Poker Pro Leaves UltimateBet

The online casino media and message boards were going crazy this week following the announcement of Cliff “JohnnyBax” Josephy saying that he will no longer be promoting Ultimate Bet’s website. The World Series of Poker bracelet winner is cutting his ties to the online casino as their very own online poker ace due to money issues. Josephy was a member of Ultimate Bet’s Star Players Team and his duties included promoting the online casino at events hosted by the website. To become a part of the Star Players Team, one must have a high level of skill and be well respected in the world of online casinos and online poker.

The COO of Ultimate Bet, Paul Leggett approached Josephy while he was playing at a tournament in Aruba to be a part of their online casino’s Star Players Team. Leggett told Josephy that someone would contact him about the details of the deal. They offered Josephy a ‘standard deal’ and because of what the deal consisted of, Josephy declined. The issue that Josephy is having is due to the fact that he did not sign a deal from the beginning with the folks at Ultimate Bet, he simply relied on good faith that he would be paid. He was surprised that the online casino was not going to give him any compensation for what is basically an endorsement from the highly respected poker pro.

Online casinos often bring professionals to add credibility to their website. Ultimate Bet has been through some rough times in 2008. The online casino did not have a comment, but Josephy did say, ““I was approached by Paul Leggett (COO of UltimateBet owner Tokwiro Enterprises) in Aruba. When I e-mailed him and told him I was ready to talk, Paul told me that someone else would speak with me. We set up a conference call last Friday and the other gentleman said, ‘Before the others get on the line, I wanted to tell you that we’re no longer paying you starting next month.’” Josephy finished by saying, "Maybe they just wanted to use my name through their rough times to add credibility to the site.”