If you would have told 21-year-old me that I’d someday get to be in the same room with those two legends, I’d be beside myself. Hell, 41-year-old me typing up these words still can’t believe I had that opportunity just a few short hours ago.

You might be asking yourself, “what was so special about that opportunity?”

There’s an old saying that you can tell a lot about a person by the company they keep. As much as the 2023 WPT Honors ceremony was about the honorees, in my eyes it was similarly about the group that assembled to pay tribute to said honorees.

A Ceremony Like No Other

A good deal of pomp and circumstance went into the ceremonial aspects of the event, with numerous individuals stepping up to the podium to “make the case” for each nominee’s worthiness of receiving the WPT Honors to the dutifully bespectacled and robed WPT President Adam Pliska. The World Poker Tour might be unrivaled in our industry when it comes to putting on special events like these, and to have had a seat at the ceremony was akin to witnessing a very special episode of poker’s greatest show.

After Angelica Hael officially nominated Vince Van Patten, a parade of World Poker Tour stalwarts including Matt Savage, Lynn Gilmartin, Tony Dunst, and company Founder Steve Lipscomb ascended to the mic to heap oodles of praise upon their longtime colleague and friend. Beyond their obvious outpouring of love and appreciation for the man, what stood out to me from the speeches about Vince was his colleagues’ admiration for his work ethic. Plainly speaking, the man showed up every single day and just put in the work. But Vince hasn’t just “clocked in” for 21 years; he’s done so with the same vim, vigor, and joie de vivre with which he showed up on his first day. A rare quality, to be sure.

Ever humble, Vince deflected the praise to in turn show appreciation for his World Poker Tour colleagues and the late Mike Sexton; the people who helped and supported him along the way. In response to the deluge of kind words spoken about him, he humorously quipped that “this is like attending your own funeral.”

I couldn’t help but draw direct lines of comparison to the reactions when Cal Ripken Jr. broke Major League Baseball’s consecutive games streak years ago; a veritable poker Iron Man was getting his due. How sublime for someone who has worked so hard for so long to enjoy such a special moment of public appreciation.

A similar cavalcade comprised of Jeffrey Haas, Hermance Blum, Lance Bradley, Israel Rosenthal, and Sven Stiel took to the stage one by one to express their gratitude and appreciation for Isai Scheinberg’s contributions specifically to their careers as well as to poker on the whole.

From my perspective, it was astounding to note the attendance of so many former PokerStars employees who had worked under Scheinberg until the then-privately owned company was sold in August 2014. It’s simply surreal to think that one man was ultimately responsible for putting together such an impressive array of talent. All of those people have since moved on to other successful endeavors and roles in the subsequent years, many still within the poker industry. But witnessing “the old PokerStars family” reunite under one roof felt like watching the Avengers assemble.

They spoke of Isai’s three simple, straightforward rules: never lie, never cheat, and always do the right thing. While simple, rules like those aren’t always easy to adhere to in an industry with billions of dollars at stake, as history has taught us.

Scheinberg has always been notorious for his preference of privacy. The entire poker world knows of his accomplishments, but the great man rarely, if ever, surfaced publicly. Being at the 2023 WPT Honors ceremony to see Isai accept his award felt like being transported to PokerStars’ headquarters prior to 2014; a place full of people who never lied, never cheated, and always did the right thing. No wonder it proved to be such a successful venture.

While fish may be surrounded by water, they still rise to the surface when it rains to welcome new droplets. So, too, the entire room full of luminaries could be seen leaning in to listen closely to the soft-spoken Scheinberg during the latter’s acceptance speech. It was a telling moment.

Reflections From Fellow Attendees

Reader can clearly identify my long-held esteem for both the World Poker Tour and PokerStars, but I’ve always been an outsider and independent media voice. So, in order to gain a greater understanding and appreciation for what I had borne witness to, I asked a few insiders who worked with Vince and for Isai, to share their thoughts and perspectives on the evening. Here’s what they had to say:

“There are two men in my life who have been incredible role models of what it means to be an honest entrepreneur. One of them was my late father; the other is Isai Scheinberg. I didn’t think that I was going to get into the world of gambling and learn more about honesty than I had learned before in my life as a journalist. Isai taught me that you can be a good businessman and you could be a good person at the same time. He was more generous with me than any other boss or company owner ever has been, and I think he is worthy of every honor he’s been given and more.”

Brad Willis, Editor-in-Chief of Poker.Org, formerly the Head of Blogging at PokerStars

“Both of these gentlemen have meant so much to me in my poker career. Isai doesn’t realize it, but of course being a part of the poker industry just would not have been the same without Isai Scheinberg. I want to thank him. He hasn’t received the accolades that he deserves; I think he should of course be in the Poker Hall of Fame.

