Card Rooms

by Barbara Rogers

 Just south of the Minnesota border in Northern Iowa, you can see Diamond Jo Casino Worth, surrounded by pristine woodlands. It is here, in Northwood, Iowa, where you will find March Poker Madness playing out on the 21st, 22nd, and the 23rd. Thursday and Friday events will start at 7pm. Both have a $5 staff bonus for additional chips, giving you an edge. Thursday buy-in is only $50, with Friday buy-in being $100. The Championship Event is on Saturday at 12pm with a $200 buy-in, add the staff bonus chips for only $10. David Eglseder, the poker room manager, indicated super satellites will be held for only $25 with $20 re-buys. These are lots of fun, and the entire event should be a lot of fun for an amount of money that won’t hurt your poker budget!

 Mohegan Sun in Connecticut will host the DeepStacks Poker Tour from March 27th to April 1st. DeepStacks Poker Tour enjoyed one of their most successful seasons at Mohegan Sun in Connecticut, so this should prove to be an even bigger success. Find more details in the Mohegan Sun ad in this issue of Poker Player Newspaper [Read the PDF].

by Ashley Adams

 I spent two days playing poker in the Gulf Coast of Mississippi—in Biloxi and Bay St. Louis. My first port of call was the IP, the first place off Interstate 10 coming from New Orleans, Louisiana. I wrote about it in my last article. Across the street was Boomtown, a small locals casino with the distinction of not having a hotel. No matter, they had a poker room, and so I enjoyed myself.

 Boomtown’s poker room, the only smoking room in the area, is on the second floor of the modest casino. They pride themselves on their $1-4-8-8 spread limit hold’em game. When I arrived at 7:00 PM on a Saturday night, it was filled. The game has a $4 maximum rake with a $2 drop for bad beat jackpot and other extensive promotions. Players earn $1 an hour for live play and are provided with free hot dogs and popcorn.

by A.C. Clark

In north central Washington, the poker room at Okanogan Bingo Casino has been hosting a Thursday no limit Texas hold’em tournament series with its final tournament to be played on January 9th. I played in the last of the big Thursdays on January 3rd and was pleased with the rather new poker room and pleasant staff. In addition, there’s a fine group of locals who enjoy plenty of action on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. This small, but clean and spacious poker room is loaded with eager gamblers, ready to play. Any visitor can expect a steady game of $3-6 limit with no limit Texas hold’em tournaments on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 5 pm, and Saturdays at 11:30 am. The poker room is conveniently located in the bar and offers excellent service by a warm waitressing staff. I felt very welcome and enjoyed visiting with players and dealers. Anyone can order from the bar, and manager Tony Posey is poker knowledgeable, friendly, and very hardworking, helping behind the bar or dealing at a table. You can reach the poker room at 509.422.4646 or visit their website at www.colvillecasinos.com.

By Barbara Rogers

Back by popular demand, Belterra Casino Resort in Florence, Indiana, welcomes the Heartland Poker Tour. The chance to play with the pros, be on television, and win an anticipated six figure first place payout for less than a hundred dollars (by qualifying through events) is just about irresistible, and will surely be attracting players from all across the US. The nationally televised Heartland Poker Tour plays out at Belterra Casino Resort March 15th through March 25th. You can play special qualifiers from February 15 - March 14th. For more information, see Belterra’s ad on page 7 of this issue of Poker Player [PDF].

John Colville, Poker Manager at the Golden Nugget, Las Vegas, reports the signing of another contract with Poker Player newspaper to sponsor their second annual tournament, the 2013 Poker Player of the Year. The event will be held on July 4th, Independence Day, at the Golden Nugget Casino in Las Vegas. The total Buy-in and Entry fee is to be $600, with no re-buys. Seating is limited to 600 players, so early sign-up (to guarantee your seat) is recommended. The event is scheduled before the main event of the WSOP begins, so a large number of poker tournament players will be in town. Last year’s event was won by John Parker of Auckland, New Zealand. Satellites are expected to be held for this event at the properties of various Poker Player advertisers, on dates leading up to the event. A schedule will be published in Poker Player newspaper as it develops.

by Barbara Rogers

Daniel Negreanu has designed a new structure for this year’s kickoff of the 9th season of the Heartland Poker Tour. Founded with a grassroots strategy for “Real People, Unreal Money,” they’re keeping-it-real with affordable buy-ins on their Texas Hold’em tour. And FYI the Belterra Casino in Florence, Indiana will host the Heartland Poker Tour, March 15-25. More details soon!

Hot seats at Seneca Niagara, February 12th, 13th, and 14th; this includes $15,000 in cash. You can satellite into the main event, and/or win $15,000 in cash drawings. The Western New York Poker Challenge Tournaments are in effect from February 12th to February 18th. The threeday Main Event has a buy-in of $1,080, starting on Saturday, the 16th, so there should be time to see plenty of flops, with a starting stack of 30,000 in chips and 60 minute blinds. This series will include Pot Limit Omaha on Tuesday, February 12th at 11am. You Omaha fans can play your game for only $150+$25 with 10,000 in chips and thirty minute blinds.

By Debbie Burkhead

The World Poker Challenge at the Grand Sierra in Reno is a must-stop on the tournament trail. The event kicks off on February 28 and runs through March 10 with 29 events and $375,000 in guarantees. This year’s WPC will be held in the convention area, not on the casino floor. They’re practically giving away rooms: stay for $20 per night (Sun-Thu) and $40 per night on the weekend. The early bird room rates only apply if booked by February 27 -- after that the rate increases by $5 per night. Mention the code found in their ad on page 8-9 of this issue when booking your room.

by Barbara Rogers

I just played poker at Delaware Park in Wilmington, Delaware. The weekdays are so busy, you'd think it was still vacation time or at least the weekend. While seated at my table, I said, "Wow this is a lot of players for a weekday... Doesn't anyone have a job?" The response was, "Everyone took off work!" And so it goes, at Delaware Park, where the Winter Classic is now underway. There are still plenty of tournaments left to be played out, including the main event beginning on Saturday, January 12th, with a guaranteed pay-out of $150,000. Great dealers, fun players from all over the country. I played with a guy from Mansfield, Ohio, who was in town for the entire event. The remolded Red Roof Inn is offering poker player discounts - call them at 302 292 2870 for details.

by Ashley Adams

  Folks often ask me which poker room I enjoy most. My answer is usually “Foxwoods,” as well as the last place I’ve played poker. Such is the case now, as I have just finished playing poker in the seven poker rooms on the Gulf Coast in Mississippi. Each of the seven rooms offer something different. Overall, I loved the experience – and I recommend it to anyone looking for a great poker vacation.

 Let me tell you about my experiences: It’ll take a few columns.