The gambling card game known as poker has been around for approximately two centuries and has been glorified in films over the years, particularly in Westerns. In fact, for many years it was difficult to find a cowboy movie that did not feature at least one or two scenes of poker games being played in the saloon or some other back room. After all, the table conversation could easily be used to advance the plot of a film, and with the abundance of outlaws, cheaters and other angry tough guys around the table, a dramatic brawl was bound to break out at any second.
In reality, the game has always been popular, but remained underground in order to stay on the right side of law enforcement – except for legal games in gambling meccas like Las Vegas and Atlantic City.
But my, how things have changed - it now seems as if everyone plays poker! As acceptance for the game grew in the 1990’s and laws were relaxed to allow penny-ante home games and action in community centers that established a pot limit of $10 per hand, poker players finally felt certain that they weren’t in constant danger of being busted – even if they inched the stakes up a little, or a lot.
Constant lobbying by the pari-mutuel facilities and a growing demand from the public finally caused the state of Florida to relent and a subsequent change in legislation allowed the tracks and frontons to add poker to their other gambling offerings in 1997. However, due to a lack of poker knowledge along with an unsavory view of the game, government officials carried over the $10 pot limit to their shiny, new quarter-fifty cent games. So, although the hands and rules were those of poker, it really wasn’t "real" poker, a game that had also been known at one time as "Bluff". In fact, bluffing was about as far removed from the poker games of that era, as early bets filled the $10 pot and the remaining cards were dealt out to determine a winner. It seemed more like childhood games like "War" or even "Go Fish" – I can remember a friend who played at the fronton for the first time and lamented to me, "I had four of a kind on the flop and I couldn’t even raise!"
It took 6 years, but the state finally removed that miniscule pot limit in 2003, replacing it with a limit of three raises per betting round and $2 maximum bets. Then, in 2007, the laws changed again as no-limit poker was allowed, albeit with a buy-in maximum of $100 per player – not exactly what players wanted, but at least it reintroduced some fun, skill and bluffing to the game. As players built up their chip stacks and could go all-in on any hand, pots could often reach several hundred dollars. Still, poker players wanted more: more games that demanded more skill, more operating hours that allowed for more convenience to play when they wanted to, and less restrictions that limited their freedom of choice. That day has finally arrived.
Thanks to Florida Senate Bill 622 that was signed into law on April 28th, true no-limit poker began on July 1st and as the big day approached, just about everyone associated with the game was filled with anticipation. "What is about to happen is very monumental in this state – I’ve seen the growth of poker here in Florida and I am very excited," said Mike Smith, Director of Poker for the Isle Casino at Pompano Park when he spoke to me in late June. His colleague at Gulfstream Park, Poker Room Manager Scott Poole was in agreement, saying, "It will be great to have full-blown poker without the restrictions and handcuffs… real poker."
But with all the hoopla and expected increase of players at the poker rooms around the state, management personnel like Smith and Poole have the serious responsibility to prepare their facilities for the increased play by offering the right mix of games and stakes, in addition to the training of their staff for any contingency. "Part of my job as the poker room manager is to grow the game and protect the integrity of the industry. I have to take care of the big player that wants to buy-in for $5,000 and the beginner who is just learning how to play," said Smith. Between those extremes are the regular customers who would prefer to keep the stakes close to what was previously offered so they are not damaged financially when they lose. "We are the #1 revenue-producing poker room in South Florida because of the size of our player base, not because of room size and number of tables, where we rank 6th or 7th, said Smith, adding, "I really don’t have too many decisions to make, the players will make them for me and decide what they want – I will protect and satisfy the needs of those players. In talking with our guests, there were enough players that really didn’t want to see the current regulations changed, and we have to honor that. I’m sure they’ll let me know when they don’t want to play that anymore. So, we will continue to offer the 1-2 no-limit games with a $50-$100 buy-in like we have now, along with 1-2 limit and 2-4 limit tables."
