[h=1]'I'm getting a second shot': Poker ace accused of cheating by exclusive Mayfair gaming club may get back his £8million winnings in court appeal[/h]
- Phil Ivey was refused his winnings after a London casino said he cheated
- Mayfair club Crockfords claimed he broke the rules of game punto banco
- Mr Ivey, the world's top poker player, said he used a legitimate technique
- His appeal has 'a real prospect of success' according to a judge's ruling
By
Ian Gallagher for The Mail on Sunday
Published: 20:55 EST, 28 November 2015 | Updated: 12:00 EST, 29 November 2015
106 shares
130
View comments
The poker player denied £7.8 million in winnings after a London casino accused him of cheating has spoken for the first time about the case as a landmark legal decision gave him fresh hope of recovering the money.
The owners of Mayfair gaming club Crockfords claimed Phil Ivey, 39, had broken the rules when playing the card game punto banco, a form of baccarat, in August 2012.
Mr Ivey, the world’s leading poker player, insisted he used a legitimate technique known as edge sorting – but a High Court action he brought against the casino for non-payment of winnings failed last year.
+2
Second shot: The world's best poker player Phil Ivey (pictured) is being given a chance to get back £7.8million worth of winnings from Mayfair gaming club Crockfords, which accused him of cheating
However, Mr Ivey has now been granted permission to appeal after a judge ruled that his case raises an important question of law and has ‘a real prospect of success’.
‘This is really great news. I am getting a second shot and I’m hoping we will win this time around,’ Mr Ivey told The Mail on Sunday yesterday.
[h=2]RELATED ARTICLES[/h]
[h=2]Share this article[/h] Share
‘It is not in my nature to cheat, which is why I was so bitterly disappointed by the judge’s decision a year ago, even though he said I was a truthful witness.’
Mr Ivey exploited tiny flaws in the design of the cards – asymmetrical pattern differences on the back edges created in the manufacturing process.
This is really great news. I am getting a second shot and I’m hoping we will win this time around.
Poker player Phil Ivey
‘When you are a professional gambler you are always looking for ways to gain an advantage over the casino,’ he said. ‘It’s their job to prevent me from having any advantage. Sometimes I come out on top, sometimes they do.’
When he finished playing after two nights he was told his winnings would be wired to him. ‘It was all pretty amicable but after a few days the money hadn’t turned up,’ said Mr Ivey who has never spoken out about the case.
In court last year, Genting Casinos UK, which owns Crockfords, argued that edge sorting was not a legitimate strategy and constituted cheating.
They said their croupier was tricked into helping the gambler after he pretended to be superstitious. He convinced staff to let him play repeatedly with a single pack of ‘lucky’ cards that had a pattern suited to edge sorting.
+2
Back to court: Mr Ivey insists that the technique he was using - known as edge sorting - is a legitimate technique. Mr Ivey (pictured outside the High Court in London in 2014) has been granted permission to appeal after a judge ruled that his case has ‘a real prospect of success’
The latest chapter in the long-running dispute is due to be played out at the Appeal Court on December 10. Mr Ivey’s lawyers will argue that cheating involves dishonesty, yet the judge found that he was not dishonest.
Mr Ivey, who lives in Las Vegas and has won the Poker World Series ten times, said yesterday: ‘When you’re accused of cheating it’s a very big deal in gambling. I’m not allowed in certain casinos because of what happened.
'But my colleagues have been tremendously supportive – they know what is cheating and what is not.’
Now that's a result: Lucky father turned 25p stake into a... 
How jackpot winners REALLY spend their cash: Overnight... 