And I think that Vince Van Patten deserves recognition for all that he’s done for the game. It’s not very often that you see someone who has been around in the game for as long as he has been. He’s become like family to me, so I speak from the heart: we’ve spent a lot of time together sharing our passion for poker. I really appreciate everything both of these guys have done.”

Matt Savage, Executive Tour Director of the World Poker Tour

“I’ve been in poker for just over seven years. It’s incredible to hear the historical stories and learn how our industry has evolved. We get into our positions these days and de facto only think about our current time and present roles. To go back and see the history is just incredible. There are so many stories from the people who came before us, and it’s important to appreciate them.”

Eric Lusch, Media Relations Manager with the World Poker Tour

“I have not been to a poker event since 2016. The only reason I came tonight was because of Isai Scheinberg. All the things that have been said about him; it wasn’t enough, about what this man taught me and what he taught everybody in the room. Not just about business and about poker, but about life and how to treat people the right way.

The emotion that I feel tonight is because of the sense of community that I’m feeling and don’t remember poker having had for a very long time. I miss it. The World Poker Tour was always the rival to the organization that I worked for… and I didn’t realize until tonight just how super cool the people who work for the World Poker Tour are, from the top down… and there’s no such thing as ‘down’ with them! Everybody’s got an important role to play in the World Poker Tour. I’m so impressed with the WPT, what they’ve done tonight, the sense of camaraderie they have, and the love they have for each other.

When we talk about playing poker, sitting around a table, and competing to take each other’s money… the game is about more than that. It’s about the friendships, and the love, and the trust, and the lessons you learn from one another. Even though I was here for just two hours tonight, I came away with a great sense of energy.”

Nolan Dalla, former Director of Communications at PokerStars

The Coolest-Ever Poker After-Party

Poker.org owner Eric Hollreiser, himself a former PokerStars employee, hosted a swanky afterparty in one of the Wynn ballrooms that featured an open bar, flowing chocolate fondue fountains, and the most succulent strawberries to delight our tastebuds as we mingled to mellifluous music. Designed to orchestrate a reunion of former PokerStars employees, many World Poker Tour personages could also be found among the attendees.

You can tell a lot about people by the folks they surround themselves with.

I hesitate to use the word “magic”, but there was something indescribably unique in the air throughout last night’s festivities.

I suppose that’s what happens when the spotlight shines on poker’s best. The entire room lights up.

1. Welcome Party

After flying 7,500 miles halfway around the world for 22 hours, the thought of attending a party a few hours later might seem a little much; but this one was not to be missed. The World Poker Tour went all out with a fantastic welcome party at Area 15. From an open bar and full dinner buffet spread to virtual reality (VR) experiences, fire dancers, rides, WPT Passport giveaways, and more, hundreds of poker players got to experience the finest in Vegas-style entertainment.

Dad and I had a really great time at the @WPT Players Party at @AREA15official tonight.

After 20+ hours of travel and a day full of errands, seeing and reconnecting with so many familiar faces was an awesome way to end the day.

Props to the organizers for a phenomenal party! pic.twitter.com/C4lhlRXttq

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) December 12, 2022

2. Isai Scheinberg and Vince Van Patten Recognized with WPT Honors

While it’s a no-brainer that the World Poker Tour would use its grandest showcase to inaugurate new members into the WPT Honors club, and that highly deserving 20-year WPT veteran commentator was tapped as one of the latest honorees, the other honoree was a shocker – and in the most positive possible way.

Image courtesy: World Poker Tour

PokerStars founder Isai Scheinberg was long-overdue major official poker industry recognition for his incredible, one-of-a-kind contributions to the game. it was heartwarming to finally see him get his just dues and a massive round of applause and appreciation from a packed ballroom of poker players, as well as industry and media professionals.

On a personal note, it was exceptionally cool to wish him “mazel tov” and say a few words to him, his wife Dora, and his son Robert in our common language of Hebrew.

3. My Dad’s Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience

I’ve waxed poetic about my father, Dr. Josef Strazynski’s journey as he prepared to play in the WPT World Championship Main Event and take his seat as a WPT Global prize package winner. Throughout his week here, I documented the continuation of that poker journey every step of the way: from tournament registration to his 10.5 hours of playing in the tournament itself to the fact that he wanted to squeeze one last 3-hour cash game session in before heading home.

“We have 3 hours after Shabbat ends until I have to take you to the airport, Dad. Anything specific you’d like to do?”

Look what you’ve created, Vegas?!

He says he wishes he could stay another month or two and that this entire experience has been out of this world. pic.twitter.com/scVp51OvE3

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) December 18, 2022

Beyond my own coverage, Dad’s WPT World Championship experience also got chronicled by other poker media outlets including by my new friend Landon Blackhall here and this deeply touching feature by my longtime friend Poker.org Editor in Chief Brad Willis here.

