For Those Who Support Phil Ivey Against Casino Cheating Allegations

As most of you know by now, I believe that Phil Ivey is guilty of casino cheating in both his edge-sorting cases at the Borgata casino in Atlantic City and Crockfords casino in London. However, many casino-cheating experts favor Ivey and outright disagree with me. Here is one very good article in support of Phil Ivey written by Aaron Todd.

"Last week we learned that the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa is suing Phil Ivey for $9.6 million, the amount he won from the casino playing baccarat in 2012. Unfortunately, many journalists (or at the very least, headline writers) have characterized Ivey's play as cheating.

I'm not a lawyer, so I won't make a prediction about what will actually happen in this case. But I know what should happen: Ivey should keep the money, and the Borgata should sue only Gemaco (the manufacturer of the playing cards that made Ivey's advantage play possible), or take its medicine and learn a $9.6 million lesson.

Here are the top-10 reasons I believe it's incorrect to say Ivey "cheated" at the Borgata.

10. Casinos are responsible for keeping information from the players
If a blackjack dealer unintentionally reveals that the first card off the shoe for the next hand is an ace and bets are still open, is it cheating for the player at first base to increase his bet? The player is using information that the casino didn't protect and is betting accordingly. That's not cheating.

Similarly, if a player learns that a roulette wheel is biased and uses that information to profit, is the player cheating? In this case, the casino didn't ensure that the equipment was perfect.

In Ivey's case, the Borgata was using imperfect equipment, and he was able to get the casino to provide him with enough information to get an edge on the game. That's not cheating, in my mind. That's a case of ineffectual game management on the part of the casino.

9. The casino used faulty cards
Should Ivey be blamed because the casino's quality control failed to recognize that the cards they used were faulty? If the Borgata wants to sue Gemaco, I'm all for it.

The casino does everything it can to squeeze every bit of a house edge from its players, and then sues players for doing the same to the casino? Sounds a bit hypocritical to me.

8. Ivey didn't mark the cards
If Ivey had physically marked the cards, that would be cheating. But instead, his companion, Cheng Yin Sun, merely asked the dealer to turn the cards in one direction or another, which made the cards identifiable. Since the cards themselves were unaltered, I don't believe this is cheating.

7. The dealer didn't have to comply with the request
This is the key distinction. The dealer didn't have to comply with Sun's request; or perhaps more importantly, the floor should have told the dealer not to comply.

6. An automatic card shuffler is not a "cheating device"
The most ridiculous claim in the Borgata lawsuit is that Ivey and Sun used the automatic card shuffler as a "cheating device." According to New Jersey gaming law, a cheating device is "a computerized, electronic, electrical or mechanical device which is designed, constructed, or programmed specifically for use in obtaining an advantage at playing any game in a licensed casino or simulcasting facility."

A card shuffler is used to shuffle cards. It is not designed for use in obtaining an advantage. Just because the dealer and/or the floor didn't give the cards a wash before putting them into the machine doesn't make it a cheating device.

5. "Misrepresenting motive" isn't cheating
Ivey's reasoning for all the terms he laid out was that he was superstitious. I'm superstitious, too, in that I believe that when I play games with a house edge, I'm likely to lose and when I play games where I have an edge, I'm more likely to win. Saying he was superstitious to gain an edge in a casino game doesn't make what he was doing illegal. He wasn't in front of a grand jury; lying to casino executives may break one of the Ten Commandments, but it's not against the law unless you're under oath.

4. Fool me once, shame on you; fool me four times, shame on me
The part of this story that I find most incredible is that not only did the Borgata allow Ivey to set his own terms once, but after he took the casino for $2.4 million the first time around, they let him return under the same terms three more times. They even let him increase his maximum bet from $50,000 per hand to $100,000 per hand. The Borgata could learn a thing or two from George W. Bush.

3. He was still gambling
The Borgata's lawsuit against Ivey claims that "Ivey and Sun succeeded in manipulating the Baccarat game to deprive the game of its essential element of chance." But according to that same lawsuit, Ivey succeeded only in flipping the house odds from 1.06 percent in the house's favor to 6.765 percent in his favor.

Obviously, playing a game with an expected return of 106.765 percent is a great deal for the player. But it's not a guarantee that he will win. I can find plenty of bets in a casino that have a much higher edge than 6.765 in favor of the house. If those games are considered games of chance, one with the same odds in favor of the player should also be considered a game of chance.

Yes, rigging a slot machine to ensure a jackpot payout on the next spin isn't gambling. But betting $100,000 when you only have a 6.765 percent edge is still gambling in my book.

