The taxpayer attempted to claim $121,991 in poker losses on the basis that his gambling was a commercial activity. Pizzitelli J. found that the losses should be disallowed. He stated (at para. 41):
The only evidence is that he lost money, consistently throughout the year, and he has not demonstrated the venture has a capacity to show a profit.
Evidence demonstrated that the taxpayer lacked any formal or otherwise meaningful poker training, had no business plan, lacked discipline (he abandoned his strategy of playing low-stakes games against inebriated players after three months, to his detriment), failed to manage risk (he maxed out his credit cards to cover the losses), and had a personal element (he had been a hobby player for years) - all these factors contradicted there being a reasonable expectation of profit.