Barry Carter thinks KidPoker is guaranteed to be a first time inductee into the Poker Hall of Fame this year.
The Poker Hall of Fame Nominees were announced this week, and no surprise that Daniel Negreanu was included the first year he was eligible. It would appear that this is a one-horse race this year, as poker’s most successful and most famous son is hard to argue against.
But I have heard a lot of members of the poker industry and community say that he should not be inducted at the first time of asking. That given he is guaranteed to get in one year, he should be overlooked in order to give some of the other nominees a chance.
I for one do not agree with such a preservationist attitude, if someone is right for the job, they should get it. You may think poker awards are inherently pointless (At the end of the day, the person with the most money is the real winner, and nothing else) but if we are going to have them, they should be done properly.
The criteria
Let’s take a quick look at the criteria for being considered for this award and how KidPoker stacks up:
A player must have played poker against acknowledged top competition
Not even a debate.
Be a minimum of 40 years old at time of nomination
His youthful hair plugs may suggest otherwise, but yes.
Played for high stakes
Coming 2nd in a $1 million buy-in tournament this year obviously makes that a yes. Negreanu has literally played for the highest stakes ever since the poker boom.
Played consistently well, gaining the respect of peers
Other than the detractors of his ‘beating $25/$50 online’ claim, few doubt his talent in live tournaments and nearly $30 million in live cashes.
Stood the test of time
Always in the top three of the all-time money list, always in the top ten of the GPI, WSOP Player of the Year in 2004 and 2013 (And in contention this year).
Or, for non-players, contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results
I think his live poker success alone sets him apart from the rest of the list, but even without them, he scores ridiculously high on the non-player list also. Allow me to elaborate.
The best ambassador
I don’t always agree with everything he says and does, but it is hard to deny he is the best ambassador for poker we have. He is in the media constantly, he is entertaining to watch, and he is brilliant with fans and recreational players.
He is not afraid to speak his mind, in fact he often goes out of his way to protect what he believes to be the integrity of the game, even if it is technically a bad PR move for him.
The way he called out Howard Lederer and Annie Duke on their questionable behaviour, for example. He also publicly shamed poker cheat Ali Tekintamgac in person while he was sat at the table. Negreanu has even done the unthinkable, and several times stood against his sponsor, PokerStars, over rulings he didn’t agree with on the European Poker Tour. Whenever he does any of these things, a wave of publicity comes his way.
Some may argue that he does all this for selfish reasons, to enhance his own image or to fight for things that benefit him. That may be true, but very few people up for these awards were acting out of pure altruism. The fact is that whatever the motives, Daniel Negreanu has positively influenced this game more than everyone else on this year’s list combined, and I say that as someone who has a lot of respect for all the nominees.
If he gets anything other than the lion’s share of the votes, it would appear like a deliberate snub.
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