2. If Ivey had lost money, would the casino still be suing?
Given the length of the sessions and the number of hands Ivey was playing each time, it's highly unlikely, but still possible, that Ivey could have ended up losing money, even with a theoretical 6.765 percent edge. If he had lost money, would the Borgata be suing over the difference that they believed they should have won? Who is to say that Ivey wouldn't have won a little bit anyway? What are the actual damages? It's nearly impossible to compute.

1. The Borgata agreed to Ivey's terms
This is the only argument that matters, in my mind. The Borgata agreed to Ivey's terms. The casino is always in charge; they run the game. If it decides to run the game in such a way that a sharp player is able to take advantage, that's its own fault.

Lick your wounds, take your medicine and don't do it again, Borgata. Even if you manage to win due to some legal technicality, this is going to kill your reputation.

As gambling law expert I. Nelson Rose said in a separate casino/player dispute in New Jersey, "It's a contract; it's a binding contract and they have to pay off. And if they don't pay off, let's say for some technicality, then they're going to get a reputation that they don't pay off. You not only have to beat them in a game of chance, you also have to beat them in court. And that's not a smart way to market your casino." 

Should Phil Ivey be Banned from Professional Poker for Being a Casino-Cheat?

This is the kind of issue that will always gather momentum from each side. There are two typical points of view on this. The first is that he has never been accused of cheating in any poker scenario, therefore he should not be banned from playing any form of poker. The second is that he is an alleged casino-cheat, at least by those who considered playing-card edge-sorting to be cheating.

What do I think about it? I think he should be banned from professional poker. I know that may sound strange coming from one of the most prolific all-time casino cheats. But, then again, I never entered any other casino money-making world. My reasoning is that cheating casinos is too close to cheating at poker. I mean, after all, both poker and casino games like baccarat take place in casinos.An analogy I can make is a professional football player getting caught taking steroids while playing a second professional sport, most likely baseball. Just on reputation alone, Ivey, whose is now sullied by multiple casino cheating accusations and lawsuits, should get a lifetime ban from playing in any professional poker tournament.

Hey Phil, if you're not doing anything, how 'bout teaming up with me for a little casino-cheating romp!!! LOL

So is Top-Notch Casino Cheating More Profitable than Top-Notch Poker Playing?

Of course there is only one person in this world better equipped to answer this than me, and of course, that's Phil Ivey, considered the best poker player in the world...and now maybe the best casino cheat as well. Unfortunately though, Ivey is not sitting next to me right now, and if he were, I doubt that he'd be inclined to answer. So I will have a go at it myself, since I do know something about each of those avenues that lead to riches.

Of course the answer is that high-level casino cheating is more profitable than high-level poker-playing, and of course that applies to the professional ranks of both, with the exception of the creme de la creme poker players who rake in millions from endorsements and online poker-room ownerships.

Let's take Ivey as our prime example. First off, it is clear that in his poker-tournament career, he has not earned the $20 million he is said to have earned by cheating casinos via the defective card-cheating process known as edge-sorting. We have heard of two $10 million-or-more wins for Ivey by way of cheating, and I'd bet there are more that have been hushed up. Of course Ivey has probably earned tens of millions thru his endorsements and associations with online poker-rooms, but his entry into this type of "soft" casino cheating was probably propelled by thrills and the knowledge that he'd never be risking criminal prosecution. By soft cheating I mean the type of cheating that does not alter the outcome of the deal of cards or use any type of gadget, electronic or not, to gain an advantage over the casino.

So now to leave Ivey and look at other huge casino-cheating scams, we have seen several raking in huge amounts of money, each one more than any professional poker player has ever made playing tournament poker. There was the $40 million arranged-cards scam that beat Australia's Crown casino, and the huge baccarat scams that have beaten the hell out of casinos all over the world. All of these are much more lucrative than playing poker at any level, and the motherlode of money comes over the course of days if not hours.

However, there is one tiny thing that must be considered by anyone considering giving up poker-playing for casino cheating: THE RISK!

I highly doubt that Ivey will ever be prosecuted for his edge-sorting scams but one day we might see some law-changes by which he might be.

High-Tech Loaded Dice in Detroit Casinos?