Being at Dad’s side throughout was just plain awesome, and I want to publicly express my thanks to the Good Lord Above for having handed me a golden opportunity to fulfil the Torah’s Fifth Commandment in the most special of ways.

4. The Poker Media Dinner

It’s no secret that I love what I do and that I’m also a huge fan of other poker media outlets and the many wonderful people who work alongside me in this great industry. Opportunities for us to socialize and gather together without needing to simultaneously be working are relatively few and far between – and that much rarer when you live thousands of miles away from everyone else.

The World Poker Tour kindly treated assembled media to a first-class dinner that I thoroughly enjoyed. As an extra added bonus, I was delighted to discover that the Wynn’s SW Steakhouse had a kosher meal option (massive shout out to Head Waiter, Corey!), but the evening’s main course was undoubtedly our opportunity to engage in camaraderie.

This

My inner poker fanboy still doesn’t believe I get to be part of this #WPTWCWynn festival.

Nor that I got to sit next to 2 people I consider industry legends.

I’m having an absolute blast. Thank you, @WPT!

Before I left , Miriam said: “go live your best life!”

https://t.co/ESwX84oICD

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) December 16, 2022

5. The Awesome “Halftime Show” Performances

The World Poker Tour is known for not just hosting poker tournaments and events around the world, but rather for quite literally putting on a show. This was no truer than the outstanding halftime show performances staged on no less than three separate occasions throughout the WPT world championship festival.

Image courtesy: World Poker Tour

From inspired musical performances to jaw dropping physical feats, the “halftime shows” helped add to an already “major event” type of feel in the Encore Ballroom; even WPT CEO Adam Pliska got in on the act!

Image courtesy: World Poker Tour

6. Molly Bloom

I’ve had the opportunity to interview Molly Bloom in the past. Her 2018 appearance at a Unibet Open poker event in Romania was her first at a major poker event. She hasn’t really been seen in poker circles since then, so it was surprising and delightful to see her make a big public poker appearance here in Las Vegas.

The World Poker Tour had already fully decked out the VIP Lounge for ClubWPT and WPT Global Package Winners, as well as WPT champions. From copious amounts of food and drink to pinball machines and air hockey tables, an A+ player experience was already guaranteed. To have added in a special “fireside chat” with Molly Bloom just took the proceedings to the next level for all in attendance to enjoy.

7. Ladies MUG + Championship Event

One of the pillars of our approach to poker media coverage here at Cardplayer Lifestyle has always been the proactive advocacy for increased women’s participation in poker and the spotlighting of successful players and initiatives in that realm. So, it was fabulous to see that the World Poker Tour really took things to the next level here.

The Ladies Championship was not relegated to being a sideshow but rather it took center stage with a televised final table (won by Lina Niu). Already prior to the ceremonial “shuffle up and deal” – delivered with great gusto and visible emotion by Poker Hall of Famer and the first WPT Honors recipient Linda Johnson ­– the event had exceeded its $200,000 guarantee and with 578 players it stood tall as the second-largest Ladies event of the calendar year.

Image courtesy: World Poker Tour

Moreover, the Ladies MUG, hosted by Jamie Kerstetter, was an unabashed success. Numerous current (and future!) Women in Poker Hall of Famers showed up to play low-stakes Hold’em and H.O.R.S.E. alongside many successful female pros and recreational players. That – and seemingly endless mimosas and candy-filled gift bags – resulted in a fun-filled raucous atmosphere that brought smiles to the faces of every dealer and staff member in the Wynn Poker room. The only question on everyone’s lips was “why don’t we have these things more often?!”

Image credit: Christina Bradfield for PokerNews

8. A $29 Million Main Event Prize Pool

Back in summertime, when the World Poker Tour first announced that it would be staging a $15 million Guaranteed World Championship Main Event at Wynn Las Vegas, there was some quite obvious concern about hitting that number, as such an ambitious goal had never been set before in the poker industry. Moreover, far lower guarantees had unfortunately been missed quite badly by other venues at other festivals in years prior.

The Final Numbers @WPT @WynnLasVegas
2,960 Entries
$29,008,000 Prize Pool
Televised Final Table Payouts
1st $4,136,000 + $10,400 Seat to 2023 WC
2nd $2,830,000
3rd $2,095,000
4th $1,608,000
5th $1,301,000
6th $1,001,050

370 Players In The Money
370th $17,400#WPTWCWynn pic.twitter.com/ZgePI86dXd

— Matt Savage (@SavagePoker) December 15, 2022

Wynn and the WPT didn’t just hit the $15 million guarantee (by Day 1B!); they absolutely obliterated it and blew it out of the water, creating a $29 million prize pool – nearly double the stated goal! That’s got to rank up there as one of the most prominent and impressive achievements our industry has ever seen.

