Poker player loses €9.7m casino challenge

Top poker player Phil Ivey has lost his High Court case against the owners of London’s Crockfords Club over his £7.7m (€9.7m) winnings.

The 38-year-old American sued over a version of baccarat known as Punto Banco which he played at the Mayfair casino over two days in August 2012. After four sessions, he was told the money would be wired to him and he left for the US, but it never arrived, although his stake money of £1m was returned.

Genting Casinos UK, which owns more than 40 casinos in the UK, including Crockfords, said the technique of “edge-sorting” which Ivey used — which aims to provide the customer with an element of “first card advantage” — was not a legitimate strategy and that the casino had no liability to him.