In what will certainly be a hotly discussed situation, poker professionals Todd Brunson and Carlos Mortensen have been chosen as the 2016 inductees into the Poker Hall of Fame.
On Wednesday, October 26, the induction ceremony will take place at Binion’s Gambling Hall (the original home of the World Series of Poker). The traditional ceremony and dinner will take place at 7PM in the Longhorn Room, the original location of Benny’s Bullpen (the high-stakes area when Poker Hall of Famer Benny Binion owned the establishment). When the ceremonies are conducted, the two new inductees will have plenty to discuss.
Brunson will join his father, Doyle, as the only father/son combination to be inducted into poker’s version of Mount Olympus. The owner of one World Series of Poker bracelet (and almost $4.3 million in tournament poker earnings), Brunson is by far better known for his exploits in the cash game arena, where he has been able to make a very lucrative living for nearly a quarter of a century. He is considered one of the finest mixed game players in the world, playing for the highest stakes possible wherever he goes. In fact, when billionaire banker Andy Beal challenged the world’s greatest poker players to battle it out in Limit Hold’em and Beal was a massive leader, it was Brunson who came in to clean up as he moved a two-million-dollar loss into a ten-million-dollar plus victory (the story excellently told by Michael Craig’s 2005 book The Professor, the Banker and the Suicide King).
“It’s a true honor to be inducted by my peers into this prestigious institution,” said Brunson when he was notified of his selection. “I literally grew up attending these ceremonies and have always respected and admired its members. To join their ranks is the honor of a lifetime.”
Mortensen becomes the first-ever European inducted into the Hall. Mortensen, who has been the ambassador of poker to Spain and other Latin countries, won the WSOP Championship Event in 2001, but he hasn’t stopped there in his poker pursuits. He is the leading all-time money earner on the World Poker Tour, having earned three titles (including the WPT World Championship, becoming the only person to have won both the WSOP World Championship and the WPT World Championship) and over $6.8 million. He has traveled the world playing the game, often at the highest stakes available.
“I have been playing poker professionally for more than 20 years,” commented Mortensen. “This game has given me so many things that I have come to cherish. I’ve always wanted to be included among the great players who make up the Poker Hall of Fame. To be included with the legends makes me very happy. I want to thank my friends, the poker fans, and all the people who vote for me. I take this honor very seriously.”
With all the kudos and congratulations to both Brunson and Mortensen, there is probably going to be some outrage from other segments of the poker community. The efforts from the United Kingdom to have David ‘Devilfish’ Ulliott become the first inductee from Europe are going to once again bring an outcry that the Poker Hall of Fame is too U. S.-centric to be able to accurately reflect the worldwide poker community. With four other international players (Chris Bjorin, Humberto Brenes, Bruno Fitoussi and Max Pescatori) and one who is now a U. S. citizen (Eli Elezra), it was thought that both slots in 2016 would go to international players.
Then there are the other two men – Chris Moneymaker and tournament director Matt Savage – that had a wellspring of support from many in the poker world. As one of the sparks to the “poker boom” in the Aughts after winning the WSOP World Championship in 2003, Moneymaker was thought by many to be a shoo-in for one of the induction seats. Savage, as an industry nominee, faced a bit more of a difficult road but, due to his unparalleled popularity, was considered to have a good shot at induction. For this induction cycle, however, these two must join Elezra and the international contingent in being happy with the nomination but not the induction into the Hall.
As previously stated, the Poker Hall of Fame will induct Brunson and Mortensen on October 29 at 7PM at Binion’s Gaming Hall in Las Vegas. Congratulations to all the nominees and especially to the two new members of the Hall!