Most poker officials I talked with said they plan to offer just about any games allowed by the state, with high end limit games like $30-$60 expected to top things off on a regular basis. "10/20 and 20/40 limit games are very popular in Vegas and Atlantic City, so I believe we’ll have several of those tables going daily," said Poole. And while there will be increased revenue because more players will be attracted to the rooms by the larger stakes, the poker room rake on each table remains about the same. "We get the $5 rake on almost every hand right now, so if we now have a 30-60 game, we’ll just get to the rake max quicker, but not make any more money," said Poole.
The key to becoming more profitable lies in the increased operating hours allowed by the new regulations: 18 hours a day from Monday to Thursday with 24 hours on the weekends. "It’s probably the biggest benefit of all for us… if I had been given an option to have increased betting limits or increased hours, I would have chosen the hours, by far," said Poole. Some people may wonder if there is a need for open card rooms at 5 or 6 o’clock in the morning, but there is no doubt among poker managers. "Every night… every single night," said Smith, when I asked him if he has to throw players out at closing time when they would like to play for 2 or 3 more hours. "On weeknights, we currently have 10 or 12 tables going at closing time of 1 AM, on weekends there are about 20 games going on at 2 AM. As for how many games will go on through the night, that’s a guessing game on our part. But I would think that there will be at least a couple of tables that will continue well into the morning."
The managers have been retraining their dealers in addition to adding new ones, but no one I spoke with had any doubts that their staffs could handle the increased stakes. "At the end of the day, it is still just poker, only the denominations of the chips will be different. I have a good staff, I think my people will be ready, and I am cautiously optimistic that everything will run smoothly. I have about 110 dealers and we’ll go to about 130," said Smith.
Some of the smaller rooms have approached the new situation a bit more cautiously - increasing their hours only slightly while adding little extra staff – but will closely monitor demand. In a June conversation at Ft. Pierce Jai-Alai, Stuart Neiman told me, "We will take a prudent and pragmatic approach to this and react to the player demand. We will offer all the games and some higher limits, but I think that most of our players will want the same games with a little larger max buy-in."
Poker blogs have been rife with boisterous braggarts that think they will invade Florida with the intention of taking advantage of players used to playing for smaller stakes than those found in California, Nevada and New Jersey. Both Smith and Poole are not so sure that will be the case. "I believe the list is long of world-class players in South Florida… and I think that those people that think they’re going to make a killing down here are not going to be as happy as they think," said Smith, while Poole voiced the same feeling. "I’ll put my players up against any of them – don’t underestimate the quality of players here in South Florida. There are plenty of great players down here – no doubt!" he said.
With more money in the rooms, one lurking consideration that all facilities must deal with is the need for increased security. Neiman said that at Ft. Pierce, it will be covered. "As long as there is activity in the room, there will definitely be an increased police presence," he said. "The safety of our patrons is a #1 priority." Smith said guest protection was also in his mind at the Isle, saying "We are going to beef up the security – we have no choice. We are going to offer cash boxes to players who choose to use them, so if they want to leave money in our cage they can do that."
There has been much speculation as to whether the new regs will attract famous poker pros and other rich celebrities to the Florida rooms, or whether unlimited buy-ins that can now be set for tournaments will bring large TV events like the World Poker Tour or the World Series of Poker to South Florida. "Big-name players? We’ll see… I really don’t know… it might be a very attractive place for them to hang out, especially when the racing season comes around," said Poole. "We certainly will see some famous faces from the horse racing world at Gulfstream then." As for big TV events down the road, he thought they were a possibility, but not a certainty. "People are suggesting that we have these huge $10,000 buy-in tournaments like they see on TV, and if there was a big demand for it, we might try it. But those events you see on TV, that’s not real life. They have huge sponsors, they pay the big names like Daniel Negreanu to be there… they are just not as easy to put together as people think."
Throughout the summer, people in the poker industry all over the world will be watching closely, and I’ll be among them. I’ll keep you posted on how everything shakes out. But one thing is certain – Florida is ready for "REAL" Poker. I think Mike Smith spoke for everyone when he said, "We’re looking forward to it… it’s going to be a good experience and great for the state of Florida. There are already people moving down here to try to make a living playing poker, so maybe it will help our economy."
Real Poker
