Sometimes in life a joke can rebound back on you and cause a right mess. That’s been the situation for poker professional Scott Robbins. A rather bad taste joke caused him to become banned for life from the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City. Now he’s suing them for $1.25 million.
The incident that led to his lifetime ban happened in September 2020. The Massachusetts resident had booked a room at the hotel and it wasn’t long before matters turned a bit sour. It was at check in that it all started going wrong.
Robbins was asked if he wanted a room that was on a low level of the hotel of one higher up. Allegedly, the poker player asked: “If I had to jump from a high-floor window, would I make it?” The worried hotel employee was concerned at what he was hearing and pleaded with Robbins not to consider jumping out of a hotel window.
It’s alleged that at this point the poker player told the hotel employee that he was just kidding. He had no real intention to jump out of window. Apparently he then asked whether if he did jump out of a lower floor window, would be survive?
Robbins didn’t end up in a lower level room, instead he was given one on the 30th floor. That was by no means the end of the story though. He was settling down in his hotel room when “an armed security force” paid him a visit and it wasn’t for a game of poker.
He was told that to continue his stay at the hotel, he needed to undergo a psychiatric evaluation. Robbins was taken to a local hospital were that evaluation took place. It found that it was alright for him to stay at the hotel as he was not a danger to himself or others. The cost of the evaluation was $2,000 and it was Robbins who paid the bill.
There’s more to come though because there was a shock when he got back to his hotel room. His personal belongings had been taken way and the poker player was dealt a poor hand when told he was now banned for life.
That’s now led to him launching this lawsuit. He claims that over the next ten years, the ban will see him lose $85,000 a year in poker earning and $200,000 in revenue from sponsors. Robbins has won over $417,000 playing poker.
The final $200,000 of the $1.25 million he’s claiming is for false imprisonment, libel and interference with prospective economic gain. Not that he’s being picky but Robbins also claims there are problems with the windows at the Borgata. They are more than an inch thick and don’t open.
