American poker wunderkind Phil Ivey is now facing a new type of heads-up battle, this one against a UK casino that has accused the proclaimed “Tiger Woods of poker” of cheating at (of all games) baccarat. The dispute involves a two day period in August of 2012 when 9-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Ivey notched up almost $12 million in winnings at the high stakes baccarat tables at Crockford’s Casino.
Crockford’s claims that Ivey, with the assistance of a female accomplice, inspected the backs of the playing cards used at the table for minor imperfections — information which they then allegedly used to track the deal and beat (or cheat) the odds.
The exact amount in dispute: £7.6 million, which equates to approximately $11.9 million USD. At the time of this writing, the casino has still refused to pay Ivey his winnings.
The baccarat variant Ivey was playing at the time is called punto banco, a game in which the player draws between two and three cards aiming to reach closer to the number nine than the dealer (similarly to how the player and dealer compete to reach closest to 21 in blackjack).
Before 10 security cameras Ivey and an unidentified woman played against the dealer in the Mayfair, London casino, starting with a bet of £50,000 (or $77K) per hand, raising it later at the casino’s approval to £150,000 (or $230K) per hand.
Right now all Ivey has is a receipt for his winnings that Crockford’s refuses to pay out. It is likely the final hand in this game will play out in court.