Jamie Gold Gets $6M, Wants Rest

Jamie Gold Gets $6M, Wants Rest

World Series of Poker champion Jamie Gold has been awarded half the prize pool for beating out more than 8,000 players in poker’s premier event last month, but he continues to challenge a lawsuit filed against him for the remaining prize money.� Gold’s legal team won a two-week delay in a federal court hearing Tuesday while the two sides continue to negotiate and prepare for trial.� The lawyers have agreed that Gold should get his half for now but have frozen the other half.

British television producer Bruce Crispin Leyser took Gold to court, claiming the two entered a verbal agreement to share the $12 million in winnings, the single largest payout in the event’s history.

Leyser attorney David Chesnoff arrived at U.S. District Judge Roger Hunt’s courtroom Tuesday with witnesses who were prepared to testify about how common verbal deals are in high-stakes poker tournaments.

But when the judge offered to allow Gold’s lawyers two weeks to challenge the witnesses once they testified for Leyser, Chesnoff said he was not willing to show his hand.

“We’re not going to give him two weeks to prepare to do whatever they’re going to do with my witnesses,” Chesnoff said.