Poker Hall of Fame To Induct “Sailor” Roberts, Eric Drache

The ballots are in for the election of new members of the Poker Hall of Fame for 2012, with poker legend and two-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner Brian “Sailor” Roberts and noted poker veteran Eric Drache earning nomination to that prestigious institution.

The living 18 members of the Hall and a like number of selected media members were the final panel that the ten nominees had to pass for induction. This week, WSOP officials announced the induction of Roberts and Drache into the Hall and they will be honored on October 30 prior to the start of the finale of the “Octo-Nine” WSOP Championship Event. They will be the 43rd and 44th members of the Hall since its creation in 1979.

Drache was a bit stunned by his selection into the Poker Hall of Fame. “I’m not only surprised and honored to have been selected, I’m also a bit embarrassed considering the other nominees,” said the humble Drache. “When Jack Binion and I worked on creating the Hall of Fame, I never considered myself a potential candidate. I’m particularly happy for the family of Sailor Roberts. Sailor by everyone’s account, including my own personal observations, was a great player and played many games very well.”

Drache’s surprise at being selected is genuine. Although an excellent player in his own right (Seven Card Stud is his game of choice), it is more than likely he was elected due to his influence on the game away from the tables, including the creation of the Poker Hall of Fame. He was the Tournament Director of the WSOP for fifteen years (1973-88), where he introduced the concept of the “satellite” tournament which allowed players to get into high buy-in events for a fraction of the cost. He also served as the poker room manager for several of the biggest casinos in Las Vegas, including the Mirage and the Golden Nugget, and has had a hand in many of the popular televised poker productions that have been on television in the past ten years.

Roberts was considered by many a shoo-in for induction as it was thought he should have been there long ago. The winner of the WSOP Championship Event in 1975, Roberts was one of the famous “Texas Rounders” (alongside now-fellow Hall of Fame members Doyle Brunson and “Amarillo Slim” Preston) who “faded the white line” in pursuit of poker games across the South and Midwest. Considered one of the legends of the game, “Sailor” Roberts (a nickname he earned from his service in the United States Navy) passed away in 1995 from hepatitis-induced cirrhosis at the age of 64.

The two men were among a field that provided several difficult choices for the voters at the Poker Hall of Fame. The other eight finalists – international poker professionals Chris Bjorin, David Chiu and Thor Hansen; poker pioneer George Hardie, and American poker pros Jennifer Harman, John Juanda and former World Champions Tom McEvoy and Scotty Nguyen – failed to garner enough support from the electorate, but will all have a solid shot at returning to the ballot in 2013.

The announcement of the induction of Roberts and Drache into the Hall was applauded by everyone in the poker community. “Hooray,” Brunson excitedly Tweeted to his followers. “My two picks for the Poker Hall Of Fame made it. Sailor Roberts and Eric Drache are being inducted. Both are deserving!”

“Congrats to the new Poker Hall of Fame members, well deserved,” Antanas “Tony G” Guoga chirped to his followers. He did note, however, the predominance of American players in the Hall when he finished by Tweeting, “I do think the Hall of Fame is a bit too U. S. focused, though (a fair argument as there are only a handful of foreign players among the 44 people).”