoff, a poker pro from Victoria, Texas, in heads-up play. Also cashing in the top eight spots were Super Bowl of Poker champion George Huber, retired produce businessman Sam Moon, Moss, Baldwin, oil man Crandell Addington and poker pro Sam Petrillo. The story of the 1979 final table is a wild one, and Fowler’s victory one of the most unlikely, as told best in Des Wilson’s 2008 book Ghosts at the Table.
A physical display of inductees now sits at Horseshoe in the Hall of Fame Poker Room, where pictures of the inductees greet players checking in at the front desk. Fast forward several decades, and the Poker Hall of Fame isn't too far removed from its original concept, for better or worse. Alternative ideas have been floated throughout the years, and every writer in poker is required to write a think piece on the topic. (This satisfies my requirement.)
In more than 50 years, the WSOP has grown from its humble start as a marketing gimmick in downtown Las Vegas to the biggest poker brand in the world. It's time for the Poker Hall of Fame to catch up with a museum that matches the size and the scope of the story it is telling.
Letters and correspondence obtained from Binion's Horseshoe Casino Records on Poker, 1960-2006. MS-00325. Special Collections and Archives, University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Lead images courtesy of Dennis Kula/UNLV Special Collections.
