Phil Ivey 2019 WSOP winnings go to the Borgata

Phil Ivey’s legal saga with the Borgata is finally starting to hit him in the wallet.

Reports surfaced earlier this week that the Borgata has successfully garnished Ivey’s winnings from the 2019 World Series of Poker to begin paying back the $10 million they are owed.

The legal saga between Ivey and the Borgata stretches back to 2014 when the Borgata Casino in Atlantic City sued the poker legend for edge-sorting while playing baccarat. Edge-sorting in this instance refers to Ivey taking advantage of a defect in the playing cards to his advantage at the baccarat tables.

After length legal proceedings Borgata won their lawsuit and the courts ordered Ivey to pay back the more than $10 million he won. Earlier this year a federal judge gave the Borgata the ok to go after Ivey’s assets to help recoup their money.

That began at this year’s WSOP. In the $50,000 Poker Players Championship Ivey had a strong showing and finished in eighth place which earned him $124,410. None of that money ever made it into Ivey’s bankroll.

Lawyers acting on behalf of the Borgata served notice to the WSOP that they were legally allowed to seize Ivey’s assets in the state of Nevada. Ivey’s winnings from the Poker Players Championship was sent to the U.S. Marshals service. From there is made its way into the Borgata’s bank account.

The six-figure payday may be a lot to the average Joe, but it’s mere chump change against Ivey’s $10 million debt to the Borgata. What this could mean for Ivey’s poker playing future in Nevada remains to be seen.

He’s played the majority of his poker in recent years abroad in Asia and Europe. If all of his poker winnings in Nevada end up filling the Borgata’s pockets instead of his own we could have seen that last of Ivey at a Las Vegas poker table for quite some time.