9. Final Table Set/Production

Every magnum opus has a grand finale, and the World Poker Tour certainly knew how to showcase the conclusion of this incredible World Championship festival.

The move from the Encore Ballroom to the Latour Ballroom at Wynn marked the transition of the events “from stadium to center stage”, and what a hell of a stage they constructed!

With poker’s most ardent fans railing the action and rooting on their heroes at the felt, they’ve constructed the perfect conduit for the atmosphere at the three televised final tables to be nothing short of electric. I can only imagine how it’s going to look and play out on the broadcast in the coming months.

Our @WPT Televised Final Tables are open to the public and located in Latour Ballroom #6!#WPTLadiesChampionship FT – Dec. 18th 4pm#WPTPrimeChampionship FT – Dec. 19th 4pm#WPTWorldChampionship FT – Dec. 20th 4pm

We highly recommend arriving early to secure a seat! pic.twitter.com/NixpK2i2PU

— World Poker Tour (@WPT) December 17, 2022

10. A Winter Poker Reunion

There’s perhaps no better sign that poker is finally booming once again than the emergence of a brand new, must-attend festival on the yearly calendar. As the WPT World Championships draw to a close, there comes with it a slight feeling of sadness that over the holidays we’ll all really be missing the buzz that’s accompanied these incredible past couple of weeks at Wynn Las Vegas.

Much as everyone in the poker world always looks forward to our annual summer reunion, I’m beyond ecstatic that we also now have an annual winter retreat to eagerly anticipate. That the WPT-Wynn partnership is a multi-year affair is perhaps the best news our industry could have gotten in 2022.

Especially post pandemic, we’ve all come to value just how important and special real-life engagement and interaction is and how that enriches our lives. As great and critical as “Poker Twitter” and other social media platforms are to the building and maintenance of our wonderful community, there’s simply no substitute for winning moments at the felt, hugs and smiles away from the felt, and life’s in-person beauty through poker’s prism to be felt.

After 20 years, we are so grateful to @WynnLasVegas for hosting our 20th Anniversary celebration!

We’d like to officially welcome all of our players and partners from all over the world to the #WPTWorldChampionship #WPTWCWynn!

Here’s to another 20 years! #TheBestIsYetToCome pic.twitter.com/GzP8PJW4S9

— World Poker Tour (@WPT) December 8, 2022

“It is my privilege to share that this year’s WPT Honors Awards recipients will be Vince Van Patten and Isai Scheinberg,” said World Poker Tour CEO Adam Pliska to a captive full Encore Ballroom as Day 1A of the WPT World Championship Main Event was briefly paused for the announcement.

“These two men have both made transformational contributions to the poker community. Isai as a pioneer with his incredible ingenuity and boldness, and Vince with his love and dedication to expanding the game of poker. Both honorees are truly deserving of the award.”

Vince Van Patten: 20 Years Of Poker Broadcast Excellence

Native New Yorker Vince Van Patten teamed up with the World Poker Tour in 2003, and has represented the brand ever since through his unique presentation of poker content and high profile tournaments in the broadcast booth.

Originally introduced to the game of poker by his father, Dick Van Patten, Vince has been around the game since he was a teenager – even managing a Hollywood home game in the 1990s.

Van Patten expressed gratitude towards the WPT family and executive team upon receiving the WPT Honors nod saying “I am so fortunate to have been a part of this amazing company for 20 years and I have never been more proud of what the WPT has become, than here at the first-ever WPT World Championship at the Wynn. It is an incredible site.”

Isai Scheinberg Receives Long Overdue Poker Industry Recognition

Poker player, fan, and former online industry executive Isai Scheinberg began heading PokerStars operations in Q3-2001, and quickly elevated the company to a brand name that would become synonymous with “poker greatness.”

Through his leadership, aptitude, and love for the game, Scheinberg would go on to vault the online poker business into a worldwide phenomenon during the early to mid-2000s.

The PokerStars online poker business, and subsequently their live events series, became a logical next step for both casual and serious card playing fans around the world who had – up until the early 2000s – dreamed of the online, real money potential of card games after cutting their teeth on the popular offline, click-and-drag Microsoft Solitaire game over the prior decade.

By the time Scheinberg sold the company in 2014 for $4.9 billion, PokerStars had amassed a player base that exceeded 100 million individuals across the globe.

The PokerStars co-founder was on hand to receive the WPT Honors recognition and spoke to the assembled crowd of players and poker media outlets, most of whom had never seen his face or heard his distinct voice before. He fondly recalled that “the first TV advertising PokerStars did was on WPT programming on the Travel Channel. It had a major impact that led to millions of players joining us.”

