Obrestad and Foxen Lead Eight Nominees for Women in Poker Hall of Fame
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Voting is open for the Women in Poker Hall of Fame Class of 2024, and all eight nominees are worthy of a place. Since its founding in 2008, the Women in Poker Hall of Fame has inducted 25 exceptionally talented and dedicated women who have shone as poker players, had a lasting impact on the poker industry, or both.
Invited Media and Industry voting panel members each get 10 votes, which they can cast on one candidate or split their votes among several. Members of the public are invited to cast a vote, and actively encouraged to do so. After all, these amazing women have likely inspired them in many ways.
Voting remains open until midnight PST on October 30, 2024. The Class of 2024 announcement is made in November, with the Induction Celebration & Ceremony taking place on December 11, 2024.
Women in Poker Hall of Fame Class of 2024 Nominations
Kristen Foxen
Kristen Foxen needs no introduction. The four-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner has over $8.4 million in live tournament cashes. She won the $1,000 Ladies Championship in 2013, the $1,500 NLHE Bounty in 2016, a $2,500 NLHE 6-handed online event in 2020, and an $888 NLHE Crazy 8's online bracelet in 2023.
Foxen came agonizingly close to winning the 2024 WSOP Main Event, crashing out in 13th place for $600,000. That impressive prize has helped Foxen become one of only two women to feature in poker's top 200 money earners.
Before focusing her attention on live poker, Foxen achieved Supernova Elite status online at PokerStars in 2011, 2012, and 2013
Liv Boeree
Liv Boeree may have retired from playing poker professionally in 2018, but she still remains in the top 10 of the women's all time money list, with over $3.8 million in cashes. Boeree is the only female to have won a WSOP bracelet and a European Poker Tour (EPT) Main Event, achieving the latter at EPT Sanremo in 2010.
A three-time winner of the Global Poker Index European Female Player of the Year, Boeree now focuses on education, inspiring others with rational thinking techniques learned through playing poker and Effective Altruism. The latter is a key component of the research and advisory non-profit Raising for Effective Giving (REG), which she co-founded in 2014.
Jeanne David
Until she retired in 2021, Jeanne David was the head of responsible gaming for PokerStars, and was active in legislative work around the United States and Europe, promoting the legalization of online poker. David's efforts helped bring online poker to Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Nevada. David has also spoken in front of parliament in the Netherlands and to the UK Gambling Commission addressing responsible gaming and the prevention of gambling addiction.
As a poker player, few people can match David's passion for mixed games. Some 95% of David's $250,000 in live cashes stem from mixed game tournaments.
Jamie Kerstetter
Jamie Kerstetter is an American professional poker player and commentator who has twice won the Best Twitter Personality award at the Global Poker Awards. Kerstetter has over $950,000 in live tournament cashes, and has agonisingly finished as runner-up twice in WSOP bracelet events, most recently in the 2024 edition of the $1,000 Ladies event.
Kerstetter won an online WSOP Circuit Ring online in 2022 while charging her phone in a casino bathroom! Her battery was running low and needed charging, so she headed to the bathroom, plugged in her phone, and closed out the tournament!
When she's not playing, Kerstetter can often be found in the commentary booth alongside Norman Chad and Lon McEachern during the WSOP.
Kara Scott
Kara Scott is a Canadian British TV personality, former 888poker ambassador, journalist, and poker player, who has acted as the anchor for WSOP bracelets. Scott has hosted Poker Night Live, Sky Poker, the European Poker Tour, and High Stakes Poker among her many poker-related podcasts and columns. Her written work has been published in PokerNews, Poker Player Magazine, CardPlayer Magazine, and more.
Scott may not have been a high-volume grinder, but that has not prevented her from amassing live tournament winnings in excess of $660,000. She cashed in both the 2008 and 2009 WSOP Main Events, and was the runner-up in the 2009 edition of the €3,500 Irish Open Main Event, a result that netted Scott a career-best €312,600 ($413,612).
