If Phil Ivey thought that his nightmare would end with the closing of the Crockford’s Casino case, he could not have been further from the truth.
The joint venture between MGM Resorts International and the Boyd Gaming Corporation – Marina District Development Company, which manages Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa, has recently announced it would introduce the UK High Court’s opinion into the New Jersey court, asking for its judgement on the case against Phil Ivey.
Back in 2012, Ivey won close to $10 million by playing on Baccarat tables in the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa. Now, the tides may turn and he might be forced to return a big amount of these winnings back to the casino.
Two Major Cases Against Ivey, One After the Other
Combined with the Crackford casino case where he won close to $13 million in two nights back in 2010 and was forced to give back the $1 million he paid initially due to the court ruling out that he was using “edge sorting” tactics and was “cheating”, the Borgata case made Ivey go from one court hearing to another, trying to prove he is not a cheater but simply a professional gambler.
An often misconception of which Ivey has been suffering during the court hearings, is that the UK verdict is not considered a straight contradiction to the UK Gambling Act of 2005 but simply a ‘principle of common law.’ In that sense, the Borgata lawyers are trying to stop Ivey from bringing in court the notion that “edge sorting” is not in any way a legitimate cheating technique. This argument, according to Borgata, has already been discussed in the UK court and can not be used in their case.
Daniel Negreanu Supports Phil Ivey
In an interview for PokerListings, Daniel Negreanu has expressed his support for his colleague Ivey. Daniel Negreanu is considered by many to be the second best poker pro in the world. The comments he made towards the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa were quite negative and direct.
During the Australian World Series of Poker, he explained that the Genting Casino company was looking to make quick money which in the long run would make a considerable amount of VIP gamblers to stay away from its establishments. This will be a major PR hit for the casino.
He further commented that “it’s ludicrous, I think it’s absurd, completely unfair and absolutely wrong.” According to Negreanu, gambling companies are made to trick people into thinking they have a good chance of earning money through betting and gambling. On the other hand, the job of professional players is to find flaws in this system and use it to increase their chance of winning. According to him, it is dishonorable to refuse to pay players as they have earned their money legally.
He finished his commentary by firmly stating that the fault for this conflict is the judge’s, who could not make a proper, logical decision.
