Full Tilt Poker players have been waiting for close to 3 years to get their outstanding amounts reimbursed. They have had to put up with a roller-coaster ride and many of them gave up hope of ever getting their outstanding payments. However, on the 28th of Feb, the Garden City Group released $76 million in outstanding payments to more than 27,500 Full Tilt Poker players.
There has been significant process in the processing of Full Tilt Poker claims ever since the Department of Justice appointed The Garden City Group to be in charge of the reimbursement process.
The Garden City Group decided to prioritize and reimburse all player accounts that had no contest with their account balances. Those players who had a dispute with their outstanding balance will have to wait longer as the dispute is analyzed and eventually resolved.
Some players have not been reimbursed because their bank details were incorrect and the transfer could not be processed. They players will have to wait for a check to be sent to them via email. This should take place before the end of March. Former Full Tilt Poker players were extremely happy to get reimbursed and took to social media to voice their relief.
Josh Brikis was one of these players. Brikis said
My thoughts on [April 15, 2011] were never that I wasn’t going to get my money. It grew [to that fear] over time … Like everyone else I just wish that day never happened and I could just sit in my house and not leave my son to go play online poker. And today … well now I wish I bought all the FTP money everyone was selling. I’m happy to have my money returned,” he said. “I’m also very happy for friends with tons more
Mike Sowers and Blair Hinkle are two prominent former Full Tilt Poker players who had huge amounts outstanding. Sowers had $500,000 outstanding as he won one of Full Tilt’s largest tournaments a few weeks before Black Friday and Hinkle has often spoken about being owed a million dollars, which was due to him from his chop in the FTOPS XIX main event.
Both Sowers and Blair Hinkle received their payments and were extremely happy to see the money in their bank account. The reimbursement of $76 million is good news for the online poker community because that money will now be circulated once again as players use their bankroll to start spending once again.
The executive director of the poker players alliance, John Pappas says that he expects another $50-60 million to be reimbursed by the Garden City Group in the near future.
