Poker pro Phil Ivey sues Borgata over cheating accusations, report says
Poker pro Phil Ivey is countersuing the Borgata, which accused him of cheating at baccarat. (Getty Images)
ATLANTIC CITY — Poker pro Phil Ivey is countersuing the Atlantic City casino that accused him of cheating.
Ivey filed suit last week against the Borgata, which is in ongoing litigation with the former New Jersey resident about his use of edge-sorting while playing baccarat, according to a report on Pokerfuse.com.
In the filing, he asked for the Borgata's $9.6 million case against him to be tossed and for compensatory damages, the report said. In edge-sorting, players observe defects on backs of cards and use their knowledge of the cards' markings to adjust betting strategies.
Ivey allegedly had associate Cheng Yin Sun ask the dealer to rotate high value cards 90 degrees, which moved the flaw on the card back to the opposite corner and made it identifiable. Ivey also insisted that a shuffling machine be used (which keeps the cards from being spun and altered) essentially setting up a deck where he was able to identify the value of the next card off the deck to a certain degree.
Ivey says card manufacturer Gemaco was responsible for producing cards within contractual and industry standards. He also says the Borgata knew the card manufacturing process didn't produce perfectly symmetrical card backs and later destroyed the deck of cards so they couldn't be used as evidence.
In March, a judge denied Ivey's request to toss the Borgata'a lawsuit against him.
Ivery, who grew up in Roselle before graduating from Old Bridge High School, amassed his the winnings in four separate marathon sessions at the Atlantic City casino in 2012. On one lucrative day in July 2012, he won $4.8 million in 17 hours by betting an average of $89,000 a hand, according to Court House News Service.
Ivey asserts his success at the Borgata was based on skill and observation.
The Borgata learned of Ivey's technique after officials there read a report about a London casino withholding $12.4 million he won there playing a game similar to baccarat in 2012. Ivey lost a lawsuit asking the casino to release the money, Pokernews.com reported.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JGoldmanNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.