A few months ago I reported that there was a possibility that undetectable loaded dice were floating over casinos in Detroit, Michigan. I clearly stated that I had no evidence of it, only that I'd received some reports on the subject from various sources. Well, after waiting anxiously for more on this and hoping to have some exciting news, it hasn't come. This doesn't mean that it never happened but could mean that for some reason the use of high-grade loaded dice may have stopped for some reason, either temporarily or indefinitely. I simply have had no reports on them since, and the sources who'd originally supplied the information tell me they have heard nothing more about it. So in spite of all this, I am not going to say it was all bullshit. I'm just going to say that for now it is all quiet on the green-felt front.

Atlantic City Borgata Using New High-Tech Poker-Tournament Chips After Counterfeit-Chip Scam Rocks Prior Tournament

A cheating scandal at a casino poker tournament has led to new security measures, including chips that are more intricate, have more colors and include an authentication element that can be checked under ultraviolet light.

The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa told The Associated Press it was using new chips for its Spring Open poker tournament that began Tuesday.

"This was very expensive, but very necessary," said Joe Lupo, the casino's senior vice president. "In order to have the biggest tournaments in Atlantic City and as the market leader, we need to ensure the integrity of the games."

In January, the casino was forced to suspend an event at its Winter Open after suspicions that someone introduced counterfeit chips. A North Carolina man who won $6,814 during the tournament, Christian Lusardi, was arrested on charges including theft and rigging a public contest. Lusardi is still in custody awaiting trial. Calls to a number registered to him in Fayetteville were met with a constant busy signal Tuesday, and it could not be determined if he has hired an attorney.

Authorities said Lusardi, after suspecting the fake chips had been noticed, flushed them down the toilet in his hotel room at Harrah's Resort Atlantic City, where he had been staying. But the chips clogged the pipes, and guests on the floor below complained that water was dripping into their rooms. Maintenance was called, and they found the chips, with a tournament value of 2.7 million, although they had no actual cash value.

A joint investigation by the New Jersey State Police and the state Division of Gaming Enforcement continues, and $1.5 million in prize money is still on hold pending its outcome. About $800,000 in prize money was already paid out before the fake chips were discovered.

The event under scrutiny was the tournament's Big Stack, No Limit Hold `Em event. There were 27 people remaining in the contest when play was suspended.

The new, more sophisticated chips combine several design and technology elements in use in the industry. They were approved by New Jersey gambling regulators for use in tournaments. Part of the new security measures will include spot checks of chips in play during games.

"We will be checking chips randomly throughout the day using a new process involving the UV lights," Lupo said. He described the checks as "part of the new normal."

The Borgata also will add more staff and will do more chip counts each day during its tournaments.

My take: Surprised to see the ol' Phony Mahonies in play, but I got a good laugh at people's hotel rooms getting flooded out by the poker cheat's failed attempt to get rid of them by flushing the toilet!! LOL

Phil Ivey Cheating Casinos...Where will it end?

Bundles of Cheat Cash?

Well, we've all heard much about Phil Ivey using the edge-sorting scam technique to scam Crockford's casino in London out of some $13 million. Now it has come out that the Borgata casino in Atlantic City is suing the poker star Ivey to recover the $10,000 they say he edge-sorted them out of using the same technique to scam that casino's baccarat tables.

Edge-sorting, which is taking advantage of casino playing cards that have already arrived to the gaming tables in a defective condition, allowing players to determine their values when they are face-down, is not in itself cheating. That's because Ivey did not physically alter the cards himself. But the casino alleges, just like Crockfords in London did, that he altered the dealers techniques in the dealing of the game, making them abandon normal procedure and dealing the way Ivey wanted them to so that he could read the backs of the defective cards. THAT is cheating, but, realizing that it would be very difficult if not impossible to gain a conviction, the Borgata is only going to try to recover the money via a lawsuit, accusing Ivey of cheating to win the ten mil.

Do I think they have a chance of recovering the money from Ivey via this lawsuit? Absolutely, although I doubt they would get a judgement for all the money lost. We might even see a settlement in this case between the Borgata and Ivey, which would be something of a first, at least to my knowledge. I mean a casino accusing someone of cheating their tables and then settling out of court...would be a first, right?

Big-Time Video Keno Machine Scam!

Source: Joliet Patch

A Las Vegas man wanted for allegedly cheating the Joliet Harrah's out of as much as $500,000 was captured during a traffic stop.

Paul Jovenich, 42, was taken into custody by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Friday. He is the third of an alleged five-member team of professional casino cheats.

Jovenich was arrested without incident , said Las Vegas Police Officer Larry Hadfield.

Jovenich and four others allegedly teamed to fleece Harrah's in April 2012. The band of gambling cheats made their score by manipulating video keno machines, according to court filings.

