Start drug testing poker players... There is a good idea! I don't think I have ever meet a professional poker player that wouldn't test positive for at the very least pot. Smoking pot was a big reason I started playing poker. Poker gave me something to enjoy doing while getting high, I played better & focused more (the whole tunnel vision thing kicks in)!

If drug testing were required to play poker there would be two players left

oh no vote... right... I wonder how it would've went.

I wonder if Mike Tyson had won the satellite, if they would have gone up to him and said you either get $1500 or nothing. I suspect that if Mike Tyson somehow qualified for the event, they would put that convicted rapist's name in banners and advertising everywhere promoting his appearance.

The Duke/Lederer family are upstanding citizens and I totally understand that they do not want to be associated with convicted criminals.

I hope the best for EPL, the players need to feel that their money is safe and that is what the DukeLederers are all about.

Exept for Annie stealing Pedophiles monies and Howard everyone elses.

are you joking? The players money is in good hands even if the entire tournement is played by rapist murderers etc. what kind of argument is this?

How far we go? that we need to hand over a paper of good citizenship and no criminal offences or other stuff on it otherwise you are not allowed to play in the EPL see how ridicilus this sound???? welll thats what happen right now.

SOMEBODY off us (a pokerplayer) is robbed of 23.500K thats the reality whatever the guy did in the past is not an issue here.....

Another thing that needs to be pointed out was this guy paid his debt for crimes committed 20yrs ago and from what I understand it was a case of him being basically around drinking age and the 'underage' person wasnt exactly a kid either (supposedly teenager) and hell teens lie period. I had a couple cases where chicks lied to me about their age and I guess in the end I was lucky.. I agree if they are gonna play this little criminal record game then they are gonna be in for some serious hurting. So far the Epic Poker League is heading to be an Epic Fallure. 1st they claimed that previous actions prior to joining the league wouldnt be an issue (ok so hows that working out you just DQ'd a guy for crimes 20yrs ago) plus lets not forget the Chino Rheem fiasco now EPL is gonna stick their noses in with personal debts that EPL doesnt like. Hello this is poker. Players end up owing others for makeup and crap.. and do you really think them thretening him to kick him out if he doesnt pay mean alot??? You just guaranteed itll be that much harder to make him pay up if you dont let him pay.. (DOH little cutting off the nose to spite the face mentality EPL). And as others have pointed out with Annie Duke as the covergirl for EPL considering her affiliations with a known scamming poker site, she can claim all she wants AP was seperate but we all know Cereus owned BOTH UB and AP not to mention the big rumors that her idiot brother and nearly wanted man of a Brother Howard Lederer put money into this mess of a league which likely explains some of the missing money in FTPs astronomical Black Hole that is their finances. All I can say is 2 tourneys and 2 massive negative cases of publicity for the league.. Hows that positive image coming there Annie?? The whole NBAlike wanna be of EPL is laughable. Its bloody poker and truthfully I dare say that alot of the pros could give a rats ass about being 'eligible' or not.. There are plenty of tourneys and circuits out there now that are OPEN to everybody. With EPL you actually are going to turn people away becuase whats the main draw in MTTs for folks.. Dead Money aka FISH.. you are all making it a tank full of sharks with occasional whales who thinkt hey are sharks (Jamie Gold is a good example) When theres no fish to feed the sharks they eat other ya know that right??? Pros dont see this as some 'magic way to prove they are the best' as much as your wet dream might think it is its all about the money and pros will take a juicy tourney with dead money anyday over what amounts to a NLHE tourney full of people whove played each other tons know each others moves .. NEWSFLASH POker players are generally lazy and if they have to basically use their brains 24/7 for a cash that isnt even close to what WPT/EPT pay out in their 'main event' tour stops its doomed to fail end of story.

Does anybody know the casino's policy on patrons..?
It sound like it played out like this.
He showed up to register. They said you are allowed to be in the casino. You can either take this refund for the money you put in, (by withdrawing) or be blinded off.. kinda like the guy that got blinded out of the WSOP event for getting kicked out of the hotel the night before..
1500 or nothing..
So then at that point he decides to voluntarily withdraw..
At this point the EPL can hide behind the casino's decision and say they were the ones put in an awkward spot..

From what you understand? Source?

The seat had no value for Mr. Divita because he would never be allowed to play in the Epic Poker League with his prior convictions. Also, seats are not refundable or transferable.

There is also no lost potential income because he cannot play in the EPL due to his convictions for child molestation.

The only way his seat is worth $20k is if he is allowed to continue in the tournament and play in the EPL. I'm pretty sure the EPL doesn't want him and has a legal right as a private business not to allow him to play.

