Jason Koon was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame on August 3, 2026, announced on the ESPN broadcast as the WSOP Main Event final table began. He is the Hall's 66th member and the only 2026 inductee, elected in his first year of eligibility after turning 40 last summer.
The résumé
Koon sits third on poker's all-time live money list at $77,032,156 through mid-June, ahead of every current Hall of Famer. He owns two WSOP bracelets, a 2021 heads-up title in the $25,000 event and the 2025 $50,000 High Roller for $1,968,927. On the Triton Poker Series, no one has more titles: he has 12 wins on tour, an all-time record.
A tight vote
Under a new voting system, the Hall's 33 living members each cast four votes, and any finalist who appeared on 22 ballots or more, a two-thirds threshold, was automatically inducted. PokerListings reported that Koon collected 23 votes, or 69.7%, followed by Scott Seiver (19), Isai Scheinberg (17), Shaun Deeb (15), Mike Matusow (10), Isaac Haxton (9), Chris Moorman (4) and Justin Bonomo (3).
Yesterday I joined the Poker Hall of Fame. Poker is my life's passion. I've truly given it everything I have. I love you guys, thank you.
Jason Koon (@KoonJason)
Behind the scenes
Phil Hellmuth publicly said his four votes went to Koon, Seiver, Deeb and Haxton, and that in his opinion 'they should have made it in this year.' Daniel Negreanu argued for a ranked-choice model to prevent split votes, and Norman Chad suggested that Hall of Famers should not remain the only gatekeepers of a hall named for the game rather than for its inner circle. Sources: P4Poker, PokerListings.
