Yes, there really is a thief out there with my Club Royale!!! Here is the tstory.. When John Benedict posted the history of the ship and chip, I could not recall why the chip stuck in my mind and I could not find it in my stash of $2.50 chips. A few years ago, I had put together a display of 300 Ship and Riverboat chips to celebrate the grand opening of the PETALUMA QUEEN and had displayed it on board the ship for about a month. Upon return, I decided to put it up above my computor and seldom look for many chips since they are all mixed ships and riverboat denominations. Frantic in not finding the Club Royale in my collection of $2.50's I happened to glance above the monitor and there it was......but I can now recall I had two at the time Don Lueders sold me his extra for some $35 because I knew I needed it for a fellow $2.50 collector and stashed it among my $2.50 trader box right after Don was nice enough to bring it to the show. AND NOW MY MEMORY is clear that when I went to get it for either Bob Feeney or Joe Benon...IT WAS GONE. After 15 years of doing chip shows, I have always been so proud of being able to trust chippers going through books and boxes while sometimes I am not even at the tables!!. Well, about 4 years ago we all decided a lot more theft occurs than we would like to admit to and this was one of those cases. Whoever stole it was very astutue in his choice while I probably forgot about which of the two types was scarce...now more scarce. I doubt if anyone that stole it will be posting that he owns one since most of us recall who we sold or traded with ....so count one more to be out there.....illegally. Be great to have a headcount John and or Don.....Mel