Official announcement: August 3, 2026.
Jason Koon, a West Virginia native, became the only player inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2026.
The honor came in his first year of eligibility. Koon turned 40 in August 2025, reaching the minimum age required for nomination.
How the 2026 Voting Worked
The Poker Hall of Fame introduced a new voting format for 2026.
A candidate needed to receive at least two-thirds of the votes from the 33 living Hall of Fame members — meaning a minimum of 22 votes was required for induction.
Koon reached that threshold and was the only finalist to do so.
The 2026 finalist list featured several major names from the poker world, including Shaun Deeb, Isaac Haxton, Chris Moorman, Justin Bonomo, Scott Seiver, Isai Scheinberg and Mike Matusow, among others.
None of the other candidates received enough votes to join Koon in this year’s class.
Jason Koon’s Career Achievements
- More than $77 million in live tournament earnings, good for third place on poker’s all-time money list.
- Two WSOP bracelets:
- 2021 — $25,000 Heads-Up Championship
- 2025 — $50,000 High Roller for $1,968,927
- A record 12 Triton Poker titles, more than any other player.
- A career-best live cash of more than $3.5 million, earned in the 2018 Triton Montenegro Short Deck event.
- One of the most successful and respected high-stakes tournament players of his generation.
- Ambassador for PokerStars and Triton Poker.
Jason Koon Reacts to the Honor
A day after the announcement, Koon shared an emotional message on X:
“Yesterday I joined the Poker Hall of Fame. A few of the guys on this year’s list are heroes of mine and deserve to be in as much as I do; I’m sure their day is coming soon. When I found poker, I was immediately and forever in it. It was my path to independence, my teacher in handling defeat and most importantly the vessel for introducing me to a large portion of the greatest relationships in my life. Poker is my life’s passion. I’ve truly given it everything I have. I love you guys, thank you.”
@JasonKoon, August 4, 2026
Koon also admitted that the result caught him completely off guard.
“I was shocked when they told me, and I was shocked when they told me I was the only inductee.”
He added:
“To be voted in by the greatest poker players of all time is one of the most amazing experiences of my life.”