READ ALSO: WPT World Championship Opens to Massive Turnout Numbers

Legacy WPT Honors Awards Recipients

This year marked the fourth time the World Poker Tour has recognized the ground-breaking achievements of poker players, personalities, and industry executives.

In 2017, Bruno Fitoussi, Linda Johnson, and Mike Sexton became the inaugural recipients of the WPT Honors. The following year, the WPT paid homage to its founders: Lyle Berman and Steve Lipscomb, while industry trailblazer Deb Giardina and tournament director Matt Savage were exalted in 2019 for their leadership in live, on-site poker operations.

WPT World Championship Main Event To Exceed $15 Million Guarantee?

According to WPT Executive Tour Director and 2019 WPT Honors Award recipient Matt Savage, the largest guaranteed live poker tournament prize pool in history could exceed its own lofty expectations.

VIDEO: World Poker Tour Executive Tour Director Matt Savage (@SavagePoker) thinks that the @WPT World Championship’s prize pool could surpass $20 million.

LINK – https://t.co/wyszIyKUus pic.twitter.com/d0HqFLWU8Y

— Card Player: The Poker Authority (@CardPlayerMedia) December 13, 2022

Savage hinted that the eventual WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas prize pool could turn out to be “over $20 million”, and based on the impressive Day 1A turnout of 615 players that milestone is well within reach.

Last Chance To Qualify For Historic WPT World Championship Main Event

Late registration for ‘Day 1C’ of the $10,400 buy-in WPT World Championship 2022 Main Event will be open up to the start of Level 7 on Wednesday, with a $1,100 Milestone Satellite qualifier available for players inside the Wynn Las Vegas Poker Room on December 14th, starting at 12:00 Noon local time.

The WPT World Championship Main Event – ‘Day 1B’ of which is today – is a “freezeout” poker tournament in which multiple re-entries (aside from a single entry per starting flight) are not allowed.

This means that once the late registration period ends for ‘Day 1C’ on Wednesday (following the completion of Level 6) all remaining participants will be locked in to their current chip counts for the remainder of the showcase event.

Chad Holloway, Robbie Strazynski & Matt Waxman

In this episode of The Bernard Lee Poker Show on the Cardplayer Lifestyle Podcast Family, Bernard Lee is joined by PokerNews’ Chad Holloway and Cardplayer Lifestyle’s Robbie Strazynski, as they conclude their year in review for the challenging 2020. This week, they discuss 2020 Poker Hall of Fame, heads-up battles, players who passed away and takeaways from 2020.

During the second half of the show, Bernard speaks with Matt Waxman, founder and creator of Pokerithm. Waxman describes the new show which airs on Twitch every Tuesday at 4pm EST.

As it stands, there are currently 58 people who have been inducted, 31 of whom are still living with us today. The most recent inductees, David Oppenheim and 2003 WSOP Champion Chris Moneymaker made up the class of 2019. Sadly, we recently said goodbye to Hall of Famer Mike Sexton whose influence on poker will be cherished by many for decades to come. A loss that was felt by so many and the tributes that followed were a testament to Mike’s influence in the world of poker.

Hall of Fame Criteria

There are stringent criteria for nominations, to help not oversaturate Poker Hall of Fame so that it still maintains the element of prestige. The criteria that is used to shortlist nominees are as followed.

• Must have played against the acknowledged best players in the game
• Must be at least 40 years old
• Played for high stakes
• Someone whose skills are recognised by peers
• Stood the test of time
• For non-players, helped with the growth of poker with lasting and positive results

Predictions

The announcement to mark the new inductees usually aligns with the final table of the WSOP Main Event but due to the COVID-19 pandemic which has disrupted live poker and caused the postponement of the 2020 WSOP, no new Hall of Fae inductees have been announced either.

In usual circumstances, one or two people are inducted each year but with the deferral from this year, we may possibly see more inductees into the Hall of Fame in 2021.

So, here are my predictions, in no particular order, of the individuals who I believe have earned the right to be members of this prestigious poker club.

1. Isai Scheinberg

Isai Scheinberg is the co-founder of Pokerstars, the biggest online poker platform in the world currently. Stars has been the number one site for most players since the birth of online poker. So as far as non-players go, Scheinberg’s work has allowed countless players to make a fortune and opened the market to anyone with a computer or laptop.

Whilst he was embroiled in legal issues for the last decade due to the Black Friday scandal, Scheinberg did nonetheless ensure that monies were refunded to players, plus PokerStars helped get former Full Tilt and Absolute Poker customers reimbursed. Also, Scheinberg’s personal legal saga is now finally over.

This could be a contentious nominee for sure, but there’s no denying the important contributions that Scheinberg has given to the poker world.

