John Hennigan Op-Ed: Put Ted Forrest in the Poker Hall of Fame
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Ted Forrest is an annual Poker Hall of Fame (PHOF) candidate, and one poker legend is making a surprising push to get the six-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner off the sidelines and into the exclusive club.
John Hennigan, inducted into the PHOF along with Mori Eskandani in 2018, doesn't speak publicly often. But "Johnny World" feels so strongly about Forrest being deserving that he not only penned an op-ed for PokerNews about the topic, he did so in support of a poker pro he isn't exactly best friends with these days.
The Poker Hall of Fame now inducts just one player or industry person each year, a topic of debate PokerNews recently addressed. Patrik Antonius was voted in by his peers last year. Those same individuals, the living members of the PHOF, will choose someone else this coming summer. Many expect the race to come down to Nick Schulman and Scott Seiver. But Hennigan, an old-school gambler with seven WSOP bracelets, has someone else in mind and made a compelling argument.
Johnny World's Poker Hall of Fame Vote
Well it’s that time of the year again, the WSOP will induct another player into the Hall of Fame. To me, it begs the question, what is an induction worth? Is it bragging rights amongst a very large but at the same time a very limited peer group? Is it a validation of a career, surviving on your wits in a rather difficult environment? Is it a form of immortality? Is it completely meaningless?
It is (or at least it was) all those things to me. The year I was inducted, a simple comment by Mike Sexton started the ball rolling. I joined him at the table in a tournament the day after I won my 6th bracelet. And he said, “How are you not in the Hall of Fame”? I just laughed, and with a smile, albeit a knowing smile, I said, “Well, it’s hard to say,” as in my opinion, I shared his sentiment that I was deserving of induction, given my resume.
Truth is, had I not won a tournament that year, and more importantly, had Mike not started talking about it with some of the other Hall of Famers, I might not be in there to this day. I hope some Hall of Famers pay Ted the same courtesy.
The nomination and induction criteria are very present-minded, which I believe is a mistake and is why I’m writing this article. For instance, this year, the conversation centers around Nick Schulman and Scott Seiver, who will be first-time eligibles in 2025. In my opinion, both are deserving of induction, even essential.
But what about Ted Forrest? Let’s take a look at a few of his qualifications.
- 1. Generally regarded as the greatest razz player of all time.?
- 2. At the 1993 WSOP he won three tournaments in as many days, following Phil Hellmuth Jr. who did the same thing a few days before.?
- 3. Ted has six total WSOP bracelets and one World Poker Tour (WPT) title?
- 4. In 2006, he won the NBC Heads-up Tournament.
- 5. Ted famously “bum-rushed” the $10,000-$20,000 heads-up match (with no financial partners) between Andy Beal and Chip Reese, a ballsy move to say the least. Chip was the representative of “The Corporation” which was a group of about 15 other high limit players, including myself. This story is recounted in the book “The Professor, The Banker, and the Suicide King." Guess who Ted was? An interesting anecdote — following that game, Chip was running it down for us, and someone asked if we were going to bring Ted into the fold of the Corporation. Chip replied, “Of course, we need someone who can beat him.” Chip had lost small in the game and Ted was the big winner.?
- 6. In my humble opinion, Ted was the best player in the world for many years. He was Game Theory Optimal (GTO) in high-limit cash games long before that term was commonplace. This was at a time when the best of the best competed day in and day out in those games. As one of his closest friends then, I was privy to his line of thinking in many aspects of the game, most notably his ability to have people thinking he wasn’t as good as he was.
- 7. Huck Seed is widely known as THE prop betting guy. But, if he is number one, Ted is certainly number two. The stories are legendary and for another time.
- 8. Ted was widely known for staking and lending many, many players, which led to another plethora of amazing stories, including getting access to the famous Larry Flynt seven-card stud game. This is another example of Ted “giving action” that offered him an eventual huge financial upside.
Well, I’m quite sure I’m forgetting a few things, but I think that list is a pretty solid resume of one of the greatest minds the game of poker has ever seen. Let’s not make the mistake of hoping Ted happens to win something at the age of 60+ before recognizing his legacy.
Early in this article, I referenced it as being completely meaningless to me whether or not I was in the Hall, and it was until I was inducted. These types of accolades are often for the friends and family of the recipient as well as the recipient himself. I don’t know Ted’s feelings about being in the Hall of Fame, as we’ve had a bit of a falling out over the years.
When I told my friends I was thinking of writing this article, they thought it was weird, given our current personal status. I had one word for them and no it wasn’t plastics, it was merit.
Forrest on Negreanu's Short List
Daniel Negreanu, a voter and PHOF member, said he'd like to see the Hall of Fame induct two players per year and one industry person every three years. He also predicted the voting this summer will come down to Forrest, Schulman, Seiver, and the late "Miami" John Cernuto. Jeremy Ausmus is also in contention, along with Mike Matusow, Josh Arieh, Isai Scheinberg, and Matt Savage.
Forrest, as Hennigan mentioned, won three bracelets — his first three — in 1993, the same summer Hellmuth also hit the trifecta. The 60-year-old poker legend has $6.4 million in live tournament cashes, according to The Hendon Mob. He's won WSOP bracelets in four different poker variants, and he crushed it in the highest-stakes cash games for multiple decades.
The resume is undoubtedly worthy of the Poker Hall of Fame, as it is for a number of other players and industry people. We'll all find out which direction the living HOF members go in a few months.
Ted Forrest's World Series of Poker Wins
