I attended the opening of the Class III gaming at Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Florida. It's a milestone for Florida because up until recently they have only had Class II slots, low-limit poker, and Vegas style slots.

Now all of that changed. On June 22, 2008 the first hand of blackjack was dealt to Carmen Electra, Lorraine Bracco, Ron Patterson, and other celebrities, including Gino Torretta, Alonzo Mourning, Cornelius Bennett, Dwayne Wade, Greg Gumble, Henri Crockett, Eddie Jones, Bob Kuechenberg, Nat Moore, O.J. McDuffie, Howard Schnellenberger, and Zack Crockett.

CEO Jim Allen welcomed everyone and told the story of how hard it was to get this monumental occasion off the ground. Then boxing's Michael Buffer introduced various members of the Seminole tribe across the state.

Then Carmen Electra made her entrance with her finance Ron Patterson. Right before the first hand was dealt, Patterson had the honor of smashing a guitar on stage, and the countdown began.

There was excitement in the air, as blackjack, three card poker, pai-gow poker, let it ride, baccarat, and mini-baccarat were opened to the public. But the majority of the tables were for blackjack, and more than 800 dealers and supervisors were hired for the launch of the event.

In addition, 2,500 Las Vegas-style slots were available to play on the Hard Rock's 145,000 sq. ft. casino floor.

The casino has a luxurious, Las Vegas vibe to it, with 500 luxury guest rooms and suites in a 12-story tower with numerous restaurants on the property. There's also a pool complex, spa, and a 5,500 seat arena that will seat guests for championship boxing, tennis, basketball, rodeo, as well as corporate meetings and exhibitions.

Check out the Seminole Hard Rock Casino your next trip to the South Florida area-and check in next issue for my review of their beautiful 41 table poker room.

Donna Marks has worked in the poker industry on both coasts, as a dealer, in management, and as a player. She is Poker Player Newspaper's sales rep in the Florida area.