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Nevada Regulators Clears Horseshoe In Poker Tourney Prize Dispute

LAS VEGAS, Nevada – Nov. 16, 2001 --Nevada gaming regulators recently decided that the owner of Binion's Horseshoe violated no state rules when she divided a share of World Series of Poker prize pools among her employees.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board's Enforcement Division recently finished its five-month investigation into Horseshoe owner Becky Behnen's handling of a 3 percent portion of the poker tourney's prize pools.

Tournament officials had charged that Behnen broke promises she made about how the 3 percent portion of each World Series event's prize pool would be split.

"We reviewed the distribution of the 3 percent, and (Behnen) did everything she said she was going to do," said Keith Copher, enforcement division chief. "The money was accounted for, and it was her right to distribute it as she saw fit."

Copher said the control board didn't evaluate whether Behnen's treatment of tournament managers was fair.

"The disagreements were between employers and employees, and we just don't get involved in that," he said.

The Horseshoe's World Series advertisements noted that 3 percent of the prize pool for each tournament would be withheld for tournament personnel.

The remaining 97 percent were to be split by the winner and top finishers in each event.

The 26 World Series events generated prize pools totaling $18,309,500.

A total of $549,285 was withheld for tournament personnel, and dealers received half of that amount.

While the 30 tournament bosses expected to divide about $178,000, based on commitments they say Behnen made, Horseshoe staff awarded them only $26,000, and divided the remaining money among a wide variety of the property's employees.

Behnen and World Series assistant tournament director Tom Elias, leader of the tournament officials who protested the prize pool distribution, did not return Thursday phone calls.

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