Isai Scheinberg | Image credit: Danny Maxwell

2. Matt Savage

Has there ever been a more universally loved tournament director than Matt Savage? The WPT Executive Tournament Director has been shortlisted several times to be inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame but has not yet made the final cut.

A staple at WSOP and WPT events for the entirety of his career, Savage has overseen many of poker’s finest moments. He has officiated more televised poker episodes than anyone else and even has a WSOP Final Table appearance to his name. Savage was also the inaugural member of the Poker Manager Hall of Fame in 2003.

It seems a matter of when and not if, for Savage to finally be an inductee. Perhaps 2021 would be a fitting year for Savage’s induction as it marks the 20th anniversary of the Tournament Directors Association, an organisation he co-founded which helped standardize poker tournament rules across the world.

3. Eli Elezra

A staple fixture for decades in the highest stakes cash games in the world, regularly playing against the likes of Doyle Brunson, Chip Reese, and other legendary Hall of Famers in Bobby’s Room at the Bellagio, Eli Elezra was a star of arguably the best ever televised poker series, High Stakes Poker. Though mainly a cash game player, he’s got a World Poker Tour Championship as well as four WSOP bracelets to his name, helping to give him close to $4 million in career tournament earnings.

Fascinatingly, Fascinatingly, Elezra has won three of his four WSOP bracelets since 2013, all while in his fifties, plus he’s adding a further six top-three placements in the WSOP in that time!

A true poker legend who has undoubtedly stood the test of time, you can learn more about Elezra’s life and career in his recently published autobiography, Pulling the Trigger.

4. Antonio Esfandiari

Poker’s favourite magician, Antonio Esfandiari also cut his teeth and made his name on High Stakes Poker. A prominent figure in televised poker, Esfandiari is one of the world’s most famous people to take to the felt.

A former table topper on the all-time money list, Esfandiari has over $27 million in tournament winnings and was the first ever winner of the WSOP Big One for One Drop. He has a further two WSOP bracelets and two WPT titles to add to his impressive list of achievements. Even if 2021 ends up not being his year, Esfandiari is a surefire inductee in the near future.

5. Paul Phua

A name I have only been familiar with for the last year or so, there’s no denying that Paul Phua has masterminded some brilliance in the poker industry.

The founder of Triton Poker has revolutionised the high stakes poker game, most notably with the Triton Cash Game series as well as organising the biggest ever buy-in poker tournament, the Triton London – A Helping Hand for Charity which cost $1.05 million to enter.

Phua himself is sharp at the poker table, with just shy of $20 million in winnings, since 2012 according to the HendonMob database, as well as playing in the eye-watering stakes games he sets up.

Recognized as the 2019 Industry Person of the Year by the Global Poker Awards, the distinction may perhaps a stepping stone for Phua’s eventual induction into the Poker Hall of Fame.

To be considered for @gpi Awards’ Industry Person Of The Year is a great honour and privilege. I can’t express how grateful I am to be the recipient of this award. Thank you everyone from my team at @tritonpoker and also my lovely supporters! pic.twitter.com/XAPLbqA6eP

— Paul Phua Poker (@paulphuapoker) March 7, 2020

6. Patrik Antonius

Like others on this list, Patrik Antonius became one of the most famous faces in poker thanks to appearances on High Stakes Poker, The Big Game and Poker After Dark. He had countless battles with the likes of Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu and Tom Dwan.

Finnish-born Antonius has won WPT and EPT titles, but has failed to capture a WSOP title in his three final table appearances. That being said though, his approach to poker is admired by all and is still highly regarded as one of the best cash game players and heads-up specialist. He’ll be turning 40 in December, so 2021 marks the first year he’ll be eligible for induction. While he’s undoubtedly a worthy nominee, some may feel that he’ll first need a WSOP bracelet to cement his candidcacy.

7. Gus Hansen

Gus ‘The Great Dane’ Hansen is another highly respected high stakes cash game player who has also had a successful poker tournament career. The first player to record three WPT open tournament wins including a WSOP bracelet win, Hansen quite rightly has a claim to be a 2021 Poker Hall of Fame inductee.

Hansen is respected among his peers for aggressiveness and unique style of play and still grinds in the world-famous Bobby’s Room playing high stakes poker.

I’ve now been in this industry long enough that I have some ‘old timer’ stories of my own, many of which from my time working with PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker between 2006 and 2011. I’m one of a handful of people to have worked for both Ray Bitar (Full Tilt Poker’s CEO) and Isai Scheinberg (Founder of PokerStars). In this article I thought it would be interesting to talk about my experiences with them, what similarities they had, and what made them different.

