North American star Jason Koon is the newest member of the Poker Hall of Fame. He was announced as the winner of the 2026 vote this Monday (3), the day the final table of the WSOP (World Series of Poker) Main Event began. At 40 years old, he was eligible for the group for the first time this year.
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Amid a list of finalists full of legends, Jason Koon was the only one to reach the cutoff score in the vote. Thus, he became the 66th member of the poker immortals group. He joins the most revered names in poker, such as Phil Hellmuth, Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu, and many others.
More recently, the last chosen for the Hall of Fame were Nick Schulman and Michael Mizrachi. Both joined the group in 2025, the first through the traditional vote, and the second due to his huge achievements at that year’s WSOP, where he won the Poker Players’ Championship and the Main Event.
An indisputable choice
It can be said that the only thing preventing Jason Koon from being part of the Hall of Fame was precisely his age. This is because the eligibility rules state that only players aged 40 or older can enter the group, and Koon turned 40 last October.
At the tables, Jason Koon is unanimously considered one of the most talented. In the Hendon Mob database, he has US$ 77 million won in live tournaments in his career, the third highest amount of all time. He is the record holder for titles in the Triton Super High Roller Series, with 12 wins. Additionally, he has two WSOP bracelets, with nearly US$ 15 million in payouts at the world series.
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On his profile on the social network X, Jason Koon celebrated. “When I discovered poker, I immediately felt part of it,” revealed the American. “It taught me to be independent, to deal with losses, and most importantly, it brought me most of the best friendships of my life. Poker is my passion, and I have always given it my all,” he concluded.
New method, old results
One of the main criticisms of the elections of new members to the Hall of Fame was the fact that only one person could enter the group per year. With more and more stars of the game becoming eligible, the community began to question why so many good names were being left out.
With this in mind, the Hall of Fame changed the voting method. Starting in 2026, all living members of the group were allowed to vote for up to four names, and the candidate who exceeded two-thirds of the maximum number of votes would enter the group.
However, the new method again resulted in only one elected. With 33 living members in the Hall of Fame, anyone reaching 22 votes would enter the group, and Jason Koon was the only one to reach that mark, receiving 23. Scott Seiver got 19, Isai Scheinberg 17, and Shaun Deeb 15.
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