Rebecca McAdam Willetts
If you have worked in the poker industry at any point in the last 18 or so years, it is highly likely you will have crossed paths with Rebecca McAdam Willetts. McAdam Willetts has been at the forefront of many women's initiatives in poker, including women-only boot camps, creating the first female insights community, and continually looking for ways to elevate women in the poker industry.
In recent years, she has raised more than $1.5 million for charities, partly through iconic PokerStars charity events.
McAdam Willets recently founded QueenBHive, a public relations and marketing company that also works to support women-owned brands, particularly those in fields that are traditionally male-dominated. Amazingly, she took the plunge and started QueenBHive while pregnant with her daughter. No wonder she is a four-time Inspiration of the Year finalist at the Women in Gaming Awards.
Annette Obrestad
Poker players and fans of a certain age will remember the name Annette Obrestad, or at least her famous online alias "Annette_15." Obrestad, a Norwegian former poker pro who built her bankroll from playing freerolls. Obrestad famously won a 180-player online tournament without looking at her holecards; she later admitted to peaking at them once throughout the entire tournament.
In September 2007, a day before her 19th birthday, Obrestad won the inaugural WSOP Europe Main Event in London for £1 million, becoming the youngest-ever bracelet winner and setting a then-record for the largest single-event payout for a female player in poker.
Despite last playing poker at the 2018 WSOP, Obrestad is fourth in Norway's all-time money list and sixth in the Women's all-time money list with over $3.9 million in earnings.
These days, Obrestad is more focused on making waves in the live Scrabble world, but the Norwegian has undoubtedly inspired many women to start playing poker tournaments.
Jennifer Shahade
Jennifer Shahade divides her time between chess and poker, and she excels at both. In chess, Shahade has the FIDE title of Woman Grandmaster, is a two-time United States Women's champion, and has written and co-written several prominent books.
She became the MindSports Ambassador for PokerStars in 2014, the same year than she won a €1,000 Open Face Chinese Pineapple tournament for a career-best €100,000 ($122,827). At the 2016 WSOP, Shahade finished 204th in the Main Event for $42,285, her third-largest score.
Shahade was a board member of the World Chess Hall of Fame and became the woman's program director at the U.S. Chess Federation. However, she resigned from the latter in September 2023 after speaking out publicly about the hostility she faced in her role and allegations of assault against a Grand Master. Her statement on social media read:
"Based on what I’ve seen, I cannot currently lend my credibility to the organization in good conscience. This is especially true since I’ve become a de facto confidante for so many women and girls—making it essential for me to have faith in executive decision-making and communication." A true champion for women on and off the poker felt and the chess board.
Current Women in Poker Hall of Fame Inductees
Whoever is inducted into the Class of 2024 will be in great company. The 25 current Women in Poker Hall of Fame members are some of the most recognizable and inspirational figures in poker, not only women's poker. The current hall consists of:
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 2008 | Linda Johnson |
| 2008 | Barbara Enright |
| 2008 | Susie Isaacs |
| 2008 | Marsha Waggoner |
| 2009 | Jan Fisher |
| 2009 | Cindy Violette |
| 2009 | June Field |
| 2010 | Billie Brown |
| 2010 | Kathy Liebert |
| 2010 | Jennifer Harman |
| 2011 | Margie Heintz |
| 2011 | Phyliss (Caro) Yazbek |
| 2011 | Kristy Gazes Green |
| 2012 | Joanne "JJ" Liu |
| 2012 | Kathy Raymond |
| 2014 | Deborah Giardina |
| 2014 | Allyn Shulman |
| 2016 | Debbie Burkhead |
| 2016 | Victoria Coren Mitchell |
| 2018 | Maria Ho |
| 2018 | Lupe Soto |
| 2022 | Jennifer Tilly |
| 2022 | Vanessa Selbst |
| 2022 | Angelica Hael |
| 2022 | Terry King |