My First Encounters with Isai and Ray

I’d been working for PokerStars for a year and a half before I met Isai for the first time. I’d just moved to the Isle of Man to take up a new role, and so was unfamiliar with much of the team there. It was an innocuous scenario – walking through the office with my line manager; we bumped into Isai and I was introduced as the new guy. He was polite and courteous, modestly dressed, and had a sense of humility about him. His accent was strong, and I later learned that he could speak at least four languages (English, Lithuanian, Russian and Hebrew). We said our hellos and moved on.

Isai Scheinberg | Image credit: Danny Maxwell

Meeting Ray Bitar for the first time was quite different. It was summer 2010, and I was in Las Vegas with friends for the WSOP. A meeting with Ray had been set up by the recruiter who had approached me about a role at Full Tilt. I waited downstairs in the Bellagio for about half an hour beyond the scheduled meeting time before Ray appeared and walked me to the elevator. I interviewed with him in his lavish suite overlooking the fountains, which was probably five times the size of the apartment I lived in at the time. We spoke about cars, who we thought would win the Main Event, and very little about work – clearly, the meeting was about establishing whether I was a ‘real poker guy’ or not, and whether we could work together on a personal level, not whether I was qualified for the role.

Ray Bitar | Image credit: Wickedchopspoker.com

Different Approaches to Money Management

You might think Ray was a show off, and I can understand why. In addition to the crazy big Bellagio suite, he drove a flashy car, had a massive corner office, and enjoyed his material wealth in many other ways. But actually, I don’t think he was trying to impress me or anyone else. (I was a 27-year-old guy. If he wanted to impress me, there would have been far more effective ways to do so.) I think he had grown insensitive to the value and importance of money. This trait sometimes showed itself in how generous he could be with his friends. Ultimately, I think this trait contributed to the downfall of Full Tilt.

Isai, on the other hand, was shrewd when it came to money. We would often fight hard to justify adding new staff to the team, and PokerStars’ software development team was famously lean. In hindsight it is remarkable what was achieved by so few people. When he did hire, he hired carefully – paying a good salary and recruiting passionate, knowledgeable and fiercely loyal people.

But Isai could also be fabulously generous, too. He strongly supported PokerStars’ many charitable initiatives, which often involved raising money within the poker client to be earmarked for donation. When he eventually departed the company after it was sold to Amaya, he and his son Mark gave bonuses to almost every employee, amounting to 1 month’s salary for every year of service – a phenomenal sum of money for many people (and quite the boost to Isle of Man car sales!). These days, he is actively involved in charitable initiatives on the Isle of Man and is known for being generous with the one thing a billionaire doesn’t have much of – his time.

Different Leadership Styles: Hands-On vs. Hands-Off

As is often the case with founder-leaders, Isai was notoriously hands-on. He knew every detail of the business and was involved in even the tiniest aspects of promotions, the tournament offerings, the product, game integrity cases, you name it. Get something wrong and he could be scathing and brutal. His desire to give approval on everyday tasks often slowed things to a crawl. I learned a lot from Isai but as I have developed as a leader myself, I have tried hard not to emulate this characteristic, as it made working for him extremely frustrating at times. The company Isai built was utterly dependent on him, and it has suffered since his departure.

Ray, on the other hand, was a hands-off type. I reported directly to him, but he delegated almost all responsibility in managing me to others. If he was involved in the detail, it was because the subject matter was deeply important. For example, the first time I saw him get really involved was because the issue in question was eChecks not clearing, but still being credited to players’ accounts – the infamous ‘phantom deposits’ issue. “It’s literally costing us millions of dollars”, I remember him saying. The downside to being hands-off, of course, is that when it hits the fan you might not have the knowledge or awareness you need to act quickly and decisively.

Despite their differences, Isai and Ray had more in common than you might think. Both were hardworking and straight talking, and they built companies that were hardworking and straight talking, too, albeit in different ways. PokerStars felt like a family business, while Full Tilt felt like a Silicon Valley tech startup. At both companies, people disagreed openly and passionately. You had to be resilient, but it was incredibly productive. At both PokerStars and Full Tilt, employees bonded over their shared love of poker. They were tight communities where we worked and played together, on the felt and off. (Incidentally, both company home games were a lot of fun, but the Full Tilt game was a LOT tougher.)

Black Friday Repercussions

So there we have it. Two leaders who were hardworking, and who built and scaled successful companies with brilliant cultures, but with different styles. Isai with his financial shrewdness and hands-on approach. Ray, the delegator with no sense of the value of money.

When Black Friday hit on April 15th, 2011, the two leaders’ styles would contribute to the difference in outcomes for each company. Isai saw it coming, was prepared, and had all of the knowledge of day-to-day operations he needed to jump into action.