Two of the crew, husband and wife Randle and Virginia Thorpe, were booked into the Will County jail last month. Both were released after posting $50,000 bond.

Rande Thorpe, 57, is the former superintendent La Porte, IN, schools. He and Virginia Thorpe, 58, also were charged with ripping off the Harrah's in Tunica, MS.

The two alleged casino cheats still at large—Randy Binning, 48, and Svetoslav Dorobanov, 38—both live in Las Vegas.

The alleged cheating scheme apparently unraveled when Binning was pulled over in Arizona and turned out to be carrying more than $400,000 he claimed he claimed to have won on keno machines that were malfunctioning at Harrah's casinos in Joliet, Illinois, and Tunica, Mississippi, according to a court filing.

Dorobanov, a Bulgarian chess master who also competed in the World Series of Poker, has accused Harrah's of trumping up the charges in retaliation for his triumphs in the casino. He called the charges against him "phony" and "preposterous." Dorobanov also said Harrah's is simply "very bitter for losing money to" him.

Hadfield said Jovenich will be held until police from Will County come to pick him up. Once he arrives in Illinois he will be held on a $250,000 bond.

My take: Well, we don`t have many details on this scam but it looks pretty high-tech and pretty big, so we`ll see what evidence the casino has on them.

Casino Cheating With the Stars! Why Not?

I have just sent a TV treatment to my agent for a new TV reality show based on competitive team casino-cheating. It is called "Casino Cheating With the Stars" and would be similar to "Dancing With the Stars."

Why not? with all the reality TV shows flooding the airwaves, everything from Tattoo freaks to duck hunters to storage herders, is there not room for casino-cheats duking it out?

"Casino-Cheating With the Stars" works like this: Groups of 4-man casino-cheat teams (each with 2 celebs and 2 real casino-cheats) start the qualifying rounds by showing how they can cheat the casino out of $25. Then in the next qualifying round they have to cheat the casino out of $100. The last qualifying hurdle is $500.

Then eliminations begin as the teams must do casino-cheat moves for $1,000 and $5,000. Then more eliminations until four teams make the casino-cheating "Final Four." Then the cheat-stakes remain at $5,000 until the final casino-cheat championship betweent the two remaining teams, when they both enter a HORSE-type finale doing $10,000 cheat moves. The only difference between my casino-cheating HORSE and basketball HORSE is that the team following the first successful $10,000 cheat move does not have to copy that move; they only have to duplicate the amount.

All the rounds must be completed by one singe casino-cheat move to make the amount of money at that level. Naturally real casinos have to be involved but their floor staffs will not be advised to the cheat competition. I know this might be hard to pull off, but it´s certainly worth the shot!

The Cheating Beat goes on in Singapore Casinos

Maze of Marina Bay Cheat Tables

It seems to me like the casinos in Singapore are becoming the ¨Foxwoods¨ of Asia. Every time I turn around I get another report of a casino-cheating incident in one of its casinos. The latest rash of casino cheats have been going down almost daily at the Marina Bay Sands. This time it was a group with a blackjack counting machine and another with a roulette computer. I  had thought the use of roulette computers to cheat casino coulette wheels had fallen by the wayside, but I guess even outdated casino cheating methods are still in fashion in ¨Foxwoods Far East.¨

As far as the US Foxwoods casino in Connecticut goes, it is still the favorite American casino to cheat, especially among the Asians with their baccarat scams.

Casino Table Game Protection...Training, Seminars, Classes

Casino bosses and table games directors are always asking themselves what is the best way to initiate game protection for their floor staffs, surveillance operators and security personnel. Many direct the vast majority of their casino´s game protection budgets to costly game protection seminars that boast well-known but mostly irrelevant speakers as far as real casino game protection is involved. And to boot, some casinos in their naivete send groups of their employees to the same seminars.

I have always said, and have always taught to my casino clients, that the bottom line for casino game protection training is simply about keeping the teaching and learning methods simple. In fact, much of it can be reduced to something very simple that you have all heard of...a checklist. In the same way that pilots of airliners have checklists before taking off, casino employees on the floor should have similar checklists that must be followed and updated during their nonstop operations. By following such checklists, given that they are the right ones, casinos would be able to nip the vast majority of casino and poker cheat scams at the bud, way before they even threaten the casino´s coffers.

Apart from this, casino trainers are busying themselves too much with high-tech cheating scams that in reality happen rarely and in only certain type-select casinos. Remember: more than 99% of all casino cheat scams are done the old-fashioned way: no cameras, computers or cheat gadgets of any kind.