Las Vegas, NV (December 12, 2022) – As part of the record-setting WPT® World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas, the World Poker Tour® is proud to announce that PokerStars Founder Isai Scheinberg and WPT Commentator Vince Van Patten will become the latest WPT Honors Award recipients.
“It is my privilege to share that this year’s WPT Honors Awards recipients will be Vince Van Patten and Isai Scheinberg,” said WPT CEO Adam Pliska. “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.”
Van Patten has been with the WPT for its entire 20-year existence. He joined the budding company in 2003, providing an instrumental role in delivering poker stories and establishing what tournament poker commentary would become. Ever since, Van Patten has been an indispensable representative of the WPT brand.
Outside of WPT functions, Van Patten advanced the game of poker in other ways. The New York native was introduced to poker by his father, notable actor Dick Van Patten, at the age of 14. In the 1990s, Van Patten created and curated a Hollywood home game, which ran for years.
“I’d like to thank Adam and the whole WPT family for this award,” said Van Patten. “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 WPT has become, than here at the first-ever WPT World Championship at the Wynn. It is an incredible site.”
As the co-founder of PokerStars, Scheinberg positioned his company as the leader in the online poker market for more than 10 years. PokerStars was a key player in the poker boom era and helped increase interest in poker worldwide allowing the game to grow not only in the United States, but other countries where poker was relatively new.
Many of the hundreds of thousands of poker players who were able to hone their craft playing on PokerStars still consider Scheinberg to be the standard bearer for how online players should be treated. Scheinberg sold PokerStars in 2014 and has spent the years since then working on philanthropic endeavors and spending time with his family.
“I am very honored. The World Poker Tour is a very important poker company which made major contributions to the game,” said Scheinberg. “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.”
The WPT Honors Award launched in early 2017 as the highest achievement WPT offers. The award is granted every year by Pliska, honoring members of the poker industry that have made exceptional contributions to the World Poker Tour and the poker community as a whole and who distinguish themselves by excellence and dedication beyond expectations.
Previous WPT Honors Award Honorees:
- 2017 – Bruno Fitoussi, Linda Johnson, Mike Sexton
- 2018 – Lyle Berman, Steve Lipscomb
- 2019 – Deb Giardina, Matt Savage
For more information regarding this and all World Poker Tour events, visit WPT.com.
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About the World Poker Tour®
World Poker Tour® (WPT®) is the premier name in internationally televised gaming and entertainment with brand presence in land-based tournaments, television, online, and mobile. Leading innovation in the sport of poker since 2002, WPT ignited the global poker boom with the creation of a unique television show based on a series of high-stakes poker tournaments. WPT has broadcast globally in more than 150 countries and territories, and is currently producing its 20th season, which airs on Bally Sports in the United States. Season XX of WPT is sponsored by ClubWPT.com. ClubWPT.com is a unique online membership site that offers inside access to the WPT, as well as a sweepstakes-based poker club available in 43 states and territories across the United States, Australia, Canada, France, and the United Kingdom. WPT also participates in strategic brand license, partnership, and sponsorship opportunities. For more information, go to WPT.com.
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