Can't play, can't transfer, can't get a refund - therefore no value and no reason to give him anything.

If a vote did in fact take place, it's very surprising a lot of these committee members voted for the outcome that occurred. If it is truly the case people should contact them directly and let them know how wrong it is.

Something seems funny. Some of the guys on this list seem like they'd be so rational (i.e. Schulman). I'm amazed they let this kind of thing occur without voicing serious concern.

Completely inappropriate behaviour from EPL. They can't be making judgement calls on things like this. Seems absurd that players in the in crowd 'MM' etc get around this whilst others like this guy essentially get robbed cos he's an unknown. Also didn't JRB have an under-age controvesay a few years ago?

says who? Them after not voting on it and allowing him to play the satellite? They specifically said prior bad acts will not be grounds for anything, then they do this.

I hope Amarillo Slim enters the next EPL event...

antonio did also I believe

I just don't want to believe that everyone in that group would be OK with stealing 20k from another player. But maybe Timex could tell us what he thinks about that?

This ffs

Zeejustin your logic is ridiculous, the Epic Poker league stole from this guy and whether he's a bad person or not (clearly he is) doesn't matter. There are a lot of bad people in poker. Hell, Annie Duke herself promoted a company that stole millions from its players.

lol EPL - what a bunch of arrogant, hypocritical oxygen-wasters.

Annie Duke is a joke. Do as I say - not as I, or my fat greedy brother Howard do.

UB and FTP have done way more to damage poker's credibility than any pedo entering an event could do.

Is there a more hated brother/sister combo in the world right now? I rarely wish ill on anyone, but these two are scum who are doing a good job destroying the game that has made them both very rich. I hope I get to see some sort of retribution against them and soon.

+1 to that. I'll be amazed if that committee actually voted not to give him the 20k though, the way the guy in the interview skated around it if nothing else.

It may be a small side-issue but one thing that annoys me about this is that Duke and whatsisname the "ethical lawyer" are exactly the kind of disingenuous, politiciany, weaselly, arse-covering hypocrites that I left the corporate world to get away from.

What a bunch of rotten thieves EPL are. The guy won his seat fair and square, it had a value of at least 20k, and they give him 1500? WTH. They ought to be sued and shut down. Scummy thieves.

doublejoker outraged that sex offender isn't being treated "super nice" lol so weird.

and im assuming everyone crying about what epl did, has read the entire terms of agreement, the entire epl rulebook about players etc?

otherwise i mean its pretty dumb to whine. but im sure thats not the case, surely this cant be hundreds of posts discussing something that is a moot point? lol forumaments!

ps im pretty disgusted by how high tolerance this forum has toward sex offenders, quite sickening. this is the second thread ppl come on white horses to the rescue for scum. this case much less worse than the previous one i give u that.. ds

Over the course of the thread, I have changed my opinion on this. I no longer think he should be paid back, and his entrance fee being returned is the right course of action. It is fairly clear from EPL rules that a convicted paedophile is not welcome to play, and it is perfectly within the rights of EPL to make this rule. As long as entrants were made aware of the conditions of entry, then Devita can have no complaints. Also, EPL has not benefited from this course of action, since the seat was awarded to another player.

EPL still sucks though, and I would never play in a tournament with such a rule. There is a huge incentive for the bubble boy to start digging up dirt on every player who finishes above him.

sigh.. obv we should just kill anyone who commits a crime right?

Show us where in the rules, (which he never signed) that it says what will and won't be allowed, when they specifically said past transgressions are moot. This whole thing imo shouldn't even matter what his past crime was, everyone spazzes out at the word sex offender. What if in a future tourney someone plays and makes the final table and they find out he's got a DUI or in MM's case sold drugs.. it just sets a horrible standard for everything when nothing is defined.

Personally I think Annie should step down as commissioner and Phil H, and all the full tilt crew should be banned also for the companies they represented stealing everyones money, but that will never happen.. When rules are arbitrary and subject to judgement you never are going to know where you stand unless you have a squeaky clean record.

Though entering a casino and playing is not a right and can be refused since it's private property. Not saying I agree but he should be given the 20k.

Or more likely the fact he makes a ton more playing ring and doesn't see the need playing for a week and not making a dime unless he runs like God.

The guy who bubbled the qualifier and got to replace Devita is 2+2 er Xaston. He made top 13 in the end, so nice 'out' for him. He got a phone call from Annie Duke that evening. Obviously the withdrawal was the result of pressure exerted and not really voluntary.