THEY call themselves a pair of aces but Crispin and Jules Leyser, an ambitious British husband-and-wife team of professional poker players, have been at least temporarily trumped in their bid for a share of the richest prize awarded at a US poker tournament.

In a lawsuit that has shaken the high-stakes world of Las Vegas gambling, Crispin Leyser, a former London bookie’s clerk, is claiming a half share of the $12m (£6.3m) pot won last month by Jamie Gold, a Hollywood agent and newly crowned champion of the internationally televised World Series of Poker.

A Las Vegas judge has frozen half of Gold’s payout pending the resolution of a dispute over an alleged deal to split his winnings. The Leysers have been plunged into a multi-million dollar legal battle that may produce a stunning pay-off for the gamble they took when they left Britain in 2003 to try their luck in Hollywood.

The case has prompted scrutiny of behind-the-scenes deal-making at poker tournaments and has turned an intriguing pair of British expatriates into the hottest names on the professional circuit. Leyser was previously best known among players for having what one online columnist described as “the smokingest wife in poker”. Having turned to gambling to help make ends meet after their arrival in Hollywood, both Crispin and Jules built careers as instructors specialising in online poker. Their website, www.pokerspairofaces.com, is described by some players as “pair o’ faces”, in tribute to their looks.

A graduate in social psychology from the London School of Economics, Crispin, 38, worked for Ladbrokes as a teenager and claims to have been a television producer in London when he was offered a job in Los Angeles.

His wife, who read English at Trinity College, Oxford, was an actress and playwright who presented a one-woman show at the Edinburgh festival in 2000. She also appeared in episodes of Coupling and The Bill.

In Hollywood the pair soon claimed to be earning between $2,000 and $12,000 a month from internet play. They became instructors at poker “boot camps” — training sessions for players aiming to turn professional.

Their work brought them into contact with minor celebrities caught up in America’s poker boom. They met Gold, 37, an aggressive talent agent determined to succeed at No-Limit Texas Hold ’em, the most popular form of tournament poker.

According to court documents, Gold was sponsored by Bodog.com, a Costa Rican-based online gambling company that offered to pay his $10,000 entry fee to the World Series of Poker if he brought celebrities and persuaded them to wear logos on their clothing.

Leyser claims in his lawsuit that he met Gold in Las Vegas in July and made a verbal deal to persuade some of the celebrities he had taught to attend — in return for half of Gold’s winnings.

It has since emerged that prize-splitting deals are common. Jeff Haney of the Las Vegas Sun said agreements in which sponsors “buy or barter” part of a player’s winnings are “traditionally sealed with a handshake or less”.

Leyser provided at least two celebrities to earn Gold his spot at the table. One was Matthew Lillard, who played Shaggy in the Scooby-Doo films, and the other was Dax Shepard, an MTV star. When Gold reached the final table that guaranteed him a huge payout, according to court papers, he left a recorded telephone message for Leyser.

“I wanted to let you know about the money,” Gold allegedly said. “I promise you, you can keep this recording on my word, there’s no possible way you’re not going to get your half . . . after taxes.”

Leyser’s lawsuit claims that Gold reneged on the deal. A Las Vegas judge concluded that Gold had a case to answer and agreed to the freeze order.

The poker world has lined up behind Leyser. Alan Boston, a professional gambler, told the Las Vegas Sun: “Any kind of old-school gambler will tell you your word is your bond.”

Whether the courts agree may be decided this month, unless the two sides make a deal. Either way, the Leysers are likely to become poker’s most sought-after teachers, if only by players keen to hear their side of the scandal.

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