By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
LAS VEGAS - Lawyers for World Series of Poker winner
Jamie Gold and a Los Angeles-based TV development executive agreed
to a court injunction freezing $6 million, half of the top prize,
in a dispute about a deal to split the winnings.
U.S. District Court Judge Roger L. Hunt was expected
to sign the order soon, said Richard Schonfeld, the lawyer for plaintiff
Bruce Crispin Leyser.
"Everybody agreed the preliminary injunction would
be issued," Schonfeld said Tuesday.
The injunction would prevent the money from leaving
the poker tournament's host, the Rio hotel-casino, until the case
concluded. Gold's lawyers would have until Sept. 15 to challenge the
injunction, he said.
Leyser alleges that Gold, a former Hollywood talent
agent, agreed in July to split his winnings in exchange for Leyser
helping him find celebrities to play in the main event while wearing
the "Bodog" label of an offshore Internet gambling site.
Bodog paid the $10,000 entry fee for Gold, who beat
8,772 players to win the world's largest poker tournament, and the
$12 million top prize.
Leyser alleges he fulfilled his end of the deal - getting
Scooby Doo star Matthew Lillard and Punk'd comedian Dax Shepard to
wear the brand - but claimed Gold has refused to hand over $6 million.
Gold's lawyers declined to comment.