There’s no question that Kelly Sun impressed Phil Ivey. The Asian beauty also made the American poker player richer. But not in poker. Phil Ivey won $20 million playing baccarat from non GamStop casinos. This was largely due to Kelly Sun and triggered the so-called edge sorting scandal. Baccarat has a reputation among professional gamblers as well as GamStop players for being fairly simple and requiring few special skills from the player. It is said that it takes about as much skill as tossing a coin. Phil Ivey proved that wasn’t true using a particular card recognition technique called edge sorting. It is now illegal in all land-based casinos. We have advice on how to hone your skills as a player at the best non GamStop casinos without starting a scandal!
Phil Ivey – the Tiger Woods of Poker
Phil Ivey’s name is well known in the gambling world. He is one of the most prominent poker cracks of the 21st century. In reference to Tiger Woods’ golf successes, he is called the Tiger Woods of poker. The New Jersey pro player has earned a place in the Poker Hall of Fame, ten coveted World Series of Poker bracelet trophies, and a World Poker Tour Final. Phil Ivey is rich, pretty close to being very rich. He was in non GamStop casinos and also a welcome guest in local casinos – everyone knew that he brought a lot of money and played with high stakes. In the case of a poker pro like Phil Ivey, this also promises good income for the casino. As is well known, the bank always wins in the end.
An Exotic Couple Is Baffling Casinos
But all that changed when Phil Ivey entered the Borgata Casino in Atlantic City one day, accompanied by Kelly Sun. Kelly Sun was an enigmatic Chinese woman who, in Phil Ivey’s company, promised to bring the highly welcome exclusive exoticism of a jet-set couple to the casino – and good publicity with it. But the very best news for the casino management was: Phil Ivey wanted to play baccarat of all things. And since it was agreed that even a highly talented poker player had little chance of really applying his skills in this game, the operators of the casino were already rubbing their hands in spirit.
Happy too soon. Phil Ivey left a long face when he left the casino a few days later with the Kelly Sun and nearly $10 million in his pocket. Management was puzzled. Such a winning streak was simply inconceivable – but there was no evidence of cheating. The only notable thing was Ivey’s desire for a croupier who spoke Mandarin, the main Chinese language. This seemed justified in view of his companionship. It was exactly the same a few months later at London’s Crockfords Club. Ivey showed up again with Kelly Sun and requested a private saloon and a special croupier to play baccarat. Again, his wishes were granted, with the result that Ivey thought he had earned £7.6million – until management told him that unfortunately he could only be paid out on his initial stake of £1million. The reason: Ivey used a technique called “Edge Sorting”.
What Is the “Edge Sorting” Trick?
It cannot be said that Kelly Sun or Phil Ivey Edge invented sorting. The technology is relatively old. But it is difficult to learn and use. Like card counting, it is also quite difficult to spot. Most casinos had never heard of edge sorting before Kelly Sun pitched Phil Ivey with the idea and both started the edge-sorting scandal. The technique relies on small irregularities in the patterns on the back of the card. They appear at the edges of maps and are difficult to spot, but they are there. Anyone with a trained eye cannot identify individual cards from them, i.e. look through them, so to speak. However, they tell him whether a card has been turned. This is essential information for keen observers who can deduce whether they are dealing with new cards or cards that have already appeared, good or bad.
However: edge sorting requires a very, very good eye. In addition, you have little time for your observations and must not stare at the cards too obviously. Also, you have to deal with a very accommodating croupier who will happily use the same “flipped” deck that the player has checked over and over again. A normal customer cannot insist on that – but a VIP guest like Phil Ivey, who is granted many wishes, can; which, after repeating the same cards over and over again, may be dismissed as a harmless quirk from which the player hopes for luck.
Chinese Lucky Fairy With Eagle Eyes & Desire for Revenge
The trained eagle eye didn’t have Phil Ivey, but his exotic companion, full name Cheung Yin “Kelly” Sun. In fact, Phil Ivey didn’t know Edge Sort, the Chinese did. But Kelly Sun needed Phil Ivey: only he, the famous professional, was fulfilled in the casinos with the special requests that were a prerequisite for successful edge sorting.
The Chinese from a rich family were regular casino visitors for years. However, there were also discrepancies that led to a short prison sentence. Kelly Sun wanted revenge on the casinos. With iron discipline, she learned the technique of edge sorting and, after a few successes on her own in a team with a famous partner, set out to make real money. Her core trick: She persuaded Mandarin-speaking croupiers to be able to rotate certain cards – for “better luck”. In fact, of course, for a better overview, as we now know. That way, as the game progressed, Kelly Sun was able to get a sense of which cards were promising and which weren’t. The rest of the secret was secret signals to Phil Ivey. And that’s how the edge sorting scandal came about.
