At the beginning of the month, the inaugural Midway Poker Tour, which had a charity connection with 4 KIDS Sake, Inc., found itself at the center of a payout controversy in its $1,100 buy-in Main Event, a tournament that attracted 266 runners.
The top 31 players were guaranteed $2,300 in prize money. However, due to the Illinois Charitable Gaming Acts and Regulations (230 ILCS30), organizers were only able to pay out $500 in cash atop the cost of the buy-in. As such, players only received $1,600 in cash no matter their finish, while the remainder of their “prize” would be awarded in precious metals.