The recent antics of British online poker pro Luke “Full_Flush” Schwartz have only helped to cement his reputation as a bad boy and a poker brat, as he has supposedly been banned not once, but twice from Grosvenor Casino properties.  First, he received a ban from the Victoria Casino for improper headgear and now he has allegedly been banned from all Grosvenor Casinos for stealing a cheese sandwich.

According to the forums and several European poker outlets including the Betfair blog, the first incident at the Victoria Casino, known to locals as “The Vic,” came when Schwartz refused to remove his hat in the casino’s poker room.  Popular and influential local gambler Eddie Hearn stepped in on Schwartz’s behalf and convinced the casino to lift the ban on the young British pro in time for him to participate in the European Poker Tour’s (EPT) London stop.  While the tournament changed venues this year, moving from the Victoria to the Hilton London Metropole, the tournament staff was comprised of poker room employees from The Vic who were initially not keen on seeing Schwartz participate.

The high stakes pro’s troubles did not end there, though.  While he played in the EPT London Main Event, it took mere minutes after he busted out midway through Day Two before Schwartz found himself in hot water with the casino staff once again.  A blog post by one of Poker Listings’ tournament reporters, Martin Derbyshire, reported that Schwartz allegedly lifted a pickle and cheese sandwich from the food stand just outside the tournament area and walked away without paying for it.  Apparently, Schwartz insisted that he was a VIP player and did not deserve to be charged for the snack and refused to pay even after being stopped by security.

The act of thievery, combined with his unwillingness to pay for his food, led to Schwartz’s second ban from Grosvenor properties and this time it appears as though no reprieve is in sight.  Derbyshire also wrote that the word around the tournament area was that Schwartz received a warning from EPT staff about his behavior.

While Schwartz confirmed the details of the hat incident, he has yet to speak out on how much truth there is behind “Sandwichgate 2009.”  True or not, the stories only further cement Schwartz’s reputation as one of “bad boys” of online poker.  Schwartz first garnered attention earlier this year when he had choice words about some of the other high-stakes online cash game players, notably Tom “durrrr” Dwan.  Schwartz bashed Dwan in print and television interviews, commenting on both his style of play and social life.

Though Schwartz may have to deal with a ban from Grosvenor Casinos, he is not done playing live in London just yet.  He is set to take part in both the PKR Grand Slam Heads-Up festivities and the PartyPoker World Open V.  Dwan is also on tap to participate in the two events.  The draw for the PKR event’s first round is already complete and should Schwartz and Dwan both advance to the semi-finals, they would compete against each other in a highly-anticipated live match.  The World Open V does not pit the two players against each other in preliminary heats, but there is still the possibility that they will meet at the final table of the shootout-style event.

Hopefully, Schwartz won’t get himself banned from either of the events before they start, as the potential face-to-face encounter between Full_Flush and Dwan have had the online poker world buzzing for months.

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