(September 16, 2009 9:08 AM) -
by GT Staff |
For the female poker players in a ladies-only tournament at the Borgata, it was bad enough that a dude named Abraham Korotki crashed their event through a legal loophole. It was worse when he won it.
Korotki won the tournament earlier this week, along with the $20,892 first place prize, after defeating Nicole Rowe in heads-up competition.
As they began heads-up play, with chip stacks nearly equal, Rowe offered to "chop" the pot, that is, settle for an even-Steven split of the first and second place awards.
According to sources at the tournament, Rowe said the additional cash would help her pay for her living expenses while she recovers from breast cancer surgery scheduled in a few weeks. Korotki refused and ended up winning the lion’s share of the prize pool.
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Although Rowe took home $11,889 for finishing second, the extra money would have been important to her as she recovers from surgery.
Supposedly, Korotki at some point said he would donate his winnings to charity, but no charity was cited.
The issue of men crashing ladies-only tournaments isn’t a new one.
Not long ago, a man filed a lawsuit against the Hollywood Park Casino because its poker room offered a ladies-only tournament, which was designed to bring new, female players into the game.
Hollywood Park’s director of poker operations Phyllis Caro told GamingToday that she was taken aback by the lawsuit, but understood that discrimination in regard to sex is not allowed in most gaming jurisdictions.
Nonetheless, she "hated the notion" of a man making a legal challenge to women-only poker events.
"These events are designed to allow women to play against women if they choose to, without having to play against men," Caro said. "It’s just a level playing field for mostly newcomers to the game."
According to Borgata, the casino was powerless to prevent the 65-year-old Korotki from playing because New Jersey gaming laws and a federal statute forbid discrimination during poker tournaments.
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