Any attempts to rekindle the former glory of famous poker-playing group “The Crew” could end in failure, as two prominent members of the group have recently been involved in a poker prop bet lawsuit.
Dutch Boyd sued Joe Bartholdi after the latter failed to comply with the terms of their $10,000 prop bet, which dates back to 2006.
Decade Old Prop Bet Ends in Lawsuit
Both Boyd and Bartholdi agreed to the prop bet after Bartholdi had won the 2006 World Poker Tour $25,000 Championship. Both players would try to win as many World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets as they could over a 10-year period, and whoever would end up winning more bracelets would get the $10,000 prize.
Boyd is a three-time WSOP bracelet winner. He won his bracelets in 2006, 2010, and 2014. Bartholdi has yet to win one, though he is also an accomplished poker pro with more than $4,300,000 in total live earnings.
Bartholdi initially paid Boyd $1,500 over the last five years, but no further payments have been made since then. Apart from playing poker professionally, Boyd also works as a poker dealer on the Strip.
According to him, he can remember at least two instances where he saw Bartholdi winning huge pots in no-limit games in Vegas, big enough to pay him off, but the latter did not make any effort to complete his payment. That pushed Boyd to launch a lawsuit, but the ruling hasn’t gone in his favor.
Judge Rules Against Dutch Boyd
A judgment in the case was released on February 24 by Hearing Master Amy L. Ferreira, ruling that the prop bet agreement between Boyd and Bartholdi is invalid as it did not involve any written document.
The decision coincides with legislation under the Nevada Revised Statutes, which nullifies verbal agreements that are not performed within one year. The Statutes require that an agreement be made in writing for it to be considered legally valid. In the absence of a written document, Boyd and Bartholdi’s prop bet agreement does not count as a legally binding contract.
The agreement is void, the court ruled, and Boyd did not get anything. While this is the case, both parties can still reach a resolution. Bartholdi, for his part, promised that he will pay Boyd. He also said that the payment wasn’t made fast enough, and that probably was the reason why Boyd sued him.
Boyd Learns His Lesson
Boyd isn’t discounting appealing the decision, and he said he might push for unjust enrichment, or find an exception to the legal agreement issue. The Las Vegas native also said he has learned a lot from the experience – prop bets should be written down and signed by the parties involved. Boyd also said he might not make any more prop bets with his friends again.
Boyd is no stranger to legal matters as he is a law graduate, though he only took the Nevada Bar exam in February 2020. He successfully passed it and is now a licensed attorney working at a major law firm. Boyd has no plans to abandon poker, as he still looks forward to playing the game occasionally.
Dutch Boyd and Joe Bartholdi made a name for themselves during the poker boom era as members of “The Crew”, alongside David Smyth, Brett Jungblut, Scott Fischman, Tony Lazar, and Boyd’s brother Bobby. Boyd founded the group just after the 2003 WSOP.
The Crew established a group bankroll and set up a headquarters in California in their quest for poker glory. Their poker endeavors were covered by the ESPN, making them one of the biggest stories at the 2004 WSOP. But The Crew’s fame and success were short-lived as the group disbanded too soon.
Boyd previously announced plans to reunite the group for a reality show, but with the bad blood currently existing between him and Bartholdi, that’s now unlikely to happen. Both are not on speaking terms right now, and it still remains to be seen whether they’ll eventually fix their dispute and reconcile.