A common sentiment after Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame inductees are announced each year is, “It’s about time!” This is particularly true for Meritorious Service honorees and Greatest Player nominees who’ve been on the ballot for several years.

And I get it, to an extent. People see names on the ballot and think, “How are they not already in the Hall of Fame?”

But here’s the thing: There is no bonus for being elected on the first ballot. And a person who waits even a decade for election is no less a Hall of Famer than those elected the moment they are eligible or nominated.

But eventually, people who have the credentials and have had an impact on the sport will get into the Hall.

A great example is the recently announced Class of 2026 — American star Corey Deuel in the Greatest Player category and room owner/promoter Barry Behrman and longtime match commentator Billy Incardona for Meritorious Service. All have been considered in the past but finished behind other nominees. But I think virtually every voter knew that all three would have their time. Sometimes it just takes longer.

Corey Deuel has been one of the top American players for more than 25 years. He’s won the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship, the BCA Open 9-Ball Championship and has represented the U.S. in the Mosconi Cup 10 times, earning MVP honors in 2006. His game-changing approach to the break shot, his creativity at the table and his ability to excel in many disciplines are well documented. Deuel has been on the Hall of Fame ballot for eight years (players are eligible after turning 40). And he has earned a fair share of votes in each year of his eligibility. But it’s hard to argue that he’s been unduly overlooked when you realize who was voted in during that eight-year stretch — Alex Pagulayan, Kelly Fisher, Thorsten Hohmann, Dennis Orcollo, Niels Feijen, Shane Van Boening and Carlo Biado. There’s certainly no shame in being outvoted by any of those stars. And remember, aside from Van Boening, none of those other inductees were voted in on their first ballot.

The same is true in the cases of Behrman and Incardona. No one argues the impact made in pool by either of this year’s honorees. Meritorious Service (which, it should also be noted, is only considered every other year) is a hard category to pigeonhole because it is almost entirely subjective. It’s easier to quantify a player’s resume. It’s almost entirely a matter of titles. A player usually knows when his career achievements are nearing Hall of Fame levels. The same is not true in Meritorious Service. So many people have invested years and years of oftentimes selfless service to this sport and industry. How do you measure one against another? And, unlike players, no non-player enters billiards wondering if they’ll get into the Hall of Fame.

That’s certainly the case with Behrman and Incardona. Behrman, who died in 2016, started the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship in 1976, staging it at his Virginia poolroom, Q Master. And for 40 years he continued the event. By himself. No corporate marketing fund behind him. Just a guy who loved pool, loved the top players and loved to throw a party. Every year, the U.S. Open was a celebration of the best of pool — the best players, playing the toughest tournament for the best prize money, in front of an appreciative, knowledgeable crowd of pool fans. Was it always smooth sailing? Nope. Behrman had a penchant for overpromising, but never from selfish motives. He always wanted more for the players and fans. Always wanted the tournament to be bigger and better. And when something went sideways — a pesky hurricane or the horror of 9-11 — Berhman got caught short. But he always made good and eventually recognized his faults, turning over production of the tournament to the respected Pat Fleming.

As for Incardona, the former 9-ball money player helped change the game when he encouraged Fleming to add commentary to his Accu-Stats match videos in the mid-1980s. Incardona became the voice of Accu-Stats, offering his knowledge, wit, humor and candor for more than 30 years. Due in large part to Incardona’s urging, the feature match videos became instruction manuals for a generation of players from all over the world.

Deuel is 48 and Incardona is 82. To me, all three of this year’s honorees were cinches to earn induction. Sometimes it just takes a while. But it’s always worth the wait.