Ray was caught off guard. For the most part he had delegated the finances of the business to the CFO. He had a huge mountain to climb in understanding the true financial situation of the business, which turned out to be worse than anyone thought.

We all know what happened next and the implications it had for players and the entire online poker industry. I understand that many people take comfort in having a figurehead to blame for the demise of Full Tilt, but Ray’s actions weren’t those of an evil person. They were those of a person who was woefully unprepared for the challenge he faced.

If two other people had been in charge, who knows? Things might have ended up differently.

Without further ado, here is the Cardplayer Lifestyle list of the Top 10 Jews in Poker today*:

10. Michael Mizrachi

Card Player Magazine’s 2006 Player of the Year, Mizrachi also won the prestigious $50,000 Poker Player’s Championship and made the final table of the Main Event at the World Series of Poker in 2010. Known throughout the poker world as “The Grinder”, Mizrachi is also the best known of the 4 poker playing Mizrachi brothers (all of whom are Jewish, of course).

9. Barry Shulman

Barry is a former World Series of Poker Europe Main Event Champion, but Shulman’s biggest contribution to the game of poker has come as publisher of Card Player Magazine. His son Jeff, the co-publisher, is no slouch either by the way, having made a WSOP Main Event final table a couple years back. Anyhow, if you’ve never picked up a copy of Card Player, you have no idea what you’re missing…

8. Lyle Berman

Berman is the founder and Chairman of the Board of the WPT.  The poker world would be severely lacking, to say the least, were it not for the World Poker Tour and its accompanying televised broadcasts of arguably the most important poker events of the year outside of the WSOP. Berman is the holder of 3 WSOP bracelets and was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2002. In the “Jewish world”, Berman once won the Bnai B’rith Great American Traditions award.

7. Mike Matusow

A 3-time WSOP bracelet winner, Matusow is known for making multiple deep runs at the World Series main event over the last decade, despite vastly increasing field sizes. The first player to have 2 separate million-dollar cashes during the same World Series, “the Mouth” used to be recognized as much for his televised vocal outbursts as for his successes on the felt. While Mikey hasn’t tasted victory at the tables as of late, his Chai necklace has always been prominently dangling at the poker table, and his mother’s Passover cooking could stand up to any kosher kitchen challenger.

6.  Gabe Kaplan

Kaplan has been a poker aficionado ever since his days as Mr. Kotter. Known for taking part in WSOP events as far back as the 1970s, Kaplan has played for nosebleed stakes for decades, most notably on High Stakes Poker. Aside from a successful standup comedy career (what could be more Jewish than that?), Kaplan’s poker notoriety comes more from his role in the broadcast booth. His astute poker observations accompanied by his renown ability to tell great stories and jokes make him the best poker commentator in the business today hands-down. We mourned (along with the overwhelming majority of poker fans) when Kaplan was replaced on High Stakes Poker.

5. Phil Gordon

A well known poker author, commentator, and successful player, Gordon has earned millions from the game, but he’s much better known for his charity poker work. A co-founder of “Bad Beat on Cancer”, Gordon is instrumental in raising millions of dollars each year from poker players, who pledge 1% of their tournament winnings to charity. Gordon also won last year’s Ante Up For Africa tournament and donated his entire winnings to the cause. Nothing like giving “tzedaka” (charity) to get you on a Jewish top 10 list…

4. Barry Greenstein

Speaking of charity, meet the “Robin Hood of Poker”. Aside from winning WSOP bracelets, penning “Ace on the River”, and winning millions in the highest stakes cash games in the world at Bobby’s Room, Greenstein has always donated his entire tournament poker winnings to charity. Singlehandedly making sure to help those less fortunate throughout a decades-long poker career makes Greenstein a top 10 Jew in poker.

3. Eli Elezra

What could be more Jewish than hailing from Israel? The former IDF Lieutenant has won a WPT title as well as a WSOP bracelet and, like Barry Greenstein, has played in “the Big Game” for years. Though living in Las Vegas for many years now, Elezra maintains close ties with family and friends in Israel. In the past he’s even donated $50,000 to build a gym for his former IDF unit.

2. Erik Seidel

If we write any more about this guy in 2011, maybe we’ll just rename this the Erik Seidel poker blog. A Poker Hall of Famer, Seidel now sits atop the list of all-time poker tournament money winners. He also has the most WSOP bracelets of any Jew (8).

1. Isai Scheinberg

Uh, who? Where’s his picture? Scheinberg is a notorious Israeli Jewish recluse currently residing in Canada. What could he have done that ranks him as the #1 Jew in poker, ahead of all the luminaries already listed? Umm…. Well, he kind of founded and owns PokerStars, the #1 online poker site in the world… Nuff said

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*Note: The person must currently be living to make the list; my apologies to the late, great Stu Ungar…